Cycling the Alps adds games, tours and much more

When we showed you the “Cycling the Alps” site last year, it was pretty neat. It had information and tours for hundreds of cycling routes in the Alps, and it was very well crafted.

They’ve just taken the site to the next level and it’s quite impressive now! When you click an area on the site, you’re now given as many as 12 options for things to do. Along with the standard “route” and “tour”, there are options to play games, explore in 3D in sort of a first-person shooter style as well as a few other goodies.

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While you could start at their home page and choose a route, I’d advise you to start with the “Little Saint Bernard Pass“, as it features all of the available options.

Clicking the “Pac-Man Earth” icon will let you ride a bike on that path, with the code heavily borrowed from the popular “Monster Milktruck” demo. It’s certainly a fun way to try it route. Simply use your arrow keys to move around.

Clicking the “Earth with magnifying glass” icon you’ll get the “Explore in 3D” version of the map. Use the [A], [W], [S] and [D] keys to move around, and the arrow keys to change your view. You can use the [Page Up] and [Page Down] keys to fly in the air. If you explore “Grosse Scheidegg” you’ll even find a little GEB marker!

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A few of the options, including the 3D Tours and the Profiles can now be embedded into your own website, and they’ve created a version of the site specifically for the Chrome web store, though I’m not sure it offers any major advantages.

All in all, they’ve made some very impressive improvements to the site, and they’re doing all they can to help you fully experience the Alps from the comfort of your home.

Google Pushing HotPot to the Big Leagues

Google announced last night that Hotpot friend recommendations are now showing on the main Google search results in the 7-pack. They are also showing in the local organic blended results and branded searches.

Google is working on social tools on a number of fronts more or less successfully. You can never count them out though when they are willing to bring the full weight of the front page of Google to the game.

It appears to me that eating, reviews and ratings are where they are really where they are making a stand and to do so they are driving traffic to Hotpot. Hotpot previously has been highlighted in Maps, Places and mobile.

What better way to incent Hotpot users than to show them, front and center, where their friends ate. What better way to create more Hotpot engagement and traffic than showing it on the front page of Google. Let the ego games begin.

Here is a screen shot of a branded Local Universal result where you can see the inclusion of Hotpot ratings:

Related posts:

  1. Google Hotpot – Yelp Meets Netflix in a Local Recommendation Engine
  2. Google Hotpot Recommendations Now Surfacing on Places Page and Maps
  3. Google Places: Are Ratings the New Reviews?

Check in with Google Latitude

We first introduced Google Latitude to help you stay in touch with your friends and family by making it easy to share where you are. For the 10 million people actively using Latitude each month, this “where” has been a location on a map. Starting today in Google Maps 5.1 for Android, you can also connect that location to a real place by checking in there using Latitude.

Connecting your location with places
You can still use Latitude to automatically update and share your location, but check-ins let you add context to the location—like captions to a photo. For example, I live in San Francisco but often travel around the world. Until today, sharing my location let friends and family know if I was across the globe or in their neighborhood. Now, check-ins let them see the cool restaurant I’m trying in Taipei or join me for a latte at the cafe nearby.

See where your friends are on a map and where they’re checking in.

Not your typical check-ins
Because you can use Latitude to automatically detect your location, we’ve added a few twists to checking in to make it really easy:

  • Notifications: Turn on check-in notifications in Latitude’s settings and get a notification to check in at a nearby place once you arrive. Never forget to check in again.
  • Automatic check-ins: Choose to automatically check in at specific places you designate, and you’ll be checked in when you’re there. You can talk to friends or finish your bagel without fumbling with your phone.
  • Check out: Once you leave, Latitude knows to automatically check you out of places so friends aren’t left guessing if you’re still there.

Explore your world one check-in at a time
Latitude is built right into Google Maps for Android so check-ins work across Latitude and Maps seamlessly. For example, check in at that new hamburger joint, and you’ll see its Place page with reviews to help you order. When friends check in at a place, you can go straight from their Latitude profile to its Place page to learn about it, fire up Google Maps Navigation (Beta) for turn-by-turn directions to them, and more.

You can also check in at a favorite place to earn special status there; you’ll see if you’ve become a “Regular,” a “VIP” or a “Guru” on its Place page. Keep checking in to hold onto your status or reach the next level.

Latitude check-ins are built right into Google Maps and Place pages.

Of course, we thought carefully about how to make checking in to places quick and easy while giving you control over your privacy. Just like when sharing your location with Latitude, checking in is 100% opt-in, and you can choose to share any check-in with your friends on Latitude, publicly on the web and your Google profile, or just yourself. Learn more about checking in and managing your check-ins with Latitude in the Help Center. Coming later this week, you’ll also be able to see your complete history of check-ins using the optional History tab at google.com/latitude from your computer.

Choose options for individual check-ins or turn on and off notifications in the Latitude settings.

Start checking in by downloading the latest Google Maps from Android Market (on Android 1.6+; tap here if you’re on your phone) and then joining Latitude from the main menu. You can check in everywhere Maps and Latitude are already available. If you’re using the new Latitude app for iPhone, you’ll see your friends’ check-ins, and we’ll update the app soon so you can check in too.

Just the beginning…
Checking in from Latitude is just one step in helping you connect the places you go with the people you care about. We believe in letting you use or share your location however you like, and we’re working on making location and check-ins useful in more places—across Google and the web.