Switzerland’s data protection watchdog on Friday demanded that Google immediately withdraw the “Street View” facility it has started offering on its map of Switzerland.

Slashdot has the initial news story coverage.  But the related articles offer up more tidbits of information.  The main reason for their demands it be taken down is that the Internet giant was not respecting conditions set to respect personal privacy in Switzerland.  Browsing through the images finds vehicle plates and faces that should have been blurred, are not blurred.

Post from: The Earth Is Square: Swiss Demanding Shutdown of Google Street View

Where do you draw the line with Google Maps?

One of the biggest catalysts for driving the use and adoption of online mapping services in both the consumer and enterprise domains has been the availability of the Google Maps. While the low cost of using the mapping service provides high appeal for organisations – and is placing increasing pricing pressure on commercial providers – users and/or developers considering its use within web mapping applications do need to be aware of its functional limitations and the terms of its use before deciding on how to meet their geographic information needs.

Post from: The Earth Is Square: Take With a Grain of Salt

We are unable to provide voting location information for your address at this time.

I am sorry, but if you are going to provide a service.. then PROVIDE A SERVICE!  Don’t do it half-assed.

At least Google was good enough to provide links to where you CAN find the information.

Post from: The Earth Is Square: Google’s Voter Poll Finder.. Kinda Useless

Post from: The Earth Is Square: Don’t Let This Happen To Your Loved Ones..

What they had done is copied the address and pasted it into Google Maps.  They got a location, went there.. nothing there but a house.  They were lead to not only the wrong location, but a wrong location a few miles away from the correct location.  So, thanks to that.. customers do not know where to find “x” and now they are also using up gas because they were given bad directions from a “trusted” source.

Here is the location in Google Maps. (How can W Front St go down a side street and go straight anyway?)  Now, here it is every where else, being marked in the right location.  Everyone that was right was using Navteq maps where google is using Tele Atlas.

In digging deeper, a lot of address we have listed.. if you look in Google Maps for them.. will put you in the wrong location.  So, we have started telling people to use Virtual Earth maps or Yahoo Maps instead as they will give you the correct location of an address.

Post from: The Earth Is Square: Google Maps, Leading Customers Away, Literally