What is the crowd's opinion of
NASA World Wind?
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7 reviews of this app found across the web:
Research Update:
Due to licensing issues. Were not allowed to embed google earth into java, or .net programs. But we are allowed to alter the KML save files that it uses.
If we desperately want an application to embed an interactive and editable map, we can try to encorporate NASA's Open source world wind mapping software instead.
Someone got NASA's World Wind viewer working on the Rift, but apparently the code has bitrotted recently.
Sweet, if you want you can get a cheap digital angle gauge and just stop for a minute and measure something parallel to the ground like for instance your top tube if it is parallel(some aren't), it is a useful way to see the slope but do it while going down steep hills rather than up(that way it is easier to start up again). I found a really useful tool for getting familiar with your local topography and that is Nasa World Wind. In my hilly area it has shown me some shortcuts that are longer but avoid impossibly steep hills for my high geared commuter bike.
Looks very nice, but I'd rather see that VR port of NASA's World Wind working again, as World Wind seems to be a much more powerful piece of software.
Most of it is just World Wind running on top of NetBeans Platform. World Wind itself uses JOGL 2. All of those projects are open source.
This might be helpful http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/features.html It's a NASA made GoogleEarth-style program that went open source a decade ago. Honestly, I'm surprised noone mentions this around worldbuilding forums. Maybe I'm missing something, haven't tested it yet.
You may want to have a look at NASA's World Wind virtual globe. Similar concept to Google Earth, but without the patchwork of imagery.
Base data is NASA's (beautiful) "Blue Marble" and you can select other higher-resolution data sources as you zoom in.