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The Google Earth Library showcases content for Google Earth. New items are added each week so Subscribe if you want to keep up to day on new items. Contact me if you know of something that would be a good addition, or would like to help contribute.

To view an item in Google Earth, simply click on the following icon, which will be at the end of each post:

KML Link

(Click Read More beneath the screen shots to access the download link)

This will open a KML file into Google Earth. Each KML file that you download is a very small "Network Link" that will load the actual data from the online server only when you enable it in Google Earth so they will not have any impact on Google Earth load times and the data will automatically update if the original author makes changes. Network Links also make it much easier to email a KML file to someone since you only need to email them the small Network Link and not the entire set of data.


All website content is for educational and entertainment purposes only.

Global Mapper v11 Beta Available to Try Out

July 2nd, 2009 No comments

I often get emails asking how I create some of the Google Earth content on this website.  Although I use a variety of software tools, Global Mapper is the GIS program that I use to do the vast majority of the heavy lifting.  Global Mapper can convert just about any file format into KML, which can then be viewed with Google Earth.

A full license of Global Mapper is normally about $300, but for the next 14-days you can try out a fully functioning beta of Version 11.  See this post at the Global Mapper Forums for the temporary key and download link.

Version 11 has several improvements, including one big one for users that create KML content.  Version 11 has the ability to automatically create an index for a grid of vector/point data.  In other words, it makes it possible to import huge data sets containing line/shape/point data that would have been very difficult/impossible to import into Google Earth previously.  I used this feature to create the 9,000,000 Global Geographic Names data for Google Earth.  In short, what it does is break down a huge set of data into smaller tiles so instead of having to download one huge file containing all of the data, you just download small parts of it as you navigate around.

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9,000,000 Global Geographic Names

June 23rd, 2009 6 comments

UPDATE 6/23 - This collection has been recompiled so that you don’t have to manually turn on a section of placemarks.  Instead they will turn on/off automatically as you navigate around.

The Global Geographic Names database contains the names and location of almost 9 million features of interest throughout the world. The features include mountains, government buildings, forests, parks, and many more. Many of the locations in this database are already included in the default Google Earth installation when you enable the Places of Interest layer; however, they are sometimes difficult to see if you do not have the Google Earth view in exactly the correct location and the Places of Interest layer does not contain all of the entries.

This list was created by merging the Geographic Names databases maintained by the USGS and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (both updated as of June 1, 2009). Only the feature names and locations were extracted from the source databases to keep the file sizes manageable in Google Earth.  Even with just the basic information, this is almost 300 megabytes of information.

The placemarks were broken down into 2×2 degree tiles sections which will load automatically as you navigate around the earth.  Just zoom in close to the earth and the placemarks should become visible automatically.  Dense urban areas might take a few seconds to load, depending on the speed of your internet connection.  They won’t become visible until you are fairly close to the earth.

This is by far the largest placemark collection I’ve ever created for Google Earth  and it pushes the limits of what my lowly 3-year old home computer and software tools available to be can handle, so I’ve tried to keep it simple. Right now, it’s just a simple list of placemarks all combined together and I haven’t done anything fancy with how the data is displayed. I may try to figure out better ways of organizing and displaying the data in a future update.

If you have any suggestions or find any problems, please post a comment.

gnis1 copy 9,000,000 Global Geographic Names gnis2 copy 9,000,000 Global Geographic Names gnis3 copy 9,000,000 Global Geographic Names

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Sea Floor Off San Diego, California

June 5th, 2009 No comments

A detailed map showing over 600 square miles of ocean floor off the coast of San Diego California.  The map was created by the USGS from multi-beam bathymetric data.   Several major physiographic features and depth contour lines are shown.  In addition, there are several placemarks which include a detailed view and description of various features.

Refer to Sea Floor Off San Diego, California and Multibeam Bathymetry and Selected Perspective Views Offshore San Diego, California for full citations and more information on how the USGS created these maps.  High resolution PDF posters of the maps are also available to download from the USGS websites.

The original map provided by the USGS is a large PDF file.  I extracted the portion of the map covering the ocean areas so the Google Earth land imagery is not covered.  In addition, I extracted the various figures and made them available by clicking on a placemark in the location described by each figure.

I recommend switching Google Earth to Full Screen mode before using this unless you have a big wide screen monitor.

 

san diego sea floor1 copy Sea Floor Off San Diego, California san diego sea floor2 copy Sea Floor Off San Diego, California san diego sea floor3 copy Sea Floor Off San Diego, California

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Categories: Geology Tags: , , ,

Crime Scenes & Serial Killers

June 5th, 2009 No comments

This data collection show the locations of notorious crime scenes, locations related to serial killers (where they lived, where they were captured, etc), and the locations of death row prisons throughout the United States.  Each placemark contains a snippet of information about the location, including photographs of the scene or criminal.  Some of the information dates back 200 years.

Quick word of caution.  The content is a bit dark and may not be for everyone.  But these are all very well publicized cases and are of historical significance to anyone interested in criminal studies.

crime scenes1 copy Crime Scenes & Serial Killers crime scenes2 copy Crime Scenes & Serial Killers

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Google Earth Network Links Explained

May 29th, 2009 1 comment

Network Links are a very powerful, but very simple, feature of Google Earth that every Google Earth user should understand.  Also, EVERY Google Earth content developer that hosts KML/KMZ files online should understand Network Links and make use of them when it makes sense.  So take a couple minutes and read below to learn how to make use of this powerful feature of Google Earth.

Background:

Normally when you add custom KML content to you My Places, all of the data included with that custom KML file gets added to your main myplaces.kml file (saved under Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Google\GoogleEarth\myplaces.kml).  For example, if you were to click on this KMZ file link and save the content to your permanent My Places folder in Google Earth, then you would have just made your myplaces.kml file about 15 megabytes larger than it was before and you would notice that it now takes Google Earth several more seconds to start up.  Do this 10 or 15 times and your myplaces.kml file can quickly grow out of control.  Also, if the original author of that KMZ file updates it, then you would need to  go back to their website and download it again to get the update.

If instead, you decide to use a Network Link, some important things will happen:

  1. Instead of your myplaces.kml file becoming 15 megabytes larger, it will only become 1-2 kilobytes larger.  You can add 1,000’s of Network Links without having to worry about the size of your myplaces.kml file.
  2. If you create a Network Link to a remotely hosted KML file, and the original author of that KML file decides to update it in the future (and doesn’t change the url/filename), then that update will automatically transfer to your machine.
  3. If you create a Network Link to a KML file stored on your local hard drive, then it won’t affect the size of your myplaces.kml file and won’t affect Google Earth’s load time.

How does all this happen?  Simple, because the Network Link does not load the actual KMZ file until you enable the Network Link in Google Earth by checking the box next to it.  The table below gives some recommendations on when to use Network Links, and what type of Network Link to use.

Network Link to Remote URL:
  • KML data is updated frequently by the author
  • KML data is less than 2-3 megabytes
  • KML data is not accessed very often
Network Link to local file on hard drive:
  • KML data is rarely updated
  • KML data is larger than 2-3 megabytes
  • KML data is frequently accessed
Network Link Not Necessary:
  • KML data is very small (less than 100K)

Creating a Network Link:

If your still reading, then I must have convinced you Network Links are a good thing.  So how do you create a Network Link?  Simple:

  1. Copy the URL of the KML/KMZ file that you want to add.  (right-click on the link and select Copy Link Location or Copy Shortcut).
  2. Go to Google Earth and select Network Link from the Add menu at the top.
  3. networklink1 Google Earth Network Links Explained

  4. Put your cursor in the box next to Link and hit CTRL-P to paste the URL of the KMZ file into that box.
  5. networklink2 Google Earth Network Links Explained

  6. Type in something in the Name field at the top.
  7. That’s it.  Leave everything else as the default values.

Congratulations, you’ve just created a Network Link.  Now you can save the Network Link under your permanent My Places folder in Google Earth just like you normally would.

You can also use Network Links for content stored on your local hard drive.  Instead of pasting the URL into the Link box, just click Browse and select the file on your local hard drive.

Content Developers:

If you host KMZ/KML files online, you should consider using Network Links when it makes sense.  The advantages are that the user will not have to manually create one and if you update your KML code in the future, the update will automatically propogate to the user.  Also, users can pass around a Network Link through email, etc, much easier than the larger KML/KMZ file.  The disadvantage of course is increased load on your server since the users will be downloading the main KML file each time they access it.

Or maybe even give the user the option of choosing between direct download of the entire KML/KMZ file or a Network Link.  In fact, as I write this, I’m thinking I may add this option to files on my blog.

Below is some sample code for a very basic Network Link.  Simply fill in the Name, Description and the URL to the KMZ/KML file that you want it to load.  Then save as KML file and use this for the link the users will click on to access files on your website.

<?xml version=”1.0? encoding=”UTF-8″”>
<kml xmlns=”http://www.opengis.net/kml/2.2? xmlns:gx=”http://www.google.com/kml/ext/2.2″ xmlns:kml=”http://www.opengis.net/kml/2.2? xmlns:atom=”http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom”>
<NetworkLink>
<name>XXXXXXX</name>
<visibility>0</visibility>
<Snippet maxLines=0></Snippet>
<description>XXXXXXXXX</description>
<flyToView>1</flyToView>
<Url>
<href>http://XXXXXXXX.kmz</href>
<viewRefreshMode>onRequest</viewRefreshMode>
</Url>
</NetworkLink>
</kml>

That’s it.  If you have any other suggestions or tips regarding Network Links, please leave a comment below.

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