"Marble consists of a series of views of the world, ranging from
a satellite view to a plain atlas view. Each of these views is
available on a globe, a flat map, or a Mercator projection (a flat
view that contains some distortions, such as an enlarged Greenland
and diminished Australia, but which continues to enjoy popularity
after 500 years). The first time you open a view, Marble takes 10
to 20 seconds to create it, but, after that, you can switch views
within a few seconds."