Hiking Trails in Google Earth

So, I'm sitting around installing software which seems to take five times longer than in the "old days," but anyway, and I killed a little time by checking out Google Earth. Actually, I was going to look for a good place to eat (using Yelp Reviews) but I noticed something quite cool that I wanted to let on about. Under Layers -> Featured Content, I found Trimble Outdoor Trips. With that checked, you zoom into a place where you think you'd like to take a hike and see what shows up. Shown below is a suggested hike near where I live (and work). The icon shows the hiking trail path, photographs, information about where to park, and some of the hikes provide audio and video…sounds like virtual hiking. And of course you can use Google Earth to give you directions to the trailhead. Never a dull moment with Google Earth.

Workshop on the Impact of Pen-Based Technology on Education

Yes, okay WIPTE is a mouthful, but if you're interested in tablet PCs and you're interested in instructional technologies, this looks like a good conference.

But this is the really cool thing about the conference, there's yet another university out there using tablet PCs, and GIS and GPS to teach with. Check out the abstract for "TEACHING SOIL – LANDSCAPE INTERACTIONS USING RUGGED TABLET PCs IN THE FIELD" from Darrell Schulze and colleagues from Purdue University.

A little searching on Purdue's web pages finds that Schulze has been working with tablet PCs and soil mapping already. Sing it Prof. Schulze, "Paper maps, however, have limitations, especially in the field." See some mapping-by-mini-van below.