Zmarties

Google Maps has gained a hybrid mode, which overlays mapping data on top of the satellite images. To achieve this, they have had to rescale their photographic images, which were not to the same scale as the maps. This appears to have been done by resampling the existing images, so for example the Google copyright watermarks have been stretched along with the rest of the images.

In most cases the maps and the images line up well - though as always people take great pleasure in finding the exceptions. A discussion on Slashdot found the following examples:

• just minor misalignment in Toronto, Canada
• misalignment at Camden Town, London
• the creation of imaginary roads (there is no E 42nd St), and E 43rd St does not exist beyond the crossroads - its a drainage ditch!
• the satellite image is more recent than the map in Ottowa, Canada - the road has been repositioned south of the building
• the map data is more recent than the satellite in Westminster, Co