test moblog - off 2 esri uc

Just going to san diego and testing nokia settings funny an article in the recent alaska air magazine is about geocaching!

AnyGeo Feedburner and RSS feeds - a reminder and some blogging resources

Someone reminded me of this when I moved the blog back here to Blogger from Opera's hosted solution... the best way to keep tabs on a weblog is to subscribe to it via Feedburner - that way, the next time I decide to move you'll have a trail! See http://feeds.feedburner.com/GisUserBlog - not familiar with feedburner yet? Well, since you visit blogs then you need to be... check it out! Our anygeo RSS feed is also available for your convenience at http://gisuser.blogspot.com/atom.xml - not sure what to do with that? Well, check out tools like Grazr.com and you can very easily add this feed and any other to your website. Another handy tool... Bloglines - see our bloglines feed at http://www.bloglines.com/preview?siteid=3225252 - this is another great tool! And last but not least, another great resource for keeping tab of this blog and many others is Technorati - see http://technorati.com/search/gisuser. Other news/blog aggregation tools include myYahoo! RSS (eg. http://e.my.yahoo.com/config/cstore?.opt=content&.url=http%3a//feeds.feedburner.com/Gisusercom) and the ability to add updates to your my Google homepage (eg. http://www.google.com/ig/add?feedurl=http://feeds.feedburner.com/Gisusercom)

Off to San Diego today and geobloggers at ESRI UC

ola from San Diego... actually I'm just packing to leave in a couple of hours.If you're looking for "real-time" news and updates from the show then I encourage you to check out some of the geobloggers that are busy at work here at the convention center. Obviously, yours truly will by providing loads of updates this year, return here to anygeo via blogspot, see also my flickr moblog for live images from Sunday's Padres game and Sunday night at Dick's etc... (ala Nokia 6682), and be sure to also keep tabs on James Fee's weblog, Very Spatial, Brian Flood's blog, Scrappad, fantomplanet, geoblogger, and of course, the ESRI UC weblog and the ArcPAD Crew's Weblog. If I missed anyone then James has that covered via the Planet Geospatial news aggregator as will Slashgeo and official PR announcements from the event can be found at http://www.gisuser.com/content/category/1/260/2/. I'll be back at HQ on Thursday.. until then, enjoy the show coverage and have a great week!

OGC User updates offerings with RSS feed

Some news out of the OGC if you 'd like to follow their progress a little closer... To provide you with more story leads for this intriguing and important arena we've launched a website, OGC User (http://ogcuser.opengeospatial.org/) and corresponding RSS feed (http://ogcuser.opengeospatial.org/rss) that highlights how users are taking advantage of these standards and the difference they are making in environmental research, emergency response, local government and other areas that use geospatial technologies. Be sure to add this RSS feed to your news reader... don't have a news reader yet... come on!!

Pushpin taking aim at Google Maps API

I received this update from the crew at Pushpin LE regarding their mapping API and two new Pushpin features: Rendermap custom tilesets for Google-style maps, and the Dynamic Layers application programming interface (API) for advanced displays of mappable information. These wonderful products will now give developers the ability to precisely control the look and feel of their maps, and to display overlays and underlays that will enable the visual interpretation of demographic, sales and other types of location data that can be displayed on a map. Fully custom Google style tilesets can be designed to order by Placebase cartographers, or by anyone with ESRI ArcMap skills. As a result, customers with their own mapping data, for example aviation maps or real estate parcel maps, can have their own Google style maps pre-rendered, cached and ready to serve to any standard browser. The team will be at at the ESRI UC next week and Pushpin LE With Dynamic Layers will be available on August 7 (to be introduced at the ESRI User Conference in San Diego)  Pricing for the service starts at $2,250 for up to 165,000 map views. See more at www.pushpin.com

Tele Atlas, TomTom to provide GPS navigational technology for a major fundraising event in Massachusetts

This comes to me via the folks at Tele Atlas -- Tele Atlas is working with TomTom to provide GPS navigational technology for a major fundraising event in Massachusetts this weekend:  The Pan Mass Challenge -- a 192-mile bike-a-thon drawing over 4,300 cyclists from 36 states and six countries with the collective goal of raising $24 million for cancer research and treatment.  This year, a new element to the event is that the lead car on the first day of the ride will be navigated with a portable GPS navigation device from TomTom – the TomTom GO 910 – which features map information from Tele Atlas.  This is the first year this technology will be used to guide the Challenge’s lead car and thousands of riders – providing route accuracy as well as information regarding points of interest, such as the water stops, on the route.  Additionally, the route is available for TomTom customers to download onto their units (via the TomTom blog) – enabling them to manage their route individually.  More on this can be found here - http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/9508/2/ - related links - www.teleatlas.com / www.tomtom.com

GIS Day Special Interest Group Meeting at the ESRI UC

I've always been a big fan of GIS Day so here's some heads-up on a GIS Day and a meet-up taking place at the ESRI UC.... GIS Day—Secrets to Success SIG
Thursday, August 10, 12:00 noon–1:00 p.m.
Room 24C, San Diego Convention Center

 

Some answers that you can get by attending...
How do users in the southern hemisphere celebrate GIS Day? What’s the best way to get a TV news reporter to come to your event? How can I start a GIS Day planning committee within my organization?
Only 15 Weeks to Go to GIS Day - New materials are being added to the www.gisday.com

A Request for participation in a survey on Canada's strengths in science and technology (S&T)

The Council of Canadian Academies is conducting a web-based survey as an important part of the Council's study of Canada's strengths in science and technology, where S&T is interpreted broadly to encompass all areas of formal knowledge and its application, including the social sciences and humanities. Motivation for the Survey -- To help set the context for the government's consideration of S&T policy, Industry Canada has asked the Council of Canadian Academies (www.scienceadvice.ca) to report on the scientific disciplines and technology applications in which Canada excels in a global context. One key part of the Council study is a roughly 20-minute web-based survey that is being launched today. Importance of the Survey -- To provide the Government of Canada with a comprehensive, up-to-date picture of the nation's S&T assets, the Council is consulting a wide range of informed opinion on this issue. You can take part in the survey at http://97.ca/ekos/callweb.cgi?_proj=1016

Autodesk University registration available for AUGI members

Next week AUGI members will be able to start signing up for the annual Autodesk University which is returning this year to Vegas... no not at the MGM but the Venetian.... pretty spanky!!! Details from AUGI... For a limited time, beginning August 7, 2006, AUGI members will be among a select group of users who are invited to visit the AU website and register for AU 2006 classes before the AU website is publicly announced.. stay tuned on this one or see www.augi.com

The not-so-official Geo hook-up at Dick's Sunday night at 7 - hope to see you there

It's not an "official" SIG or blogosphere meet-up etc.. but Sunday night, 7 PM at Dick's Last Resort is turning out to be a bit of a gathering spot for myself and a number of colleagues, old acquaintances, and others that I've met over the past 7 or 8 years. If you have no plans yet for Sunday night in San Diego and want to meet up with some friendly, beer loving GIS professionals (including yours truly) then I look forward to seeing you at Dick's (look around the patio). No doubt we'll have some lively discussion and there should be a few Canadians there as well.. always loads of fun particularly after 3 or 4 pints! See you there. Hopefully it won't be too packed as there's a Padres game that afternoon (some of us will be there also). If you plan on trying to get there drop me a line and I'll keep my eyes peeled for you... Cheers! Unfortunately I won't be around Wednesday evening to meet up with fantomplanet et al at the blogger meet-up... darn... I fly out at 7:30 PS... Once again I will be blogging plenty from this year's UC so check in right here at gisuser.blogspot.com (aka. www.anygeo.com) and be sure to also see the GISuser flickr for loads of images that I'll be mo-blogging via my Nokia 6682. See http://www.flickr.com/photos/gisuser/

I know the Agenda for the UC this year is HUGE but pull yourself off the potty for a bit and head down to Dick's on Sunday night ;0)

podcasting about a webcast??

HUH?? Funny, I just saw that a publication (Directions) has published a podcast where the editors discuss a recent Autodesk webcast... an interesting idea... maybe someone should do a Vodcast about the podcast which discusses the webcast or maybe someone could interview a person who watched the podcast and the webcast and interpret their thoughts... LOL

GeoWeb sees huge attendance increase

GITA has announced that the recently held GeoWeb event in Vancouver was a huge hit with attendance up 3X over last year. I was disappointed at not being able to attend due to a travel conflict (I was in Colorado that week) and had this one bookmarked as a must-see event for this year... darn! Hopefully next year. From the GITA announcement, "The event was highlighted by keynotes from Microsoft Virtual Earth's general manager Steven Lawler, Google Earth CTO Michael Jones, and author and technology architect Kurt Cagle."

If you missed out, all of the keynotes and plenary sessions are now available in podcast format at http://geoweb2006.invokemedia.com/. Proceedings from the nearly 70 paper presentations are also available for purchase at www.geoweb.org. I noticed that the event also included an evening dinner cruise in English Bay which took place on an evening that the fire works competition was being held.. this is huge! If you've ever been to the symphony of fire in English Bay then you know what I mean... if you haven't then you should try and catch one of the shows... its the most amazing fire works display you will ever see! Congrats to the event organizers for hosting what sounds like a huge event... I have no doubt GeoWeb 2007 will be hit!

Sony GPS geolocates images, video etc.. captured with Sony cameras

Woohoo, another GPS-enabled camera. This time it's Sony who's meeting the demand. I recall about 5 years ago that I was one of the first to write about the very cool Kodak FIS265 (I think) which was a GPS-enabled camera with a nifty arcview extension. It made migrating digital images with geocoding into arcview GIS a snap. The Kodak unit never did take off as it got no support from Kodak, although there was huge demand for such a device but folks in our industry. Looks like Sony is now entering the space with a device. From the PR... "With the new GPS-CS1 GPS unit, still images shot with latest Cyber-shot digital cameras, Handycam camcorders or the α100 D-SLR camera can be enhanced with satellite-based positional information. Using Sony Picture Motion Browser software, images can be displayed at exactly the place they were taken in an online map. The GPS-CS1 can hold 31MB of data, equivalent to approximately one month of tracking and recording for 12 hours per day. Recorded data can then be downloaded from the GPS-CS1 via the supplied USB cable to a PC running Sony GPS Image Tracker software. Look for the dev ice in Europe later this summer. What kind of geotagging app are you using for your images?? See more in the announcement at  http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/9511/ - oh... is anyone out there still using the Kodak FIS265??

Things You Will Not Want To Miss at The ESRI UC courtesy of David Maguire

Of interest for those of you off to San Diego next week... our latest "10 cool things" column comes from ESRI's David Maguire. David provides us with his list of 10 things not to be missed at this years conference... a sampling... Super sessions: "This is a new idea we are trying this year for the first time. Scott Morehouse, Clint Brown and I are providing a keynote of topics that we are passionate about." See David's list at http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/9510/

Do you have a list of "10 things you have to do" in San Diego while taking in the ESRI UC? If so tell me about it... simply blast an email to glenn at gisuser dot com!

Daratech references the Big 3 in GIS - ESRI, Intergraph, Bentley... what, no Autodesk??

You have to wonder what was going on behind closed doors at Daratech HQ this week, particularly when the phone started ringing with calls from the likes of Bentley who were no doubt ranting about their latest "analysis" of the Geospatial industry. Recall it was just a  week ago (July 27)  that Daratech released what would be "Part 1" of the Evolving Geospatial Industry (http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/9446/) where they summarized the latest finding in the $7,000 report by stating that the TWO largest players in GIS/geospatial (ESRI, and Intergraph) accounted for nearly half (50%) of the total software revenues. Then just this week comes Part 2 aka. the revision of the Evolving Geospatial Industry (http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/9492/) where is was noted that the THREE largest players in the GIS/Geospatial industry (ESRI, Intergraph, and Bentley) accounted for some 50% of the software revenues. I dunno about you but I'm glad I didn't shell out $7k for that first report! No doubt the execs from Bentley must have dialed up Daratech and whined, pleaded, ranted, yadayada (and rightly so) in order to get a mention in the study. This all leaves me (and no doubt some of you) to wonder... what about AUTODESK... surely they deserve a mention as well don't they? Are you telling me that Bentley scores a title as one of the big three players in GIS but Autodesk doesn't??? Come on man... Daratech, please keep me posted on this study as I suspect some more revisions will follow. I was encouraged to write this thread after mentioning the blunder in a recent newsletter.

deCarta Devcon scheduled for October

Just got my reminder about the coming deCarta Devcon (recall last year's Telcontar DevCon at SBC Park, San Fran). The event is designed for developers who wish to learn more about deCarta's location-enabling applications and solutions (some of which you'll see featured in the coming NAvteq LBS Challenge). The devcon takes place October 4-5, 2006 in Mission Bay Conference Center, San Francisco - learn more at http://www.decarta.com/developers/devconference2006.html

 

ESRI Canada regional conference lineup for fall 2006

Hey Canucks.. not going to the International ESRI UC... no worries. Here's the lineup of regional events taking place this fall north of the 49th...

Edmonton, AB - Sept 7-8

Regina, Sask - Sept 21-22

Montreal, QC - Sept 26-27

Victoria, BC - Oct 2-3

Vancouver, BC - Oct 4-5

Tonoton, ONT - OCt 12-13

For details and registration see http://www.esricanada.com/events/eruc2006

 

ESRI User conference FAQ

I just received a list of questions from a reader who's off to San Diego for the first time to attend the ESRI user conference. He asked:

How could get get a hold of a ticket for the Thursday night party?

What's the name of the place with 100 beers on tap?

Is Dick's last resort a nice place to take my girlfriend?

 

Well, naturally I told him the following:

- try placing a notice (envelope) on the boards at the conference (upper level) asking for a donation of a spare ticket for the party - this is a common way to get one. You can also listen to people to hear if they are leaving early and can't make it (like yours truly) These people have spare tickets to donate.

- the bar with loads of beers is the Yardhouse and its awesome. They likely have the best happy hour deal in town too with amazing appies at half price!

- Dick's... she'll like it if she's the kind of girl that wouldn't mind leaving her bra behind to hang off the ceiling as a keepsake... say no more!!

 

Got an ESRI UC question? Post it here or to me and no doubt we can find an answer.

The ArcPad Team Blog and ArcPad Today!

Elvin from the ArcPad team has shared the news with me that Shane and the rest of the arcPad crew are now keeping developers and other aficionados (is that a word?) of ArcPad up to speed with a new blog aka. The ArcPad Team Blog (Great Name guys!). See what the guys are up to like today's blurb about the ArcPad Today Powertoy, a handy, configurable Today screen plug-in for ArcPad - see http://arcpadteam.blogspot.com/ or even better, catch-up with the team in person at the ESRI UC next week in San Diego. Of interest will be a session on ArcPAD and the 2010 US Census

Google consolidates open source projects at Google Code

Now its Google vs Source Forge as Google. USe the portal to download code, catch the latest updates and patches, read about featured developers and applications, and more. No doubt the project was discussed at length last week at OSCon - Jump to http://code.google.com/ and scope it out

Alertdude Groups - create your own directory or group using Google Maps - sans programing!

Recall I recently made reference to a very cool mashup found at alertdude - this was in reference to a mashup tracking sexual predators. Well, it turns out I also recently received an update from the developer Matthew Dubiel and it turns out he's been up to some very cool things. A while back he created theaterdude, a national theater finder and mapper for the US. Then he thought about doing yard sales or maybe gas prices. But it eventually came to him that instead of making site after site after site, it would be wiser to group them all. Enter the latest development found at the alertdude groups. Imagine being able to create a named group where you can invite friends to post items in the mashup and build the group. Create a group of garage sales, a directory of professionals, personal ads, events, or ??? that's exactly what you can do at the new groups utility from alertdude. As a sample I created my GISuser Group - a directory of mapping professionals. Try it out. Simply add yourself by creating a quick user profile (email and pw) then add your company's information or calling card... way cool! See http://www.alertdude.com/groups/ and look for the GISuser Group. Maybe even create your own group. Once your group is created you can add a listing, post a picture, description, contact information etc... from the group application users can contact you or leave a message.

Enhance your mashup with Red light traffic intersection camera data

For a $25 annual subscription fee, you will receive a single POI file that contains cameras for the entire US. Most major urban centers are covered and free updates are provided with your subscription every time the camera database is updated, including when new cities are added - they update the dB approximately every 2 weeks. To test it out a sample dataset of some 1000 red light cameras is available. See GPS POI for the data. The company also provides a ton of other POI datasets including Wal-Mart locations, book stores, restaurants, national parks, and loads more. Looking for more place name data? Check out the geonames database - see http://www.geonames.org/export/

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) apparently inks EULA deal with ESRI

From the rumor mill.. word on the "street" has it that the DHS has recently (yesterday actually) inked an end user agreement licensing deal with ESRI... wow! We likely won't see or hear any official PR about this one but I'd love to see how many zeros are on that cheque! Obviously the DHS has been a strong user of ESRI solutions for some time, however, this deal spanning the entire agency is big time... can't wait to hear more about this one!

ESRI UC Blogger Meet up

Fantom Planet is once again trying to get some bloggers together.. this time its in San Diego at the ESRI UC. I hooked up with fantom and a couple of others at Where 2.0 a couple of months ago and we had a great time (although there was only several of us there). Mark your agenda - August 9, 8 PM, place TBD... more details here

Come on CNN (Nancy Grace) , how about citing the mashup source in your reports!

The other day I was clicking around and found myself on CNN watching a report on a reported sexual predator. What caught my attention was the fact that "reporter" and show host Nancy Grace referenced some analysis that she had done for the show to reveal several hundred sexual predators that resided in the area in question for the show. What struck me as odd was that the map was clearly a screen shot captured using a Google Mashup -- I'm 99% sure that the mashup used was the Florida Sexual predator mashup from AlertDude (one that I have hyped in the past for its excellence) -- the problem... CNN and NAncy Grace made no attempt to provide credit to the website for providing the map used on the show... pretty sad. Hopefully the developer will follow up and contact CNN about this. For more on the sexual predator mashup see this feature in our Gallery or jump to http://www.alertdude.com/