Google User Community

A reminder of the Google User Community.
This used to be called the Google Earth Bulletin Board, but a few months ago it was replaced with a system of Google Groups, one of which is for Google Earth.

Search this for thousands of useful KML files and guidance.
Whatever you're after, it's probably here...

Here's a few examples that I found with a quick five minutes of searching:

- Texas biomes as an image overlay
- Everest reconaissance with routes

What is your best discovery in the Google Earth groups ?

Mapteach

Another new discovery while playing with the materials for the course on Thursday in Birmingham.

MapTEACH is based in ALASKA and uses some Google Earth materials to help explore certain elements of the area, and tell their story.
The use of maps to help stories is part of the indigenous culture, although they didn't use GIS or Google Earth of course... until recently.
Click the CURRICULUM link to see various GIS data files as well as Google Earth files.

Duncan Maclean from Kindrogan

One of the links I'll be sharing with the delegates on the Google Earth course is that of Duncan Maclean, from Kindrogan Field Centre.

Some nicely formatted and clear guides to GE, placemarks and importantly GE-Graph.

A few other new bits...

Preparing materials for course for the GA Google Earth and Beyond course on Thursday - just updated the Dropbox that goes with the course, and changing the spine powerpoint now, as well as reminding myself of some nice visualisation tools and other links.

Was putting together a new document on the Historical Slider, and looking for places where the imagery can be used best.

Came across this nice weblink, with 10 interesting places to visit on Google Earth.

Students could do this themselves of course and find ten places they would like to visit... or 10 examples of a particular feature e.g. active volcano...

Also remembered the old BIG HUGE LABS option for Earth as Art... (as shown by Noel Jenkins)

Also check out WHAT WAS THERE....

250 up

250 posts on the blog since 2006 when we got underway...

Not quite matching the 4500 on Living Geography, but useful nonetheless I hope...

Natural Info

A couple of useful Google Earth resources on the NATURAL INFO website.
This has been put together by FSC tutors I believe, notably Liam Ring, and contains a range of useful resources for teachers.

Go to the RESOURCES tab and click on GOOGLE EARTH RESOURCES.

A guide to GE and also a nice one for GE Graph...

You can download the files as PDFs
Also follow the site on TWITTER 

GA Course next week...

Just preparing materials for next week's Google Earth and free GIS course for the Geographical Association, which is taking place in Birmingham.

I shall be referring to this blog. Delegates have all had access to a DROPBOX of materials.
There's been quite a lot of activity since last time I ran the course.

Queensland Globe Layer

Thanks to Rebecca Nicholas for the tipoff to a file produced by the Queensland Government.

It provides what is called a Queensland Globe, with lots of information related to the state, including landscape, flooding and extreme weather as well as information on selected locations.
Download, then open in Google Earth.

Where has Merkador gone ?

A real shame yesterday when I was reminding myself of the Merkador website so that I could mention it at Richard Allaway's hangout session (see the previous post) when I discovered that it had gone offline in the middle of April.

Merkador was one of my favourite Google Earth sites, with some great KML files (which I hope I have saved somewhere) and the excellent resource which taught the basic skills in the form of a global quiz and challenge game...
I hope it comes back soon...

Google Earth Hangout recording

Last night, I took part in a Google Hangout on the theme of Google Earth in the curriculum. It was part of a series of presentations from the Google Education team.

It was presented by Richard Allaway, who created Geography all the Way, and talked about his planning, and also an activity which follows one of the first commercial routes: involving flying boats from Southampton to South Africa.

You can read about it on Richard Allaway's blogpost here.
You can see the mind-map that Richard used.

You can also check out the actual presentation below, and see me lurking away at the bottom, and dealing with the chat that was going on as the presentation was going on. Thanks to the folks who dropped into the presentation.

Google Earth Hangout on Monday the 6th of May

Don't forger that Richard Allaway is organising a special online event on the 6th of May.
It will take place at 8pm in the evening

This session will outline how Google Earth skills can be incorporated into the school curriculum and not just the Geography one!  This will lead to the discussion of a real, tested, classroom example of building a continuum of skill development leading towards a project planning the first commercial (1937) passenger flight from Southampton (UK) to Cape Town (South Africa) which happened to be on a boat-plane! (25 minutes)

I'll be there to help out... so I'll see you there...

The official site where you can sign up to join in or find out more information is HERE....

Atmosphere and sea surface options

I was excited to read about a few new features which have been added to Google Earth 7.1
You need to download / update your version of Google Earth to the latest one first.

You will then be able to do several things:
1. Add, or view the SUN - use the SUN icon on the top toolbar, or go to VIEW and tick SUN
2. While you're on the VIEW bar, put a tick next to WATER SURFACE
3. Go to OPTIONS (or view Preferences if you're on a Mac) and tick the new option: PHOTOREALISTIC ATMOSPHERE RENDERING.
This is a BETA option and may not work perfectly for you....

You can now bring the sun down over the water, and with a little tinkering can bring it so that it sets over the water...
Here's a quick go I just had: the sun setting over Loch Slapin, with the Cuillins of the Isle of Skye in the distance...
What can you come up with ?

Here's the Google Earth blog post where I read about the technique first...

Google Earth 7.1

We're now up to Google Earth 7.1, which was released on Monday the 22nd of April, 2013

Get it here.

Check out the new STARRY SKY feature as described on the Google Earth Blog.
There's also mention of a new motion controller....
I've still got my old SpaceNavigator joystick... must hunt out the drivers...

Digimap for Schools MapStream - WMS for Google Earth

At the start of the year I finished off a project with EDINA, who operate the Digimap for Schools MapStream service, in association with the Ordnance Survey.
This is a little like the Digimap for Schools tool, but without the tools...
Subscribers to MapStream will find that they have access to the Ordnance Survey's mapping at the same scale as Digimap, but the difference is that they stream them into their own GIS software using a WMS (web mapping service) - this works with open-source options such as Quantum GIS, but also ArcGIS and even Google Earth (I was amazed when I first saw this in action...)

One advantage of this option is that the maps are streamed to your GIS as an extra layer, so there is no data storage / installation issue. Having said that, you need a reliable and fairly fast internet connection if you want the maps of course. The cost is much cheaper than Digimap, but you need to use the tools in your GIS client, rather than the ones provided by Digimap. This may require extra time on training how to use your chosen GIS package.

If you head over to the site, you will now find that there are the first of what will be a series of educational materials for teachers, available for free download. These are particularly designed for subscribers to the MapStream service.
I wrote the materials, the cover of one is pictured to the right....
Check them out.
Subscription is just £35 a year for a primary school and £50 for a secondary school.

I will be referring to this, as well as other mapping options in my GA CPD days which will take place in Birmingham at the end of May and London at the start of June.

Google Earth Event

Richard Allaway is organising a special online event on the 6th of May.
It will take place at 8pm in the evening

This session will outline how Google Earth skills can be incorporated into the school curriculum and not just the Geography one!  This will lead to the discussion of a real, tested, classroom example of building a continuum of skill development leading towards a project planning the first commercial (1937) passenger flight from Southampton (UK) to Cape Town (South Africa) which happened to be on a boat-plane! (25 minutes)

I'm hoping to be in there to help out...
The official site where you can sign up to join in or find out more information is HERE....