How you can contribute Google Earth KMZ files to Planet

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 30 Jul 2005, 10:40

All~

Some of you with newer PCs and faster internet connections may be aware of the google earth software featured at http://earth.google.com/ .

You can download it here, it's free and great fun - I've spent a few hours looking at the great pyramids, niagara falls, various cities, area 51 etc.

HOWEVER, it occured to me that adding an entry in the cat-elog for each species type locality would be really cool. I've researched this and found a way for all you guys to get involved in this.

What I'm proposing is you can select a species and email me the .kmz file and (once I have a few) I'll add the functionality that will allow you too click on a cat-elog page, launch google earth and "fly" to that location on the globe.

A .kmz file is a small file, almost instantly downloaded that, if you have google earth installed, will show you where somewhere is on the planet.

So, email me (webmaster@planetcatfish.com) your .kmz files (IMPORTANT, they must be called after the species they are for i.e. leporacanthicus_triactis.kmz with an underscore, no capital letters) and I will store them. You can do this by emailing yourself using the email link on google earth and then renaming and sending me the KMZ file (or lots of them!).

For an idea of how this works, install google earth and try out this link:

Code: Select all

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/kmz/leporacanthicus_triactis.kmz

If I get some take up on this idea (and I'm not excpecting mods or admins to get involved, everyone should get involved) then we'll have lots of cool links to try out all across the globe and you can save your favourite ones in your own global sightseeing collection.

Jools

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 30 Jul 2005, 17:09

OK, well, I've had a trio sent in. You can see all of them (for now) at ** feature no longer supported ** - as I said, after there are a good few up there then I will link them into the individual species.

Jools

Post by **Rusty** » 30 Jul 2005, 20:06

KMZ files are compressed (zipped actually) KML files, which are basic XML files w/ lat/long keys. For example, leporacanthicus_triactis.kmz unzipped yields doc.kml, which is just

Code: Select all

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<kml xmlns="http://earth.google.com/kml/2.0">
<Placemark>
  <name>GoogleEarth_Placemark</name>
  <LookAt>
    <longitude>-65.09167630712594</longitude>
    <latitude>2.208347241116184</latitude>
    <range>4090.537571474061</range>
    <tilt>1.207393404902424e-006</tilt>
    <heading>0.05975786531789357</heading>
  </LookAt>
  <styleUrl>root://styleMaps#default+nicon=0x307+hicon=0x317</styleUrl>
  <Point>
    <coordinates>-65.09167630712594,2.208347241116184,0</coordinates>
  </Point>
</Placemark>
</kml>

If only we had lat/long in the DB, we could generate these ourselves for each species...

Rusty

P.S. I like the idea of storing these as the uncompressed KML files over lots of unintelligible binary files floating around.

FuglyDragon · Post by **FuglyDragon** » 31 Jul 2005, 07:27

Species submitted so far...

Rio Xingu / Iriri

baryancistrus_sp(l081) - gold nugget
baryancistrus_sp(l085) - gold nugget
baryancistrus_sp(l177) - gold nugget
baryancistrus_sp(l047) - magnum
scobinancistrus_aurateus(l014) - goldie / sunshine
hypancistrus_zebra(l046) - Zebra
spectracanthicus_sp(l254)
hypancistrus_sp(l236)

plus..

panaque_sp_cf_nigrolineatus_'xingu' - Xingu Royal Plec L027c
peckolita_vitatta - The Candy Stripe Plec L015
parancistrus_sp(l031) - Peppermint Pleco L031
scobinancistrus_pariolispos - L048

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 31 Jul 2005, 09:40

Rusty wrote:If only we had lat/long in the DB, we could generate these ourselves for each species...

That'd be very nice, but I'm not sure we could find all that data in one place.

Rusty wrote:P.S. I like the idea of storing these as the uncompressed KML files over lots of unintelligible binary files floating around.

Doesn't bother me if they are submitted as .KMZ or .KML files, but I think it's easier for the majority to submit them as .KMZ files as that's the format google send them out in by default.

What I'm in the process of doing is writing a little bit of code that checks to see if a .kmz (or .kml) file exists for a particular species and, if it does, puts an icon on that species' page which, when clicked, launches google earth.

From a technical angle, maybe you're looking at this backwards. If folks continue to submit files (in either format) we could, in time, suck that data into the database for future projects of this type. My thoughts are that in 10 years time, we will be able to do a whole lot more with this kind of data.

Jools

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 31 Jul 2005, 10:52

Well, I've now coded the pages so that if a .kmz file exists, you'll automatically get a link to launch google earth. Check out some of the species above.

FuglyDragon has also added in some content to each file that links the placemark back to the cat-elog - this looks pretty cool and (for those of you who are wondering what we're all on about) I've put a screen shot below but it is a pale representation of the whole fly in across the globe thing that happens. Perhaps FuglyDragon can post some instructions here so others can follow his lead.

Also, you have to be careful with the filenames! For example..

Hypancistrus_zebra(l046).kmz won't work, what we are looking for here is hypancistrus_zebra.mkz. You only need the l-number or whatever if it is not a described or identified species. So, hypancistrus_sp(l236).kmz will work.

Also, be very careful with spelling if it is not, letter for letter, exact with the cat-elog then the link will not show up in the species page.

Finally, FuglyDragon has also sent some general placemarks (such as upper Rio Xingu) which are available if you access the KMZ folder directly, but cannot be linked in at the moment.

Jools

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 31 Jul 2005, 10:53

Screenshot as promised:

Jools[/img]

srbanator · Post by **srbanator** » 15 Jun 2006, 19:17

hi all

today is our lucky day, because Google Earth is out for Linux users. So finally i can browse the whole world map.
I also made KML files with Panaque albomaculatus, Pseudolithoxus anthrax and other(check if it is ok). It is really easy, once you know, how XML works. I will add some more very soon, as i firstly have to search which ones has the longitude.

i was trying to add Pseudacanthicus leopardus but the 2Â°-3Â°N, 50Â°20'W shows to sea. Maytbe some fault.

enjoy

p.s. if some of you admins can dig these info, it could makes our works easier

http://heckler-koch.cz/kmz/

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 17 Jun 2006, 09:30

Hi,

I have added the kmz files, but some are for species we do not have pictures / pages for! Are you able to send me these pictures for use on this site (usual photo credits etc will, of course, be listed) so I can link in the KMZ files and also publish any information you might have?

Cheers,

Jools

srbanator · Post by **srbanator** » 17 Jun 2006, 18:05

Hi

for the fishes where the photos are not present, i used photos from the journal articles. I also cited the article in the KMZ file. The thumbails are on the same place as KMZ files. Do you want me to send you whole pdf journal articles?

Are you able to dig longitude data informationes from all loricariidae at planetcatfish? (also rather check my KMZ files, if i made them right

As you are using PHP it is little bit hard for my to write XLST to dig it myself.

YouTube · Post by **Jools** » 01 Aug 2014, 20:21

Just a much belated note to say that while KMZ files were a great wheeze, they ultimately were replaced by the much whizzier google maps API you now see all over the catelog.

Jools

How you can contribute Google Earth KMZ files to Planet

How you can contribute Google Earth KMZ files to Planet

Re: How you can contribute Google Earth KMZ files to Planet