This week, Google gave the public the chance to download -- for free -- a new program with the humble name Google Earth. Google has mapped the entire planet, using satellite imagery it obtained when it bought a company called Keyhole. (Jeff Horwich guest-hosts.)

Guest: Brad Hill, who reviewed Google Earth for The Unofficial Google Weblog -- and now can't take his hands off it.

My thoughts: This thing sucks you in. It's remarkable -- and remarkably easy to use, though you'll need a fast computer with a good graphics card. The program's not perfect -- a search for Taj Mahal took me to Las Vegas. One very interesting, out-of-the-way spot is Dili, East Timor. It looks like the country was still in revolt at the time the satellite image was taken, and you can see fires burning throughout the capital city.

At the Google Earth site, be sure to check out the pages of sight-seeing spots and the potential business applications.

Stephen DesRoches at Newrecruit.org also has done some writing on Google Earth. He's mostly pleased with the product, but he has some concerns. Among them, he tells me he'd like to be able to take it with him and use it offline -- say on a laptop, in a car, for navigation.

Elsewhere:

Google, Yahoo offer a peek at mapping code (CNet's News.com)

Shuttle Set for July 13 Launch, NASA Says (Washington Post)

Brand X Decision Stokes VOIP Worries (Light Reading)