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ClickZ reports that the application, submitted in September 2004, was recently made public. The patent describes a method that uses hotspot location and other factors (nature of the population of the users of the hotspot, for example) to serve appropriate ads to users of the connection.
MapQuest quietly extended the deadline for its competition until May 1 “by popular demand” and allowed Canadians to participate (except those in Quebec) according to a post on the company’s blog. Full, updateds rules (pdf) are now online.
The contest built around the API announced March 7 was supposed to end March 31. I’m not a programmer, but if I had real job, too I know I’d want a few more weekends to learn and play with the interface. I suspect limited numbers of entries encouraged the deadline extension. Whenever an announcement says “by popular demand,” suspect something else is really at work.
Funding of mash-up efforts are few and far between the article (free registration may be required) notes, pointing to Platial as the exception. One concern of investors is that its rather easy for someone else to come along and do the same thing. “The current things people are doing with Google Maps are cute but they don’t add value,” said Peter Rip, managing director of Leapfrog Ventures in Menlo Park, Calif.
An interesting tidbit comes from Palatial founder Di-Ann Eisnor:
For example, she pointed to the site’s goal of aggregating many layers of content onto the site, so that a single map can offer information on crime as well as, say, architecture.
Ohmygoodness, it’s starting to sound like GIS!
While I studied geography, I got into GIS via CAD. And, I got into writing via CAD too. So, I follow a few of the top CAD blogs, which you see me mention here now and again (World CAD Access and AECNews.com in particular).
There’s another to add to the list: Roopinder Tara of Tenlinks just launched CAD Insider. Tara edited Cadence back in the day and guided me through my first few published articles. Later, he founded TenLinks, and I joined him there, in the early days of the Web. We launched GIS Monitor in 2000. Even then, I bugged him to write more. There’s already some good stuff in the blog; check it out.
As reported here March 2, a status message from FGDC notes that “The primary NSDI Clearinghouse Search Gateway operated at the USGS EROS Data Center is down. Alternate search Gateways are available at: http://fgdc.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/gateways.html
The plan was to have the main up by the week of March 13. The main site still reports: “The item you requested does not exist on this server or cannot be served.”
