Thursday, February 12. 2009

IPCC Climate Change Map Critique: The Rest of the Story

Jonathan over at the Map Room cites an interview with authors Jean E. McKendry and Gary E. Machlis, two University of Idaho professors about their recent article about cartography. The article which appears in Climate Change (abstract) highlights a map critique technique and argues that climate change maps should be critiqued. The map explored in the article uses as an example a map that appeared in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 2007 report. In particular the pair question the chosen projection and thematic color scheme. Jonathan notes: "It’s okay to disagree with how a map was done, or to argue that you would have done it differently, but that’s not the same as saying that the IPCC got it wrong."

True. And Jean E. McKendry and Gary E. Machlis don't say that, so far as I read in the abstract. But then I'd have to pay to read the full article.

I want to point out that part of my intro cart class was such a critique. In fact, we had to, if I recall correctly, redraft the map to make it better. There was one rule: you could not select a map of the school's faculty members. I think McKendry (who has a geography PhD from Clark) and Machlis are on track. And, by using such a high profile map/report they certainly are getting the story into the limelight.

I suspect the article in Climate Change may help drum up some "controversy" and McKendy and Machlis' consulting business: The Ilahie Group. The company philosophy: "The Ilahie Group's philosophy is to help scientific, professional and governmental organizations plan, communicate, operate, and serve their own clients more effectively and efficiently." One of the company competencies? "Client-based cartography."

Presence is not present in Business - Yet

Presence technologies - those that manage when and what sort of messages come to a user based on a variety of factors including time and location - while fueling buzz three years ago, are not yet making a place for themselves in business.

Colin Gibbs explains, "it has yet to catch fire when it comes to business messaging. While a few startups have fallen by the wayside — Tello folded only a year after coming out of stealth — others have been acquired by a few big players that can afford to take a longer view of the market. Cisco Systems Inc., for instance, snapped up Orative in 2006 in a $31 million deal, and the company last year acquired Denver’s Jabber for an undisclosed sum."

For now, experts suggest, presence will take a back seat to other technology priorities during the economic downturn.

- RCR Wireless News

Windows Mobile nuvifone M20 Debuts Next Week at World Mobile Congress

Larry Dignan from ZDnet dug through the M20 specs and highlighted why maybe its not such a big deal. He points to Windows Mobile making it look like so many other devices. He's blase about the key LBS feature called Ciao, an app that allows you to track your friends via many location-enabled social apps. It sounds like an aggregation, on the order of say FriendFeed to me. That's useful, but should be a generic app and I suspect there's something like it on the market already.

There's also something called Connected Services which adds "location intelligence to navigation, phone and browser functions" including "real-time traffic information, White Pages, weather, flight status, local events, and movie times."

The M20 is the hip version of the phone:"the sleek and colorful nüvifone M20 is designed for on-the-go professionals who want a fashionable and functional smartphone to manage their busy work and personal lives. "

The earlier announced M60 is for "the active on-the-go user who wants an easy-to-use device and appreciates the peace of mind that comes from a device that answers common questions like “Where am I?”, “Where am I going?” and “How do I get home?”" The M60 runs Linux has has a fully embedded Garmin GPS onboard including data, POIs etc.

There's no info yet on pricing, availability or carrier support.

- press release m20

press release M60

TomTom Map Share Feedback Even Surprises Tele Atlas

This week, Tele Atlas (TA) announced the first release of their global street network that is augmented with data from TomTom Map Share, a service offered to users of TomTom portable navigation devices (PND) that allows them to independently report a variety of road network changes including impedences, new signage, etc. The feedback is sent to TA, a TomTom company, but as a consequence of collecting so much additional data, TA recognized that it was also capturing new road geometry not previously mapped.

Users of TomTom PNDs have the option of providing feedback in a few different ways. One is to manually indicate road blockages, for example, but another is to share certain bits of data such as speed and position. As it turns out,TomTom users were leaving their PNDs on even in areas where there was sparse or no road coverage such as certain regions of Eastern Europe. This feedback made it's way to TA database managers that are recognizing that new road segments were being added to the community contributed data. This new information allows the company to selectively dispatch crews to verify new road geometry and perhaps identify pockets of new users for additional marketing and advertising.

I spoke to Mr. Arnout Desmet while attending the Map World Forum conference in Hyderbad. Directions just recently interviewed Mr. Desmet when it was announced that TA had signed a agreement with the Survey of India (SOI) to incorporate SOI data into the TA road database. He also informed me about TA's historical speed profiles which are now being incorporated into traffic information. TA began collecting speed information in 2006 and now has a database of historical profiles in 5 minute increments for various times of day and now over months of time. Essentially, TomTom users are acting as probes on the street network collecting a vast amount of data that now equals twice the entire road network of Europe every 24 hours according to Mr. Desmet. He believes this is a unique service that TomTom provides to users.

Field Service Management ROI Numbers

People are always asking us for the size of certain markets. Today at the Map World Forum, Prakash Iyer of Trimble offered these numbers for the Field Services Management (FSM) market based on an Aberdeen Research report, which he said was conducted in 2007. [Directions Magazine published results of a 2006 FSM report from Aberdeen)

FSM is predicted b to be $1.7 B by 2012

Market Drivers – better service; constant cost pressure; increased productivity; vehicle and driver safety; Sarbannes-Oxley compliance

Typical ROI

12% increase in service profitability
13% increase in vehicle utilization
15% reduction in average travel time per job
10% decrease in overtime pay
28% increase in driver compliance

From Earth Orbit to Drill Bit: A View for Integrated, Location-Aware Mining Operations

At the Map World Forum in Hyderabad, Martin Nix of Leica Geosystems presented a vision for a true top (think GPS satellite) to bottom (think drill hole) vision of location-aware mining operations. Certainly, GPS solutions for vehicle location tracking have been widely used in mines before but Leica’s vision is to develop an entirely integrated approach that involves highly precise positioning from drill hole navigation and operation to vehicle telematics. A key driver of implementing these new systems is safety as well as improving machine operator efficiency and fleet management. Nix commented that providing visual information to both dispatchers and vehicle operators increases awareness of all aspects of mine operations and empowers all workers with much needed information. Both in the operations center and in the vehicle cockpit, maps and the location other vehicles in the mine can be displayed along with machine diagnostics. Nix explained that centimeter-accurate positioning for mining will avoid digging and drilling too far or not far enough in addition to reducing material loss. So precise and sensitive are these new tools that it will help determine rock type in order to guide drill bit usage and power. How close is Leica to delivering this vision? Nix explains that remote diagnostics is already in place. However, work needs to be done is the use of imagery to be used in real time. More collaboration with suppliers and more work on technology are needed, but incrementally there are many parts available now.