DETROIT, 11:16 AM, SAT JUL 19 | 18 POSTS IN THE LAST 24 HOURS | tips@jalopnik.com | RSS
Posts Tagged “

street view


novelties

Google Street View Captures Automotive Improvisation

If we've learned anything from Google Street View, it's that something is always going on in this crazy country of ours. Whether it's flashers, crashes or shootings, the roving cameras tell us that not everything interesting happens indoors. This is especially true for the automotive enthusiast that lacks a garage, like this fellow here.

More »

novelties

Unique Clause Gets Google Street View Banned From Minnesota Town

The wacky and crazy Google Street View vehicles that manage to capture all of the perfect moments have gotten themselves banned from a United States city, again (kind of). The town of North Oaks, a northeast community and suburb of Minneapolis has chased the Google cars away. They were able to do so because the roads in this community are owned by the residents. The residents reportedly enforce a strict "trespassing ordinance," and per a letter sent to Google earlier this year, the search engine giant removed the pictures and banished the vehicles from ever returning. More »

google street view

Google Street View Drives By Shooting?

Hardigree may poke fun at the rough streets of Ray's beloved Detroit from time to time, but if these photos are what they look like they are, there's some dirt on Chicago too. Judge for yourself, but we can't help but see something going terribly wrong in these images captured in the windy city by the Google Maps Street View camera-mobiles. We've spotted everything from car accidents to Steve Job's Mercedes on the all-seeing cameras, but this takes it all to a new level.

More »

offbeat news

Google Street View Dishes Up Another Fascinating Slice-O-Life


Now, we can't say for sure what sort of transaction was captured on film by the Google Street View photography vehicle; perhaps the Illinois gentleman with the roll of bills is negotiating for the purchase of an 80s Ford LTD. Whatever it is, we're seeing free enterprise in glorious effect here. Take that, Commies! Thanks to LTDScott aka Porcubimmer_4_Lyfe for the tip! [Google Maps]

novelties

Google Street View Banned from Military Bases

The US military has banned Google Street View from its bases after photography and video was posted of Fort Sam in Texas that potentially threatened security. According to the Inquirer, the Pentagon got "its knickers in a twist" after a vehicle carrying Street View equipment was allowed access to the base, capturing "where all the guards are, how the barriers go up and down, and how to get in and out of buildings." Information that the military is worried could aid the dreaded terrorist masterminds currently plotting our demise. More »

offbeat news

Stop Getting Caught In Google Street View Accidents

That's right, a fourth Google Street View accident. After Minneapolis and Phoenix - twice, we're now joining some firefighters on cleanup duty in lovely Oceanside, California on the very Jalop appropriate El Camino Real. The two car accident looks like it may have been a three car incident due to the sandwich effect on the Mercury Tracer Civic, but there's no third party anywhere in sight. The fire guys seem to have brandished the jaws of life on one of the cars, but we can't for the life of us figure out what it is an 80's era Mazda 626. Humorously the accident occurred in a most convenient location - right in front of a junkyard fronted by an auto repair shop. [Google Street View]


offbeat news

Google Street View Makes Phoenix Look Dangerous

We're beginning to wonder if Google Street View is somehow causing these accidents. We saw the awesome Audi Q7 versus Range Rover upside-down cake near the Phoenix Country Club a couple of weeks ago. Now we're seeing another one a mere 2.7 miles away. "That's crazy talk!" you say. Nope, there's definitely a case to be made. While the country club crackup was decidedly expensive, this one is a bit more low-rent. Underneath the blazing Arizona sun (which apparently destroyed the front camera element), this Chevrolet Cavalier took a dirt nap after being T-boned by an S-10. You can barely make out the high build quality of the Cav because it's hidden behind the wrinkled roof and the driver still chilling out in the passenger seat. We're also enjoying the "WTF?" look on the burly cop's face when he notices the camera car. [Google Street View]


offbeat news

Another Google Street View Crash

It's darn near an epidemic. As unlikely as it may seem, we have captured pictures of another Google Street View accident. Not only is this one more dramatic, it features a much healthier dollop of schadenfreude. Where before we had a random car crash, here we have a double luxo-SUV smash-up featuring the fancy pants Audi Q7 and Landie's Range Rover outside of the Phoenix Country Club. Feel that? That's stereotype humor rocking your socks off. Take solice in that there is still an element of 'WTF?'. Somehow that Range Rover finished the action upside down, and considering the extent of the damage we're surprised to see the occupant dutifully taking down insurance info. This is making us wonder how many Street View accidents there are out there.[Google Maps]


offbeat news

Google Street View Captures Car Accident

Finally, Google goes and does something worth our while. In what seems to be a completely inexplicable car accident, a Minneapolis woman decided to drive her Mercedes Benz E-Class into a tree - and the Google Street View camera car was there to immortalize it. Unfortunately the moment of impact wasn't captured by the pseudo-surveillance set-up so we're left with a head scratcher. It appears to be a one car accident, on a lightly congested street, in broad daylight - with a big tree. We'll refrain from the easy lady driver jokes, but still, how the heck did that happen?[Google.com]

i always feel like somebody's watching me

Google Street Cam: Brought To You By The Chevrolet Cobalt

A couple months back we showed you the first shot of the Microsoft Live "Street View" truck. Now a tipster to our gadget-obsessed brother site snapped some pictures of what appears to be Google upping the ante. The tipster, who will remain nameless to protect his identity from Google bombs, found in a secret lair at a highway park-n-ride 30 Chevy Cobalts. But these weren't just any Cobalts, all of them were "Street Cam" camera equipped, or "an armada of C.C.C.Cs (Chevy Cobalt Camera Cars)" as the Chevrolet-spotting Gizmodo tipster called them. We're wondering whether this means Chevrolet has thrown aside their allegiance to the forces of good (mom, apple pie, baseball and Autobots) in order to assist the forces of evil (Google)? More than likely Google just got a really good deal on a mess of Cobalts. [Gizmodo]

candid camera

Microsoft Live Truck Spotted Prowling On The Highway

It looks like Microsoft's upping the street view ante in the cold map war against Google. Tipster The Red Monkey just sent us the shot to the right. We'll let him continue:
"This morning on my way into downtown I spotted the Microsoft live "street view" truck. I only had time to grab one picture before my exit onto J street. Its a cameraphone pic so its not great but you can see the cameras on top of the truck and the Microsoft Live logos on the back. I did not catch the name of the company out on the prowl for them either."
So get ready all you sketchy guys coming out of strip clubs, nose-pickers and pissing rednecks — it's Microsoft's turn and the Live truck's a comin' to get you on digital film for your 15 minutes of fame. Or at least 30 minutes or so of time spent on the front page of Digg. More »

goog is all around

Google Street View: How They Did It

If you're like us, you've been playing with Google Maps Street View for the past week instead of working. But if you've also spent too many hours wondering, while picking lint off a throw pillow, how they created all those street-level panoramas, you might want to leave the day room for a few minutes. For much of it, you can thank Immersive Media, whose Beetle-mounted Dodeca camera provided the 360-degree shots. Arranged in a dodecahedron, the camera's 11 lenses and sensors produces 11 video streams of 100 million pixels per second. Pretty sneaky, goog. More »