Spatial Networking WhereYouGonnaBe to include Twitter, Facebook, and Google Calendar integration

Looks like Peter and the gang at SpatialNetworking have a new release in the works to include facebook and Twitter integration...

In addition to updating the popular Twitter and facebook service, it can also tie in to your Google calendar and import from TripIt and Doplr... cool. The tie in to Google Calendar is very powerful and something that users are going love! See video demo below (source: http://vimeo.com/1313233) - I can't wait for a mobile client!

See also www.spatialnetworking.com

http://www.whereyougonnabe.com/

whereyougonnabe July 2008 release overview from Peter Batty on Vimeo.

ohman, here we go again with the Apple iPhone gridlock!

Dejavu! This comes ironically from the New York Time who has one of the coolest, new, iPhone apps out there... Apple suffered massive network gridlock Friday morning as many of the six million users of the original iPhone tried to upgrade to new software at the same time as the first buyers of the new iPhone 3G were trying to activate their purchases. I noticed this AM via Twitter that users like James were complaining about issues with MobileMe (http://www.apple.com/mobileme/) and Peter is likey still trying to upgrade his software hours later... ouch! Are you really surprised?? See more on NY Times

I had this up on my screen for quite some time this AM

Exploring amazing panoramas from around the Globe with Gigapan

Just sniffing around and checking out the Gigapan project... some amazing technology and even cooler imagery available via this app. I used to be way into photography (mostly BxW and landscape photogs) so I'm really captivated and interested in clever projects like this... WOW. This video clip below will give you an idea of what its all about. See also gigapan.org

Must-Have Location-Aware Applications for your Apple iPhone 3G

Ok, you've got your shiny, new 3G Apple iPhone... now what?? Well, to start, you'll need to get familiar with the Apple iStore, this is where you'll find loads of applications, many of them are cool, location-aware applications taking advantage of the devices' integrated GPS. Read on for some cool, suggested apps, most of them taking advantage of the users' location, some are simply must have! See more

So You Think You Can Text?

Enter the new LG Texting Champ... Beating more than 15,000 entrants, Nathan Schwartz, a 20-year-old Clyde, Ohio resident, took home the title of $50,000 in prize money and indisputable bragging rights for his speed-texting skills. The winning phrase was "Does everybody here know the alphabet? Let's text. Here it goes… AbcDeFghiJKlmNoPQrStuvWXy & Z! Now I know my A-B-C's, next time won't you text with me?" which Schwartz completed in sixty seconds. The contestants used any LG phones that featured full QWERTY keypads including the enV2, enV and Voyager. Beating more than 15,000 entrants, Nathan Schwartz, a 20-year-old Clyde, Ohio resident, took home the title of $50,000 in prize money and indisputable bragging rights for his speed-texting skills.

iPhone 3G Still Lacking some key features

Besides the fact that I'm already locked into a T-Mobile plan that is serving me well (well, it's ok!) there's a few key features that iPhone 3G should have...
expandable memory card slot (like a Micro SD)
video ( in this day and age no mobile video... come on, you gotta have it)
5 mega pixel digital camera is a must (currently comes with a 2 MP)
spotty 3G coverage
costly monthly plan - you'll be dropping $1000 easily this year on your iPhone 3g
Hang tough and I'm sure I'll come up with a few other key features. The real kicker with iPhone 3G though is iPhone 2.0, the software upgrade that enables mobile application developers to create apps for this platform... its the apps man, that's what will be killer! Think about it, with this great UI and nice, large screen you can now easily read the New York Times from cover to cover on a phone.. try doing this on any other device, your eyes will likely bug out of your head by page 3! Check out LBSzone.com for details of just a few, new, cool LBS apps running on iPhone 3g. Any thoughts???

Government of Canada coughs up $2.1 million for Location-based Information projects

The Government of Canada today announced $674,911 in funding for a variety of resource management projects in B.C. that will benefit from improved access to location-based information online. The projects, with a total value of $2.1 million, are being supported by the national GeoConnections program, led by Natural Resources Canada. Funded projects include:
McGregor Model Forest in Prince George, managed in partnership with the University of British Columbia

Environment Canada for a project that will see the creation of a multi-agency partnership and the development of a Web portal to share information pertaining to the Okanagan River Basin.

$60,000 to support species at risk by enabling access to aggregated data on the Internet for more than 5,000 aquatic plant and animal species.
See more

NAVTEQ Community Blogs

You may have seen that the Nokia purchase of NAVTEQ is finally a done deal - see details - but did you know you can browse the NAVTEQ community blogs online here

ShoZu iPhone Application - a must have

If you plan on picking up a new iPhone 3G then one must-have application you need to get ASAP is Shozu. This app will enable you to quickly, easily, and affordably upload to any of some 50+ social networking sites with 1 touch. shozu also crunches images to a manageable size, saving data throughput and costly data charges. See www.shozu.com/iphone or get it from the Apple App Store

Develop WHERE widgets for iPhone 3G - video demo

Interested in creating widgets on the WHERE platform (uLocate) for the new iPhone 3G? Check out this video clip from the uLocate channel providing details just how simple it is.

Will location be the killer app creating mega line-ups for iPhone 3G?

No doubt you've witnessed the start of the iPhone 3G hype, expected to climax tomorrow (8 AM) when the device is available to the public.
I've found it interesting, but no huge surprise to see that location, presence, GPS, however you want to refer to it, is the expected killer app - likely enabling Apple to easily outsell the 6 million iPhones that were sold last year - I bet that number easily surpasses 10 million with 3G! Notice the recent images in USA Today showing, what else, maps. Check out the iPhone 3G homepage and when you browse around you'll find loads of nifty images showing iPhone maps.
Finally, just today, one of the first announcements for an application available to iPhone 3G users via the Apple iStore will be WHERE - recall WHERE’s widgets delivers content based on the user’s current location and provides the ability to show this content on a map, get directions and easily share the location with friends.

Gas Buddy widget from WHERE as seen on iPhone 3g
Starbucks store locator widget from WHERE

Expect to see loads of other cool location-aware apps hitting the iStore very soon like locr, slifter, earthcomber, cellspin, geospot, taxibus, boopsie, lightpole, etc... Are you planning on lining up for iPhone 3G?
http://www.apple.com/iphone/

Census Bureau to release Fort Collins, Loveland growth rates Thursday

This is a bit of a local item from yours truly, however, I'll be interested to see what kind of growth is going on here on the Front Range. Like most places, the housing market is flat, homes take about 6-9 months to sell, but there's freaking new construction going on everywhere... quite impressive really, although I have to wonder where all the people are coming from that are eating up all the nice new homes - this place is definitely open for business and its a great place to do "geo" business from! See the Coloradoan for more


Image of Water Valley Community in Windsor, CO about 2.5 miles East of Fort Collins, CO

ArcGIS JavaScript API is now available

This from the ARcGIS Server dev blog... The new ArcGIS JavaScript API and its accompanying online SDK are now available for public use. With the ArcGIS JavaScript API you can add GIS functionality to your Web applications with JavaScript code that runs in the browser. Recall, there's no additional fees for this tool - See also http://resources.esri.com/arcgisserver/
I'm sure we'll see some cool demos of this at the UC where a cool web app will be built and deployed in minutes. In all honesty, I have to say that of all the events I've attended and live demos I've seen, the demos at the ESRI UC seem to go off almost always without a hitch which is rare for live demos as we all know.

Nokia’s WidSets mobile widget platform

A tip from my friends at Nokia... Nokia now offers free downloadable, standalone widgets enabled by Web Runtime Technology (WRT) for the latest S60-based devices. The new widgets are available on widgets.nokia.mobi.

Some of the features:

WRT makes it easy for anyone with Web development and design skills to create mobile applications. Developers can port desktop widgets to WRT with very little effort — using existing authoring tools.

WRT supports standard Web technologies (html, Ajax, JavaScript, etc.), which opens up a whole new range of possibilities for social networking and location based services.

The new Nokia WRT widgets use the same service back-end as Nokia’s WidSets mobile widget community to optimize content for mobile environments, so the operations end of the equation is taken care of.

See widgets.nokia.mobi and test for yourself

Find your data with Finder!

I messed with this one a bit while in Beta, now you can get your own invite and its way cool! From the developers... Finder! (a browser-based application for finding, organizing and sharing GeoData in common formats) has officially graduated from 'private beta' and is now open to everyone for finding, organizing and sharing geodata. To get started, simply sign up to create a free account. See also http://www.geocommons.com/
See also http://finder.geocommons.com/

Use the search UI to enter your search parameters i.e. "Colorado Parks"

Then access metadata, preview your data in Google Maps or Google Earth, or download as KML, SHP, or CSV

Autodesk and Bentley team up on AEC Interoperability

Ok, now I've seen it all (almost) as today, Autodesk and Bentley held a joint PR conference announcing their efforts to team up and bolster their collective efforts for interoperability... wow! From the PR... Through supporting the reciprocal use of their available APIs, Autodesk and Bentley will enable AEC project teams to combine products from both providers within integrated workflows. For instance, a design team could use a mixture of Autodesk and Bentley software, such as Autodesk’s Revit platform and Bentley’s STAAD and RAM structural products, and simulate and analyze their designs or manage project information using Autodesk NavisWorks software or Bentley’s ProjectWise.

The Top Tornado Prone areas in the US

Wow, what happened to Kansas and Oklahoma?? Looks like Denver CO is topping the list this year from RiskMeter online. According to a report just released by the RiskMeter Online, the following top ten tornado prone metro-areas are as follows:

1.) Denver, CO*

2.) Houston, TX

3.) Miami, FL

4.) Hollywood, FL

5.) Tampa, FL

6.) Lincoln, IL

7.) Lakeland, FL

8.) Little Rock, AR

9.) Cape Coral, FL

10.) Oklahoma City, OK

*Not downtown, but a rural area to the northeast. See more info

Google Maps and Walking Directions

I love this one, particularly since when I'm out of town or visiting a new city I tend to walk... lots! It really makes sense since you typuically will walk a different path to a location than you would drive... imagine a walkway over a busy road, perhaps a small alley in China Town that connects busy streets (I'm thinking Fan Tan in Victoria BC as an example!) See more at http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2008/07/google-maps-tests-walking-directions.html - thanks Google!

The Rocky Mountain Geotechnology Cluster

Some details on this new professional networking group in Fort Collins, CO... The Rocky Mountain Geotechnology Cluster, Advancing the Northern Colorado GIS Alley, will work towards private and public coordination to solve world-wide Location Based problems, such as facilities, natural resources, and transportation corridors. Specific strategies of the group include marketing the cluster, attracting other GIS companies to Northern Colorado, and working closely with workforce initiatives so that the skills and training needed for this profession continue to be offered at all levels of education in the region. See more details

Location-based party hopping.. where was this when I needed it?

Oh man, where was this app when I was growing up and going to College! The youth today have all the cool stuff... imaging this - broadcast the location of your party via mobile and get free drinks in return! Yes indeed, that's the premise behind Meet Now Live (MNL). Some details... NL's public beta launch includes a network of more than 2,000 bars, clubs, and lounges in the Metro New York, Jersey Shore, and Hamptons areas. This summer, anybody can register for the service free-of-charge at Meetnowlive.com, and then use it to find bars, nightlife, and friends. After registration, users broadcast their location from their Web-enabled mobile device (with optimized interface for iPhones), allow others to view their location broadcast in real-time, and let the party begin. visit www.meetnowlive.com or see more in this announcement

How to run your car on water for about $100

Is this for real or just whacked... crazy but I don't think I'm willing to try this on the Expedition quite yet... and hey, where'd you find that $3.08 p/gallon gas???

Event - Focus on Locus: Symposium on Location Based Services

An interesting event taking place this Friday in New York...
When: Friday, July 11, 2008
Where: 301 Uris Hall, Columbia Business School, 116th & Broadway, New York, NY
Hosted by: Columbia Institute of Tele-Information (CITI)
See http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/citi/events/lbs08 or check out the blog at http://chrisloh.wordpress.com/2008/07/07/lbs/

So many social apps, so little time!

Are you on social networking overload? Man, there';s just so many of em out there, which one to use... perhaps all! Then there's a matter of what app to use to update your social networking apps... Twhirl, Ping.fm, halo.....
What's your favorite and most used social app? More important, what's the coolest app to use to update to them all?

The California Geospatial Information Systems Task Force

Governor Schwarzenegger recently called for the creation of a task force to develop a statewide strategy to enhance the technology for environmental protection, natural resource management, traffic flow, emergency preparedness and response, land use planning and health and human services. Just this week the Sate has announced the members that will make up this important task force. Led by State Chief Information Officer Teri Takai and Chief Deputy Christy Quinlan, the task force will present the Governor with a strategic plan for statewide coordination within 90 days. See more here