10+1 Must have, Free Applications For Your GPS-Enabled Nokia N95 Smartphone

The Nokia N95 is in my mind one of those must-have devices. Sleek, powerful, packed full of memory, GPS-enabled, a 5 megapixel camera, high quality video recording, Bluetooth enabled, I could go on and on. Ideal for the outdoor enthusiast, a dream device for the business user. The Nokia N95 is now available to North American users and may finally be positioned to start making headlines... do you want one? If you've picked one up or plan on getting one then here's a handy list of must have, free applications that will run on your Nokia N95 or other Symbian S60 3 smartphone. Did I mention that these applications are all free? The suggested apps include:
fring (think IM, ICQ)
shozu - (productivity and save $$)
Mosh - (share!)
locr (GPS add-on)
sports tracker (tracks)
Zurfer (socialize)
yahoo! zonetag (GPS must have add-on)
twibble (socialize and twitter)
Yahoo! Go (local search, news)
Widsets (news)
Nokia Maps (travel)
See complete details here

New York City Cabbies view their route as being proprietary information - the GPS battle

The New York city cabbie VS GPS battle continues. Now it appears that cabbies in the Big Apple are fearful that their privacy is being invaded and also that the GPS will be giving away their trade secrets.. apparently the direction one takes between point A and B is a precious trade secret to these guys.. amazing! You can't help but wonder if its simply that cabbies don't want a record that they are taking their customers on a wild goose chase in an effort to get that meter ticking (no that never happens does it??). Also a surprise that the cabbies don't view the GPS as being a potential life saver, perhaps providing useful directions when an obstacle gets in their way (like an accident) or maybe even providing their location when they are being robbed or abducted. According to an article in Business Week, the cabbies actually view their route as being proprietary information! Ohmygowhatnext! See http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8ROM2180.htm

2 million Geotagged Panoramio Photos available via Google Earth

Panoramio this week has announced that more than 2 million user photos are now available for viewing in Google Earth - this comes via the addition of 300,000 new photos. Not all Panoramio photos in the collection are available in G. Earth, only the best ones! The company does remind us that people who want a second chance to get their images accepted can simply ask for a second review.. no guarantees though. The company uses the following guidelines and will not enable viewing of the following scenarios via the Google Earth app:

 

    * People posing, portraits or persons as main subject. Exception: photos were people are an unavoidable part of the place
    * Car, plane or any machine as the main subject. Same exception as above.
    * Pet or animal as the main subject. Exception: animals in their natural environment.
    * Close-ups: details, inscriptions, signals...
    * Events: exhibitions, concerts, parades...
    * Interiors: everything under a roof is usually not accepted. Exception: photos with a wide perspective inside churches, mosques, train stations...
    * Text: large copyright notices and advertising text / URL. Exception: very small and discrete copyright notices are OK as long as you are the author.
    * Low quality photos; extremely blurred, under 100 Kb size, too dark...
    * Not real photos: paintings, logos, digital images, collages...

 

See The Panoramio blog for more - http://www.panoramio.com/blog/
see also http://www.panoramio.com/map

New location-based services newsletter - LBSzone Alert

Did you happen to catch Volume #1 of the new LBSzone Alert weekly newsletter the other day? We've spun-off a weekly update to our newsletter offerings to now include a blast that's focused on mobile technologies and, more specifically, location-based services (LBS). As many of you know, LBSzone has been around for several years now (the site actually was developed pre-GISuser), however, we've been waiting for just the right time to launch our electronic update focused on location-based services (LBS)... that time is NOW! See Volume #1 Of LBSZone Alert HERE or Register to receive the LBSzone Alert HERE - if you're already receiving our Spatial Media GISuser Today newsletter then you also received the LBSzone Alert. Feel free to send your LBS related questions, tips, news or ?? our way and we'll be glad to give you a plug. Topics of interest on LBSzone include positioning solutions and hardware, social networking, mobile games, application developer tools, SDKs and developer programs, navigation, wireless technologies, smartphone developments (ie. Nokia N95), mobile operating systems, advances in GPS, mobile GIS, etc... See www.lbszone.com

Canada dollar on par with $US

If you do business over the Canada / US border then this topic is of interest... for the first time in 30 years the CDN dollar (aka. the loonie) is worth as much as the $US... my guess is this trend will continue and the loonie will outpace the $US before the year ends. Big deal you might say.. well, if your company is based in Canada and you have US clients your services and products are much more expensive now. Its also more costly for Americans to visit the US so it could hurt the tourism / trade show industry as well. No biggee perhaps to some of you but when you consider that the $US used to get you about $1.50 CDN about 5 years ago it really is quite amazing. I also recall getting 1 Euro for 1 $US a couple of years ago... so much for that scenario. More on this via Bloomberg - http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=au2sNyHsCEkI&refer=home

Good luck to Peter Batty as SpatialNetworking Start-up chases the Spatial Social Networking space

I spoke to Peter Batty last week at GIS in the Rockies and he tipped me off that he'd be making an announcement this week that would essentially end his "vacation". So today it appears that Peter has lifted the lid off the announcement and launched Spatial Networking - start up that will focus on location related apps and social networks... think locr metts twitter meets grazr meets flickr meets platial etc... you get the idea (that's from me, not Peter!) Anyway, best of luck to Peter and his new crew... perhaps Peter and I can discuss the new venture at a Rockies game before the season ends! See Peter's Blog announcement here and see also http://www.spatialnetworking.com

The Navizon GPS iPhone hack

An iPhone GPS hack? Well, if you check out gizmondo it appears that way! This blog thread discusses how the free Navizon GPS app was installed on the iPhone and enables geopositioning and navigation on the iPhone - check it out and let me know if it works for you! See http://www.navizon.com/FullFeatures.htm

Realizing The Possibilities of Autodesk Map 3D in Denver

I just returned from Denver where I took in the Autodesk Realize Your Possibilities event - a travelling roadshow put on by Autodesk staff. The event served to inform users and would-be users about the possibilities brought about by using the latest apps - in my case, I took in the Geospatial track which looked at the GIS solutions - AutoCAD Map 3D, Raster Design, MapGuide, and Design Review.

Some of the coolest features available to users of the AutoCAD Map 3D solution include:
- fast data access enabled via the FDO technology - we saw a 1.5 GB image draw, redraw etc.. in seconds - on a normal laptop!
- simple output to DWF or publish to the web - author and serve to MapGuide session in seconds
- viewing DWF within the free AutoCAD design review enabling layers, redlines, measure tools, geographic coordinates, view attributes, and even plug-in a GPS!
- native read/write of multiple data formats include ESRI
- simple command access and access to GIS data analysis tools (ie. fast query building, thematic map production, and output)
I could go on but I'll have to wait till I pour over my notes and handouts. Nice job to Pete Southwood or Autodesk (aka. the Male version of Lynn Allen!)
Let me leave you with some useful weblinks:
http://www.autodesk.com/map3dwebcasts
http://www.autodesk.com/map3d
http://www.autodesk.com/map3dresource

LiveLook serves up Webcam locations via Google Maps - a great mashup!

Erik over at LiveLook has share details of a very cool mashup that they've developed.. enter LiveLook. This application uses the Google Maps API to mashup and present the location of webcams that are near you. By default it locates you (I assume based on IP) although you can optionally specify a region by city name etc... Check it out at http://livelook.com/

DigitalGlobe WorldView 1 in orbit

Kudos to DigitalGlobe, Boeing and everyone involved in getting WorldView 1 into orbit. All appeared to go smoothly with the mission... Recall:
capture 750,000 square km day
.5 meter imagery resolution
1.7 day revisit time
WorldView 2 ready for launch in late 2008

Convert your SHP and other GIS data to GeoRSS with BRIGHTi GeoFeeder

Bright Solutions has recently released a new product called BRIGHTi GeoFeeder. This handy application converts traditional GIS format files to GeoRSS.

Features:
1. Convert to all variations of GeoRSS formats including RSS, ATOM and Simple, GML, and W3C encodings.
2. Works with the following formats/extensions: .kml, .kmz, .gml, .shp, .mif, .dxf
3. Convert vector data (points, lines and polygons) to GeoRSS
4. Map feature attributes to GeoRSS attributes
5. Specify multiple attributes for or

elements
6. Displays all features on a Virtual Earth map
7. Browse features and attributes
8. Zoom and pan

BRIGHTi GeoFeeder can convert vector data (points, lines and polygons) from ESRI, Google, MapInfo, Autodesk, and GML file formats to GeoRSS xml. GeoRSS is the current defacto standard for web mapping. Microsoft Virtual Earth, Google Maps and Yahoo Maps accept GeoRSS. A 30 day evaluation is available for free download - limits conversion to 50 points or 25 polygons and polylines. See http://www.brightisolutions.com

Lat49 helps developers put ads on your Ajax or ActionScript map site

Today Idelix has made official the launch of the lat49 advertising engine - think mapvertising. From Idelix, the patents-pending ad serving solution is optimized for online, interactive maps and provides map-site publishers with a viable revenue model suited to their user behavior and site traffic. How it works... Advertisers buy the exclusive advertising rights to map real estate using the lat49 self-serve interface. An advertiser’s ad placements display each time a site visitor using a lat49 partner map views the advertiser’s territory. Land parcels can be bought at multiple zoom levels to suit the goals of the particular advertising campaign. See http://lat49.com or view more in the announcement at http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/12699/

NOAA Earth on a sphere Globe - South East Asia Tsunami

On Friday last week (Sept 14) I took in the e GIS in the rockies site visit to the NOAA office in Boulder Colorado. The highlight of the visit was the Earth on a Sphere technology - think of a large, suspended Globe that's illuminated from within and showing satellite imagery and other GIS datasets and animations... quite cool! I actually recall seeing a similar technology at last year's ESRI conference (the name of that display escapes me right now). Below is a video I cpatured using a Nokia N95. The video shows an animation of a model of the wave motion after a major earthquake in South-east Asia. Notice the wave trajectory after the shock and then the resulting tsunami.

Save the date (and time) DigitalGlobe WorldView I satellite launch - watch it from your PC

Do you like the imagery in Google Earth right now... wait till next year once WorldView I is operational and the data is being streamed to users. Heads-up, the DigitalGlobe WorldView I satellite launch is coming up this Tuesday... recall WorldView will provide high-res imagery as fine as .5 m resolution... actually much finer resolution data will be available to government clients who funded the project, the .5 m resolution imagery will likely be available for sale as a commercial product. About the launch... The WorldView-1 satellite is scheduled to launch on Tuesday, September 18, 2007, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. WorldView-1 is the first of two new next-generation satellites planned by DigitalGlobe. WorldView II will launch some time next year. To view the launch see the following link on Tuesday http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/bls/missions/worldview-1/

Some specs and details about the DigitalGlobe Satellites:
- in 2007 the company is collecting 600,000 km/2 per day
- in 2007 once WV 2 is up more than 1,000,000 km/2 per day will be collected

WorldView 1 Specs:
- operating altitude - 496 km
- weight - 2500 kg
- spectral - panchromatic
- pn res. .5 m (50 cm)
- swath 17.5 km
- avg revisit at 40 deg. north lat - 1.7 days
- onboard storage 2199 Gbits

See also DigitalGlobe for more info

Image Source: DigitalGlobe