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Top 10 Travel Social Networks and Communities

social networks are more powerful than ever and web 2.0 has brought us tons of social networks available to travelers exclusively. While most of them generally have the same, overlapping features, their functionality, community, users, and feel vary pretty greatly. So here are the top travel social networks and travel communities available online today.

Newer Blood

There are a bunch of very new, not so established travel social networks, some that even just opened up to the public in beta.

	Dopplr - This sleek, very web 2.0 site has a large variety of features. It’s very easy to navigate, and lets users create trip itineraries and find travel tips created by other travelers. You can share your trips with others and find connections. Most importantly, Dopplr is all about integrating other popular services you already use into the site, like Twitter, Facebook, Calendars, and Flickr photos so it meshes well with your online lifestyle.
	Trip Wolf - This very new social travel community just launched July 2008. I like this site because of it’s personal nature, and it reminds me of a Facebook for travel because of its “friends” and “travelers” features. TripWolf’s “travelers” allows you to find “gurus” of destinations who can help you plan your trip, so it’s personal nature is a huge plus. Since it is brand new, it’s not as full as most other sites, but in time TripWolf can be great.
	Trip Say - Trip Say is still in beta invite only, so it is very new as well. This travel social network reminds me of Digg.com and is big on social voting (thumbs up, thumbs down, etc) and quick tips/comments on destinations. It is very easy to navigate, guide-like site with many integrated features like photos, nearby destinations, maps, groups, and links outgoing to more comprehensive guides on a destination.
	Trip Hub - Trip Hub is a social travel site that takes on a little different focus. Trip Hub is centered around groups planning trips together. It’s arguably the best group trip planning tool and website that allows users to invite travelers, share itineraries, map out their plans, and create travel blogs.
	Driftr - Similar to TripWolf, Driftr is a Facebook-esque travel social network site that lets people have friends, create profiles and trips, and research others’ trips. For your tirps, you can share photos, and tips on where to eat, what to do, etc. It has a slightly cleaner, less cluttered design which is awesome and easy to navigate and use. Unfortunately, it’s still very new and small, but with a few thousand more users Driftr could be great.
	World66 - World66 is a travel community that is more based on travel articles and guides rather than actual networking with others. The site has some new forums which aren’t too active yet, and also has new blogs and gallery features.

Old Timers

Several older travel networks and communities don’t quite fall under the “2.0″ category because of their age and designs. But, they are still very very useful and have much more content than the new blood sites, which might be the most important thing anyways.

	Virtual Tourist - Virtual tourist is the web’s largest travel community and social network. With over a million members, there are member tips, guides, and photos on literally every place on earth. It has a sort of archaic, but functional, design but makes up for it with it’s massive amount of relevant, helpful travel facts, guides, and tips, as well as forums.
	BootsnAll - BudgetGlobetrotting’s favorite travel forums by far. This comprehensive travel community revolves around the message boards, where forums are loaded with great guides and tips that come from the best user base around. The users and community is very friendly and helpful, and contacting individual travelers with questions is a great solution to answer your travel questions.
	Lonely Planet Thorn Tree - Publishing giant lonely planet has the second best forums and community online. The boards are very active and busy just like Bootsnall, and there’s a lot of helpful information on different travel destinations worldwide to assist you in your travel planning.
	Trip Advisor - This age old travel site got an updated 2.0 look and feeling, but is not one of my favorite travel communities. It’s focused around free travel guides and information, but lacks a sense of community with other members.

Geography in SL

Geography in Second Life

Geography in Second Life: Neogeography from digitalurban on Vimeo.

The movie above is a 3 minute clip of a work to date in Second Life to explore how 'classic geography and cities' can be imported into Second Life. A high definition version can be viewed via Vimeo by clicking on the HD link in the movie player.

Music is by the Tartan Rascals

See Nature.com for more information on our work and other 'scientists' working in Second Life.

Google’s Cities in 3D Program Rolls Out First Few Completed Cities

A few months ago 3Dwalkthroughs.com posted about Google’s Cities in 3D program. The program encourages 3D models of cities to be developed and integrated into Google Earth.

Some of the benefits of the Cities in 3D program include:
Helping with public planning

Fostering economic development

Boosting tourism

Simplifying navigation and geographic analysis

Enhancing facilities management

Supporting security and crime prevention

Facilitating emergency management

The program was initially rolled out in March but today Google announced the rollout of the first group of completed cities. These cities include: Amherst, Mass., Jamestown, N.Y., Washington D.C., Greenville, S.C., McMinnville, Tenn., as well as the Metropolitan Government of Nashville & Davidson County, Tenn.

It will be interesting to see how quickly this spreads to the Western half of the country. We were impressed with the level of detail in the 3D models shown on the Youtube demo of their program.

Google Map in Second Life

UK virtual world consultants, Daden Limited have created an amazing build in Second Life that directly leverages Google Maps content. The visuals say it all:

The NPIRL and Digital Urban blogs have more info as well.

With multiple mirror worlds in development and work like this being done, can you imagine how interesting booking a holiday is going to be in coming years?

Birmingham Mash-Up

Birmingham Mash-Up: UK City Displayed As Scale Second Life Model With Google Earth API

After a long absence spent hosting the NPIRL Garden, Bettina Tizzy is back to blogging, and she has a marvelous find:  created by Daden Limited for the Birmingham City Council, it's a scale recreation of the British city in Second Life using a Google Earth API, with geo-coded news tags that look like red pushpins.  As with many of Daden's inventions (as blogged here and here), the practical applications aren't immediately obvious, but the ROA (for Return on Awesome, as Jerry Paffendorf calls it) remains high.  Read Bettina's take here.

After a long absence spent hosting the NPIRL Garden, Bettina Tizzy is back to blogging, and she has a marvelous find:  created by Daden Limited for the Birmingham City Council, it's a scale recreation of the British city in Second Life using a Google Earth API, with geo-coded news tags that look like red pushpins.  As with many of Daden's inventions (as blogged here and here), the practical applications aren't immediately obvious, but the ROA (for Return on Awesome, as Jerry Paffendorf calls it) remains high.  Read Bettina's take here.

Geo-ify Your Web Site

Geo-ify Your Web Site - http://blip.tv/file/965904

Learn about Mapstraction—the API that abstracts mapping services—and how it can be used by your business or day-to-day geohacking. Are you worried that Google might put adverts on their maps? Noticed that Microsoft Virtual Earth has better aerial imagery? Don’t get locked in!

Mapstraction floats on top of niine APIs: Microsoft VE, Google, Yahoo!, MultiMap, Poly9 FreeEarth, Map24, MapQuest, and OpenStreetMap. Each one has different features and qualities of aerial and mapping data, and your use may depend on area of interest (who has the best aerial imagery in Bangalore?) or features (can I plot GeoRSS?).

With Mapstraction you can make these decisions on the fly and not get locked into one specific API. We’ll tour adding simple maps, pins, and geocoding. Plotting GeoRSS and switching APIs on the fly. Some JavaScript knowledge is preferable but not an absolute necessity.

Virtual Visits To Where Dreams Come True (No, It’s Not Neverland)

by Kristen Nicole —

Google Earth map layers come in handy for a number of reasons, depending on your needs–from weather reports to virtual replicas of a particular area, these layers can be applied to a Google Earth map in order to create a more complete geographical perspective.

I’ve never been the type to take the time to use Google’s 3D image and object options for the creation of replicas of various locations–I’d rather look at someone else’s. One company that has seemingly put an obscene amount of time into the creation of a virtual map replica is Disney. What better way to lure you into a summer vacation at the Magic Kingdom?

Disney World’s new Google EarthGoogle Earth map features 3D models and KML layers, highlighting everything from the iconic monorail to the park benches. Disney has included videos and Flash animations as well. Leave it to Disney to create a magical Google map experience. The areas that are featured on the new map layer include all four Theme Parks and over 20 Disney Resort hotels–from Spaceship Earth to Main Street, USA.

So will we be seeing more branding opportunities for physical locations through the use of Google Earth map layers? I could see a greater potential towards this end if Google Earth were more readily available through the web browser and didn’t require a download for something like viewing the 3D Disney World. In the specific use of travel-planning, such branding opportunities could be viable for integrated mapping and itinerary creation for Disney and other planning sites as well.

iPhone 3G and Geo Tagging

Some more reports have surfaced about the 3G version of the iPhone. This round of tidbits tells us that the iPhone will include the ability to geotag photos (which means it will have GPS), users can toggle the 3G radio on and off, and we have some new information on exactly when the iPhone will be available.

Once again, I am offering a round up of some recent 3G and iPhone 2.0 news that has been circulating the blogosphere.

GPS: According to Engadget, screen shots of the iPhone 2.0 beta software shows a "location services" feature. The two different screen grabs seen show GPS ability paired with the iPhone's Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps application, as well as the ability to "set location" in the camera application. These features are widely available on many other phones with GPS, including the Nokia (NYSE: NOK) N95. But learning with somewhat more certainty that the next version of the iPhone will have GPS is encouraging. I particularly like to be able geotag photos when traveling.

3G Switch: Another screen shot (some think it was faked, others disagree) that has been found in the iPhone 2.0 beta offers users the ability to switch the 3G radio on and off. This is a vital feature. Why? Battery life. Having an active 3G connection drains cell phone batteries much faster than when they are in EDGE-only areas. For example, my N95 battery will last two days in EDGE coverage areas, but if I travel into a 3G region, the battery becomes drained in just one day. Since 3G has such an impact on battery life, this is a nice convenience feature to have and can help prevent people from being stranded with a dead phone.

Availability: Earlier this week, it was widely reported that the iPhone will be announced on June 9 and will be available "immediately". I have since learned from reliable sources that "immediately" means 9 days later. The iPhone will 100%, without-a-doubt be announced during Steve Jobs' WWDC keynote speech on June 9. The 3G iPhone 2.0 will be available for sale in stores on June 18.

JTB has launched the Japan Travel Guide JTB with 3D virtual world

JTB has  launched the Japan Travel Guide JTB in English version with 3D virtual world “Second Life”.

JTB has started the Japan Travel Guide on a 3D virtual world “Second Life” supported in English for non-Japanese speakers, which is unique in Japan. As Second Life introduces a multilingual language support, the number of users is expected to significantly increase. Therefore, Second Life has the potential to replace a web browser as a new business market.

Based on this experience, JTB is actively researching the likelihood of world demand and expansion into new businesses in the virtual world. The main objective is to build a new business model.

As part of the plan, JAPANiCAN, one of our group companies running a site for non-Japanese visitors to Japan, shows how to enjoy a Japanese Inn (Ryokan), Japanese Foot Bath (Ashiyu) and Japanese garden. The outline is as follows.

Name of SIM (Name of island): " Japan Travel Guide JTB"
http://slurl.com/secondlife/JAPAN TRAVELGUIDE JTB/138/130/23
Contents: It consists of three areas - Japanese Inn (Ryokan), Japanese Foot Bath (Ashiyu) and Japanese garden.
1. In the Japanese Ryokan area, five kinds of Japanese culture such as how to take a Japanese bath, eating manners, etc. are shown using streaming videos in English. In the large hall, an amusing *camping spot is provided where visitors can feel the atmosphere of Japanese traditional dance (Bon dance) and enjoy dancing to original “JAPANiCAN dance music.”
2. In the Ashiyu area, a 3D feature is used, where a map-of-Japan-shaped virtual Ashiyu introduces real Onsen-Ryokans from all over Japan, guiding you to further local information on “JAPANiCAN.com” supported by JAPANiCAN.
3. In the Japanese garden area, JTB provides a garden of spectacular beauty for users around the world to be impressive for the first time they see.

Note: The term *camping is an activity in Second Life where visitors can get Linden Dollars by staying at one spot for a while.

Fly me to the moon...

In the world (Internet) war, no quarter is safe - everything is up for grabs. Legend has it that after the Titans did battle on earth, they brought their war up to the stars.

Well, the legend has come to pass. The war that began down here between Google and Microsoft - in the form of their earth 3D virtualization programs - has now spread to the skies. Last August, Google introduced Google Sky, an "extra" for Google Earth that lets you look up virtually from the ground - as opposed to down below from the sky, as in GE (Sky has since moved on-line for those without Google Earth installed, at http://www.google.com/sky/).

Microsoft also has an earth virtualization scheme, called Virtual Earth. As opposed to Google Earth's desktop application, the MS version is strictly an on-line affair (some role reversal there, considering that Google is the on-line king, while the desktop is MS's domain), accessible at http://maps.live.com/ (you may need to download a 3D display component from http://www.microsoft.com/virtualearth/ in order to use the site properly).

Both earth programs have been around for a few years; in early reviews of both, many users gave the advantage to the MS program because it had more ready-made buildings and landmarks, and rendered better 3D images up close, but most people now consider both programs to have more or less the same capabilities.

Last week, Microsoft launched its own space-based virtual mapping program, called WorldWide Telescope (http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/). The early reviews give it high marks (even GE-focused Ogle Earth called it "stunning" at http://tinyurl.com/6nhqvy). In terms of experience, WWT really gives you a bang for the buck (don't worry, it's free), allowing you to explore the ends of the universe, just like Google Sky - except the attention to detail seems greater, and the pictures seem sharper.

WWT's images are taken from the Hubble Telescope and 10 major earthly satellites, while GS relies mostly on the Hubble. With WWT, you can move back in time to the beginning of the common era or move forward another 2,000 years, and view the sky as it was or will be seen from any point on earth, complete with labels on what you're looking at (stars, constellations, etc.).

You can zoom into an area of the sky as far as the telescope image supports (ie viewing from the same spot in space that the photo was taken from). You can see the Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Venus and four of Jupiter's moons (not Titan, though) in full-rendered 3D. You can view panoramas of the sky or the planets taken by spacecraft that have flown there, such as panoramic views of Mars taken by the Rover, as well as collections of images taken from some of the most famous observatories and planetariums in the world.

And, using the ASCOM (AStronomy Common Object Model) driver, you can attach supported hardware - like telescopes - to your computer and record your own images, which you can add to WWT and integrate into your virtual universe. You can build your own "guided tours" of the universe (similar to building a Powerpoint presentation). WWT even has an earth component, offering many of the views available in MS Virtual Earth (although it uses a different engine).

WWT sounds wonderful, and it is. But (there's always one of those): Wimpy computers need not apply. This is an application designed with the Vista Age in mind. You need memory (gobs) and a video card capable of accelerated 3D graphics (to display DirectX 9.0 compatible graphics, a must for WWT). However, if you have a relatively new computer, you should already have all the hardware you need for it; I got WWT to work on my Macbook with virtualized Windows XP (SP3) installed, using a virtual 3D graphics card. It wasn't the fastest horse on the track, but it did the job.

Indeed, "professional production" is written all over WWT. For a company often called unimaginative by its critics, WWT really is something new and different. According to Microsoft, they are not planning to work out ways to profit from WWT (until daily space shuttles around the Solar System become a reality, I guess) - it's more of a prestige project, unlike the case with Google Earth and MS Virtual Earth.

As such, you download, install and use WWT on Microsoft's terms - and if your computer doesn't meet the standards they've set for use, then it's not for you (in other words, you really, really need a Vista machine to enjoy this to the fullest). Of course, Mac and Linux users are not invited to the party (don't expect one, either). And, unlike in Google Earth and Sky, where any old Joe can feel right at home, the community in WWT is associated with prestigious publications or groups, such as the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and or Sky & Telescope magazine. It's truly humbling to be able to tap into the knowledge provided by these groups, and even more humbling to see the miracles of outer space up close.

If you're really into the stars and take astronomy seriously, though - if you've ever wanted to "see the distribution and illumination of massive primordial hydrogen cloud structures lit up by the high-energy radiation coming from nearby stars in the Milky Way" (http://tinyurl.com/6jll5x) - you're going to love WWT.

But wait - before you download and install (or if you're not a Windows user), keep in mind that there are other virtual universes out there you can download and use. The one I like best is Stellarium (http://www.stellarium.org), a free open-source program that lets you examine the universe from anywhere in the world, and works in bunch of languages (no Hebrew, though). You can also install user scripts of events that occurred in the past, record presentations, set the earth time for previous or future cosmological events, and check out more than 210 million stars.

Between Google Earth/Sky, WorldWide Telescope and Stellarium, you'll be busy flying around the universe, whiling the light years away - until you come back down to earth and explore the briny deep, with the upcoming Google Ocean (http://www.stellarium.org)!

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