Google Street View
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 An intersection in Seattle, Washington |
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| Initial release | May 25, 2007 |
|---|---|
| Latest release | / 2009-03-18 (areas in  France,  Italy,  Netherlands,  Spain,  United Kingdom,  United States) |
| Available in | English, French |
| Website | Google Maps |
Google Street View is a feature of Google Maps and Google Earth that provides for many streets in the world 360° horizontal and 290° vertical panoramic views from a row of positions along the street (one in every 10 or 20 metres, or so), from a height of about two metres. It was launched on May 25, 2007, and is gradually expanded to include more cities, and in these cities more streets, and also some rural areas. These photographs are currently available for countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Coverage is shown by dragging "pegman" from its position, on a map of any scale.
Google Street View displays photos taken from a fleet of Chevrolet Cobalts in United States, Opel Astras in Europe and Australia, Vauxhall Astras in the United Kingdom and Toyota Prius cars in Japan. Pedestrian areas, narrow streets and park alleys that cannot be accessed by car are not always covered. However, sometimes Google Bikes are used.[1] On each of these cars (and bikes) 9 directional cameras for the 360° views, GPS units for positioning, Laser Range Finders for the measuring of buildings and 3G/Wi-Fi aerials for whereabouts on 3G and Wi-Fi hotspots are all mounted.[2]
Where available street view images appear after zooming in beyond the highest zooming level in maps and satellite images, and also by dragging "pegman" to some position. Using the keyboard or mouse the horizontal and vertical viewing direction and the zoom level can be selected. A straight or broken line in the photo shows the approximate path followed by the camera car; two arrows link to the next photo in each direction. At junctions and crossings of camera car routes, more arrows are shown.
On November 21, 2008, Street View was added to the Maps application installed on Apple's iPhone. On December 10, 2008, Street View was added to the Maps application for S60 3rd Edition. Street view has now also been added to the Windows Mobile version of Google Maps. All versions of Google Maps for Android feature street view, and the digital compass can be used to look around the locations.
Contents |
[edit] Development
Note: Bold means which locations are available in High Quality view, and italic bold indicates which locations are partial available in High Quality view.
Google Street View was first introduced in the United States on May 25, 2007, and until November 26, 2008, featured camera icon markers, each representing at least one major city or area (such as a park), and usually the other nearby cities, towns, suburbs, and parks. Many areas that had coverage were not represented by icons.
- On April 16, 2008, Street View was fully integrated into Google Earth 4.3.
- On July 2, 2008, Google Street View was introduced in France and Italy, providing the first service outside the United States. On this day, 19 camera icons were added, mostly showing small towns and areas along the Tour de France route and part of north western Italy
- On August 4, 2008, Australia and Japan were added to Google Street View. On this day, 28 icons were added, featuring major metropolitan areas of Japan as well as the bulk of Australia. Included in the update were approximately 40 new U.S. hub cities.
- On December 1, 2008, New Zealand was added to Google Street View. Faces were blurred upon recommendation by the New Zealand Privacy Commission, but vehicle registration plates were not obscured.
- Two other features included in the June 10, 2008 update were an effective mask of the "Google" car and the application of face-blurring technology on all photos, which effectively lowered the resolution across all photos, even the formerly impressive high resolution images of San Francisco. Also, many nearby metro areas were included, but they did not receive their own camera icons. Google initially used images from spherical video company Immersive Media as well as their own vehicles. Since December 2007, Google has used imagery that belongs exclusively to Google.
- On 26 November 2008, the Street View Button and all the camera icon were deleted. Instead of clicking the "Street View" button, you can now click on the "pegman" button in the left hand corner. If you drag "pegman" over the map and where Street View is available the blue polylines will appear on the map and a small window will show the current Street View. If you drop "pegman" on the map the Street View opens and takes over the whole map window.
[edit] By location
Google Street View was first introduced in the United States on May 25, 2007, and only covered areas of the United States until July 2, 2008. As of today, images can be seen in seven countries (although parts of other countries can be seen from locations located near national borders; for example, large portions of Vatican City can be viewed from Rome's streetview). Introductions have generally occurred every 2 days to 3 months. Up until November 26, 2008, major cities (and early on, the only cities) were marked by camera icons, more of which were added each time. Then, all camera icons were discontinued in favor simply of "blue" coverage.
[edit] United States
The United States was the first country to have Street View images and was the only country with images for over a year following introduction. Early on, most locations had a limited number of views, usually constrained to the city limits and only including major streets, and they only showed the buildings up to a certain height. Few suburbs or other nearby cities were included.
After the first few sets of introductions, image collections from cities added were more detailed, often including every side street, especially in areas closer to the center of the city. More suburbs and other nearby cities were included.
The views of cities added on one date have also been improved frequently on a later date, sometimes a date in which no additional cities were added. These have included the additions of streets in neighborhoods where previously only main roads had been covered, expansions to more suburbs, and views to the sky where previously only views to a certain height were provided.
Initially when a group of cities were added, only those cities and their own suburbs would be a part of the image collection. But June 10, 2008 introductions also included cities in covered areas without camera icons and isolated from any other camera icons. Many more cities were added without icons on August 4, when the only U.S. city added with an icon was New Orleans.
On November 4, 2008, three more U.S. cities were added: Washington D.C., Baltimore, and Seattle. More parts of Seattle are available in high quality view (like Mercer Island and center of the city).
On December 9, 2008, extensive coverage of the United States was added. This included full coverage of all large and most medium-sized urban areas and most major highways and connecting arteries throughout the 48 contiguous states.
On March 18, 2009, extensive coverage of the United States was added including most of the coverage of Delaware, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and South Dakota. Interestingly enough, some coverage was deleted (such as in northern Minnesota.)
The only state as of this date that does not have coverage is Hawaii.
[edit] Europe
The first views anywhere outside the United States were introduced on July 2, 2008, when the Tour de France route was added. Nineteen camera icons, each indicating part of a French city or town and Cuneo, Italy were included.
On October 14, 2008, camera icons were introduced in six French cities, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Paris, Toulouse. At the same time, all other icons that had been introduced in France on July 2, as well as the one of Cuneo, Italy, were removed, representing the first time in Street View's history that a camera icon that once marked a place was removed. But the amount of coverage that France had since July 2 was not diminished.
On October 27, 2008, four Spanish metropolitan areas were added to the list of growing street view locations in Europe. These include Madrid, Barcelona, Seville and Valencia.
On October 29, 2008, Italy received four camera icons for the localities of Florence, Milan, Rome, and Lake Como.
On March 18, 2009, United Kingdom and Netherlands images were added.
[edit] Asia
Japan was also introduced on August 4, 2008. Japan's coverage is currently concentrated in five areas with a total of 10 camera icons. The service has faced criticisms from some in Japan of cultural insensitivity.[3]
Google Street View camera cars were visible in the streets of Singapore on October 2008. Google has confirmed the fact that the Google Street View would be coming to Singapore a few months later. [4]
As of March 2009 the Google Street View camera car was also seen roaming the streets of Taipei, Taiwan.
[edit] Oceania
On August 4, 2008, the long-anticipated image collection of Australia was introduced. At this time, the bulk of Australia was included in detail, with 18 camera icons. Extensive mapping of New Zealand was included on December 1, 2008. On December 9, 2008 Darwin, Australia and other locations were included.
[edit] Areas included
This list is not comprehensive as Google is adding new locations regularly.
[edit] United States
The only state as of this date that does not have coverage is Hawaii.
[edit] Oceania
[edit] Europe
[edit] Japan
| Region | Major cities/areas |
|---|---|
| Hokkaidō | Sapporo, Hakodate |
| Tōhoku | Sendai |
| Kantō | Chiba, Saitama, Tokyo, Yokohama |
| Kansai | Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara |
[edit] Future
Google has stated that its ultimate goal is to provide street views of the entire world, although the company has not disclosed in advance the exact dates when any particular locations will be added.[5]
In the more immediate future, Google plans to release Street View for various Canadian cities, but modified so that faces and license plates are blurred, due to concerns raised by Canada's federal privacy commissioner Jennifer Stoddart about the program breaching Canadian privacy laws.[6]
In April 2008, Google Street View cars were spotted in Italy with Sick AG LIDAR system added to the scanning array on the car. These would be used for gathering 3D data as well as images.[7]
| Country/Region | Locations | Citation |
|---|---|---|
 Singapore |
Most of Singapore | [8] |
 Hong Kong |
Major part | [9] |
 Taiwan |
Taipei | [10] |
 Canada |
All major cities | [11] |
 Mexico |
Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Hermosillo | [12][13][14][15] |
 Austria |
Vienna, Innsbruck, Salzburg | [16][17] |
 Belgium |
Antwerp, Brussels and Liège | [18][19] |
 Finland |
All major cities | [20][21] |
| France |
All places | [22] |
 Germany |
All places | [23][24][25][26][27] |
 Ireland |
Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Waterford | [28] |
| Italy |
All places | [29][30][31][32] |
| Netherlands |
All places | [33] |
 Romania |
Bucharest | [34][35][36] |
| Spain |
All places | [37][38][39][40] |
 Switzerland |
Bern, Zürich, Geneva | [41] |
| United Kingdom |
All places | [42][43][44][45][46] [47][48][48][49][50][51] |
[edit] Privacy issues
Privacy advocates have objected to this Google feature, pointing to views found to show men leaving strip clubs, protesters at an abortion clinic, sunbathers in bikinis, cottagers at public parks, parents hitting their children, males picking up prostitutes, and people engaging in activities visible from public property in which they do not wish to be seen publicly.[52] Google maintains that the photos were taken from public property. Before launching the service, Google removed photos of domestic violence shelters, and it allows users to flag inappropriate or sensitive imagery for Google to review and remove.[53] When the service was first launched, the process for requesting that an image be removed was not trivial,[54] but Google has changed its policy to make removal more straightforward.[55] Images of potential break-ins, sunbathers, and individuals entering adult bookstores have, however, remained active and these images have been widely republished.[56][57]
In Europe, the creation of Google Street View may not be legal in all jurisdictions. Some European countries have laws prohibiting the filming without consent of an individual on public property for the purpose of public display.[58]
[edit] United States
One of Google's responses to concerns about privacy laws outside the United States has been a pledge to blur the faces of people who are filmed. Google began blurring faces on 13 May 2008[59] and the images published since then, including the first launch of images in Europe on 2 July 2008, have all used face blurring.
Google delayed the release of its street views of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area following concern expressed by the United States Department of Homeland Security that some of the images taken might be of security-sensitive areas.[60]
The Pentagon has banned Google from publishing Street View content of U.S. Military bases and asked Google to remove existing content of bases. Google has complied with this order.[61]
Some parents have expressed concern over Street View compromising the security of their children.[62]
Aaron and Christine Boring, a Pittsburgh couple, sued Google for "invasion of privacy". Street View made a photo of their home available online, and they claimed that this diminished the value of their house, which they had chosen for its privacy.[63] They lost their case in a Pennsylvania court. "While it is easy to imagine that many whose property appears on Google's virtual maps resent the privacy implications, it is hard to believe that any – other than the most exquisitely sensitive – would suffer shame or humiliation," Judge Hay ruled.[64]
Some cities in the United States where all streets are privately owned have asked Google to remove Street View images because their consent was not given. North Oaks, Minnesota may have been the first. In that case, Google complied.[65]
[edit] Australia
In 2007, Google pledged not to identify faces or number plates in Australia.[66] However, as of March 2009, it is still possible to view both.[67][68]
[edit] Japan
In Japan, Google Street View started in August 2008 and was made available for ten Japanese Prefectures in February 2009. The available Street View areas depicted residential and business areas, and showed the faces of pedestrians, displayed vehicle registration plates, and the name plate of a family residence (表札 Hyōsatsu) - Google's decision to show these has led to disputes. Local governments, lawyers and individuals claimed Google was violating privacy.[69] On 3 February 2009, Google Japan representatives attended a meeting about privacy concerns held at a Tokyo Metropolitan Government facility, and agreed that privacy issues had not been adequately considered. Google pledged that, before taking photographs for Street View, they would in future notify the provinces' local government. Google Japan admitted that notifications and explanations of this kind had already been taking place in countries other than Japan, but had not done so in Japan as they were not aware of the potential privacy concerns.[70]
[edit] Northern Ireland
The launch of the Belfast version on 20 March 2009 drew criticism that it represented a "reckless" security risk, particularly for showing the exteriors of army bases and police stations so soon after the killing of two soldiers in the 2009 Massereene Barracks shooting, and a police officer.[71]
[edit] England
In the first days of launch the English service drew criticism due to privacy.[72] Images were found of a man leaving a sex shop, a man vomiting and a man being arrested (but not necessarily the same man, and not necessarily in that order). Some images were removed including those surrounding Downing Street.[73][74]
Soon after the launch human rights watchdog Privacy International sent a formal complaint about the service to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which cited more than 200 reports from members of the public who were identifiable on Street View images. Privacy International director Simon Davies said that the organisation had filed the complaint due to the "clear embarrassment and damage" Street View had caused to many Britons. He said that Street View fell short of the assurances given by Google to the ICO in July 2008 that had enabled its launch, namely that privacy would be protected by blurring faces and vehicle licence plates, and asked for the system to be "switched off" while an investigation was completed. He said the few cases where Google's face blurring system had failed meant the data used by Street View would fall under UK Data Protection legislation, which requires that subjects give permission for the use of information concerning them.[75]
Davies subsequently sent an open letter to Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, accusing the company of briefing journalists against him, claiming Davies was biased in favor of Microsoft. Google has pointed to connections between Microsoft and data protection consultancy 80/20 Thinking, run by Davies, and has said that Davies' connections to Microsoft should be made clear in public, as the credibility of his criticisms is undermined by the fact that he acts as a consultant to companies who are direct rivals and critics of Google; a fact Davies rarely discloses in press releases or comments.[76]
On 3 April 2009, it was reported in the press that residents of the village of Broughton in Buckinghamshire formed a human barrier to stop a Google car from photographing the village[77], expressing fears that it was "invading [the villagers'] privacy" and "facilitating crime."[78] As also reported in the press, contrary reactions have come from some Internet users, who have called on people to "descend on the village to snap their own perfectly legal photographs."[79]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ googlemaps bike on Flickr
- ^ A couple of thoughts on Street View « Rotacoo
- ^ Japan and Google Street View, special coverage page at Global Voices Online.
- ^ [1], Google Street View Coming To Singapore.
- ^ Twelve New Cities To See In Street View | WebProNews
- ^ Weeks, Carly (September 24, 2007). "Google’s Street View blurred by Canadian privacy concerns". CanWest News Service. http://www.canada.com/topics/technology/story.html?id=bd8c8628-db07-4d6d-b642-7a6498a5f9b5&k=67330. Retrieved on 2009-04-01.
- ^ Google Street View - Soon in 3D? at Educating Silicon
- ^ Google Street View Cars Spotted in Singapore
- ^ Google Street View in Hong Kong :: ASM
- ^ Google Street View cars in Taiwan - Google Blogoscoped Forum
- ^ "Google's detailed streetscapes raise privacy concerns". Archived from the original on 2007-09-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20070916044257/http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=9e53df0f-3211-4cde-837c-90a6bb4d561d&k=49986.
- ^ Avistamiento de uno de los autos con cámara de Google Stree View en la Ciudad de México
- ^ Picasa - Alejandro - Mis Fotos par
- ^ YouTube - Google Street View Monterrey
- ^ Expreso.com.mx
- ^ GoogleWatchBlog - Google Streetview Auto in Wien gesichtet
- ^ [2]
- ^ Google ontkent lancering Street View in België - Knack.be
- ^ deredactie.be - Videozone
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]
- ^ Google Maps - Google Street View en France
- ^ Google fotografiert BerlinGoogles Foto-Orgie
- ^ Google Street View in Hamburg? Hab ich was verpasst? - (mit hacksause)
- ^ Googles Foto-Orgie
- ^ «Google« lässt alle Straßen Nürnbergs filmen
- ^ Google Street View Auto gesichtet » adminday.de
- ^ Smith, Gordon (2009-03-14). "Google takes to the streets to show the way to go in Ireland". The Irish Times. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2009/0314/1224242851121.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-14.
- ^ [News] Google Street view: Dopo le grandi città ecco anche Cagliari - Software Upgrade
- ^ DSC_5895 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!
- ^ Google Car avvistata a L’Aquila e Pescara (aggiornato) « Morg4n’s Bay
- ^ Google Street View a Lecce
- ^ Google kijkt mee in Amsterdam en Rotterdam
- ^ Google pregateste Street View pentru Bucuresti « Simon Says: Bute, l-a facut KO pe Zuniga in 4 runde!
- ^ Google car street view in Bucuresti ? » Blogul lui CTI97
- ^ [5]
- ^ El coche de Google, cazado en Palma | elmundo.es
- ^ Google viaja por Málaga | málagahoy.es
- ^ Fotos de los coches de Google Street View en Bilbao, Zaragoza y Oviedo | http://google.dirson.com
- ^ Los coches de Google Street View en Valladolid | http://www.openeconomy.net
- ^ Google camera cars have started gathering street-level photos in Switzerland. - swissinfo
- ^ British privacy group aims to roadblock Google's Street View - The INQUIRER
- ^ Evening Telegraph: News
- ^ Liverpool Daily Post, July 21, 2008
- ^ http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/02/street_view_spycar/
- ^ Plugged In Blog » Google Streetview Car spotted in Horsforth, Leeds, Englandtown and Kingston Upon Hull
- ^ BBC NEWS | Northern Ireland | Google camera car hits the street
- ^ a b Google to launch Street View on Google Maps in UK
- ^ [www.neatorama.com/2008/07/30/cops-pwnd-google-street-view-car/]
- ^ Google starts Street View mapping in UK. And here’s the evidence
- ^ Google Street View vehicle spotted in Birmingham, UK 16th August 2008
- ^ MacDonald, Calum (June 4, 2007). "Google’s Street View site raises alarm over privacy". The Herald. http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/other/display.var.1444323.0.0.php. Retrieved on 2009-04-01.
- ^ Mills, Elinor (June 3, 2007). "Google's street-level maps raising privacy concerns". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/internetprivacy/2007-06-01-google-maps-privacy_N.htm. Retrieved on 2009-04-01.
- ^ "Google Waffles on Street View Takedown Policy". Dr. Dobb's Portal. June 15, 2007. http://www.ddj.com/web-development/199904845.
- ^ "Google Lets You Remove People from Street View". Google Operating System. August 26, 2007. http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2007/08/google-lets-you-remove-people-from.html. Retrieved on 2009-04-01.
- ^ "Google Street View: Accidental Online Community or Real Invasion of Privacy?". Web Urbanist. June 8, 2007. http://weburbanist.com/2007/06/08/google-street-view-popular-online-community-or-invasion-of-privacy/.
- ^ Google Street View: Examples of interesting street views.
- ^ Google's Street View could be unlawful in Europe | OUT-LAW.COM
- ^ Google begins blurring faces in Street View
- ^ Pull up a chair for a walking tour | The Providence Journal
- ^ "Pentagon bans Google teams from bases". Reuters. 2008-03-06. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8V84RL00&show_article=1. Retrieved on 2008-03-07.
- ^ Fox 6 Now | Google Street View Upsets Some Parents
- ^ "Couple Sues Google Over "Street View".". The Smoking Gun. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/0404081google1.html. Retrieved on 2008-04-04.
- ^ "Google wins Street View privacy case". The Guardian. 19 February 2009. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/feb/19/google-wins-street-view-privacy-case. Retrieved on 2009-02-19. "An American couple who attempted to sue Google over what they claimed was its "privacy invading" Street View technology have lost their case in a Pennsylvania court."
- ^ Pabst, Lora (May 31, 2008). "North Oaks tells Google Maps: Keep out - we mean it". Minneapolis Star-Tribune. http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/19416279.html. Retrieved on 2009-04-01.
- ^ "Google unveils Street View across Australia". news.com.au. 2008-08-05. http://www.news.com.au/technology/story/0,25642,24130293-5014108,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-06.
- ^ "Google Street View told: keep off, private". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2008-08-07. http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/google-street-view-told-keep-off-private/2008/08/07/1217702214157.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-08.
- ^ "Google takes a risky road with privacy". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2008-08-06. http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/google-takes-a-risky-road-with-privacy/2008/08/06/1217702095425.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-07.
- ^ "Japan: Debate over Google Street View continues". Global Voices. http://globalvoicesonline.org/2008/08/14/japan-debate-over-google-street-view-continues/. Retrieved on 2009-02-08.
- ^ Yomiuri Shimbun(Japanese edition), 2009-02-04 Ver.13S page 28
- ^ BBC NEWS | Northern Ireland | Google 'reckless' on NI security
- ^ Images Get Pulled From Google Street View In First Week Of Service
- ^ BBC NEWS | Google's pictures of UK go live
- ^ BBC NEWS | Google pulls some street images
- ^ "Call to 'shut down' Street View". BBC News. 24 March 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7959362.stm.
- ^ "Google 'trying to smear Street View critic'", Belfast Telegraph, 28 March 2009, http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/technology-gadgets/google-trying-to-smear-street-view-critic-14247255.html, retrieved on 2009-04-01
- ^ A very English revolt sees off Google's spies Mail Online
- ^ Raid-fear villagers halt Google Street View Car, The Sun online, 03/04/2009
- ^ Watch out Broughton! Street View fans plan to descend on 'privacy' village for photo fest, Mail Online, 04/04/2009
[edit] External links
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