Christos Samaras

Mechanical Engineer

http://www.myengineeringworld.net

Thessaloniki, 1 July 2013

About G-Maps, G-Earth & KML files

Requirements
How to create a KML file with G-Maps
How to delete a saved map in G-Maps
How to open a KML in G-Earth
How to create a KML/KMZ file in G-Earth
How to open a KML/KMZ file in G-Maps

Google Maps (G-Maps)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Maps

Google Maps (formerly Google Local) is a web

mapping service application and technology
provided by Google, that powers many map-based
services, including the Google Maps website,
Google Ride Finder, Google Transit and maps
embedded on third-party websites via the Google
Maps API. It offers street maps, a route planner for
traveling by foot, car, bike (beta), or with public
transportation and a locator for urban businesses
in numerous countries around the world. Google
Maps satellite images are not updated in real time,
but rather they are several months or years old.
https://maps.google.com

Google Earth (G-Earth)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Earth

Google Earth is a virtual globe, map and geographical

information program that was originally called
EarthViewer 3D, and was created by Keyhole, Inc, a
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) funded company
acquired by Google in 2004 (see In-Q-Tel). It maps the
Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from
satellite imagery, aerial photography and GIS 3D globe. It
was available under three different licenses, two
currently: Google Earth, a free version with limited
function; Google Earth Plus (discontinued),which
included additional features; and Google Earth Pro ($399
per year), which is intended for commercial use.
http://www.google.com/earth/index.html

KML & KMZ Files

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KML

Keyhole Markup Language (KML) is an XML notation for

expressing geographic annotation and visualization within
Internet-based, two-dimensional maps and three-dimensional
Earth browsers. KML was developed for use with Google Earth,
which was originally named Keyhole Earth Viewer. It was created
by Keyhole, Inc, which was acquired by Google in 2004. KML
became an international standard of the Open Geospatial
Consortium in 2008. Google Earth was the first program able to
view and graphically edit KML files.
The KML file specifies a set of features (place marks, images,
polygons, 3D models, textual descriptions, etc.) for display in
Google Earth, Maps and Mobile, or any other geospatial software
implementing the KML encoding. Each place always has a
longitude and a latitude. Other data can make the view more
specific, such as tilt, heading, altitude, which together define a
"camera view" along with a timestamp or timespan. KML shares
some of the same structural grammar as GML. Some KML
information cannot be viewed in Google Maps or Mobile.

KML & KMZ Files

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KML

KML files are very often distributed in KMZ files,

which are zipped KML files with a .kmz extension.
These must be legacy (ZIP 2.0) compression
compatible (i.e. stored or deflate method),
otherwise the .kmz file might not uncompress in all
geobrowsers. The contents of a KMZ file are a
single root KML document (notionally "doc.kml")
and optionally any overlays, images, icons, and
COLLADA 3D models referenced in the KML
including network-linked KML files. The root KML
document by convention is a file named "doc.kml"
at the root directory level, which is the file loaded
upon opening. By convention the root KML
document is at root level and referenced files are
in subdirectories (e.g. images for overlay images).

To complete the tutorials

In order to fulfill all the tutorials you will need:
A free GMAIL account.

https://mail.google.com

A free version of Google Earth installed at your

http://www.google.com/earth/index.html
computer.
Dropbox installed at your computer. You can create
a free account quite easily.
https://www.dropbox.com
And of course, a computer that is able to connect
at the internet

Step 1/4

Login to your Google account, open Google Maps

at your browser and create a route. Scroll down to
the page and find the Save to My Places option.

Step 2/4

From the dropdown list select the Create a new

map option and press the Save button.

Step 3/4

Press the KML link on the left of the page. A

pop-up window will appear.

Step 4/4

Press the Save File radio button and then the OK

button. The file will be saved at the default
downloads location of your browser.

Step 1/3

On Google Maps press the My places button on

the left of the page.

Step 2/3

Find the map you want to delete and select the

Delete option from the dropdown list that is
located on the right of the maps name.

Step 3/3

If you are sure that you want to delete the map

just confirm the question by pressing the Delete
button.

Step 1/3

Open Google Earth and from the menu File

select the Open option. Alternatively you can
type the CTRL + O shortcut.

Step 2/3

Browse to the folder that contains the KML file,

find and select the file and then press the Open
button.

Step 3/3

If the KML file was loaded successfully you will

see on the left the two points (start end), as
well as the driving directions (the route).

Step 1/4

Open Google Earth and press the Add

Placemark button. Move the placemark to the
desired location with your mouse.

Step 2/4

Change the placemarks name to something

meaningful and press the OK button.

Step 3/4

From the File menu select Save and then the

Save Place As option. Alternatively you can type
the CTRL + S shortcut.

Step 4/4

Browse to the folder that you want to save the

KMZ file, rename it (optional) and finally, press
the Save button.

Step 1/4

Open your Dropbox, copy the KMZ file into the

public folder of Dropbox and wait until the file is
synchronized (you should see a green tick mark).

Step 2/4

Right click on the KMZ file and from the pop-up

menu select the Copy public link option.

Step 3/4

Open Google Maps at your browser, paste the link

location from the previous at the search bar step
(use the CTRL + V shortcut) and then press the
search button.

Step 4/4

If the file was loaded successfully you should

see the placemark(s) on the map, as well as on
the left side of the page.

For more tutorials please visit:

http://www.myengineeringworld.net