In+ersec+ion for Spatial People

Here's the recent geonews in batch mode. Yes, on a Saturday! I'll be away for the next three weeks and dare delay my family's departure to feed you with these.

From the open source front:

• Mentioned before, the open source map design tool TileMill reached version 0.4.1   
• Some recent improvements of QGIS: an extraction projection tool for QGIS, a new MapInfo to QGIS style converter and Shield Labels for QGIS
• Not the first time it happened, a briton got arrested during his OpenStreetMap mapping activities, yes, that was before the recent London riots
• O'Reilly offers an entry named Open source maps tell data journalism stories in Afghanistan
• Paul Ramsey of the PostGIS fame shares interesting arguments on the open source vs proprietary debacle
• Here's an entry on generating elevation maps from along-track stereo pairs using the open source Orfeo ToolBox
• We told you ourselves a few times, but here's how James Fee telling us Why You Can’t Afford to Miss FOSS4G 2011

From the Esri front:

• The File GeoDatabase API version 1.1 has been released, in includes a .NET wrapper and bug fixes
• James Fee mentions PgMap and QMap to connect to spatial databases with ArcGIS 10.1 without SDE

From the Google front:

• In their learning series, here's an entry on GIS with Google Earth and Google Maps
• Google shares an entry on famine crisis relief in the Horn of Africa
• Here's the 50th anniversary of the building of the Berlin Wall in Google Earth
• Google invites us to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial with Google Maps

On the Microsoft front:

• Microsoft updated their Bing Maps Account Center with three main improvements: Direct Publishing of Data Sources, Map Navigation for Data Editing, and Enhanced POI Data Search
• Here's an entry named KinectFusion Provides Low-Cost and Accessible 3D Interior Mapping

In the miscellaneous category:

• The Spatial Law blog shares a long entry named Geolocation and Privacy: Are We Going the Right Way?: "However, many of bills are so broadly written that if they were to become law they could apply to a broad range of geospatial products and services, including satellite and aerial imagery, GIS and GPS."
• VerySpatial mentions the launch of the augmented reality Layar Vision app to "recognize real-world objects and then trigger digital content based on that object"
• The GEB shares satellite imagery on the Japanese Tsunami that created some massive icebergs
• MacRumors details an Apple patent on schematic maps: "[...] a new maps application that could display a simplified subset of information most relevant to a user seeking specific information or routing."
• In special remote sensing news, Slashdot mentions a camera reaching its target by being thrown by a grenade launcher
• MapQuest tells us how free listing works on their MapQuest Local Business Center

In the maps category:

• O'Reilly discuss maps of the recent London riots
• Mapperz mentions the release of USGS historical maps

Here's the recent geonews in batch mode covering the last two weeks. It's a bit longer than usual.

On the open source front:

• Almost two weeks ago, the OSGeo released their 2 minutes video promoting the FOSS4G 2011 conference, Slashgeo is proud to be a media partner
• The FGT blog offers a long entry on the portable version of gvSIG, an open source GIS - portable meaning running from a USB key with a host computer with no intallation required
• Several sources mentioned that Canada's British Columbia opened their province-wide open data portal, with plenty of geospatial data in it
• While we mentioned the its preview in May, here's more documentation on the upcoming GeoRepository, an advanced authorization manager for GeoServer
• ImageI/O-Ext 1.1.1 has been released
• uDig 1.2.2 has been released too
• There's a PostGIS Drupal module in the works

On the Google front (well, new since yesterday):

• Public transport directions of London is now available in Google Maps
• Google details the new Google Maps version 5.8 for Android, adding photo uploads and My Places
• Mapperz tells us how to load OpenStreetMap data in Google Earth via FME with BBOX.ME

On the Microsoft front:

• Most visible changes for users are updates to the Bing Maps road map style, they even offer a 9-pages guide to detail what 's new
• APB reports that Microsoft will use Gigwalk to enhance Bing Maps search results
• Microsoft announced Bing Maps updates to Account Center, REST Services, and Documentation
• Another entry enumerate what's new in the Bing AJAX Map Control

In the miscellaneous category:

• O'Reilly links to a free shapefile of the TZ timezones of the world
• SS mentions the GeoTime software that "displays movement over time in an intuitive manner"
• Here's an article on the technical, scientific, historic and political background to the GPS system
• On the topic of the future of GPS, V1 shares an entry named the Significance of LightSquared Debate to Europeans and APB shares ESA's reaction to LightSquared potential interference with Galileo
• MacRumors have an entry named Apple Pays $946 in Korean Lawsuit Over Location Data Collection, New Class Action Suit Coming
• In the funny category, APB mentions (video included) ToyToyota's Backseat Driver GPS iOS game for kids that uses the real-time itinerary of the car

Discussed over Slashdot:

• 3D Hurts Your Eyes
• Chief NSA Lawyer Hints That NSA May Be Tracking US Citizens
• Google Grabbed Locations of Phones, PCs
• Undersea Cable Map Shows Where The Data Pipes Are

In the maps category:

• SS shares an entry named eLEAF Maps the World’s Water for Food Security
• Ready for the hurricane season, the UK Met Office launched their Storm Tracker (beta), with free and paid versions, and on the same topic, the GEB offers an entry on tracking hurricanes in Google Earth
• V1 mentions Africover WebMap from the UN, offering geodata for Africa
• O'Reilly have an entry on cellphone connections in the U.S.

Here's the recent geonews in batch mode, covering almost two weeks worth of geonews. I'm voluntarily leaving Esri-related geonews out for an upcoming entry specifically on their user conference.

On the open source front:

• Geomajas 1.9.0 has been released, along with 10 plugins (2 of them new) - here's what is Geomajas
• Here's instructions to load OpenStreetMap data in QGIS
• Here's a comparison of browser windows of QGIS and MapInfo 11
• We mentioned quite a few times the OpenLayers 2.10 Beginner's Guide, and here's another review of it

On the Google front:

• Google mentions Historypin now being available worldwide, in which historical photographs are overlayed on Google's StreetView or directly pinned in Google Maps
• Google shared an entry on using Street View to digitally archive Japan’s disaster zones
• Here's tutorial and documentation on the Google Places API
• Here's an entry on Google Map Maker in Pakistan
• Here's the world's longest bridge over water, now open and in Google Earth
• In the trivia category, Slashdot discussed Tilting Bike Uses Google Maps To Simulate Routes

On the Microsoft front:

• Bing Maps got a new user interface (screenshots included)

In the miscellaneous category:

• The FGT blog offers a long and informative update on LightSquared jeopardizing GPS signals in the U.S.
• The FGT blog also mentions the 'Earth Survey Plugin' showing National Geodetic Survey control points near a specific area and much more
• Two weeks ago VerySpatial shared an interesting entry named Cloud Computing Speeds Up And Simplifies the Adoption of Spatial Technology
• The Map Room recommends an old 2009 article named Global Impositioning Systems: Is GPS technology actually harming our sense of direction?
• APB mentions Locata, a company offering high-accuracy radio-location technology for where GPS isn't available
• MapTogether links to a The Economist article on gerrymandering and election boundaries in the U.S.
• Ogle Earth informs us that India eased its remote sensing data policy to allow resolutions of up to 1 meter
• Slashdot discussed the story named Geocaching Shuts Down British Town, because of a bomb scare
• The venerable ERS-2 launched in 1995 is getting retired

In the maps category:

• Ogle Earth has an entry on the recently-born South Sudan and its maps and geography
• Slashdot discussed a story named Construction of ESA Galaxy Mapping Satellite Completed
• Here's an entry on mapping the world's sea turtles

Having two daughters at home does require a lot of energy! That's why this edition of the 'pertinent geonews in batch mode' covers the last two weeks.

On the open source front:

• A new GeoServer 2.1 workshop is freely available
• From the OSGeo-discuss list, I learned about Open Indicators Consortium's Weave (in beta), an open source visualization environment supporting geography
• The MapFish Framework version 2.2 has been released
• ImageI/O-Ext 1.1.0 has been released
• uDig gets its plugin Image Georeferencing View at version 1.0
• The Orfeo ToolBox 3.10 and Monteverdi 1.8 have been released
• GeoTools 2.7.2 has been released

On the Google front:

• Google their biggest ever update of Street View imagery, available for 13 countries: Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Romania, South Africa, Taiwan, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
• Google added lots of oblique 45 degrees imagery to Google Maps
• If you visited Google Maps, you probably noticed the new interface

On the Microsoft front:

• Microsoft announced that Bing Maps unveiled exclusive high res imagery with Global Ortho Project
• They also offer a new Microsoft Local Impact Map
• Their dev tip is Uploading Excel Data to the Bing Spatial Data Services

In the miscellaneous category:

• Via AGISRS, I learned about the charter edition of LiDAR Magazine is available free online
• Via email, I learned about the new online SDI Magazine, SDI meaning spatial data infrastructure in this context
• Regarding MapQuest, you can save maps and directions to your mobile and you can now add your business to MapQuest
• APB mentions TimeClock for iPhone, an app that logs your time spent at a specific location, such as work 
• MacRumors details the diverses mapping companies for iOS 5 in an entry named Evidence in iOS 5 that Apple is Building Its Own Mapping Solution
• Via a Twitter friend, I tried Rome's '3 Dreams of Black' interactive 3D music "video" in WebGL, reminiscent of Arcade Fire's interactive Google Maps / StreetView video

Slashdot ran a couple of geo-related discussions:

• Supreme Court To Weigh In On Warrantless GPS Tracking
• Tracking Bracelets for Autistic Kids and Senior Citizens
• Franken Bill Would Protect Consumers Location Data
• Weather satellites are losing funding

In the maps category:

• TMR shows a map of the increase of the new Normal Temperatures, years 1971-2000 vs 1981-2010, for the U.S., scary
• The same site mentions ESA's map of of the Arctic Sea Ice
• MapTogether mentions Mapnificent, allowing you to learn how far you can go from a certain point in a certain time using public transit

Here's the geonews in batch mode, covering a bit more than a week (exception made of a few minor geonews I forgot to mention in our last 'batch mode' edition).

On the open source / data front:

• A new MapGuide Instant Setup utility has been introduced
• Here's a detailed entry on scale-dependent generalization in PostGIS and QGIS
• Here's an entry on time and elevation support in GeoServer
• If you're new to OpenStreetMap or want to introduce new people, here's OpenStreetMap editing for beginners videos
• Plenty geoblogs mentioned the Magicshop Frontdoor (Beta) tool, with which you can easily improve address search results for Bing Maps and OpenStreetMap

On the Google front:

• Ogle Earth mentions Google JV applied for online mapping license in China
• Ogle Earth also mentions the constraints on high-resolution satellite imagery of Israel in Google Earth/Maps
• There's New Building Maker cities available in Argentina and Canada
• Google unveiled the new My Places tab on Google Maps, "which helps you quickly view and interact with your saved maps, starred locations, and rated businesses"
• ​They also introduced descriptive terms in Local Search results
• The GEB mentions the Touristo and Skydiver games for Google Earth
• Some readers like to know when there's new imagery available in Google Earth, well, there is 

On the Microsoft front:

• An entry on The Value of Bing Maps Spatial Data Services

In the miscellaneous category:

• Mapperz informs us of the Yahoo! Maps APIs Service Closure, due 13th September 2011     
• James Fee summarizes What Was Up at the Pitney Bowes Business Insights Conference, with news of MapInfo 11, and APB has more on MapInfo Spatial Server
• APB shares a long article named Intergraph and ERDAS: From GeoMedia to IMAGINE-The Big and Little Picture for this Geospatial Marriage, Spatial Sustain also shares an entry on the same topic, named Intergraph ‘Reinforces the House’ Under Hexagon
• A study concludes that Schematic Transit Maps Affect Passengers' Travel Choices
• Slashdot discussed a story named New Projects Use Phone Data To Track Big Cities' Mass Transit Use
• Slashdot also offers a story named NASA's Aquarius Launched To Help Map the Oceans' Salt
• Still from the same site, we learn the Nissan LEAF Leaks Speed & Location To RSS Feed
• And last story from that site, if you're interested in tools to map wifi networks, this discussion named What's Killing Your Wi-Fi? will interest you

In the maps category:

• The Strange Maps blog offers maps of the U.S. States, with what they do best and worse, worth a quick look of you're American
• Slashdot mentions a map of the Universe called the 2MASS Redshift Survey
• Not a geographic map, but O'Reilly has an article on generating a map of your LinkedIn contacts with InMaps, I found the result pretty interesting

Earlier this week Microsoft announced changes to the way Bing Maps Streetside is displayed by desktop browsers.

The introduction of the announcement: "If you take a look at a Bing map in Streetside view today you will notice that we’ve made a lot of changes. These changes represent a significant enhancement for desktop browsers, enabling you to quickly pan up and down the street to see the neighborhood and find businesses. We are doing this by providing street level panoramas so you can take a virtual walk through the streets with a view of locations and landmarks. As you slide the street level imagery sideways, the view of the sidewalk is seamlessly constructed including an overlay of business listings, street names and store fronts. Check it out in a flat, straight, New York street, or a steep, twisty, San Francisco one."

A screenshot of what it looks like:

ThinkGeo has updated all of the products in their Map Suite line this month to version 5.0 and has included a variety of new features, many of which are aimed at making their GIS software suite compatible with a wider range of data types, including TAB and projection metadata (PRJ). There's also built-in support for Bing Maps in every product, and the Map Suite Web Edition product gets upgraded to OpenLayers 2.10 and Google Maps API version 3. The full release details have been posted on ThinkGeo's developer blog.

The company has also invited the community to submit and vote on suggestions for enhancements to future releases of Map Suite, for which they have set up a site called the ThinkGeo Enhancement Tracker. You don't have to log in or anything, so it's easy to head over there and vote on stuff you think Map Suite needs.

Here's the Friday geonews in batch mode, exceptionally covering the last two weeks. We're now up to date regarding geospatial news!

From the open source front:

• You can influence what the OSGeo priorities should be with this quick survey, here's funding ideas partial results
• Here's an entry on Sextant, a geoportal solution from IFREMER
• In a maintenance release, GeoTools 2.7.1 is now available

From the Google front:

• Google Transit is now available in Washington DC
• Google shared an entry named Make beautiful interactive maps even faster with new additions to the Fusion Tables API
• Google Places now supports in-business 360-degree perspectives, in another entry, the new Google Places API is described
• The GEB compares Nokia's new Ovi Maps 3D vs Google Earth
• The GEB discusses using Google Earth to confront government lies about damaged rainforest in Sarawak

From the ESRI front:

• Andrew Zolnai has en entry on ESRI's Change Matters website to compare satellite imagery, and that's possible thanks to Landsat imagery dating back to 1972 now available through ArcGIS Online

From the  Microsoft front:

• While we mentioned it before, Kurt too is, as I am, enthusiastic about Microsoft's free Photosynth iPhone / iPad 2 app
• There's a New Bing Maps iOS SDK
• Microsoft invites you to See AJAX 7.0 in action with the new interactive SDK

In the miscellaneous category:

• The MapQuest for Android Navigation App got updated and improves GPS capabilities
• Slashdot discusses using credit card transaction locations to determine CO2 footprints
• Spatial Law mentions a California Bill that would regulate 'Precise Geolocation Information'
• Vector One argues on Why Now is a Good Time to Invest in Geospatial Technology Stocks, and here's entries specifically on Trimble and DigitalGlobe stocks
• SS informs us Moscow Upholds Limits on the Resolution of Satellite Imagery

In the maps category:

• TMR links to an excellent series of 12 static maps of the 2011 Canadian federal election results 
• Mapperz mentioned WeatherSpark Beta, a Google Maps mashup to visualize historical weather patterns
• The FGT blog mentions Free Marine Chart Views, Plus An Online Waypoint/Route Editor With GPS Export
• Here's a New York Times's Natural Disaster Map for the U.S.

Here's the Friday geonews in batch mode.

From the Google front:

• Google Latitude for Android and iPhone got improved for U.S. users, with checkins, status gaining and unlocking offers
• Google Maps for Android also got new features
• Here's a single kml for everything related to the Fukushima power plant in Japan
• The GEB believes there might be no more StreetView imagery capture in Germany and in Switzerland, court has ruled that all faces and license plates must be blurred
• A tip not tied to Google Maps itself, but here's how to search Google Maps directly from the address bar of Firefox
• And there was new Google Earth imagery made available on April 5th

From the Microsoft front:

• Here's an entry on using Bing Maps with SQL Server spatial

In the miscellaneous category:

• SS informs us that Bentley Systems simplified their product suite, Bentley Map V8i, and focuses more on 3D GIS
• The FGT blog offers his review of the Garmin 62s GPS
• VerySpatial mentioned Roadify, a real-time app that sends alerts about subway, bus, and driving conditions in New York City
• V1 mentions the book 'Arc Hydro – Groundwater GIS for Hydrogeology' by Gil Strassberg, Norman L. Jones and David R. Maidment

In the maps category:

• TMR shares a link to BBC News' nice interactive pseudo-virtual globe of the world’s time zones
• O'Reilly mentions the new Big Map Blog, focusing on... big maps!
• Here's an interactive map named 'What conditions cause poor air quality near you?' from SharedAir.org, providing back trajectories and pollutant concentrations in the U.S.
• TMR shares a map of France's High-Speed Rail Network
• SS wonders if the lack of the U.S. federal government mapping be a good thing?

Here's the recent geonews that we haven't already mentioned in batch mode.

In addition to last Friday's FOSS4G geonews:

• There's a new open source Microsoft Bing Maps Android SDK available
• MapFish 2.1 has been released, and it's now BSD-licensed instead of GPL
• Here's news of what's coming for OpenLayers 2.11
• Shapely 1.2.9 has been released

In the miscellaneous category:

• The FGT blog is excited about Voyager, a tool to catalog and search your local geospatial datasets (free and paid version available)
• Several sources have mentioned that the U.S. data.gov and other open sites are closing
• Kurt offers an entry on the U.S. marine cadastre
• There's a first GLONASS smartphone available in Russia
• I smiled when I read the newly introduced "NoGIS" term, remisnescent of WebGIS and neogeography, James Fee shares what he thinks of it
• Slashdot discusses ESA's GOCE satellite detailed information about the Earth's gravitational shape
• If you're that curious, the last Google imagery update included the set from the upcoming 'The Hobbit' movie shot in New Zealand
• The Geonames blog shares an update on the geolocation of Wikipedia articles and Wikipedia Web Services

In the maps category:

• TMR links to NYT day-by-day situation map of the Libyan uprising
• JF mentions a nice Census map analysis of New York City using Google Fusion Tables
• Here's a map of Canada's ridings for the national election early next month
• TMR also shares a map of the decline of ozone in the Arctic
• The prolefic TMR also mentioned the book "Railway Maps of the World"
• Ok, maybe not newsworthy, but here's 25 Mind-Blowing Aerial Photographs Around the World