I’ve been writing about Google StreetView since its launch — and largely been a defender of the utility of the images and technology. But now the joke is on me; here’s a picture of our cars in the driveway:
It still think the technology is very useful. Yes, it’s a little strange.
It’s all just part of living in a world without privacy.
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More discussion of StreetView this morning from a piece I wrote at Search Engine Land.
Screenwerk 
July 28, 2008 at 12:28 pm
Nice cars! 😉
July 29, 2008 at 10:29 pm
You’re confusing privacy with obscurity. Anyone could have driven by your house and uploaded a picture of your driveway over the past several decades. What has changed?
August 4, 2008 at 11:45 pm
Nope. The thing that StreetView or WhitePages.com do is make it very easy for anyone to locate you. That’s where people’s discomfort comes in.
The difference between these sites and an individual who takes a picture of a “public building” or driveway is that individual never had the power or the reach to publish such an images to millions of people on a global basis.
August 10, 2008 at 10:38 am
Greg:
Yes they do. Flickr, Google images etc etc etc allow anyone to take photos of anything and make them available to everyone. A little tagging and you’re done.
The only real difference is that it’s easy to not only get a photo of your place but to see it in context (i.e. move up and down the street, see where the closest market is etc).
April 1, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I cannot understand all of the uproar over Google Street View. I can understand when they drive where roads are marked “private.” But overall, anyone without the service can get in their car, drive around the country and see exactly the same thing. I’ve seen plenty of comments all over the web where people are upset, saying things like, “You can see my house!” Well, I, or anyone else for that matter, could see your house also, if I was driving down your street.
I love the service. I can follow Route 66 like I was actually ON Route 66. It’s wonderful for people who do not have the means to leave their homes. It gives you a wonderful feel of the state you are driving through. Google Street View does nothing but drive down the street, like millions of other cars did before them. . . like millions of cars will after them. I think some of the complaints are going a bit too far.
In all honesty, they show nothing more than what anyone else driving down the same road would see. Like I said before, I agree if the roads are marked “private.” But public roads are just that, public roads. I love Google Street View. Thanks to this service I actually drove across the Golden Gate Bridge, saw the Grand Canyon, drove through the streets of Chicago, New York, and Orlando. Something I would never get to do under normal circumstances. The only people, cars, etc. that I saw were the same ones anyone else might see if they were actually driving through these cities. I hope nobody ruins this great service. The amount of time and work put into this wonderful site is amazing.
Anyone can see my home right now if they drive by. My car is parked right outside my house everyday, anyone driving by my house can see my license plate. I fail to see the huge difference. Street View has not come to my town yet. I cannot wait until they finally do. I only hope that this site will be allowed to continue. There are always the few that ruin it for the many. I hope that is not the case here.
April 1, 2009 at 9:42 pm
I too am a fan of StreetView and think it’s both valuable and entertaining.