I heard John Kuglin last year at FETC and although Google Earth wasn’t available then, he was demonstrating some other satellite technology and sparked my interest and love of geography. This year, John spent his session demonstrating Google Earth. While there wasn’t much there I didn’t already know, I was enjoying the “oohs and aaaws” of the several hundred attendees many of whom had never seen or heard of Google Earth.
I liked the title of his session: Smart Stories Smart Locations. The word “stories” and “conversations” may well have been the most used words at the conference which is fine by me. John not only showcased the amazing power and features of Google Earth but laid out an invitation to use it to tell stories. It might not seem like a natural fit but it really does have that potential. John continually pointed out the ability to discover tools and features not listed in any manual and that much of the potential of Google Earth is yet to be discovered but will be discovered by those willing to hack.
Today I discovered a video podcast by the School of Geography in Southampton University. They have already produced 9 episodes which are great little tutorials on using Google Earth. You can subscribe to it through itunes.
Technorati Tag: FETC2006