By now, the interactive globe is a dream. The model shown here is based on NASA material, what has been projected on a ball using a 3D application. For a non-commercial project – as Global Type is – it is absolutely legal to use that stuff. NASA provides a software called “WorldWind”, what is giving a good idea of what our interface could look like. e By now, we think the best solution would be something like a “Global Type Browser”, what is allowing to show up texts and pictures as well as sound, movies or animations.
Google with its “Google Earth” shows a solution, what is much closer to what we want to do. Built upon actual satellite data, one can create new content layers onto the surface. Maybe this is an idea, but we are missing the time axis, a central element of the model and the database beyond this.
Until we’ve got real standards in this area, we surely have to wait a while. Maybe VRML could be an idea. But we have to wait until a common standard is available, because we can’t develop that stuff by ourselves.
The database design itself is prepared for queries like this, providing e.g. life data of typographers as well as release dates of typefaces and an entity “location”, where geographical data is stored.