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Google Street ViewGoThruGSVHow toQuestion of the Day

To create a Google Street View Tour, should I use Matterport or ...?18247

ron0987 private msg quote post Address this user
It’s been a while that I have received a request to do a complete tour for their business.

I have done a bunch of exterior shots for fun and a few tours but it’s been awhile.

Other than running a MP tour and sending it thru to Google, what are others currently using?
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GETMYVR private msg quote post Address this user
I'm using Matterport for GSV because it's been FREE for a while, to upload to Google. Plus you can update the tour and modify the scan points to make the tour longer or shorter. It's near immediate, but the arrows take a few days to get appointed by Google. The other benefit is that I can offer the MP 3D tour for extra.

The other option I have seen and read about is GoThru. Seems very reliable and it's also a pay-as-you-go platform, plus subscriptions, so that could benefit people doing occasional GSV.

I prefer Matterport for GSV because I use the Pro2, it makes stunning clear 360's and I've only had problems with the Theta Z1 for Matterport and anything else I've tried. I was hired to do 3 Dental Clinics in Long Island last week, 7 hours away, because the one Dental Clinic locally near me, impressed the owner.

To be honest, I can do GSV all day long, pays great. That's my focus next 24 months.
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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user
@ron0987

Seems like Matterport to Google Street View would be the easiest, fastest (and presently free) way to publish to Google Street View.

Easy because Matterport "tells" Google Street View where to place each Matterport scan.

Any reason not to use Matterport to shoot and publish to Google Street View?

Dan
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Wingman private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by DanSmigrod
Any reason not to use Matterport to shoot and publish to Google Street View?


I can think of a few:

1) I can only scan with a Pro2 and there is plenty of outdoor to scan during daylight
2) I can only scan with a Pro2 but a customer is against a detailed walkthrough.
3) I can use a Pro3 but a customer space is quite big and they just want to show areas that are not in direct line of sight or to away from each other even for a Pro3.
4) There is a lot of movement in a space and capturing with a camera that rotates will produce a lot of ghosting in a 360 or blur moving things.
5) a client asks for very detailed and hi resolution 360s.

So I am personally offering Matterport for GSV tours now as it is much faster for publishing and still has good quality 360 photos


In the last 2.5 months I have used Matterport twice(3 times if I count unfinished job) for GSV

The one below was done with a Pro3 exactly one month ago. 60 scans and the tour collected 9000 views. I will need to come there again as a space above the shop that is also a part of it has not been ready.



This one was done with a Pro2 at the end of November 2022. I just did not have a Pro3 then.
It has 49 scans and the tour collected 4500 views.

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Both came as requests to do Google Maps tour from marketing/seo agencies for their clients.

None so far is using an original 3D tour. However the last one for a news agencies which I believe a part of a franchise network. They have a website but it is kind of one for 7 of them so no surprise.

The dive shop may be using it in the future.

I also have done another one partially for the client who has originally wanted a google maps tour. I am waiting for them to call me so I can come and finish their outdoor venue space(outdoor bar area). They want me to capture it when it is dark and set for some event. This client is for sure will be using a 3D tour as well as I recommended them a venue marketplace to get more clients for their venues and their listing on the marketplace will be using the 3D tour.

And if you look at nadir you will see clients logos. I publish to GSV from Matterport as it is the only way to do it but then download a tour from there into Pano2VR, then delete it from Google(both Matterport add-on and Pano2VR can do it). Then I fix excessive linking, apply logo and publish it from Pano2VR again as a branded GSV tour.
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ron0987 private msg quote post Address this user
@DanSmigrod no not at all, it been awhile for me and Google Street View, so I was just trying to get a feel for what people are now using. They are just looking for options right now. They are trying to figure out if they want to just updated street view of the business or complete walk thru tour.
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ron0987 private msg quote post Address this user
@Wingman nice job looking good. If you would not mind publishing a detailed work flow on replacing nadir patch that is nice selling point. Thanks for input.
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GETMYVR private msg quote post Address this user
Matterport allows you to create a highlight reel and only upload that to Google Street view, so this is a pretty good method to reduce scan points - especially for parts of a business that are out of line of sight and seem to be remote from everything else.

But I think one of the key fundamental points that we all miss sometimes is that this is some of the best advertising a business can ever do on Google for a flat one-time fee, that will work literally forever.

That's why we deserve to get paid proper.
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Wingman private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by ron0987
@Wingman nice job looking good. If you would not mind publishing a detailed work flow on replacing nadir patch that is nice selling point. Thanks for input.


It is quite simple if you have Pano2VR. I have Pro version so I do not know if it is included in a regular one.
You publish it as a Matterport tour and publish all scans from it.
Unless like @GETMYVR has mentioned a client does not want all of them.
I personally though would convince them to have all. More spots, more detailed story a tour will tell about a place. Also more images will give longer engagements and views from map users. And it is good for your Google Profile.


Back to steps.

If you have 360 views attached they are published too but there is no linking to them created. I do not publish 3d tours with 360 views anymore and it may be fixed but when I did it 4 years ago for one project I had to connect 360 views manually.

Once published and I would wait till Matterport says it has been processed I go to Google Maps dialog(it is where you authorize Pano2VR to publish and edit under your Google Profile you can click Street Browser button( a cloud with a magnification glass icon) Pano2VR will open a Street View Browser dialog and start pulling all your GSV tours into the browser including a number of views on each as total and per each pano. When it is done you can click a download button at the top while a tour you want to download selected in a browser.
Pano2VR will start downloading all panos and link mapping to your PC. I would recommend to create a folder for a project and save a pano2vr project file there before you start downloading. Pano2VR will still ask you to save a project file after download but at least you will know where all panos have been downloaded if you do it before.

You can delete the GSV tour directly in Pano2Vr Street View Browser once download has been done. However just in case I prefer to delete it in Matterport add-on because if you do it in Pano2VR and something goes wrong it would be harder to re-publish in add-on something that it still believes already there while it is not.


Now you have a complete copy of your Matterport tour exactly as it has been published on Google by Matterport. If you need to reduce linking between some panos and your tour is not big it is faster to remove all of them with one button pressing in Pano2VR and them add links you want for a better viewer experience manually. If it is to big to create all linking from a scratch you can just manually delete those linking that you do not like. For example in a shop Matterport will most likely create a link between two aslies spots in a shop even if a viewer will be sent through shelves. Nobody do it in real life so they need to be removed.

When you are happy with all linking(check that they are bidirectional as it is easy to overlook and and create only one way link. Each created link as bidirectional should have arrows on both ends of each in a Pano2VR Pro map browser where you do linking. If it is just one arrow your tour viewers will be able to step where it is pointed but they won't be able to go back.

As for nadir logo I add it as a patch with a master node. You do it once and it applies to all panos if you do it under a master node.
It is a bit hard to explain in words but if you need clear instructions I may be able to find a video on YouTube for it.

It may take some time to add the logo to each pano and usually it is done in order your panoramas loaded into pano2vr. I would watch and check a few including the last to confirm each pano has the logo applied.

You are almost done but before publishing back to GSV make sure your project and each pano has a correct place id assigned. In that dive shop something happened with linking and a missing place id. If some are missing it is better that you delete place id from all(one button click) and then assign it to any pano manually by searching in Pano2VR publishing dialog(the same where you call for SV browser) for a place and then use copy to all button.

Now do not forget to save the project and you are ready to publish it to GSV again. After that you can click "Upload to GSV" button(a cloud with green arrow pointed up) but do it in a Project section as there is another one for current panorama and it supposed to publish only selected in Pano2VR panorama from your tour.

Pano2VR will start uploading each pano and then associated with linking map. When it is done you can check either in Pano2Vr Street View Browser with using Refresh before if you got all of them published. Or you can use your profile on Google.

Sometimes there are errors and it is happening more frequently now that anytime before that out of 50 a few may not have any place id so they will be shown on your google profile as unknown place. It took me about 3 hours with that dive shop because of these problems and even Pano2VR developers could not tell what the problem was. I do not thing though it is Pano2VR or Matterport problem, more like Google. I spent 4 hours trying to publish one free 360 photo that I did for him feeling sorry for his problems with his cafe. It was published without a place id while it was specified. Finally I could do it while I changed nothing.

Keep in mind that GSV tours cannot be updated in any aspect. If you want even a small correction to be published in an existing GSV tour you MUST delete the GSV tour first and only then can publish it again with all updates. It sucks but so far there is no other way. I bet even when Matterport offers to us to update our GSV through their Google addon it is more likely means "we will delete the current one and publish it again"



A few screenshots so you know where to find things mentioned above


Street View Browser:



Nadir patch. You can find it in Tour->Edit Master node and then select patch




Pano2VR publisher to Google. If you hover over place id a few buttons appear on the right. I think I was wrong you can remove place ide from all at once. However you can edit it for current(selected panorama) and you can copy it from all panorama to all.





That is where you can relink, delete all links at once, link all again in an acceptable way at once or just do it manually. That where you can select first if you want one way link or both way.



Sorry I did not change the map type to google maps on the screen above before taking this screenshot. World map is better if you need to zoom in a lot to link or place panos. But there are four Google map types offered there that you can use for correct placement. One of them is satellite view map.
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