SAN FRANCISCO - In an update to its mobile maps, Google Inc. hopes to demonstrate that you can keep track of people on the road as effectively as the search for information online.The new software to be released Wednesday will allow people with mobile phones and other wireless devices to automatically share with his family and friends.
The feature, called Latitude, is developing an instrument created in 2007 to allow mobile phone users to check their location on a Google Map with the press of a button.
"This adds a social flavor to Google maps and makes it more fun," said Steve Lee, product manager for Google.
It could also enhance the protection of privacy, but Google is doing everything possible to avoid a backlash by requiring each user manually in the tracking software and make it easy to turn off or limit access to the service.
Google also promises not to retain any information about the movements of its users. Only the last one chosen by the tracking service are stored on Google computers, said Lee.
The software plots a user's location - marked by a picture on Google Map - based on cell phone towers, global positioning system or a Wi-Fi to deduce its location. The system can keep people travel in the United States and 26 other countries.
Is to let each user to decide who can monitor their location.
The social mapping approach is similar to a service already offered by Loopt Inc., a 3-year-old company located near Mountain View headquarters of Google.
Loopt's service is compatible with more than 100 types of mobile phones.
For starters, Google will work on the latitude Research In Motion Ltd. 's BlackBerry and devices running the Symbian software and Microsoft Corp.' s Windows Mobile. Also operate in some of T-Mobile phones running on the Android software from Google and finally work on Apple Inc. 's iPhone and iTouch.
To broaden the appeal of software, Google offers a version that can be installed on personal computers as well.
The PC access is designed for people who do not have a cell phone, but you may want to keep tabs on your children or someone special, said Lee. People who use the PC version can also be seen if they are connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi.
Google can trace the location of a person within a few meters when using the GPS, or it could be several miles away if it was relying on the transmission of cellular telephone towers. People who do not want to be more precise about his whereabouts can choose to show only the city instead of a specific neighborhood.
There are no current plans to sell all advertising with Google tracking service, although analysts believe the location of a person possibly trigger new market opportunities. Google has been investing heavily in the mobile market in the last two years in an attempt to make their services more useful to people when they are away from their home or office computer.