Google Earth adds weather info

Cathay Pacific is adding better seats to its airplanes. On Oct. 18, the airline began offering these seats on its daily flights out of San Francisco. [Update 11/6: A Cathay Pacific spokesperson now says that the San Francisco flights will begin to offer these seats in March 2008.] On Nov. 16, it will add the seats to its flights out of New York City to Hong Kong. Last week, I got my first look at 'em. In economy-class, the most important new feature is that the seats no longer recline backward at an angle. Instead, the seats have cushions that slide down and recline into the shell of the seat. This is good news if you're someone who hates it when the passenger in front of you reclines his or her seatback into your space. But the legroom (called "seat pitch") remains the same: 32 inches. Tall passengers may find that Cathay Pacific's seat cushions now slightly move one's legs forward. However, airline spokespeople say this shouldn't be a problem. The seat frame and structure has been designed to max out knee and shin clearance by stripping out the awkward fixtures and fittings that jam up against the kneecaps on many airline seats. Another change: The pocket (or netting) that's used for storing magazines and other items has been moved by designers from underneath the tray table to underneath your seat, lessening the chance that your legs will touch it. Here are some other perks of the economy-class seats: Each seat comes with an eyeglass holder, which is a real boon if you wear specs and have had to store them while sleeping mid-flight. Each seat also comes with a 110-volt standard electric socket. As a standard feature, a coat-hook is also offered. Most important for some travelers, the seatback TV screen is nine-inches, somewhat larger than Cathay Pacific's previous standard for economy class. Each seat also has a three-point belt, which means that it will be much more obvious to flight attendants passing through the aisles whether your seat buckle is fastened. Today, the industry standard is, of course, the two-point belt. If you toss a blanket over top of your two-point belt while you're sleeping, you hide it from the flight attendant, who may have to disturb you to check to see that it is belt buckled during the flight. Not all Cathay Pacific flights have these seats, but they are being rolled out to all flights to-and-from the U.S. by May 2008. THE REAL DEAL This year, Cathay Pacific upgraded its famous All Asia Pass, enabling you to visit roughly two-dozen cities in 21 days. The pass includes travel to 23 cities in Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Vietnam. It costs $1,599. If you sign up for the airline's e-newsletter, you can qualify for a $200 discount for departures on certain days of the week. Additional airport taxes and fees are roughly $54 for the U.S. as well as from $20 to $80 for each foreign destination. The pass must be booked through a travel agent, who will likely charge a fee. EARLIER: Worst new idea in seating? Face-to-face seatbacks.

If you have a digital camera—you know, one of those $200 to $300 point-and-shoots—then you should listen to Allen Birnbach, a professional photographer in Denver and Los Angeles, who offers insights into taking better photos at TakeGreatPictures.com. He also teaches photography to hobbyists who own fancier cameras through his blog, abetterphotograph.com. In an interview, Allen offered the following tips on taking better photographs outdoors during the winter. If there's snow, be careful about where you're standing in relation to your subject. The relation between where you're shooting and where the sun is will affect how the snow appears in your photos—as a blank white space or as a textured surface. The key is to have sunlight come in from an angle, says Allen. "Most people would think that their best position as the photographer is always having the sun behind them, but not in this situation. Let's say, we're looking south, and the sun is coming from the east: That would be in an ideal position to get the snow looking realistic and not a blank, texture-less white. Alternatively, if you're facing into the west as the sun sets, you'll get your scene backlit by having sun in your pic. That could also make for a nice effect." Your photos can often become 50 percent better simply by returning to shoot the same setting on another day, or at a different time on the same day. If you're like me, the inspiration to take a photo often happens spontaneously. There's something about a setting, such as a backyard garden, that instantly says, "Snap a picture!" But Allen points out that such a scene might become even more photo-worthy when the light is better at a different time of day. Shoot at dawn or dusk. "If you shoot midday, it'll typically be hard to see surface details of the objects you're photographing because the sunlight will usually be too harsh. Late in the afternoon or early in the morning, as a rule of thumb, you'll find better natural light. Pro photographers who are shooting portraits of people outdoors always try to shoot during the early morning and late evening magic hours." Returning to a scene, you may get a much better shot. Opt for your camera's highest image quality setting. Many compact digital cameras these days give you an option to record images in various levels of image quality: standard, large, fine, and superfine. (Your camera may use different words for similar functions.) People tend to use the low-resolution image settings because low-res images don't eat up as much memory on a memory card, enabling you to cram more pictures onto a single card. "I recommend setting your camera to take pictures at the highest possible image resolution and then buy additional flash memory cards for you to take with you on your trip. Memory cards are inexpensive now, costing at about $40 to $70 a pop. These high-resolution images will look a lot sharper." Winter weather requires that you adjust your camera's settings. Most digital cameras have settings for adjusting to various light conditions, such as indoor, sunny, and nighttime. You can typically adjust these settings by going to your digital camera's electronic menu. (For example, you may see icons such as the image of a cloud covering the sun.) Some cameras instead use a number system called ISO, which is a measurement of the sensitivity of a camera's sensor to light. Says Allen, "The rule of thumb is on sunny days you could be working with an ISO of 100 to 200; on cloudy days, 200 to 400; and when it's twilight, 400 to 800. Don't go more than 800, or else you'll you get grain in the film or noise in the digital file. In other words, your photos will look odd." MORE TIPS: How to take better photos of your friends. (Advice from Budget Travel's photo department!) Read more tips from pro shooters at TakeGreatPictures.com. Here's a new device that cures awkward-arm syndrome for photographers. ($25, xshotpix.com.) Listen to a podcast of photographer Rick Sammon offering advanced digital photography tips. Before you buy a camera, visit this website. Photo by Allen Birnbach

As noted in this previous blog post, Skybus airlines is expanding. In January, it will add 11 daily flights from Greensboro, N.C., serving eight other cities. (See the full Skybus route map.) But if history is any guide, many of you will not fly Skybus. And because you don't step up, Skybus will fail. Here's how travelers typically ruin new low-cost airlines: Travelers rejoice when a discounter arrives on the scene. They love it because the discounter usually sparks a fare war with the well-known major airline that serves their hometown. But as fares drop, many travelers simply fly the major airline, taking advantage of its lower fares. Few fly the new discounter. Then, the discounter fails because of lack of business. And the major airline hikes its fares back up, hurting consumers. A classic case: Years ago, AirTran began service to Pittsburgh, challenging US Airways on many routes. But over time, US Airways matched AirTran's low fares, and customers flocked to US Airways. AirTran has since withdrawn almost entirely from Pittsburgh. Folks in Washington, D.C., witnessed this pattern when scrappy newcomer Independence Air challenged United on various routes, such as one to Burlington, Vt. That airline was forced to shut down within two years of challenging United on these routes. Frontier, which charged relatively low rates without being a true discounter, also lost its battle against United when it challenged the dinosaur on its prized San Francisco to Denver route. While other factors were involved in the above situations, the trend is fairly well-established. People don't support the low-fare airlines as much as they should. Southwest is a rare exception and it grew partly by avoiding competition with the major airlines during its early years. Here's my plea: If you live where Skybus flies and you like the low fares it has brought to your area, then you owe this airline your business. Otherwise, you are partly to blame for high ticket prices. Feel free to post a comment with your thoughts. EARLIER: Skybus expands its routes and $10 fares. ELSEWHERE: As much as we like Skybus, it's wrong to say that Portsmouth, Mass., is "near" Boston, says Jaunted. Photo by the inimitable Jessie Barber, via Flickr.

I just attended a round-table discussion on "sustainable travel." Ask ten people to define this and you'll get ten different answers. But for now let's just call it travel that, at the very least, doesn't hurt the environment, and at best, helps it. I love that this is finally a hot topic among travelers and that businesses are responding. For example, Vail Resorts is doing some pretty great things in this area, including serving hormone-free meats and poultry and organic dairy products in its 40 restaurants spread across five resorts. At the discussion, we spent a lot of time talking about where the readers of travel publications stand on the issue. There are oodles of statistics, of course, but it seems to me the best way to find out what readers think about something is to ask the readers themselves. (I know, crazy idea.) Here are the questions: Would you be more likely to pick an airline, rental car company, or hotel that uses environmentally friendly products over one that doesn't? Would you pay a little more for a flight, rental car, or hotel room if it was better for the environment? In general, do you consider sustainability when planning a trip? EARLIER Budget Travel's coverage of eco-tourism and "sustainable travel." Photo by WoodleyWonderWorks on Flickr via Creative Commons