Google Earth Drop Zone Project -- Ideas and Discussion

[skydived19006 4]

Here are a couple of the Kansas DZs

Experience is what you get when you thought you were going to get something else.

AC DZ

[dorbie 0]

You should check out how Google does this.

Look at the source code on their page it seems they just put in a full URL to address the file, even pasting this into a browser address bar will launch Google Earth. So, try using an absolute path instead of a relative one and see if it works.

http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/807792/an/0/page/0#807792

That's also a good page with examples on how you can enhance google content with more advanced KML files.

[dorbie 0]

Quote

instead of hosted remotely. It has already happened once that the remote host became unavailable (a domain name expired and wasn't renewed right away) and this caused error messages in GE when it tried to load that placemark.
Eule

You could host the images....

[tomleone 0]

Here's one for CPI - Connecticut Parachutists, in Ellington, CT

Take risks not to escape life, but to prevent life from escaping ~ Author Unknown (but I wish I knew)

YouveGottaTryThis.com

[Eule 0]

All,

Thanks for the updates! I will get them added to the site in the next few days. I will also see if there is a better way to present the files and links so they work better with Google Earth.

I've been a little behind on updates because I got a wild hair up my ass that directed me to go to Eloy for a week and get some jumps in. :)

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 166 dropzones listed.

I added the Kansas dropzones from skydived19006 and CPI from tomleone.

I also messed with better ways to present the files and I think part of the problem is that the server isn't sending the right Content-Type header. I don't know if that's the whole problem, though. I have sent an email to the server admins about it.

For those of you just tuning in, I am collecting all of the files posted in this thread and putting them online at the above site. At that site, you can also download one file that contains all of the dropzones that have been posted so far.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[howardwhite 4]

Well, it's not Google Earth, but Google has just launched "My Maps," which lets you make a personalized map and append pictures, YouTube links, and all sorts of stuff.
Maps can either be Listed, which means that a some point they will show up in a Google search, or Unlisted, which you can keep out of searches and share with friends.
I just did a quick and dirty My Map of the first few places where I jumped, and will eventually, maybe, expand it to everywhere I've jumped.
Pretty neat; it even has a little button which automatically creates a KML file you can then import into Google Earth.

HW

[speedy 0]

here's one from Germany.

The listing on DZ.com under dropzones shows us to be somewhere where we are not
I have asked for it to be corrected but it is still wrong.

Here is my Google earth map (attached).

and a link to the DZ as listed here http://www.dropzone.com/dropzone/Detailed/679.shtml

Dave

Fallschirmsport Marl

[efs4ever 3]

This is Spaceland in TX with 3D tracks from my jump there April 6.

Russell M. Webb D 7014
Attorney at Law
713 385 5676
https://www.tdcparole.com

[joblades 0]

Skydive Dallas

Hope it works

~Freedom is never free

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 167 dropzones listed.

I added Speedy's entry for Marl, Germany, and updated Skydive Dallas with joblade's entry.

For those of you just tuning in, I am collecting all of the files posted in this thread and putting them online at the above site. At that site, you can also download one file that contains all of the dropzones that have been posted so far.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[Weichkeks 0]

Since the Lausitz is now available in a better resolution it's time to add our dropzone Bautzen-Litten.

Thanks for the effort Eule!

Lars

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 168 dropzones listed.

I added Weichkeks' entry for Bautzen-Litten, Germany.

For those of you just tuning in, I am collecting all of the files posted in this thread and putting them online at the above site. At that site, you can also download one file that contains all of the dropzones that have been posted so far.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[OSOK 0]

I wonder how many views/replies this needs before it becomes a sticky...

[Eule 0]

Quote

I wonder how many views/replies this needs before it becomes a sticky...

I don't think it really needs it. If it was a sticky, eventually people would get used to it being on top and skip over it. The way it is now, it stays on the front page for a day or two, which usually attracts a couple of new entries. It gradually moves off the front page, and when I get a little time, I put the new entries on the site and post a follow-up here, which puts the thread back on the front page. Then it gets a couple more new entries... lather, rinse, repeat. :)

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[OSOK 0]

In other words, you bump your own thread.

Nice!

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 170 dropzones listed.

I added a couple of dropzones in Germany that were emailed to me. I should check my email more often. :)

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[bobert 0]

How come there is only EB on the Spanish version of this? Ok so it is really awesome but it can't be the only one in the whole country....

I'm in Alicante in a week and wondering if I should take my stuff with me for a jump or two.

[Eule 0]

Quote

How come there is only EB on the Spanish version of this?

Because Empuriabrava wrote me a big check and keeps me well-supplied with Spanish hotties.

:)

Seriously, the reason why there aren't more entries for Spain is that nobody has submitted any. All of the entries you see are user contributions - this is not an attempt to make a comprehensive list of dropzones. The dropzone listings here already do a pretty good job of that.

A couple of months ago, I wrote an email to someone explaining the rationale behind the site, and it occurs to me that it might be good to also post it here:

---

I first put up the site in mid-October 2006. I usually update it about once a week if there are new submissions. There were 34 entries on 19 October 2006, and that has grown to 170 entries as of 3 May 2007. I've personally only created two of the entries; the rest have been submitted by users of dropzone.com and skysurfer.com.au . I have solicited entries in the Spanish and German forums on dropzone.com, but not in the French or Russian forums yet - this is mostly because I am illiterate in both French and Russian.

Here are some guidelines I try to go by:

I don't intend the list to be commercial or a money-making venture at all. A DZ can't buy a spot on the list, nor can they prevent another DZ from appearing on the list. The only way to get on the list is to create an entry for a dropzone and submit it via the forum thread on dropzone.com .

The list isn't intended to _replace_ things like the dropzone listings on dropzone.com . I did copy the structure used on dropzone.com for sorting countries into regions of the world but that's it. One thing the list _can_ do is provide a poor man's geographic search capability for the countries that aren't in the dropzone.com geographic search.

The entries on the list are supposed to present a "jumper's eye view" of the dropzone. For instance, it's perfectly fine if an entry has "Farmer McNasty" placemarks. This is something that it might be difficult for a DZ to put on their own public Web site - Farmer McNasty might see it and get mad - but on a third-party list of user-contributed entries, it's less likely to cause a problem.

There are some forums at Google associated with Google Earth and I *think* you can get entries added into the "official" list that is accesible to any Google Earth user via participation in those forums. So far, I haven't pursued this; I'm not sure that it's a good idea to share these entries with all the whuffos. The way it stands, you have to work at it a little to get the list.

So far, I only include updates that are posted to the dropzone.com thread. This is a deliberate "filter"; I don't mind collecting and organizing the files, but I really don't want to answer a lot of email about the site. I do enough support email at work that I don't really want to do it for free at home.

I also don't plan to "scrape" the dropzone.com listings and automatically create a point for every dropzone in those listings. Those listings have several old entries for a couple of states I am familiar with, so I think it's reasonable to assume that there are old entries for other states as well. Also, I'd rather have entries with more details than just "here's the DZ". I do have several user-contributed entries with only one placemark, but I don't intend to automatically generate any like that. (On the other hand, in some parts of the world the satellite photo resolution isn't too good, and a single "here's the DZ" placemark is about the best you can do.)

The list only includes reasonably-current dropzones. I don't intend to list wind tunnels, etc, at this time. I might create another section of the list for "former dropzones" if anybody submits some - at least for those dropzones where there is still a visible airport/runway instead of subdivisions.

For each new entry I get, I make a little effort to figure out if it's a real dropzone - I look in the dropzone.com listings, visit the dropzone's Web site if possible, etc. Web sites in English are no problem and I can deal with most western European languages well enough to check out a Web site, but for other languages I sometimes have to take the submitter's word for it. Some of the dropzones are seasonal or only used for a boogie and that's OK.

The entries don't have to be in English. I may not be able to read all of them but I can at least make sure there's an airport there.

If I get an entry for a dropzone already in the list, I will compare and merge the two entries, and update the date stamp in the file name to show that it has changed.

Especially for US dropzones, I try to list both the dropzone name and the town or airport name on the Web page. I've noticed that some people will refer to to the club/dropzone name ("I jump at the Ranch") and some will refer to the town/airport name ("I jump at Gardiner"). Since I'm a relatively new jumper, I don't know where all the dropzones are yet, and it's not always obvious to me when two people are talking about the same place. This way, hopefully, people can find the right place no matter what name they've heard for it.

Some countries have a simple list of dropzones, while others are further broken down by state, province, territory, etc. The dividing line on which countries get broken down further and which don't is kind of fuzzy. So far, all of the really huge countries with many entries (US, Canada, Australia) are broken down this way.

---

If you jump at some good spots in Spain, make a few notes while you're there, then make and submit entries for those DZs when you're around the computer again. That's the best way to get more entries for a particular country. :)

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[masterblaster72 0]

Here is Cross Keys, attached.

Be humble, ask questions, listen, learn, follow the golden rule, talk when necessary, and know when to shut the fuck up.

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 173 dropzones listed.

I added masterblaster72's entry for Cross Keys, NJ, plus one in Texas and one in Germany that were emailed to me.

For those of you just tuning in, I am collecting all of the files posted in this thread and putting them online at the above site. At that site, you can also download one file that contains all of the dropzones that have been posted so far.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[Disodium 0]

hooray i get to contribute, heres the DZ's i'v jumped at (a whole 2, for my whole 2 jumps). Is it just me or does it seem unusual to have 2 DZ's literally across the street from each other? Both at Caldwell Industrial Airport (KEUL) in ID

[skydave238 0]

Swakopmund Skydiving Club, Swakopmund, Namibia

Ready...Set...Go..!

SkydiveSwakop

[Eule 0]

The site has been updated. There are 178 dropzones listed.

Disodium provided the (and second) entry for Idaho, and skydave238 provided the one for Namibia. The entry for Ohio was sent via PM. I got a new one from Australia and also corrected the location of an Australian DZ - the marker on the map was in the right place, I just had it listed in the wrong place in the index.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[johndyer 0]

Here's AerOhio in Rittman, OH .