Microsoft Wants You to Know

Moments ago Microsoft announced the release of the new BingTM Maps AJAX Control 7.0. Built from the ground up to be agile and fast, the control is less than one-third the size of Bing’s previous AJAX Control 6.3 and renders multiple points nearly three times faster. Other highlights of the flagship control for Bing Maps include:
- Optimized for mobile web: With a small control download size, support for HTML4/5 and touch support for mobile devices, the Bing Maps AJAX Control 7.0 is the ideal choice for developers to reach customers browsing the mobile web.
- New ways to visualize locations: The new control also features Bing’s new enhanced Bird’s eye. With rich imagery—45-degree perspective, viewable from all four compass directions—enhanced Bird’s eye includes seamless, smooth zooming, life-like building models in urban centers and 3-D-like terrain features.

- Microsoft PR Firm GreenRubio points you to the Bing Map Blog

Today, Microsoft is making it easier for people to navigate through life with updates to Bing Maps. Whether you drive, walk or take the bus, Bing Maps makes it easy for you to get to your destination. As part of today’s release, Bing Maps made the following changes:

-Updated Layout: The updated layout in Bing.com/Maps makes it easier to find driving, walking or transit directions, view live traffic and traffic cameras, and explore the Map apps.

- Easier Access to Map Apps and Streetside: Starting today, Bing’s made it easier to search for your favorite Map app, like the Taxi Fare Calculator app or Parking Finder app, and get Streetside imagery. To view the map apps, visit Bing.com/maps and click on “map apps” in the lower left corner.

- Microsoft PR Firm Waggener Edstrom points you to the Bing Maps Blog

Update 2: Fusion Tables now offer spatial queries!

And one more update worth mentioning via @bflood who credits @glivni

“shapefile to fusiontables upload website” It does what is says: “This website lets you upload a shapefile to Google Fusion Tables.” You do need to give it permission to access your Google Account.

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LBS Tidbits

Target has 242 stores offering rewards for Shopkicks check-ins.

- Mashable

Foursquare introduced more tools to manage its and partner badges. I guess that’s important?

- TechCrunch

Disney has decided to partner with location service Gowalla.

- Mashable

Data.gov Gets Open Data Community Page, Concept Document

Data.gov now boasts an Open Data Community page with 10 categories related to the topic where those who register can comment and discuss. Among them: balancing security and openness; developing policies for global data sharing; and using geospatial data, semantic technologies and best practices. The first of these apparently was used for the Deep Water Horizon spill.

There’s a blog there, too by Sanjeev “Sonny” Bhagowalia and who works in the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies in the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA).

Also available a “concept of operations” document (77 pages, 5 Mbpdf) that outlines ideas submited from IdeaScale and the plan for data.gov. Among the ideas in there: a tool to mashup geodata in one place and confirmation of GOS and Data.gov integration. “Plans are underway to merge geodata.gov into Data.gov to eliminate the duplication of their functions and solidify Data.gov’s status as the single, central source for finding and obtaining government data, including geospatial data.” There is no date on this document.

I guess all of this stuff appeared around the International Open Government Data Conference held November 15-17, in DC.

- FCW

Quote of the Week

“I’d like to see you invest in this [GIS]. Seventy percent of communities now have GIS in Illinois. If we don’t get it we are going to be behind.”

- Ted Horner, speaking to the Watseka City Council’s Finance Committee. Horner is Watseka’s representative to the group that worked on the Iroquois Countywide Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan and was quoted in the Watseka Times Republic.