Two Google UK Stories

Two things today out of Google UK:
Google Maps for Mobile has been released for British users, announced at a London press briefing today. Englanders get local business searches, driving directions, tube/train station locations, and satellite imagery, all with a relatively good interface designed for the mobile screen and controls. It appears that they’ve released only the Java application (although that is not exactly clear), which means it runs on all Java-capable phones.
Here’s a video of it in action:

Gotta love the hand-drawn emulator. Is that a custom Google thing, or just for the demo?
Most importantly, Google has dedicated thousands of man-hours translating the software from its native tongue into that strange language they speak in England.
Also, CNet has a photo tour of Google’s UK offices. The office is filled with a lot of tribal artifacts, in order to match the strange and unfamiliar indegenous culture present in […]

Original post by Nathan Weinberg