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ruler

Measuring distances with the Google Earth Ruler

August 6, 2013

The “ruler” tool in Google Earth has always been useful, and it has seen a number of improvements over the years. To get started with it, simply go to [Tools] –> [Ruler] in Google Earth and it’ll open up for you in a small window.

Here are a few things you can do with it:

Measure the length of a field
To measure the length of a field (or driveway, or any other straight line), simply use the “line” feature in the ruler. Choose your unit of measure (inches, meters, miles, etc) and then click the two points on the ground you’d like to measure. That’s it — it’s very easy!

field.jpg
Measure a running/biking route
I have a GPS-enabled watch that can track how far I run, which is quite cool. However, I usually want to know how far my route is before I head out, and the Ruler’s “path” tool is great for that. By choosing the path, and then clicking various points along my route, I can see how far it’ll be. As long as you plot your points carefully, it will be remarkably accurate. I also change the setting to “miles” for this one, since that’s how I typically measure my runs. This would also work well for biking, hiking, or just walking. You could potentially use it to measure driving distance, though the standard “directions” feature would work better in most of those cases.

running.jpg
Save and edit your path
Once you’ve created your path, you might want to save it for future reference. Simply click the “save” button in the Ruler’s window and it will save the path to your “Temporary Places” folder. You can edit the path in the future by right-clicking on the item from within your “places” panel and choosing “properties”.

save-path.jpg
Get an elevation profile
One of the great new features unveiled back in Google Earth 5.2 was “Elevation Profiles”. This allows you to quickly see the elevation changes over a particular area. If you save your path in Google Earth, you can view the elevation profile for it very easily. Right-click on the item you saved in your “places” panel and choose “Show Elevation Profile”.

In this example, we’ll hike up Kennesaw mountain, and then follow the service road to get back down. You can see that the elevation profile shows the steep ascent, followed by the more gradual descent on the way back down.

kennesaw.jpg
The Ruler tool in Google Earth can be quite useful, so head into [Tools] –> [Ruler] to try it for yourself!

Filed Under: Google Earth Tips Tagged With: elevation, measure, ruler

Mashable’s “Google Earth Tips for Power Users”

June 24, 2013

Mashable recently posted an article titled “10 Google Earth Tips for Power Users” that gained quite a bit of attention.  If you read our site very often you’re likely already familiar with the tips, but it’s a good refresher nonetheless.

1 – Travel Through Time
The historical imagery tool is indeed one of my favorite features in Google Earth.

2 – Measure Long Distances
The ruler can certainly be quite useful.  Among other things, I use when trying to find new routes to run so I can get a rough estimate of the distance before I head out.

3 – Use Layers
The many layers in Google Earth are what make it so useful, and I encourage you to dig into them if you never have before.

4 – Take or Create Guided Tours
One of the best ways to tell us a story with Google Earth is by using tours, such as this awesome one from Colin Hazelhurst.

5 – Use Flight Simulator
The built-in flight simulator is certainly great, but don’t forget to check out Xavier Tassin’s awesome GEFS application.

6 – Create and View Maps
One of the core uses of Google Earth is the ability to load and save KML files, which make it so easy to share information and locations with other people.

7 – Build in 3D
While tools like SketchUp can help you to build detailed 3D models, there are some nifty tools built in to Google Earth to help you quickly create simple structures.

8 – Explore the Sea
Added as part of Google Earth 5, the 3D Ocean is an amazing feature to explore.

9 – Explore Space
Google added the Night Sky feature to Google Earth way back in 2007, and it provides a great interface to explore the stars.  They also just added a new “starry sky” background to Google Earth as part of version 7.1, greatly adding to the realism of the product.

10 – Use Google Earth Offline
The ability to use Google Earth offline can be very handy from time to time, and this post explains how to get started with it.

All in all, it’s really a pretty solid list.  Check out their full article here, then leave a comment below and let us know what your favorite power user tip is.

Filed Under: Flying, Google Earth Tips Tagged With: flight simulator, historical imagery, layers, mashable, ocean, offline, polygons, ruler, starry sky, tours, xavier tassin



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