Amber Bellaire Globe and Mail
If you thought Facebook and Twitter provided a personal-information overload, wait until you see how messy your front lawn looks.
Canada has finally joined Google Street View, featuring high-resolution, street-level images of 15 Canadian cities. That means you can catch a glimpse of your ex's front porch without having to do a drive-by.
Google Street View launched in 2007 in the United States. The application is linked to both the company's Google Maps and Google Earth services.
The photos are representative of what someone would see if they were driving down the street.
Three-hundred-and-sixty degree views of Toronto, Calgary, Banff National Park, Montreal, Quebec City, Halifax, Vancouver, Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Squamish, Whistler, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kitchener and Waterloo are available.
Google began acquiring images for Canadian streets earlier this year.
To appease the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, the application's intelligences include the automatic blurring of faces and license plates. Additionally, users can request to have images removed by filling out a simple online form.
Google Street View was first launched in various major cities in the U.S. in May, 2007. The U.K., Spain, Australia and Japan are amongst other countries that are featured in the application.
Notice who is missing from the list of Canadian cities? I understood they visited Winnipeg. Wonder why our fair burgh is not available?
