Wow. Google took Keyhole's pro earth viewer and ummm....Googlelized it and made it free!! I also have the Pro version that costs 400 bucks, and I don't see any difference at all for the average user. It just has a bunch of fancy GPS and printing features etc. I have used this format before so a couple tips to get you started right away:
First and most important, this program is extremely graphic intensive, meaning that if you have an older system, or even a newer one with cheap or onboard video, or very little physical RAM, it might not work right, or at all....so be careful. It uses alot of CPU and memory at certain times. Also it is only compatible with XP and 2000.
Second, when you get the interface open, double left click on the thumbtack that is the lowest in the western US....you will now fly to the Grand Canyon. Once it stops, place the cursor at the top or bottom of the map and hold down your right mouse button, and move up or down to zoom in. Use sideways right to left movements (right click still held) for finer movement. Left click once and hold down to move the map any direction. Double left click to fly to a location. Type an address with city and state or even just a zip code and it will fly there. Then you can find things you recognize in your area and zoom/center them. Click on *file* at top left and click on save image to save the map to your hard drive.
Read up on the features and fly to the preset destinations....there are tons of things to do.
Sometimes the stars align and a program comes out that gets everything right. This is one of those. Keyhole was very good but Earth is sheer greatness, and it's free. If you have never seen something like this, I hope you have all night because it's pretty addictive. Have fun.
Viva La Google!
http://www.download.com/Google-Earth/3000-2054_4-10411075.html?tag=lst-0-1
F~