Street View offers sofa-based safari through South Africa’s Kruger National Park

By Trevor Mogg March 9, 2016

street view south africa safari 2016 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

While the idea of going on a safari is for many folks an exciting one, the small matter of actually having to pay for the experience probably means it won’t be happening anytime soon.

Until you’ve scraped together the funds for the big trip, the next best thing could be to hit the Web and go on a virtual safari via that trusty all-seeing eye of the world – Street View.

Recommended Videos

Google’s tireless mapping team has just posted a set of new panoramic imagery snapped inside South Africa’s spectacular Kruger National Park.

“Catch a glimpse of a rhinoceros grazing the plains, an elephant enjoying a grassy snack, and a herd of buffalo charging against the wind,” Street View’s Sven Tresp trumpets on Google’s LatLong blog, adding, “You may even spot a leopard, who often remain elusive to tourists and locals alike.”

Google’s Street View cars first rolled into the African nation in 2010, and over the intervening years have been steadily collecting imagery from every corner of the country.

Alongside the new Kruger National Park collection, Street View has also added content showing off several of its other iconic destinations, including Table Mountain that serves as a dramatic backdrop for Cape Town, and the Cape of Good Hope at the very southern tip of the African continent.

“For the beach bums out there, South Africa is a must,” Tresp writes. “With Street View, you can watch the waves break at Sandy Bay, gaze at the clear blue sky and water at Clifton Beach, go parasailing at Sunset Beach or just take a long walk along Durban’s Golden Mile.”

Showcasing South Africa’s wonderfully diverse landscapes, the Street View team has helpfully compiled a collection of its best imagery from the nation, perfect for either your couch-based travels, or, if you’re lucky enough, for researching what’s certain to be a memorable real-life vacation in the Rainbow Nation.

Topics

Contributing Editor

Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…

Computing

How to change margins in Google Docs

Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content --- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Computing

What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app

A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.