Google Earth Pro Desktop Edition

[Mzokk]

I recently opened Google Earth Pro and got this message.

"We’re continuing to make Google Earth on web and mobile the best place for people to get helpful geospatial insights. While you can continue using the legacy Google Earth Pro desktop app, it will no longer be available for new downloads beginning on June 25, 2027. We encourage using web and mobile for the best Google Earth experience."

I'm not sure how many folk this will impact, but for me the desktop app does three things (that I've found so far) that are not available in the online version.

1. Directly importing GPX files to Google earth. The online version will only import KML/KMZ files.
2. Recording a 3D "flight" along a route to distribute to others so that they have an Idea of the terrain they will be traversing.
3. The ability to export POI's from the mapping. Google maps and Google MyMaps has this functionality closed down, so I suppose its was only a matter of time before this applied to Google Earth.

It will be interesting to see how long after June 25, 2027 they continue to allow the desktop app to access the mapping data. Looks like this will go the way of Picasa for those of us who remember using that.

 

[Berin]

I recall when it was possible to review a track or route created Garmin Basecamp with a Google Earth overlay with a “view in Google Earth” facility.

It made planning pre TET trips in out of the places like Bosnia, Albania, Kosovo, Bulgaria at least vaguely feasible.

It’s getting much harder to do these things now.

 

[Wapping]

There was certainly the ability to click on a route in MapSource / BaseCamp and have it ‘fly’ along in Google Earth. It was quite fun and at quite low level as I recall. I also used it at a higher level to look down on routes through dense forests and the like, to see if I could establish the quality of the roads. I figured that if I could see road markings and conventional domestic cars, they’d be OK.

 

[grantmac]

If I recall it was even a button on the Basecamp menu bar. I found it very useful especially when I wanted to “check” a route and roads. Long gone I beleive but it was a useful feature. Never used Google earth after that

 

[Wapping]

It will be interesting to see how long after June 25, 2027 they continue to allow the desktop app to access the mapping data

It’ll be good if they keep it going.

I don’t so often now send a file to Google Earth Pro, to view the route. Instead I rely on MyRoute’s ability to easily view a route in Google Maps’ street level tool. That aside, Google’s ability to show aerial views of places and locations is still handy for looking at hotels’ locations, relative to everything else.