Newsletter Archive
August 2008
Virtual Earth Powers Petco Store Locator
On Aug. 1, Petco Animal Supplies Inc. announced it would adopt the Microsoft Virtual Earth platform to provide customers with a rich experience when researching their 850-plus stores. Virtual Earth filtered queries allow Petco customers to quickly locate stores offering the specific services they need including dog training, vaccinations, pet photography, full-service grooming, self-service dog wash and aquatics departments. Within their results customers can also drill down into each specific store to access its address and phone number information, driving directions, store events, Petfinder shelters and any additional details available on the respective location. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
TeamZoneSports Integrates Virtual Earth Into Community Web Site
On Aug. 2, TeamZoneSports.com Inc. announced it would leverage the Virtual Earth platform for its Web site. The TeamZoneSports community site is meant to make the lives of league directors, coaches, players and parents easier by allowing roster management, scheduling and administration of all team-related activities from a single site. Adopting the Virtual Earth platform allows TeamZoneSports to offer customers exceptional mapping and location services for team events and games. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
MetroPCS Store Locator Moves to Microsoft Virtual Earth
In early August, MetroPCS Wireless Inc. went live with its new store locator, built on the Virtual Earth mapping platform. The Virtual Earth platform offers MetroPCS customers advanced mapping and filtering services for store locations, and also allows users to filter through locations for specific store features in order to better find the services nearest them. Locations are also highlighted, providing links to MetroPCS store locations as well as authorized dealers with driving directions available direct from store roll-overs. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
FindYourAuto.net Using Virtual Earth Platform for Exceptional Service
The Virtual Earth platform helps FindYourAuto.net customers quickly locate and qualify available automobiles in their area. A simple Virtual Earth interface allows filtering of search results based on auto type, model, location, search radius, sort preference and maximum price. Once results are reported, they are marked with custom pins and data, with a picture inserted into enhanced roll-overs. Once results have been mapped, customers can do additional filtering by using slider bars to change the year, mileage, price and distance of the automobiles they are looking for. For each auto found there is information on how many bids have been made, and customers can directly make a bid. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Internet-based Loss Estimation Tool Uses Virtual Earth for Modeling Platform
The Microsoft Virtual Earth platform provides the visualization component for online earthquake damage assessment for the Internet-based Loss Estimation Tool (Inlet). Inlet users can set the magnitude and depth of a quake, and the epicenter latitude and longitude are read from where a user clicks on the map. The application then estimates the cost to properties in the damage zone, presenting data on Virtual Earth maps with the different levels of damage represented by color-coded areas. As an added benefit, tabular information is provided for the number of damaged buildings, percentage of damaged buildings, injuries and casualties, and bridge damage, if available. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Author Clyde Ford Promotes New Novel Via Virtual Earth
Author Clyde Ford is using Microsoft Virtual Earth in an effort to promote his latest novel, “Precious Cargo.” Virtual Earth provides a preview of certain pages within the book, using Bird’s Eye* photography and high-resolution photos to showcase places in the book’s location index. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Sealy Uses Microsoft Virtual Earth for New Distributor Locator
The Virtual Earth platform allows Sealy to provide customers with data not normally presented in mapping results. In addition to the expected contact information, Sealy also provides logo call-outs within mapping results to stores that have a Sealy Gallery, including a notification if there are additional locations nearby for a particular distributor brand. Customers also have the ability to view all of those respective locations on the map with direct links to that Web site and can share e-mail results directly from the display page. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
The Weather Network Powers New Desktop Traffic Application With Virtual Earth
The Weather Network’s robust desktop application interface, Traffic Eye, leverages Virtual Earth content to help customers navigate and explore traffic information. Currently, information is only available for areas in Ontario, Canada, but Traffic Eye provides data and weather condition information for a given route, with live Web cameras providing actual views of the street. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Virtual Earth Presents UK Partner Days
Virtual Earth is hosting UK Partner Days events in September for new and existing partners. The Virtual Earth Partner Days and New Partner Days are scheduled for Sept. 18–19 in Brighton, U.K. The Partner Days provide a full day of informative sessions from customers and partners who have used Virtual Earth as well as technical presentations and the latest updates from the Virtual Earth team. Johannes Kebeck, Virtual Earth technology specialist, will highlight useful tips and tricks for developers, helping you get the most out of the Virtual Earth platform, and Microsoft Regional Director for Australia Neil Roodyn also will present. For more information on the events, please visit the events page.
Masternaut Three X Helps DP Cold Planning With Satellite Tracking Powered by Virtual Earth
On Aug. 18, structural and engineering steel specialist Newark Steel Ltd. announced the implementation of a cutting-edge Masternaut Three X satellite tracking service that uses Virtual Earth technology. Using Virtual Earth provides rich mapping imagery that helps Newark Steel with quicker response times and improved customer service levels. In addition, the Web-based real-time service has improved driver safety and has reduced unnecessary fuel usage. Earlier this month, Masternaut Three X also provided the U.K.’s leading specialist highway maintenance company, DP Cold Planing Ltd., with its vehicle tracking solution to improve the management of its plant and its large fleet of Mercedes-Benz, Scania, JCB and Wirtgen vehicles. For more information, please read the press release and another press release.
Pelican Racing Team Uses Virtual Earth to Chart Progress During Cowes Week Sailing Regatta
Skandia Cowes Week 2008, the largest sailing regatta of its kind in the world, took place August 2–9 off the Isle of Wight, U.K. Sailing team Pelican Racing worked with Inca X to provide a live broadcast stream from its SB3 boat to chart its progress during the race. Phil Bishop from Inca X explained, “Our Live Media GPS application allowed Pelican Racing to broadcast their sailing progress directly from their mobile phones. The broadcasts, directly linked to the Microsoft Virtual Earth map, allowed Pelican Racing’s precise location and movements to be mapped.” Sailor Ian Gilmour commented, “Having a live stream of our progress mapped on Virtual Earth during Cowes Week helped the crew connect with family and friends as we strived to race against some of the world’s top sailors in the SB3 series. The technology was extremely easy to use and gave our friends and family an immediacy of the experience and sense of community. It’s given us a great opportunity to review the day’s race afterwards, checking our GPS plots and considering how we can improve for next year.” For more information and to see the Pelican Racing highlights, please visit read the article.
Virtual Earth Germany Hosts Partner Event in Dortmund
On Sept. 9, Microsoft will host a Virtual Earth Partner Workshop at the International School of Management in Dortmund, Germany. Participants have the opportunity to get a firsthand overview about the diverse business applications and to learn more about how a number of mashups can simplify and optimize business processes. The workshop is interesting not only for those who want to get insights into the technology but also for those who want to get more information about the ways to use Microsoft Virtual Earth as a partner. For more information about the event, please visit the germany event page.
Microsoft Virtual Earth Participating at the Shop.org Annual Summit 2008
On Sept. 15–17, Virtual Earth will participate in the Microsoft booth at the Shop.org Annual Summit 2008, in Las Vegas. Shop.org holds an annual show focused on the future of digital retail, and it provides education, thought leadership and networking opportunities. For more information, please visit Shop.org.
Taiwan’s Local Search and Map Service, Live Pages, Uses Virtual Earth
Microsoft has launched its local search and map services for Taiwan, Live Pages, leveraging the Virtual Earth platform. The service is a joint effort between Microsoft Taiwan Corp. and Chunghwa Telecom, the largest telecommunication operator in Taiwan. Virtual Earth provides users with rich aerial imagery that can be accessed through local search and mapping services. The inclusion of Virtual Earth showcases how Microsoft technologies are used to build a great end-user product. To see the site, please visit Live Pages.
Push Integrates Virtual Earth for SK8R Nation
On Aug. 22, the Canadian Web site Push.ca added Virtual Earth integration to provide skaters and snowboarders with a quick and easy way to find local skate parks, and eventually ski resorts. By using Virtual Earth, Push provides users with access to sports locations via Virtual Earth maps, aerial photos and the inclusion of some Bird’s Eye1 imagery. Bird’s Eye imagery provides visuals for the different sites without requiring users to make a trip. Users can also submit information to Push on different sports sites in the local area for inclusion. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Progress Energy Uses Virtual Earth to Offer Hurricane Outage Updates
Progress Energy has been using the Virtual Earth platform since 2007, receiving great feedback on the service as a way to illustrate to its customers where outages occur in the local areas it services. Most recently, the Virtual Earth platform allowed Progress Energy to quickly communicate hurricane-related outages in Florida. Users have the ability to quickly find local coverage areas, view pushpin updates that communicate where outages are occurring and provide details on the magnitude of the outage. Virtual Earth allows Progress Energy to very effectively provide information to its users, even in a crisis. For more information on Virtual Earth integration with Progress Energy, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
Facebook Applications Use Virtual Earth to Enhance User Experience
Several applications on Facebook use Virtual Earth to provide a more compelling experience to users. MapMate allows Facebook users to view their friends based on geography, with Virtual Earth providing the mapping imagery that allows users to get as close as a street-level view of their friends’ locations. In addition, fitness application Aerobis uses Virtual Earth to provide users with the ability to upload fitness routes, visually map them and save them to their profile. Users can create a route simply by clicking on the maps and having the application draw the route and calculate the distance. Users can also publish routes for others to see and search for routes that have been published by others. For more information, please visit the Virtual Earth Evangelist's blog.
1. Bird’s Eye view and 3-D view are available in many major cities worldwide. In addition, traffic updates are available in many major U.S. cities. For 3-D view you must have Virtual Earth 3D beta installed on your computer. For traffic information availability, visit http://maps.live.com; on the action bar, click on Traffic.
