[LINK] Dept Environment NSW outsource walking maps

[stephen at melbpc.org.au]

Richard writes,

> I note with interest .. that with its Web presence subsumed into the
> Department of the Environment, NSW's National Parks & Wildlife Service
> has outsourced bushwalk descriptions and some mapping to Wildwalks.com..


'Google trikes to blaze 'street view' trail off road' 

(Area suggestions to, http://www.google.com.au/trike)

by ASHER MOSES January 25, 2010
http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/google-trikes-to-blaze-
street-view-trail-off-road-20100125-mt7q.html?autostart=1  (snip)


Google wants every nook and cranny of Australia covered on its Google 
Maps Street View service and to make that happen it will unleash an army 
of cyclists to capture images off the beaten track and in pedestrian-only 
locations.

The company is seeking suggestions from Australians for cultural areas, 
natural wonders and “hidden gems” it should explore.

It has recruited cyclists “on the basis of quads of steel” and will send 
them out around the country on 110-kilogram tricycles mounted with a 360-
degree Street View camera and GPS system.

The trikes are ideal for reaching parks and trails, theme parks and zoos, 
malls, university campuses and other landmarks. Google is relying on the 
public to suggest the next stops.

Its website, www.google.com.au/trike, is accepting suggestions until 
February 8th in the categories City Life, Cultural Areas, Natural Wonders 
and Hidden Gems.

Google, which still maintains it will only photograph public places and 
will blur faces, has already nominated Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens and 
Rottnest Island off the coast of Western Australia.

“The Street View Trike will help us to create an ever more comprehensive 
virtual atlas of Australia,” Google Australia's engineering manager, Raul 
Vera, said.

“We're lucky enough to live in a country with some of the most 
spectacular natural environments and architectural features on the globe, 
and the trike will allow us to get off-road to share these marvels with 
people around Australia and the world.”

--

Cheers,
Stephen