WorldWide Telescope...Microsoft shows us the universe!

Microsoft has taken a lot of hits over the years. Too corporate, too much bloatware, not enough security, little innovation, on and on. BUT no one can argue that they have truly outdone themselves with yesterday's newly announced WorldWide Telescope. This application really brings the universe to life. The NYTimes posted a good review about it yesterday and it appears that Microsoft has truly put innovation into this product. And it appears that they will keep it largely free of advertisements according the the review. The really exciting thing is that WorldWide Telescope was developed largely with education in mind. Its worth a few minutes of your time to see the video (watch the Telling Stories video on the homepage). This product comes out of Microsoft's Research division. I think WorldWIde Telescope is a great example of how a company with resources decided to make something truly innovative and did not put the emphasis on commercialization. Instead Redmond is giving the world a piece of software that was designed for exploring, learning and inspiring. Good job Microsoft! My only gripe is that its Windows (XP or Vista) only. But hey iLife is Mac only as is Final Cut Pro. We are not in a platform independent world quite yet. And yes, the name...WorldWide Telescope. I would say this product goes well beyond world wide. One caveat to keep in mind is that as slick as this application is, it most likely will take some heavy computer horsepower to really be smooth and seamless. A commenter over at Stefan Geens' excellent OogleEarth made this point about it. So before you install it in your lab, make sure your systems can handle it.

Its worth also mentioning that Google has Google Sky available through the browser and its Google Earth client (discussed in the NYTimes review above). It too is a great piece of work and it is multiplatform. But Microsoft has taken the lead for astronomy software with this release. Hats off to both Google and Microsoft for keeping these unique pieces of software free of ads and geared towards personal learning and exploration. Until we figure out intergalatic travel, these apps are going to give us the best view of our universe for now.

Keene Haywood (University of Texas @ Austin)