Bing Map offline development? Is this possible?

Question

I am trying to add 3d images to Bing maps, however I do not have an internet connection at my work pc and I would like to know how I could work on adding things to bing maps when no internet is available. Is there a way I can download samples of bing map that allow me to work with bing map and the bing map api?

Thanks

Answer 1

Whilst technically easy to do, the Bing Maps Terms of Use explicitly prohibit creating a local copy of the API or any Bing Maps content (with no internet connection, you'd also need to create a local copy of all the base map tiles that would normally be served to the client) - see http://www.microsoft.com/maps/product/terms.html

The only legal way of creating a local Bing Maps installation with no internet connection that I'm aware of is by purchasing a licence for the Bing Maps Server provided by Vexcel - http://www.vexcel.com/geospatial/bingmapsserver/index.asp. However, don't expect it to be cheap...