Where's Waldo moves to Google Earth.

This is probably the best thing to kill my productivity for the next few days. I need to reschedule a few meetings.

For years, he has challenged enterprising schoolchildren everywhere to spot him among ancient Aztec kingdoms and medieval battlefields.

But now Wally has set his fans a new goal - to find him over the internet.

Canadian artist Melanie Coles has brought her favorite childhood game firmly into the 21st Century by painting a 55ft Wally - complete with red-and-white-striped jumper, glasses and woolen hat - on to a city center roof that can only be seen by Google Earth satellites.

There is now a flurry of interest among Internet users to see who can be the first to spot this Web 2.0 Wally according to Daily Mail.

But competition is likely to be tough. Not only will Wally hunters have to locate his rooftop perch, but they will also have to wait for Google's imaging equipment to pick it up.

Although Google Earth pictures can be up to three years old, the company does not reveal when it plans to update its images.

But, as Miss Coles, 22, insists that's all part of the fun.

She said: 'The goal of the game is to get excited. It's like this huge shift. Radio is going to the Web. Television is going to the Web. And now Waldo is going to the Web, which is pretty fitting right now. This is what I'm surrendering to the Google god.'

Miss Coles, an art student who has publicised her project on the blog whereonearthiswaldo.com, is now encouraging others to follow her lead and create a series of Google Wallys across the world.

'I think that it's within the spirit of the state of the Web now. Everything is a free-for-all, and I think the more Waldos, the better,' she said.