Google Earth is a free utility that lets you search for nearly any location in the world, then shows you the location in 3D. For example, enjoy a virtual 3D tour of downtown Seattle starting at the Creativetechs office (although 3D New York is much more interesting).

Google Earth gives you driving directions, maps, and statistics about the area, and lets you zoom and swoop around the world in real time. It can also overlay an amazing amount of information, including roadways, political boundaries, points of interest, local amenities, and information from other Google Earth users. You can also add your own notes.

Available at earth.google.com.

Two months ago we ran an apparently popular tip on Creating Quick Voiceovers in GarageBand 3. We’ve received a lot of questions since then about the best microphone to use for a simple voiceover.

We can’t quite declare a “best microphone.” But if you are looking for an inexpensive way to record video tutorials, GarageBand voiceovers, or your own podcasts, here is our recommendation: Go with one of the Plantronics DSP headsets with a USB connection. These provide good voice recording, and are quite affordable. They plug right into your computer’s USB port. Easy.

Two models we’ve used in our QuickTIme video tutorials:

Plantronics DSP-400 USB Headset [$35].
Plantronics DSP-500 USB Headset [$45].

The DSP-400 folds down for easy portability while the DSP-500 is a bit more substantial (the DSP-500 is apparently the mic of choice for at least one large video tutorial company).

Want to hear for yourself? We’ve got sound samples on the blog version of this tip for 6 different microphone options.