I've finally collected evidence of Google's plan for world domination:
Notice the faint "(c) 2005 Google" text that is scattered in about a dozen different places across the satellite map -- Google's copyrighting our planet! From this image it appears Google now has faint control over much of Merced county.
Seriously, though, when Microsoft, of all companies, can offer the high resolution, public domain, satellite imagery on their Terraserver site, assessible via a Web services API, is it really necessary that Google crud up their images with their subliminal plans for Global World Control?
As a comparison: * Castro Street, Mountain View, on Terraserver * Castro Street, Mountain View, on Google Maps
Disclaimers: MS gets their imagery from the USGS, Google gets their imagery from DigitalGlobe, which explains some of the copyright issues, but not their expression of it. Google Maps does have a better UI than Terraserver, as well as Yahoo Maps and Mapquest (which both seem to have taken away their satellite views), but it does not have the GIS-friendly API of Terraserver.
Update: an even better map showing Google (c) World Domination over Burning Man (appropriate, considering the tradition of the changing Google logos first started b/c of Burning Man).
Comments (5)
I was playing with this this morning. I looked up my office, then scrolled west to see The White House and east to the Capital. Oddly, the roofs of the White House and adjacent buildings have been painted over, and the Capital is all pixellated.
Posted by David Ely
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April 5, 2005 12:56 PM
Posted on April 5, 2005 12:56
Those painted roofs are pretty amusing. They didn't even try to disguise what they were doing there.
Posted by kwc | April 5, 2005 3:06 PM
Posted on April 5, 2005 15:06
The Capitol building now has a lot in common with Janet Jackson's exposed breast
Posted by kwc | April 5, 2005 3:08 PM
Posted on April 5, 2005 15:08
One last observation: the Capitol building and Senate offices are pixelated, but the Supreme Court is not... Google must really have it out for those activist judges.
Posted by kwc | April 5, 2005 3:12 PM
Posted on April 5, 2005 15:12
Is this an enforceable copyright by Google?
Posted by zephyr | June 22, 2005 12:07 PM
Posted on June 22, 2005 12:07