Give Google's street-view maker a little hug

Google Japan put together this animated video to show how the street view works on Google Maps, apparently on the assumption that there's nothing quite like a Wall-E-style character to ease the fears of people worried about privacy. (The clip shows the machine dutifully responding to feedback and working late into the night to blur out license-plate numbers and names on mailboxes.) There's no sign of an animated Phillip Garrido, either. Also, check out this awesome gallery of Google street-view pics on Art Fag City.