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        Pocket PC app puts "the whole world in your hand"

        Doug | Date: Jun 18, 2004 | Comments: 1


        "You've got the whole world, in your hand . . ." Well maybe not, but how about having the whole world on your Pocket PC? Pocket Earth from BluePoint Studio is a genuinely cool Pocket PC app that displays a 3D interactive model of the Earth that can be rotated, tilted, and zoomed in and out.



        (Click here for larger, animated screenshot image)

        Using the Pocket PC's system time and local settings, Pocket Earth can display the sun spot, the moon spot, and the earth's shadow, as shown in the screenshot on the right. The moon spot is displayed in the correct phase. A dynamic multipoint distance measurement tool can compute and display the distance between any number of points on the earth's surface.

        A database of some 36,000 cities provides such information as:
        • Latitude and longitude
        • Population
        • Current time and date
        • Sunrise and sunset times
        • Sun azimuth and elevation
        Version 3.0 was recently released. Among the new features is support for GPS: with a GPS receiver, Pocket Earth can display its current position, ground speed, and course (bearing). Other new features include real-time weather for selected cities with auto-update, and the ability to search for cities by population.

        The program was designed to be run under Pocket PC versions of Windows CE 3.0, and also supports Pocket PC 2002 and 2003, according to BluePoint Studio. A full function trial version of Pocket Earth is available for download from the company's website. The trial version can be launched 15 times before it expires.