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I found myself unexpectedly caught in a discussion about Google Earth. One person insisted surfing around a location is the same as traveling to a place, hence no need to travel. I was floored, and unfortunately I think my questioning was interpreted as an insult but really...I can't understand that logic at all.
Am I the only one?
I'll use Google Earth at times in advance of a trip but just to check things like nearby highways, parking areas, nearby commercial areas for when I might need gas or food, etc. But never would I say that's "travel."
Of course it's not travel, but it can help you decide where there is no point in going. For example, I GE'd through Dhaka in Bangladesh. No need to ever go as it's a putrid, filthy wreck of a city that is better never seen. So what Google Earth accomplishes is eliminating unnecessary travel, while encouraging travel to destinations that actually have some quality and desirability.
I've GE'd much of Africa and I wouldn't be caught dead there. Or, after having read the crime and terrorism reports, that's exactly how I'd be caught there. So I don't want to go and I won't go. Google Earth is a valuable resource in eliminating travel destinations that offer nothing good.
In the old days when you decided on a hotel, you really do not have a idea of the walking score, if it is close to shops and fun places, or even how the general area is like, but now you have google maps and tools. You actually have a walking tour of the area and can see what things are close by - you use your keyboard and mouse to do a preliminary walk about. It's not a replacement for an actual trip there, but never before have we had such great visual information available.
I agree, Google Earth is not traveling, but I use it (and Google Street View) to help me decide whether somewhere is worth traveling to. In other words, Google Earth/Street View may show me all I need to see/know to decide that I don't want to physically travel there (in a sense, I got some of the "benefits" of travel without having to step foot in a particular location).
For most places it's better than actually traveling there. With chat, virtual reality and other technology i can get enough of a feel for any place to consider it as "been there".
I found myself unexpectedly caught in a discussion about Google Earth. One person insisted surfing around a location is the same as traveling to a place, hence no need to travel. I was floored, and unfortunately I think my questioning was interpreted as an insult but really...I can't understand that logic at all.
Am I the only one?
I'll use Google Earth at times in advance of a trip but just to check things like nearby highways, parking areas, nearby commercial areas for when I might need gas or food, etc. But never would I say that's "travel."
For some peole it's the way they travel.
In my case I inbibe the local culture and, where safe, eat exotic foods. You can't do that on Google Earth unless you enjoy eating a computer monitor.
In the old days when you decided on a hotel, you really do not have a idea of the walking score, if it is close to shops and fun places, or even how the general area is like, but now you have google maps and tools. You actually have a walking tour of the area and can see what things are close by - you use your keyboard and mouse to do a preliminary walk about. It's not a replacement for an actual trip there, but never before have we had such great visual information available.
I can't imagine travel planning in the old days, you mean back in the 90s?
In the old days when you decided on a hotel, you really do not have a idea of the walking score, if it is close to shops and fun places, or even how the general area is like, but now you have google maps and tools. You actually have a walking tour of the area and can see what things are close by - you use your keyboard and mouse to do a preliminary walk about. It's not a replacement for an actual trip there, but never before have we had such great visual information available.
I can't imagine travel planning in the old days, you mean back in the 90s?
Quote:
Originally Posted by elhelmete
This is an excellent use of GE and I do it a lot.
Yes, it was like the Dark Ages where you go to the bookstore or library to get a book about your destination and find out what hotels are in your budget and how clean and comfortable they are (according to the writer), but you don't really know yet till you get there, unless friends or family have been to the same hotel before. You cut out magazine articles to save for your travel planning or you get a travel agent to do all of your planning, which really takes away the fun, but in those days it wasn't really that fun planning and more of a headache getting details taken care of. Now, travel planning with the Internet is sometimes even more fun than the actual trip.
Yes, it was like the Dark Ages where you go to the bookstore or library to get a book about your destination and find out what hotels are in your budget and how clean and comfortable they are (according to the writer), but you don't really know yet till you get there, unless friends or family have been to the same hotel before. You cut out magazine articles to save for your travel planning or you get a travel agent to do all of your planning, which really takes away the fun, but in those days it wasn't really that fun planning and more of a headache getting details taken care of. Now, travel planning with the Internet is sometimes even more fun than the actual trip.
I was still a kid in the 90s, fortunately I didn't have to deal with that part.
By the way, 90s is the best decade in my memory. I'm not sure if my assessment is accurate. Is everything generally better back then? except for the technology.
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