[GSDI Technical] Google Earth Plug-in and API developments

[Doug Nebert]

Google yesterday announced the availability of a web browser plug-in 
that mimics most of the functionality of Google Earth, except without 
requiring the download and installation of the desktop Google Earth 
client. Following the Google Maps API practice, where one acquires a 
'key' per server that will host the javascript application, this new 
capability brings 3-D rendering, interaction, and controls that would 
allow one to create a more custom interface with a legend or controls of 
your choosing. I need to check into the capabilities and limitations 
more, but see this as an interesting development for the geo mashup and 
developer community:

http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2008/05/google-earth-meet-browser.html

On a related note, at the conclusion of the Where 2.0 and Where Camp in 
Calfornia earlier this month, the Google team announced better support 
for geospatial search and indexing (by the Google search engine) based 
on embedded geographic clues either in KML files or in GeoRSS feeds. The 
Local Search API (javascript also) and Maps API for Flash can be tuned 
to find geographically tagged data (well, KML) or metadata 
(GeoRSS/Atom), once your 'sitemap.xml' files that describe them are 
registered and indexed by Google. So far it seems that point locations 
are well supported, with indexing and search of more complex geometries 
by the main Google search engine to come:

http://googlemapsapi.blogspot.com/2008/05/geo-search-20-data-in-data-out.html

-- 
Douglas D. Nebert
Senior Advisor for Geospatial Technology, System-of-Systems Architect
FGDC Secretariat     Phone: +1 703 648 4151     Fax: +1 703 648-5755