In this tutorial at PSDTuts, you’ll learn how to create a shiny globe using the 3D features of Photoshop CS4 Extended. This will cover basic information about 3D layers and texture maps.

Globe tutorial

Learn how to use texture mapping and Photoshop's 3D tools in this tutorial

While you’re probably not running across the need to create Earth globes in your every day workflow, the tutorial will give you the knowledge of using a few of Photoshop’s powerful tools that you probably don’t even think about.