We live in truly interesting times and I now have no doubt that if someone has virtually unlimited resources and personnel they can accomplish anything. They idea: take a 3 dimensional picture every 40 feet or so on every street in the world and show it on the Internet. A real simple idea, nothing complicated like going to the moon, or curing polio. No simple like building the pyramids, you just need a plan, lots folks doing what they need to to do, some coordination, and someone to feed the folks doing it. Regardless of whether or not its a "good" idea or not it is a doable idea; and when you have a doable idea and you are Google, you do it. It's called Google Street View, and if you click the link to right you can watch a slick video from Google and watch their new golden boy explain it or click this Wikipedia link and get a bunch of non-slick text about it.

I had heard about this project some time ago and I thought at the time that I will believe it when I see it. I figured yea they would get the major metropolitan areas up without much problems quickly enough; even Microsoft managed to pull that off with Virtual Earth, which is still in beta on the web and I imagine will remain that way till they figure out exactly how to sell a commercial product or integrate it into the operating system somehow... some-reason may not be as important here. But it appears that Google has at least got MOST of the US mapped. I say 'appears' because have yet to actually check every address in the US. But, I did find the house I lived in 30 years ago in Palatka  Florida, and if they got some shmo to drive around every street in Palatka Florida I'd imagine they'd of got most everything else.

Anyway, I digress as I often do; yes, I can see my house from here. And I can most likely see your house and the house of your friend and the place that you work and the place that you get coffee and the place that... well I can see a lot of things from right here now. Albeit slow, even with high speed Internet connection, it works. The practicality and legal issues or ones to be left for tomorrow. In the meantime enjoy planet earth one click at a time from right there.