Cities in 3D Program spreads to Europe

Posted by Ed Parsons, Geospatial Technologist

Back in March we announced the Google Cities in 3D Program, which invites local governments to share their 3D data with the public by adding a model of their city to Google Earth. The good news is that we are now extending this program with localised websites to encourage governments in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and The Netherlands to share their data with us. The Cities in 3D Program provides local governments, community groups, and educational institutions with tools and information for uploading their data to Google Earth.

We have developed tools to make it as easy as possible for local governments to share information with their citizens, who will be able to view and explore the their local environment in a very realistic way. Travelers will be able to understand what it is like to visit a city, providing a "sense of place" not possible with conventional 2D maps.

One city that has already taken advantage of the program is Westport, Ireland where they produced a 3D city model to promote their town as a world class tourist destination and business location and to help preserve its heritage.

The Cities in 3D Program launching in Europe extends our efforts to engage with content providers, especially government agencies, to help them make the information they produce more accessible and useful. Take a look at the video below to learn more about the power of 3D or explore some great existing 3D cities here.

Follow your team around the European Championship

Posted by Raphael Leiteritz, Product Manager, Google Zurich

To help football fans celebrate the European Championships 2008, you can now use Google Transit and Google Earth to navigate around the tournament in Austria and Switzerland.

Using Google Transit, fans will be able to use Google Maps to plan their tournament travels - from finding tramway stops and the nearest bus stop, to finding departure/arrival times. To find your way from one match to the next simply click on the 'Get Directions' link within the Stadium details in the European Championship Fan Map.


We have coverage for all participating cities including Innsbruck, Wien, Salzburg, Klagenfurt, Basel, Bern, Geneve, Zurich. Data for Google Transit is provided by SBB and VBZ in Switzerland and by ÖBB in Austria.

These are the latest additions to the Google Maps transit trip-planning service, which already includes more than 50 cities in the U.S., Europe, and Canada.

We've also added all eight stadiums hosting the games to the "3D Buildings" layer of Google Earth. Click on any of the buildings for information about the stadium, including the matches scheduled to be held there. The info bubbles associated with each stadium also link to the 23 Days website which contains other tools that are essential for fans.

Get bus and train directions on the go

Posted by Joe Hughes, Software Engineer

(Cross posted from the Google Mobile Blog)

Ever since Google Maps added public transportation directions for San Francisco, it's been a lot easier for me to figure out which buses and trains will get me where I'm going around town, and today's gas prices take less of a toll on my wallet. Even so, I've often found myself wishing that I had an easy way to get transit directions while I'm out and about.

Enter the new version of Google Maps for mobile. This version (2.2) allows you to get transit directions in all the same places as the web version of Google Maps, including Chicago, the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Vancouver, and over 40 other cities in North America.

This version of Google Maps for mobile even has a few tricks not yet available on the desktop version of Google Maps. For instance, you can find the last transit trips of the day (to figure out how late you can stay at the party) and more easily browse through earlier or later trips. The My Location feature, available on most phones, also makes it easier to set the start point of your journey.

To see how the transit feature of Google Maps for mobile works, take a look at this quick video walkthrough with my co-worker Ryan:

This version of Google Maps for mobile also includes a bunch of other goodies, like faster searching on BlackBerry devices and star ratings for businesses. It's currently available for BlackBerry devices and many other Java-based phones. To download it to your phone visit http://www.google.com/gmm from your phone's web browser or on the desktop.

We're working to bring public transit directions to Google Maps on other devices, so stay tuned!

A virtual visit to where dreams come true

Posted by Bruce Polderman, Product Manager (and aspiring Mouseketeer)

If you've used Google Earth to explore possible family vacation destinations, then we have a treat for you: Disney has introduced a new layer for Google Earth that allows you to explore the company's popular Orlando attractions including Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom. The new layer can be accessed in either the "Preview" or "Gallery" folders of Google Earth, or by selecting one of the 3D buildings in the resort.

It shouldn't be a surprise that Disney pushed the user experience of both 3D models and KML to new heights. For example, the KML layer that showcases each park incorporates both video and Flash animations. Open the balloon for Cinderella Castle and you'll be waving a magic wand and spreading pixie dust just by moving your mouse.

Further, it wasn't enough to model the nearly 5000 structures within the park, so Disney included significant amounts of real-world objects such as a monorail, picnic tables, benches, streetlights, signs, and trees. LOTS of trees. As in thousands of them!

All this effort results in an incredibly rich 3D experience - something that just can't be matched with a traditional web site. If Disney's goal is to capture imaginations, then I think they've hit it out of the park. The image quality and level of detail in the 3D models is fantastic - you can even read the menus in some outdoor restaurants!

Parents of Mickey-loving kids be warned: this new layer is sure to result in a change to your summer vacation plans!

Ready for your summer vacation?

Ritee Rouf, Product Marketing Manager

When we received an invitation to attend a friend's wedding in Hawaii, my husband and I couldn't think of a better way to spend our summer vacation. I started my research and quickly realized what a hassle it can be to make travel plans. When you're traveling with kids, spontaneity is not really on the top of your list; you want to plan as much as possible ahead of time. So I started searching on Google Maps, found a hotel close to the beach, and even had the chance to scope out some family-friendly restaurants. I also discovered some interesting travel My Maps that others had created to share stories, photos, and videos from their own trips.

To make travel planning easier for everyone, we have put together some simple travel tips for you at http://maps.google.com/tripplanning including a "how to" video tutorial.

And if you're still trying to find that perfect vacation spot, you can explore photos, videos, and popular searches about a particular place on Google Maps, or turn on the Panoramio photo layer to see what destination catches your eye. Bon voyage!

Have a "look around" with Panoramio

Henrik Stewenius, Software Engineer, Google Zurich

Have you ever looked at a photo and wondered what was beyond its edges - just what was left of that castle or what the facade of Notre Dame looks like from close up? We certainly have, which is why I'm happy to tell you about a new feature we've just introduced for Panoramio, Google's site for sharing geo-tagged photos.

Panoramio enables photographers to geo-locate, store and organize their photographs and to view those images in their geographic context. You may already have seen photos from the Panoramio layer while zooming around in Google Earth or Google Maps (just click the "more" button), but have you visited the Panoramio website? Now, when browsing photos on the site you can explore multiple images of a particular location in a more seamless way.

For select photos on www.panoramio.com, you'll find a new link below the photo:

When you click it, a pop-up will appear that looks like this:

When you mouse over an image, you'll see polygonal frames appear. Each of these frames represents a photo of the same location taken from a different angle or perspective. Just click on the frame to view that photo, and continue exploring. You can also click the thumbnails on the right-hand panel.

Follow the "Look around" link from this photo of Notre Dame in Paris or St Basil's Cathedral in Moscow to see them from all different angles. Take a look at these beautiful photos of the Astrological Clock in Prague.

We're experimenting with this new feature, so you won't find the "look around" link for all of the over 5 million photos shared in Panoramio. For now you'll find it primarily on photos of popular tourist attractions, but, as with our other tools and services, we plan to keep tinkering with it, so keep an eye out for new developments.

Hot off the press: News from Australia in Google Earth

Posted by: Richard Suhr, Head Enterprise for Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia

For those who have enjoyed the Google News layer and the New York Times layer in Google Earth there's now another way for you to stay on top of the world's news. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) today announced the launch of ABC Earth, which will feature live stories and archived content in a Google Earth layer. Read more about it on the Google Australia Blog.

It's another great reason to fly over to Australia in Google Earth - if you haven't already, that is.