Keith Watanabe * NET 2.0

I won't show the location of my home in LA, but I thought it was pretty funny how the Google Guys had shot footage of my area back in September when I was fixing my roof.  The evidence?  Well, you can see the guys on my roof that morning with all the tools and stuff.  Pretty cool!

On a side note, many of my Japanese friends have cited privacy issues.  Honestly, this hasn't really bugged me.  Actually, I find the Street View to be quite nifty for a multitude of reasons.  First, it offers one to be able to see the place they're going.  Certainly, this might not be that practical while driving.  However, if you're planning to visit some place for the first time and are driving there, it'll offer you a first hand peak at what the place looks like, so you won't get too confused.

Second, I don't mind seeing my home.  It's nice to be able to see my hometown while living in Japan.  After a while, you get homesick and miss certain things.  Well, I'm really starting to miss my little hometown with the local shopping centers, the poisonous fast food and boring neighborhood and the general quiet that I'm completely lack in Tokyo.

Third, I really just enjoy being able to take a road trip without having to take a road trip and spend gas.  Maybe this is an indication that my life sucks but sometimes out of boredom, I'll click the little direction bars on the Street View and navigate through the streets, watching the houses and buildings.  It's neat because I get to see certain places in the US I've never been to and may never visit in my entire life. I mean, you can see places like Nashville Tennessee, or Little Rock Arkansas without leaving your home.  Maybe one day if you get fed up with city life, you can preview a new zone to see if you want to move some place else.  Heck, I've been using this little tool to check out some prospective housing spots in Las Vegas.

People bitch and moan a lot about privacy, but I don't think this issue really is that big of a deal.  In fact, it's quite the opposite.  This is a great convenience (and a new way of doing virtual tourism).