The ‘Practical Side’ of Google StreetView

I’ve always believed that StreetView was a practical tool. But in the wake of the deal with Trulia it’s getting more attention as a useful application and not just an example of “whiz-bang-because-we-can” technology.

As one example of that, InformationWeek runs an interesting piece called “How To Put Google Street View To Practical Use.” Visual information about a neighborhood or a street is extremely useful for many purposes.

After Trulia, we should start to see StreetView on other “third-party” sites (e.g., mashups).

What would also be interesting is if Google can integrate StreetView more directly into My Maps and allow people to annotate their lists with StreetView photos. I’m sure you can do that now. But I’m also talking about drawing or layering comments and even video on the photos. Think about videos or logos on StreetView as you “walk down the street” in a commercial area. (Everyscape does a version of this with its inside views. )

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Google Earth now includes StreetView imagery.

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