Google Earth invites you to “get lost” exploring the planet
Celebrities who push products on Instagram without disclosing that they got paid to do so just got a friendly letter from the FTC. The Federal Trade Commission asked the “influencers” to more clearly and conspicuously label their posts as paid placements, saying that using hashtags isn’t enough because “readers may just skip over them.”
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Google Earth is getting a revival, as the 3-D mapping service reorients itself to become more of a tool for adventure and exploration. A central feature in the new Google Earth is Voyager. Google has partnered with such groups as the BBC and NASA to add video clips, photos and text narratives to three-dimensional representations of particular locations.
The Jane Goodall Institute, for instance, lets you journey to spots in Tanzania that inspired its founding chimpanzee expert. You also can get overlays of chimpanzee ranges and compare imagery from 2005 and 2014 to see the effects of forest restoration efforts.
The producers of “Sesame Street” show off Muppets from co-productions around the world; the map shows where the Muppets live and offer stories about the region and its culture.
Separately, a new “I’m Feeling Lucky” feature takes you to a location selected at random. Google Earth is highlighting some 20,000 lesser-known destinations — the kinds of places locals might frequent or know about, such as the Indonesian island of Bunaken, part of a national marine park.
Google Earth used to be the place to go to for satellite views and 3-D images stitched together from aerial fly-bys. A software download was required, limiting its use. Google Maps has incorporated many of those features, making