Pre trip tool

[Ryan Wright]

On 3/29/08, Pete Masterson wrote:
>
> I was amazed to find the same for my address. Someone has done a lot of
driving and
> taken a lot of photos.

Lots of someones, actually. Google has a fleet of cars driving around.
Here's a link to a description of how they do it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_view

And another showing one of the cars they use:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Googlecar.png

Basically, they mount a tripod with a bunch of video cameras looking
in all directions on the roof of a car. Then, they just drive around
with the cameras rolling. I think it's a neat technology. Privacy
concerns are unfounded; if you're in a place that is clearly visible
from the street, you have no expectation of privacy.

I've been using Google Maps for years to plan trips. The tool is invaluable.

-Ryan