Google Wants to Map Indoors, Too 174
An anonymous reader writes "Google maps are getting extended indoors next month with a new app called Micello that takes over where conventional navigators leave off — mapping your route inside of buildings, malls, convention centers and other points of interest. You don't get a 'you are here' blinking dot yet — but they do promise to add one next year using WiFi triangulation. At the introduction next month, Micello will only work in California, but they plan to expand to other major US cities during 2010."
I volunteer (Score:3, Informative)
Not google! (Score:5, Informative)
Apparently submitter didn't RTFA, it's not -GOOGLE- that is doing this, but a company called Micello, they just use google maps. I realize that not reading the article is the norm, but can the editors at least read the first paragraph in the linked article before approving?
Illegal reporting? (Score:4, Informative)
This is both incorrect, misleading, and illegal reporting. It uses Google Maps outside, and its own crap completely unrelated to Google inside. It's not "quite literally" Google Maps for inside places. It's a mapping tool, and Google Maps happens to also be a mapping tool. I don't think we need to use another company's trademarks to let people know what the hell a map is.
Re:I volunteer (Score:2, Informative)
There are some parts of those buildings you really don't want to go.
Slashdot headline is a lie. (Score:1, Informative)
Someone didn't read the article. This is a third party app; Google has nothing to do with it, as far as I can tell.
Re:Major Cities... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I know the bathroom is here somewhere (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.sitorsquat.com/ [sitorsquat.com]
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=293191470&mt=8 [apple.com] For those who want to check it out
your home is likely online, already (Score:4, Informative)
>>A least Microsoft isn't taking picture of people's homes and posting them online without permission.
They don't have to -- if your home has been built or purchased in the past 30 years, it's likely the floorplan is already available online. Just check with your county/parish tax assessor's office. With many of them, just enter the street address and you can see a county tax appraisor's estimate of value beside a photo or two of the home and a floorplan drawing.
This information, in most cases is considered public information and is thus available free to anyone who can click a mouse. Worst case, a simple data scraper would yield an entire county's data in a few days.
So no, they don't have to drive around and take photos when photos are already available online, complete with a floorplan courtesy of the government.
ARTICLE SUMMARY INCORRECT - Not Google! (Score:5, Informative)
Unrelated to Google!
As expected on Slashdot, not only the submitter, but also the /. editor didn't bother to read TFA. One segment might tip you off:
This is a separate company called Micello with a separate product. They may be counting on Google to buy them, but their only current relation to Google Maps is that they mention Google's product in the description of their own product, and that the article title contains the words "Google Maps".