Archives for June 29, 2005

from Glenn’s blog… Here’s a timely one.. on the heels of the Google Earth news, Yahoo! is poised for some cool news themselves regarding the availability of Yahoo! Maps API
Yahoo! Local makes available an extension of the Yahoo! Search API offering with the availability of Yahoo! Maps API. According to Yahoo! reps, it’s free, stable, backward compatible, fully supported and documented.
More details from Yahoo!… Yahoo! Maps API gives developers of all levels free public access to Yahoo!’s SmartView Technology – enabling them to see their own geographical data on Yahoo! Maps. Developers can now create customized maps by overlaying a variety of content onto an existing Yahoo! Map including weather reports, school district boundaries, open houses, garage sales, vacation photos, and more.
The API was designed to meet the following developer needs:
· It’s Easy to Use: Yahoo! Maps API can be used by developers of all levels. Yahoo! does the geocoding for you – there’s no need to deal with confusing latitude and longitude coordinates. You can get a customized map up and running within one hour!
· Open Standard: Yahoo! Maps API open standard makes it available for use by any developer. Yahoo! builds upon RSS standards, specifically GEO RSS.
· It’s Stable: Yahoo! Maps API is an official, stable tool with a dedicated engineering team that’s committed to continued development and innovation.
· It’s Free: Yahoo! Maps API is free for any user.
Yahoo! also provides space on the page for partner branding and links to go back to the referral page. Yahoo! is committed to supporting the API via group forum at yws-maps. The Yahoo! Maps open API is based on geoRSS, RSS 2.0 and w3c geo extension.
An example use of the API is seen below. It shows an application locating Bay Area traffic cameras. Click on the map to be taken to the actual application.

See http://developer.yahoo.net/maps/

The highly anticipated Google Earth is now here.. users can now “fly” to a location using this very popular geospatial search engine.
The utility, available via free download boasts the following functionality:
Fly from space to your neighborhood. Type in an address and zoom right in.
Search for schools, parks, restaurants, and hotels. Get driving directions.
Tilt and rotate the view to see 3D terrain and buildings.
Save and share your searches and favorites. Even add your own annotations.
Beffore you download and try for youself you can check out some demo shots made available from Google… Eiffel Tower, or the Lincoln Memorial
Jump to http://earth.google.com/index.html for the full effect and try for yourself. Those of you that are really impressed by the service might consider Google Earth Plus – Google Earth Plus is an optional upgrade adding GPS device support, the ability to import spreadsheets, drawing tools and better printing.
Suggested cfg: (Source: Google)
Operating system: Windows XP
CPU speed: Intel® Pentium® P4 2.4GHz+ or AMD 2400xp+
System memory (RAM): 512MB
2GB hard-disk space
3D graphics card: 3D-capable video card with 32MB VRAM or greater
1280×1024, 32-bit true color screen
Network speed: 128 kbps (“Broadband/Cable Internet”)