GPS Tidbits

The are cracking down on sand in Dakshina Kannada district in India. Only those trucks with GPS will have permission to gather and transport sand. The goal seems to be to be sure fees are paid for taking of sand in legal areas and to confirm sand is dumped in the correct target location. The restrictions may go state wide.

- Time of India

About 1,200 elementary school children in Anyang City, south of Seoul, will be part of trial of a safety “beeper,” complete with GPS beginning in October. The matchbox-sized beeper will activate any nearby cameras and alert parents and police via mobile phone when pushed. The goal is to limit violence against children. If the trial is a success it may go nationwide.

- ABC News (Australian Broadcasting System)

Rik Farilie writing in the New York Times Gadgetwise blog bemoans that none of the latest digital cameras include GPS. He asks why, but doesn’t provide an answer. In the mean time, he points readers to the cameras that do have GPS and the Eye-Fi series of tools to add on GPS. He’s right; the addition of GPS to cameras is far slower than I’d have expected.

- Gadgetwise

Update: GIS Stack Overflow (Q & A) Site in Private Beta, Public Beta in Six Days

Ok, the beta is open to all here! Enjoy!

—- original post 7/23/10—-

Stack Overflow, a site for building Q & A sites, has approved one for GIS. It enters public beta in six days.

Description: “Beta Q&A site for programmers, DBAs, Cartographers, Geographers and anyone interested in GIS professionally” To get to this point enough people had to commit to participate. Those folks can participate in the closed beta running now. Other efforts based on community participation (a Reddit-like thing for example) died due to lack of interest. If you want this one to survive, participate!

- Random Nodes Blog

Update: Esri and ACSM Link Events

The site is now live. Esri’s press release came out today.

—- original post 7/16/10——

The American Congress on Surveying (ACSM) and ESRI have agreed to launch a new event: the Annual Survey Summit.The joint conference will be held in San Diego starting in 2011and will mark the first event in a three year agreement. The event will include technical sessions, presentations, and a manufacturer expo. “The goal is to bring together GIS users with individuals from the surveying and engineering community to foster education and collaboration and to cultivate new business opportunities for everyone.” The website will be The Survey Summit, but is not live yet.

- Professional Surveyor
- press release
- previous APB coverage

Augmented Reality Examples - Android and iPhone apps + Others

7 Amazing Augmented Reality Apps for Android (Apps Sensei) - These are some location-based apps that include navigation, a 3d compass, tourism apps, etc. but good examples of what’s available today.

How Businesses are using Augmented Reality (Penn Olsen) - These apps are focused on product marketing and retailing and includes the classic AR example of trying on clothes to match style and color to one’s own liking.

26 Best Augmented Reality iPhone Applications (iPhoneness) - Again, mostly location-based apps but for the iPhone; tourism, gaming; some by Layar.

Augment Reality for the Enterprise - SAP Employee Unveils Prototype - A mashup of CRM data with location-based information…ok, now we’re getting to where AR meets the enterprise. We need more examples like this.

earthmine SDK for Flash - Examples from earthmine’s SDK to help users "tag" street furniture, etc., 3D measurements, and other applications.

Update: #ESRIUC Traditional Media Coverage

19.20.21: New York vs. Abu Dhabi
- LA Times

—- original post 7/19/10——

ESRI Releases Apple Map App, Reveals “19.20.21 Project” as Annual Conference Begins
- Xconomy

Mapmaker Follows his Own Path
- Financial Times (free registration required)

Kansas Adjutant General’s Office Gets GIS Award
- WIBW

Bigfork cavers give talk before huge crowd
- Daily Interlake

ESRI Reshapes its Proprietary Mapping System Into an Open Crowdsourcing Platform, Raising a Challenge for Google
- Xconomy

Since 1969, when Dangermond founded the business initially known as Environmental Systems Research Institute, the technology has evolved from proprietary systems that customers purchased and loaded onto their own computers into technology that’s also now available in free and open-source forms, like so much else on the Internet

[I’m not sure what open source story the author heard at ESRI UC.]

Urban insight starts with useable data (interview with Richard Saul Wurman)
- SignOn San Diego