Panoramio
Encyclopedia
Panoramio is a geolocation-oriented
photo sharing
website. Accepted photos uploaded to the site can be accessed as a layer in Google Earth
and Google Maps
, with new photos being added at the end of every month. The site's goal is to allow Google Earth users to learn more about a given area by viewing the photos that other users have taken at that place. The website is available in several languages.
The headquarters of Panoramio are located in Zurich; in the office building of the Swiss Google
.
entrepreneurs. It was officially launched on October 3, 2005, and by March 19, 2007, it had archived over 1 million user submitted photographs. Three months later, on June 27, 2007, the number of photos reached two million. After a further four months, on October 25, 2007, the number of archived photos reached five million.
On May 30, 2007, Google
announced plans to acquire the website, and Panoramio was acquired by Google
in July 2007.
Eduardo Manchón left the company in January 2010 to focus on his new project Askaro. He was replaced by Gerard Sanz Viñas. Joaquín Cuenca left the company in May 2010.
(a form of metadata), which allow searchers to find images concerning a certain topic such as place name
or subject matter. Panoramio was also an early website to implement tag cloud
s, which provide access to images tagged with the most popular keywords. The website also hosts a list of world famous sites.
Images that have (or are perceived to have) as their central subject people, machines, vehicles or anything within the interiors of structures, or depict public events such as fairs or concerts, are excluded from the GoogleEarth layer, as are any potentially controversial images. No waivers are granted even if the images are historical or otherwise vintage in nature. Images judged to be too creative or "artsy" in concept might also be excluded from GoogleEarth regardless of other requirements met.
Users can create and join Google Groups
. Photos can then be added to a group.
licenses.
app and third party developers have released a Windows Phone 7 version of Panoramio that allows users to browse through the various images posted to www.panoramio.com
GeoTagging
Geotagging is the process of adding geographical identification metadata to various media such as a geotagged photograph or video, websites, SMS messages, QR Codes or RSS feeds and is a form of geospatial metadata...
photo sharing
Photo sharing
Photo sharing is the publishing or transfer of a user's digital photos online, thus enabling the user to share them with others . This function is provided through both websites and applications that facilitate the upload and display of images...
website. Accepted photos uploaded to the site can be accessed as a layer in Google Earth
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 funded company acquired by Google in 2004 . It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite...
and Google Maps
Google Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , 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...
, with new photos being added at the end of every month. The site's goal is to allow Google Earth users to learn more about a given area by viewing the photos that other users have taken at that place. The website is available in several languages.
The headquarters of Panoramio are located in Zurich; in the office building of the Swiss Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
.
History
Panoramio was started in the summer of 2005 by Joaquín Cuenca Abela and Eduardo Manchón Aguilar, two SpanishSpanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
entrepreneurs. It was officially launched on October 3, 2005, and by March 19, 2007, it had archived over 1 million user submitted photographs. Three months later, on June 27, 2007, the number of photos reached two million. After a further four months, on October 25, 2007, the number of archived photos reached five million.
On May 30, 2007, Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
announced plans to acquire the website, and Panoramio was acquired by Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
in July 2007.
Eduardo Manchón left the company in January 2010 to focus on his new project Askaro. He was replaced by Gerard Sanz Viñas. Joaquín Cuenca left the company in May 2010.
Organization
Panoramio asks users to organize images using tagsTag (metadata)
In online computer systems terminology, a tag is a non-hierarchical keyword or term assigned to a piece of information . This kind of metadata helps describe an item and allows it to be found again by browsing or searching...
(a form of metadata), which allow searchers to find images concerning a certain topic such as place name
Location (geography)
The terms location and place in geography are used to identify a point or an area on the Earth's surface or elsewhere. The term 'location' generally implies a higher degree of can certainty than "place" which often has an ambiguous boundary relying more on human/social attributes of place identity...
or subject matter. Panoramio was also an early website to implement tag cloud
Tag cloud
A tag cloud is a visual representation for text data, typically used to depict keyword metadata on websites, or to visualize free form text. 'Tags' are usually single words, and the importance of each tag is shown with font size or color...
s, which provide access to images tagged with the most popular keywords. The website also hosts a list of world famous sites.
Images that have (or are perceived to have) as their central subject people, machines, vehicles or anything within the interiors of structures, or depict public events such as fairs or concerts, are excluded from the GoogleEarth layer, as are any potentially controversial images. No waivers are granted even if the images are historical or otherwise vintage in nature. Images judged to be too creative or "artsy" in concept might also be excluded from GoogleEarth regardless of other requirements met.
Users can create and join Google Groups
Google Groups
Google Groups is a service from Google Inc. that supports discussion groups, including many Usenet newsgroups, based on common interests. The service was started in 1995 as Deja News, and was transitioned to Google Groups after a February 2001 buyout....
. Photos can then be added to a group.
Google Earth Selection Policy
| Deny criteria | Accept criteria | Deny Example | Accept Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portraits of people, or photos of people posing | People are an unavoidable part of the place | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/3679107 | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/55862713 |
| Car, plane or any machine | The object is an unavoidable part of a place | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/58310260 | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/58310142 |
| Animal (including pet) | Animals in their natural environment showing the background | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/58454708 | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/55864001 |
| Flowers and details of plants | Forests, big trees and photos that show the background | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/54485457 | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/54466734 |
| Close-ups, details, inscriptions, or signs | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/53802317 | ||
| Aerial photos similar to the satellite images from Google Maps | |||
| Events, such as exhibitions, concerts, and parades | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/54584209 | ||
| Interiors; anything under a roof | Wide perspectives inside churches, mosques, train stations, and so on | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/58445625 | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/54588700 |
| Representations, such as paintings, logos, digital images, collages, and so on, rather than images from life | http://www.panoramio.com/photo/4385618 |
Licensing
Panoramio allows photo contributors to choose the license type of their photos. Contributors choose to restrict all the rights as author or to share some of them using Creative CommonsCreative Commons
Creative Commons is a non-profit organization headquartered in Mountain View, California, United States devoted to expanding the range of creative works available for others to build upon legally and to share. The organization has released several copyright-licenses known as Creative Commons...
licenses.
Others
Panoramio has an official iPhoneIPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
app and third party developers have released a Windows Phone 7 version of Panoramio that allows users to browse through the various images posted to www.panoramio.com