Just like Ricky Bobby, I like going fast. Most of the time, though, going too fast in real life can be dangerous. That's why I also enjoy playing driving games and simulators—all from the comfort and safety of my own home!
The great thing is, thanks to the Earth API and Maps API for Flash, developers have built a flurry of simulator applications that are visually stunning, geographically realistic, and highly addictive. Below are some of my favorite simulators for driving, sailing, running, and even landing on the moon!
WARNING: I will not be held liable for any lost productivity resulting from these awesome apps!
Considered by most to be in the list of top Earth API apps, Ships is a highly polished simulator by New Zealand-based Dinther Product Design for a variety of sea vessels (and a blimp!). The visual effects (i.e. the ship's wake using animated ground overlays), camera angles, and detailed screen overlay-based dials make Ships an exceptionally fun and immersive simulator.
Primary API: Earth API
Although I don't have the endurance to run a marathon, I can still check out various marathon routes with the help of Race My Race! This app is a really fun way to explore the terrain along these difficult routes. And, if you're planning on running a marathon in the near future, this site can even help you prepare!
Ever want to explore the world's great bodies of water? Sea-Seek's Virtual Dive is perfect for just that! This app lets you commandeer a variety of air, ocean surface, and underwater vessels along coastlines and even in the deep blue sea! My favorite vessel is the 'Shark Sub,' equipped with a headlamp model.
The original, 2D version of this simulator was very impressive—it allowed you to drive a car or truck in a city of your choosing in a Grand Theft Auto-like perspective. This version, however, one-ups the original by utilizing the new 3D perspective in the Maps API for Flash with a 3D car model for a more realistic feel. A great game from a great developer in Japan!
Primary API: Maps API for Flash
Another gem from Dinther Product Design, this challenging, but very fun, minigame lets you attempt to land the Apollo 11 Moon Lander. I personally have never been able to land without crashing, but a few of my coworkers had no problem finishing with a successful 'Eagle Touchdown.' To them, I say: apply to NASA!
This is a super-mashup of a number of Google and non-Google APIs, allowing you to visualize—in every way imaginable—the driving route between two addresses. The demo really shows off what's possible with today's geo platforms. Very exciting stuff!
Primary API: Various
I hope you enjoyed trying out these simulators; maybe a few of you were inspired to write your own simulation apps! I bet we'll be seeing more and more of these types of apps in the future. 'Til next time, thanks for reading and drive safely!
So bring your laptops, and your brains, and be prepared to code.
Space is limited, so register now!
Back when we announced the "Google Maps API for Flash" in May, there were a large amount of Flash CS3 developers who were miffed at our lack of support for using the API in their favorite program, and quickly made "Flash CS3 Support" the second most starred feature request -- and there was even one developer named Vincent who managed to get our SWC running in CS3 who quickly became a one-man support desk for his hack. Well, Vincent, it's time to take a vacation, and CS3 Developers, it's time to get to work. The 1.7 SWC can now officially be used as a Flash CS3 Component, and the documentation now includes a snazzy screenshot-filled tutorial about creating your first map in Flash CS3.
To show that off, I made the kind of demo that one can only truly be done in Flash - a Google-ified re-envisionment of a scene from my all-time favorite movie, Puff the Magic Dragon. Click the screenshot to check it out.
Warning: Watch this scene (5:20) first if you've never seen the movie, or you'll think I'm a bit crazy. I mean, you might think so anyway. But still.
And there are a few extra features for everyone, like TileLayerOverlay, ScaleControl, Geodesic Polylines, Walking Directions. Check out the demo gallery for examples of those, and read the docs for more information. Enjoy 1.7, and let us know in the forum how you're using the API or if you have questions.
Good arvo from Sydney, Australia, where it's beautiful even in the dead of winter and the people use contrived abbreviations for literally everything. I kid, I kid. Australia is great, and the vegemite is even greater. I've spent my winter internship (also called a "summer internship" for my compatriots above the Equator) working on the Google Maps API for Flash, which was released back in May. If you're like me, you might think that Flash is a tool for creating amateur cartoons of questionable legality after school. Friends, I assure you -- it's so much more.
JavaScript developers have reaped the benefits of driving directions in the Google Maps API for over a year now, but without them Flash developers have endured three long months of repeatedly getting lost. As someone who accidentally drove into Oklahoma for well over an hour before realizing that his roadtrip only involved Texas, I feel your pain, Flash folk. But worry no longer, for I bring good news. It has been my pleasure to rectify this disorientation dilemma and bring the enormous utility of driving directions to our Maps API for Flash, starting with version 1.6.
The interface for the Flash API's Directions class closely resembles that of the JS API's GDirections class. You still create a Directions object, optionally listen for load/fail events on it, and then call the load() method with a directions query. The Directions object contains all the response information as Route and Step objects, also like the JS API. The awesome thing about Flash is that you can then include all sorts of animations and movie clips to complement the directions in your application. Consider the following application which uses a penguin to show you how to get from the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater to Waterloo Records in Austin:
Sure you could probably whip that up in a JavaScript application, but envision this scenario: an animated car traverses the route of your roadtrip; your videos are overlaid onto the map at their original shooting locations; and your meticulously selected playlist of driving music plays chronologically in the background. And that, my friends, is the power of Flash.
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