Posts Tagged ‘Suchmaschinenriesen’
Google Maps: new street views
Thanks to Google Maps feature “Street View” (we have already discussed this several times, most recently) users can now wander virtually through even more metropoli in Europe and the USA.
Thick and fast, Google has recently added numerous new street views on its local search, Google Maps. This was recently referred to in, several entries in the Google Lat Long Blog.
Soon after the search engine giant added many French towns such as Lyon, Marseilles and Nice (in mid-October 2008), street views of Spain and Italy followed at the end of October. So users can now ramble through Rome, Milan and Florence, or roam through Madrid, Valencia or Seville, and see the sights by mouse click. However, its not only the major European cities that have been documented – one can even view Lake Como. And punctually timed for the US elections, one can flit through the inner cities of Washington, DC as well as Seattle and Baltimore.
Locations that are available in Street View are marked with Camera icons, after the user selects the Street View button while in Map View. There are not too many in Europe as yet, but this is apparently soon to change. for example, Focus.de published an interview with Google spokesperson Stefan Keuchel, in which he announced that the German Street View debut will feature at least three cities, in early 2009.
This project is however quite disputed in Germany for reasons of data protection (see our article). Regarding this controversy , Stefan Keuchel drew the readers’ attention to an interesting article on the Podcast Portal ‘PR on Air’.
Sharper images for Google Maps
As of the start of September, our globe has been under a further scrutinous eye – that of the GeoEye-1 Satellite, an undertaking of the USA company GeoEye. Google in the future will be one of the customers using the current satellite images delivered by this company.
In a press release, GeoEye explains how the new spacecraft, which orbits at 681km (XXX miles), is fitted with the highest resolution camera available in the non-governmental sphere. Black and white photos are delivered in a resolution of 0,41 meter, and color photos at 1,65 meter. That means objects on the surface are recognizable at sizes from 41cm and 165cm respectively.
According to A report on CNet details a contract between Google and GeoEye, giving the search engine giant the exclusive use of the images, in the sphere of online-map services. Google will use these for its online applications Google Maps and Google Earth. However, Google will be unable to offer the best resolution images to its clients, as US regulations limit GeoEye to offer photos to the commercial sector with a resolution of 0,5m or worse.
Posted in Local Search per PC, Local Search, News, Local Search Engines | 
Tags: GeoEye, Google, google maps, local, Maps, Satellit, Suchdienst, Suchmaschine, Suchmaschinenprimus, Suchmaschinenriese, Suchmaschinenriesen | 
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Google Maps mobil hört zu
30 Jul. 2008 | Author: AWo |
Die mobile Ausgabe der lokalen Suchmaschine Google Maps kann nun auch per Spracheingabe gesteuert werden. Allerdings befindet sich dieser Dienst noch im Test und ist bislang nur in den USA für wenige Handy-Modelle verfügbar.
Wie die Google-Mitarbeiter Jonathan Matus und Luca Zanolin im Google Mobile Blog berichten, können Besitzer von Black-Berry-Geräten (Pearl 8110, 8120 und 8130) in den USA nun ihre lokale Suchanfrage nach Unternehmen ins Handy sprechen, statt sie über die Tastatur einzugeben.
Besonders praktisch sei diese Art der Suche dann, wenn man gerade nicht tippen könne, der Name des Unternehmens lang sei oder man nicht wisse, wie der Name buchstabiert werde. Die Suche per Stimme sei einfach. Man halte – nachdem man die Kartenansicht auf den eigenen Standort zentriert habe – die Sprachwahltaste auf der linken Seite des Black-Berry und spreche den Namen oder die Branche des gesuchten Unternehmens. Darauf hin lasse man den Knopf wieder los, worauf die Spracherkennungstechnik die Frage interpretiere und das gewünschte Unternehmen finde.
Dieses neue Google-Maps-Feature nutzt die gleiche Spracherkennungstechnik wie die kostenlose computergesteuerte Telefonauskunft GOOG-411 des Suchmaschinenriesen (wir berichteten), erklären Matus und Zanolin. Allerdings scheint die Genauigkeit noch nicht vollständig zu überzeugen, denn die beiden Googler versprechen auch, dass sich die Technik im Laufe der Zeit, wenn mehr Leute diese Suchfunktion per Spracheingabe nutzen, verbessern werde.
Google takes on maps from Tele Atlas
Google and Tele Atlas have signed a long term collaboration. As detailed in a press release from Tele Atlas, the two undertakings closed a 5 year deal at the end of June 2008.
The deal grants Google access to the cartographic material of the Netherlands-Belgian map maker. The search engine giant will be able to use this for its present and future map-based services and navigation facilities, for its internet and desktop services (Google Maps and Google Earth) as well as for mobile applications such as Google Maps for Mobile (mobile.google.de).
Tele Atlas in turn receives access to user corrections and suggestions gathered from the Google user community. Tele Atlas plans to use this data to optimize the quality of their map production. Details of the financial arrangement were not revealed by Tele Atlas.
Google and Yahoo! cooperate
Rather Google than Microsoft, seemingly think the internet portal creators Yahoo! thereby negotiating a non-exclusive advertising contract between the search engine giant and its arch-rival.
In February this year, as is well-known, Microsoft made a bid for the complete takeover of Yahoo! This proposal came adrift in May 2008 after exhaustive negotiations. However Microsoft still showed interest in Yahoo! – and wanted at least to buy out Yahoo’s search engine undertaking. Yet again, the deal came to nothing and Microsoft walked away empty handed. On 12th June 2008, Yahoo! announced in a press release that negotiations were officially over with Microsoft.
Later the same day, Yahoo! announced its cooperation with Google. And Google too announced the collaboration in a separate press release. As is to be discerned from the press releases, the agreement covers a non-exclusive advertizing contract between the companies. Soon, paid ads from Google’s “Adsense for Search” and “Adsense for Content” will be visible on Yahoo! pages, as well as on the search results of Yahoo! and its partner and affiliate portals. This agreement applies only to the USA and Canadian Yahoo! services.
The agreement was negotiated for a four year term, with the option for two extensions of three years each, to a maximum of ten years. In the meantime, both sides have factored in a wait-time of three and a half months to allow the US Justice department time to evaluate the cooperative venture.
