A Stillorgan-based Web firm has adopted surround video technology to develop a virtual tourist site. The company www.strolling.com uses the latest imaging technology to allow visitors to view a city from their desktops. The new site still has a lot of ground to cover, as London is the only city featuring neighbourhood maps where more detailed routes can be accessed, including semi-circle and full circle views of famous landmarks. New York and Paris are also featured but in their formative stages. Interestingly, strolling.com did not go for the obvious and features Dublin as its flagship city. Mr Sean Nolan, strolling.com's designer, said: "I wanted to give an international feel to the site, and decided to plant it firmly on a global basis. We expect to feature Dublin in the second phase of the site's development."

Mr Nolan eventually plans to use surround video, based on ActiveX technology, to deliver hundreds of panoramic images of international cities. Viewers can control their panoramic view by guiding the mouse around the image to sweep in different directions.