Well, Thank Heaven There’s Finally A Good Use For Google Earth

The Daily Mail reports that at long last there is a real reason for Google Earth. Oh, sure, there's the occasional hovercar sighting. Not to mention the spotting of alien invaders, but this is serious! You can now play "Where's Waldo" (or "Where's Wally" in Britain) using Google Earth.

For years, he has challenged enterprising schoolchildren everywhere to spot him among ancient Aztec kingdoms and medieval battlefields.

But now Wally has set his fans a new goal - to find him over the internet.

Canadian artist Melanie Coles has brought her favourite childhood game firmly into the 21st Century by painting a 55ft Wally - complete with red-and-white-striped jumper, glasses and woollen hat - on to a city centre roof that can only be seen by Google Earth satellites.

There is now a flurry of interest among internet users to see who can be the first to spot this Web 2.0 Wally.

But competition is likely to be tough. Not only will Wally hunters have to locate his rooftop perch, but they will also have to wait for Google's imaging equipment to pick it up.

Although Google Earth pictures can be up to three years old, the company does not reveal when it plans to update its images.

Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but the Google Earth image that shows my house is considerably older than three years old. The last I looked, it still did not show the shed we installed right after we moved in to the house more than seven years ago. The tree the shed sits next to shows clearly, but no shed. So it could be a long wait for Waldo - or Wally.

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  By Denny, Wednesday, 16 April , 2008 @ 12:03 pm

  It will be as much fun as The World hide and seek skit from Monty Python.

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