1/7/2006: Google Earth gains momentum
The other day saw the launch of the Google Pack and it's getting a lot of attention. Google Earth is included in the free software grouping.
I've posted various Keyhole/GEarth placemark views here & there on this site, and have posted a number of large and small placemark projects on the GEarth official forum over the last year or so. That forum exploded when Keyhole shifted to Google Earth which included a free download version, and it's now exploding again and is growing faster than it can keep up with. There are a ton of fascinating and thought-provoking posts on there, but they're quickly buried under the glut of "my house" type posts anymore, and that's a shame.
Get a grip, kids.. nobody really wants to see your house, school, or workplace but you. Unless your placemark has some other claim to fame, share it with your friends & family and spare the rest of us.
So with that, I've added a Google Earth page with all of the Keyhole and/or GEarth files I've posted on this site previously that I'll keep up as I add more, and I'll catch up here with some of the more interesting or notable (I think) posts I've made on the forum. Just so they won't get lost in the chaos.
These all link to their related page on the forum which includes the downloadable files, photos, background and/or further info than is included in the placemark files, along with comments & additional info from other posters in many cases. Enjoy!
You need Google Earth to view these files. It's included in Google Pack which you can get free on the right side of this page. These files were all created by me (aka neon_) except where noted - please do not repost without a link back to Another2Cents.com - thanks. Since GEarth updates their database from time to time, the views may or may not remain the same over time. Enjoy!
Tours
Bermuda points of interest **
Brasilia overlays & points of interest in the city laid out like an airplane
Pacific Islands overlay photos from space *
Peanuts Charles M. Schulz Museum, ice arena, and statues project
Roosevelt Island ruins in New York City - a fascinating place
Three Sisters unrelated spots around the world with the same name
Tilden Regional Park a gem in the hills above Berkeley, CA
Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant heavy metal contamination in Minnesota
The Sacred Ganges a tide of humanity (phenomenal photos)
* featured on Google Earth Blog
** featured on Google Touring
Weird 'n grisly
Branch Davidian compound site of the Waco cult and '93 massacre
Chowchilla schoolbus kidnaping bizarre event from 1976
Exploding toads it happened in Hamburg in April '05 - read the full thread for a better placemark and an explanation
A finger in the chili the San Jose Wendy's that was accused - it turned out to be a con
Heaven's Gate mansion 39-person "catch-a-comet" mass suicide in '97
Jayne Mansfield Site of her fatal car crash
JonBenet Ramsey home where the still-unsolved murder happened
More finger food fingertip found in frozen custard in NC, May '05
Patty Hearst chronological tour of the '74-75 stranger than fiction saga
Versace mansion Gianni Versace was killed on his Miami Beach doorstep
In the news
Terrell Owens home scandal calls for a $4.4 million fire sale, November '05
Woman drowns her 3 children tragic incident in San Francisco, October '05
Horowitz murder noted attorney's wife killed at her CA home, October '05
Mount St. Helens overlay photo showing a new lava dome, March '05
Christo's Gates overlay photo of Central Park, February '05 (the thread also has other Christo projects)
Antarctic ice wars a Long Island-sized iceberg crashed around in early '05
Tsunami approaching Sri Lanka overlay photo from space, December '04
Odds 'n ends
Air show in progress Alberta, Canada (temporary until the next database update for this area)
Albany Bulb folk art & former homeless community on San Francisco Bay, and site of Scott Peterson's phony "satanic cult"
Atlantis yet another theory - this time it's Spain
Birth of the Beats & City Lights Books Kerouac, Ginsberg, Casady, Ferlinghetti, etc.
Celebrity Center Hollywood Scientologists wait for L. Ron Hubbard's return
Custer's Last Stand two Little Big Horn overlay maps
Discovery on the launch pad overlay photo from space, plus close-up photos by someone who was there
Evel Knievel's Snake River jump he didn't make it
Franks Tract the story behind that big lake in the Sacramento Delta
Free Speech Movement it all started here, starring Mario Savio
Giant cranes the inspiration for Lucas' Star Wars imperial walkers
Gold discovery the little spot that set of the 49ers Gold Rush
Great Wall of China overlay showing its location.. and no, it can't be seen from space
Greystone Mansion largest in Beverly Hills.. Robert Downey Jr. lip-synchs here
House on a Rock simply amazing Wisconsin attraction
John Brown's grave this is where he lies a'moulderin'
Las Vegas overlay map of the major hotel/casinos & attractions
Lassen Volcanic National Park the other active volcano in the continental US
Longest place names starring the town in Wales known as Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch
Paul Ecke Ranch 70% of Christmas poinsettias are grown here
Rocket Boys the true story behind the movie October Sky
Searles Lake bizarre SoCal landscape
Shoshone Ice Caves a very cool Idaho roadside attraction
Sturgis, SD home of the annual motorcycle rally
Walden Pond overlay map, where Thoreau said "simplify, simplify"
Weird stuff in the 'burbs in East Bay near San Francisco
I've made enough comments here about my thoughts on how Google's gone about things related to Google Earth and its predecessor Keyhole (here and here) so I won't go into what's happening with the forum: one look and it's obvious. And sad. But I do still love the GEarth product and I can always fill a few hours every time I fire it up.
