I see Microsoft has now extended one of the coolest features of its mapping / aerial photo service, ‘Windows Live Local’ (still hate that!) to the UK. Well, selected parts of the UK anyway.
In addition to the ‘road’ (ie map) view and ‘aerial’ (ie top down) view, you can now see 17 places in ‘bird’s eye’ view… which is 3D-ish. Including, quite astonishingly, my otherwise less-than-remarkable home town of Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Here’s Bangor Grammar, where I went to school – the memories just flood back. Less parochially, here’s the Millennium Dome, Fratton Park (home of Portsmouth FC), Brighton Pavilion and Brunel’s Clifton Suspension Bridge.
Quick tip: although you can click-and-drag like on the normal maps, you can only drag so far. When you reach your limit, you can click on a thumbnail image to load a new chunk. Oh, and try clicking on the compass to choose which particular 3D perspective you see. Wow.