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Google Maps Now Provide Satellite Imagery

As part of Google's humble mission to organize all the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful, the Mountain View California company is now offering satellite imagery as part of it's online street-map service. http://maps.google.com/ This technology comes from Google's acquisition of Keyhole, which formerly supplied imagery to certain 'government agencies'. The photo's were taken from space in the not too distant past, which I agree shouldn't just be for the CIA. We all need to see things every once in awhile from 100 miles up. Now Yahoo maps, Expedia and Mapquest are going to be pressured to get there own satellite thing going, and that competition will probably drive the price way down. (Except it's already free.) Well, at least now we can get our directions and scout the surrounding area for WMD factories.

One cable news network ran a provocative headline telling us that the new feature will enable us to "zoom in on homes and businesses" which may raise "privacy concerns."

"Everyone run and hide underground!"

Well, I checked out the 'zoom' feature on my own home address, and it's not like I was able to see into my bedroom window. You won't be using this technology to see over your neighbors fence right away. Maybe, they'll have an upgrade for that, but for now it's sort of like 'zooming' in by looking out the window of a Boeing 767 a few minutes after take off. Actually some areas have a better zoom than others; here's one of me waving out of a bus just before going under an overpass on Interstate 5 in San Diego.

Businesses don't really need to fear losing sensitive information either. I tried to steal the latest designs from the fashion district in New York but instead of Versace's line, it was more like a blurry industrial air conditioner, or a secret North Korean reprocessing plant.

But seriously, it's pretty fun. Look up your old neighborhood and see if they demolished your house. Try to locate the old 'fort' you built in the woods. Oh, what these companies must do to keep us happy. I want holograms from back in time to appear out of my cable modem.

"Nostradamus, could you have predicted that I would write this last article?

Oh.

Well did you predict that I would do... THIS!

Alright that's enough show-off, I'm going to surf a different century."

Rick writes a humor column called, "Don't Laugh It Could Happen To You" for http://sandiego.merchantamerica.com

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