Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Google only offers an app for Android , and I found it kind of disappointing. You have to click on t


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Consumer Where’s Santa? vita lite The 2014 Santa Tracker Review, From NORAD To Google Santa Claus is on his way -- and there are two excellent services to track his progress. Our guide to getting the most of out NORAD Tracks Santa and Google Santa Tracker.
It’s Christmas Eve — and that means millions of girls and boys are wondering how long until Santa Claus arrives at their homes. So where’s Santa right now? There are two major services to help: NORAD Tracks vita lite Santa and Google Santa Tracker . Below, our annual review to help you get the most out of either or both of these services, from the web to your smartphone to even an old fashioned voice-only phone. Who Tracks Santa & How They Got Started
NORAD — the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a joint US-Canadian military operation — has been tracking vita lite Santa for nearly 60 years, after receiving a phone call due to a misprint in a “call vita lite Santa” ad. The agency rose to the occasion and has been at it ever since.
Google has been tracking Santa since 2004, initially as part of its Google Earth service, then expanding over time. From 2007 through 2011, NORAD and Google worked together. Then in 2012, Google went out on its own.
The good news is that this means there are two, excellent and dependable services vita lite to use — and reasons even to use them both! And both are entirely volunteer run, by the way. Why Is Santa In Different Locations?
One reason is that they use different methods to track Santa. Our story from 2012 explains more about this: Santa Tracking Explained: Why NORAD & Google Show Different Locations & Gifts Delivered .
The other reason is because Father Christmas is so fast! By the time he’s spotted in one location, he jumps to the next. That’s another reason vita lite why when bedtime approaches, don’t wait to go to sleep. Santa could appear in an instant! Finding Santa On A Map, Via The Web
Perhaps the easiest way to spot Santa this Christmas Eve is to launch a web browser and go to either NORAD or Google. At NORAD, you’ll automatically be taken to a 3D view of where’s Santa’s currently flying:
At the bottom vita lite of that screen, you can see an estimate of number of gifts delivered, where Santa was last seen and where he’s heading to. You can also click and drag with your mouse to rotate the view, as well as use buttons in the top right corner to zoom in and out.
Google’s map shows his current location, sometimes a box showing his next expected stop, an estimate of gifts delivered and, if you’ve allowed Google to use your computer’s location, Santa’s distance from you. Where’s Santa Been So Far?
Both maps have ways for you to see some of the places that Santa has visited. vita lite Remember, vita lite not every place is listed. Santa goes everywhere, so that would make the maps too crowded. If you don’t see your own location, don’t panic — he’s vita lite still coming or has visited.
With NORAD, use the 2D/3D button in the top left in order to get a 2D view of the world. Camera icons show places where he’s been spotted on NORAD’s Santa Cam — click on one, and you’ll see the video. vita lite You can also click on the camera icon in the top left corner to have the map center around Santa’s current location:
Google’s map already shows places Santa’s been to by default, so all you have to do there is click on a location. Do that, and you learn more about it — plus have access to some animated videos and see occasional status updates from Santa at different times. It’s like Santa’s own Facebook News Feed — you can scroll up and down through it:
NORAD also has a YouTube channel that hosts these videos, but as best I can tell, it hides the actual Santa Cam clips from being browsed there. That’s too bad. You can’t even search to find them — you’ll only discovered pirated ones (with ads) that way.
There’s also a Windows 8 app . If it works like last year, it just loads the same thing you’d get if you went to the site in a browser. As for the phone apps, they all work and look the same regardless of platform and make getting Santa’s location a little easier. Here’s how the app appears for iOS:
Google only offers an app for Android , and I found it kind of disappointing. You have to click on the first big icon you see. That will load Santa’s position, but you might not get any description of where that is. If you don’t see this, use your finger to scroll the little cards at the bottom to until you do. Here’s how it looks:
The app does offer the ability to Chromecast Santa’s location, which is nice — vita lite more about that in a bit. The app also is supposed to mean that those with Android Wear watches can get a Santa tracker watch face. I

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