Local Live -- MSN

What do you think about the new MSN product for mapping? It is now housed at http://local.live.com/ It is prety darn amazing. Try putting in names of small businesses in your town and also name the town. It is darn fast.

That dashboard option is rather amazing (in a Big Brother kind of way) -- right now it only works in Seattle and San Francisco, but I was able to use it to pilot my "race-car" into a friend's driveway in Seattle. It provides a dashboard-view of the street elevations -- complete with trees, bushes and ground-level obstacles.

I am not sure this is a "good thing" but it is a useful tool.

Mark

Mark,
I use the Windows Live portal via MS Streets and Trips when I want to quickly go to Satelite view without opening Google Earth (which I frequently have open as well as MS Streets and trips.

The preview of their new technology, street level view, is frankly, the greatest idea I have ever seen in mapping! Ever looked up an address for a business in a part of town that you rarely go, and then spend hours trying to find it? In my opinion, this new street view system will make navigation much easier. You'll be able to actually see the place you are going. For those like myself that have a photographic memory when it comes to things like that, to be able to look and see what the area looks like around a particular business and then travel there, I will know instantly I am in the right area by being able to recall landmarks.

I tend to use MS S&T/Windows Live for just standard sat views, and Google Earth when I really want a 360 view of the same location. And If I was still in the Seattle area, I would be using the new street view option very heavily. Maybe I still will if I plan a vacation there. Maybe see the area around my motel before I book it!

The ramifications of their technology, I feel, are far reaching. From navigating busy streets to booking travel.

-Brad