In+ersec+ion for Spatial People

Here's the recent Google-related geonews.

From official sources:

• A new mapping tool offered by Google, Create, collaborate and share advanced custom maps with Google Maps Engine Lite (Beta): "Of course, experts aren’t the only ones who love to make maps. Today we're launching Google Maps Engine Lite (Beta), so any mapping enthusiast can now create and share robust custom maps using this powerful, easy-to-use tool. You can import small spreadsheets of locations onto a comprehensive map, visualize those places through a variety of styling and drawing options, and organize and compare up to three different data sets for your non-business purposes." For those who don't remember, 'Google Maps Engine' is the new name of what was known as 'Google Earth Builder'.

• Google also started looking for Explorers to test drive Google Glass, which we will definitely hear often about in the coming months - Slashdot discusses Google Glass in three discussions: Lawmakers Seek To Ban Google Glass On the Road, Should We Be Afraid of Google Glass? and Google Glass and Surveillance Culture
• There's Live transit information in more cities on Google Maps: "live departure times for seven lines on the New York City subway system (MTA), as well as for buses and trams in the greater Salt Lake City area (UTA). With these updates – part of the millions of live transit schedule updates we process every day – you get instant access to the latest information right on Google Maps, making trip planning a cinch."
• Google released Imagery on Google Maps of Fukushima Exclusion Zone Town Namie-machi also discussed over Slashdot in a story named Google Releases Street View Images From Fukushima Ghost Town
• If there's a Pirate in you, or you have kids, you might be interested in Finding treasures with Google Maps, related, here's about Teaching about the ocean floor with Google Earth
• Google invites us to Explore Everest, Kilimanjaro and more with Google Maps
• If you're a non-profit organization, you might be interested in making a map that will change the world with Google Earth Outreach Developer Grants
• Other minor official entries include: Google Maps shows Amazon funds at work, Trekker takes on Canada’s Arctic Winter and A behind-the-scenes look at our latest Google Maps special collection

From other sources:

• The GEB has a short entry on Managing KML and KMZ files on mobile devices
• What used to require a GIS, here's about Using Google Earth terrain data to plan wireless networks
• APB share links about Google Indoor Mapping: Does it Work? WIll it Save Brick and Mortar Retail from Web Competitors?
• APB also shares an entry on Queensland Putting its Data On Google Earth
• Guess what, there was new imagery to Google Earth a bit less than 2 weeks ago, other minor stories from the GEB includes Researchers rediscover lost butterfly species with the help of Google Earth, Race Formula One tracks with Google Earth and An in-depth look at the history of Street View

MacRumors report that Nokia will Launch a Free Maps App with Offline Mode and Transit Directions for iOS.

From MacRumors: "Nokia today announced an expansion of its mapping services, launching a new "HERE" brand for the products and announcing that it will be introducing a new iOS mapping app in the coming weeks. [...] Based on HTML5, it will include offline capabilities, voice-guided walk navigation, and public transport directions. The application is scheduled to be available for free download from Apple's App Store in the coming weeks."

Still catching up my August holidays, here's the recent geospatial open source and open data geonews.

In general news:

• O'Reilly publishes an article named With new maps and apps, the case for open transit gets stronger: "There’s no reason why important civic infrastructure should get bound up in a fight between Apple and Google. And in communities with public GTFS, it won’t."
• Esri published an update on their relation with open source: "Esri has always hosted open code and samples in a variety of ways, but more can be done. Focus and motivation needs to be improved, and Esri is now making it a priority to improve its open source participation. More of Esri’s code should and will be open sourced in the coming days, weeks, months, and years." They are also on Github now, http://github.com/esri and http://github.com/arcgis
• sxdf
• India launched the beta of their open data portal
• MapQuest have a New Geocoding Service and Updated APIs Based on Open Data
• OpenGeo shares an article named Haitidata.org: using open source geospatial for disaster response planning
• FOSS4G software getting adopted, gvSIG 1.11 now official part of the standard software portfolio in the City of Munich and Luxembourg using open source GIS for cadastre
• DM shares a 2-parts article named Designing an Open Source Geospatial Solution to Manage Airport Noise and Operations
• For the curious ones, here's the new OSGeo Board and Charter members refreshed

In software news:

• The OSGeo-Live 6.0 GIS software collection has been released
• A serious OpenLayers competitor, Leaflet 0.4 has been released, actually, they're at version 0.4.3 now
• Believe it or not, MySQL inches closer to PostGIS with support of true spatial relationship functions
• Here's a short entry on Surface Interpolation in GeoServer and there's a new release, v 1.4.3, of GeoServer-Manager
• Nathan is enthusiastic about Five new awesomely awesome QGIS features, here's more on the Latest Style User Interface Improvements
• There's a new winGRASS 7 with R-integration
• Where's MapGuide Open Source? Here's MapGuide state of the union address (or: Results of the user/developer survey)

Here's the recent geonews in batch mode.

On the 2012 London Olympics:

• Here's on the development of the London 2012 SuperMap
• Microsoft shares Olympics bird's eye imagery and maps
• Esri shares 2012 Olympics thematic maps on ArcGIS Online
• In another entry, Using Esri Data to Find the Next Olympians – Part 1
• DM shares links to other London 2012 Olympics maps
• APB mentions telecommunication issues in an entry named Use of Twitter, Social Media Blamed for GPS Data Delay used in Olympic Bike Race Reporting

On the open source front:

• If you're into vertical datums, VDatum 2.3.5 has been released (via Kurt)
• OpenGeo tells us how Thematic map creation with SLD is now much easier with the new Recode, Categorize, and Interpolate functions support in GeoServer
• New to QGIS, HTML map tips in QGIS

On the Esri front:

• Here's GeoMobile for ArcGIS Online - A Free Mobile GIS App for Tablets
• The Esri Map Book, Volume 27 now available
• The Esri Ocean basemap color style available for download

On the Google front:

• Google Map Maker is now available in Australia (and so is OpenStreetMap ;-)
• Planned NYC subway changes are now in Google Maps
• We now get the Kennedy Space Center in Street View for its 50th birthday
• The iconic residence of the UK Prime Minister, Take a virtual walk in Downing Street
• Via O'Reilly, strange images where 3d maps and aerial imagery don’t match up
• Using Google Earth, GE Teach to receive a Geographic Excellence in Media Award
• And there was an imagery update for 25 cities and 72 countries

On the Microsoft front:

• Microsoft announced MapPoint 2013 Released
• There's Expanded UK Transit Directions

A few geostories discussed over Slashdot:

• US Census Bureau Offers Public API For Data Apps
• ACLU Questions Privacy of License Plate Scanners
• The Future of Project Glass (see our current related poll in the right-hand side column)
• Defcon Researchers Build Tool To Track the Planes of the Rich and Famous
• Detecting moving objects, Researchers Turn Home Wi-Fi Router Into Spy Device

In the everything else category:

• The GEB mentions Project Geo, a new Google Plus Hangout web series dedicated to increasing awareness of Geospatial Technology, industry best practices, and GIS resources
• The eoPortal wants us to know that their Events, Images and Job Opportunities sections are now updated and online

In the maps category:

• Here's a really nice visualization of global arms trade
• Here's a map of Melting and Mining in Greenland
• Maps on the Global Geography of Coffee, Tea, and Yerba Mate

Open Source Geospatial Software Provides Web Mapping Front End for Innovative Parking Project

New York, NY & San Francisco, CA, November 29, 2011 — Today OpenGeo, the leader in open source geospatial technology, completed Phase II development for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA) SFpark project asset management system. SFpark uses geospatial and sensory technology to collect and distributes real-time parking availability information to drivers. It also uses this data to regularly update meter and garage pricing to ensure parking availability, providing for safer and clearer streets.

The OpenGeo Suite of open source technology supports SFpark by delivering assets to its robust web mapping application. The application integrates flexible asset management with business intelligence reports to deliver information-rich maps. These easy-to-use maps form the primary user interface, enabling the SFMTA to more easily select, group, and analyze parking management functions.

"OpenGeo’s geospatial and web mapping expertise was critical in helping SFMTA complete this project," said SFMTA Technology Innovations Lead Donovan Corliss. "We are very happy with the asset management tool’s ability to support our parking meter maintenance and pricing. OpenGeo has also created a new, more user-friendly map for SFpark.org, the public face of the project."

Ken Bossung, Senior Vice President of OpenGeo, added: "We are excited to be working with SFMTA on a nationally-recognized and innovative project. The success of SFpark is further proof of the strong feature functionality of open source software and the OpenGeo Suite. We’re continually contributing back to the open source projects we support and clients like the SFMTA make that possible."

About OpenGeo

OpenGeo is a social enterprise working to build the best web-based geospatial technology. The company brings the best practices of open source software to geospatial organizations around the world by providing enterprises with supported, tested, and integrated open source solutions to build the Geospatial Web. OpenGeo also supports open source communities by employing key developers of PostGIS, GeoServer, and OpenLayers. Since 2002, the company has provided successful consulting services and products to clients like the World Bank, Google, Ordnance Survey Great Britain, Portland TriMet, MassGIS, Landgate, and the Federal Communications Commission. OpenGeo is the geospatial division of OpenPlans, a New York-based 501(c)(3) non-profit that informs and engages communities through journalism and open source software. All of OpenGeo's revenue has been and will continue to be re-invested into innovative and useful software in support of the OpenPlans mission.

Media Contact

David Dubovsky
OpenGeo, a Division of OpenPlans
+1 917-388-9077
[email protected]

About SFMTA

Established by voter proposition in 1999, the SFMTA, a department of the City and County of San Francisco, oversees the Municipal Railway (Muni), parking and traffic and taxis. Over 35,000 additional vehicles enter San Francisco every business day, and all rely on the SFMTA to keep the flow of cars, transit vehicles, taxis, delivery trucks, pedestrians and bicycles moving smoothly through the streets.

About SFpark

The SFpark pilot covers 7,000 of San Francisco’s 28,800 metered spaces and 12,250 spaces in 15 of 20 SFMTA-managed parking garages. These garages and spaces are located in the following neighborhoods: Civic Center, Hayes Valley, the Financial District, SoMa, the Mission, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Fillmore and the Marina. The SFpark pilot is 80 percent funded by the United States Department of Transportation’s Urban Partnership Program and will run until summer 2012.

Here's the recent Google-related geonews.

From the official sources:

• Google announced that they begun rolling out live transit updates to Google Maps, allowing you to know if you bus is early or late. For the moment: "We partnered with transit agencies to integrate live transit data in four U.S. cities and two European cities: Boston, Portland, Ore., San Diego, San Francisco, Madrid and Turin."
• There's a new improved seafloor in Google Earth, using the Global Multi-Resolution Topography (GMRT) synthesis data
• There's also new 3D trees in Google Earth, including in "New York, Philadelphia, Boston, London and multiple cities in the California Bay Area"

From other sources:

• Ogle Earth shares a long entry on Google Maps in the context of China now banning foreign companies from offering online mapping, except for joint ventures
• The GEB shares aerial imagery of the Wallow Fire in Arizona

With the Easter break at the door, here's the recent geonews in batch mode.

From the Google front:

• The GEB offers an entry providing more information on Google Earth Builder announced yesterday but to be available in Q3 and APB sums up how the media views Google Earth Builder
• Google updated the photo clusters interface in Google Earth
• You can see the real-time edits done by contributors to Google Map Maker
• And there's new imagery available in Google Maps/Earth

From the open source/data front:

• APB informed of WorldMap (alpha), an open source experimental platform designed for viewing and interpreting maps collaboratively
• A U.S. national biomass dataset is now available
• The FOSS4G 2011 conference preparation is doing well, with almost 300 abstracts submitted. I can also confirm now that Slashgeo.org is a media partner of the FOSS4G 2011 conference

From the Microsoft front:

• Microsoft launched the free Photosynth iOS app to capture and share panoramas
• Seattle's SoundTransit now offer transit directions in Bing  Maps

In the miscellaneous category:

• The GEB offers two excellent summaries: Where 2.0 2011 -- Day One and Where 2.0 2011 -- Day Two
• Also from Where 2.0, SS shares a summary of Jack Dangermond's talk on the cloud enabling intelligent web maps
• MapQuest added a few new features detailed in this entry named Cycle Route Planner, Aerial and Languages
• VerySpatial mentions the 'Where on Earth' landmark-association game
• Slashdot discussed a story named Scientist Creates 3D Scanner App For iPhone
• and another one named Michigan Police Could Search Cell Phones During Traffic Stops

Urban Mapping’s Industry-Leading Hosted Mapping Platform Incorporates Mass Transit Data; Expands On-Demand Geospatial Data Offerings

Urban Mapping, Inc (UMI), a leading provider of geospatial web services and on-demand data for interactive mapping applications, today announced availability of public transportation data through Mapfluence, its powerful, cloud-based mapping platform. Previously available as a stand-alone database, Urban Mapping has integrated core elements of mass transit data into its hosted mapping platform with on-demand data.

Critical for site selection, marketing, logistics and other activities, Urban Mapping's public transport data features highly detailed information about more than 150 public transportation systems in North America. UMI employs a globally-distributed field research network to collect information about bus, rail and ferry systems, including ridership data, station attributes, entrance locations, schedules, unplanned events and over 100 other data elements.

“We stand apart from the pack with unparalleled emphasis on data normalization, detail and ease of use. Through our extensive field research operation, we have detailed over 10,000 subway and train station entrances and exits, collecting information about handicap accessibility, ridership levels, and station amenities,” said Ian White, CEO Urban Mapping.

The Mapfluence on-demand data catalog is the industry’s most comprehensive, containing over 10,000 high-value data variables spanning dozens of categories, including demographics, consumer spending, education, crime, business analytics, natural hazards and many more. Leading customers such as CoStar Group and MapQuest have implemented Urban Mapping’s mass transit product.

This is a boon for vertical markets such as the commercial real estate industry, insurance and business intelligence, and for local search and navigation. Site selection specialists, for example, who are looking for greater granularity on the growing urban population can now evaluate potential retail store sites relative not only to demographics, business and consumer spending trends, but also to public transport.

About Urban Mapping
Urban Mapping, Inc (UMI) provides geospatial data and web services to simplify the development and deployment of online mapping and data visualization applications. With Mapfluence, UMI's hosted mapping platform, organizations can access an on-demand catalog of 10,000+ high-value variables to query, visualize and analyze data using maps, tables and charts. Since 2006, leading interactive publishers like Microsoft, MapQuest and Yahoo! as well as leading enterprises like CoStar Group, Tableau Software and CoreLogic have been utilizing Urban Mapping's geospatial data and technology. For more information, please visit us at www.urbanmapping.com.

Media Contact: Josie Mulberry 415-946-8170

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- February 10, 2011 -- Urban Mapping, Inc(UMI), a leading provider of web services and on-demand data for interactive mapping applications today announced that MapQuest has implemented Urban Mapping’s industry-leading database of public transportation for inclusion into www.mapquest.com, online mapping platform for directions.

Urban Mapping’s mass transit database features highly-detailed information about more than 150 public transportation systems in North America. UMI employs a globally-distributed research network of on-the ground employees who collect information about bus, rail and ferry systems, including station attributes, entrance locations, schedules, unplanned events and over 100 other data elements.

MapQuest supports 1 million inquiries for directions each day.  The new pedestrian routing and rail transit options add layers of environmentally conscious features to MapQuest’s growing suite of world-class routing solutions.   MapQuest’s transit product includes nationwide pedestrian routing and a transit option linking pedestrian routing with public rail transportation in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Boston. MapQuest has plans to expand additional city content from Urban Mapping in 2011.

UMI Mass Transit allows interactive publishers and other industries to access accurate and up to date spatial and attribute data for incorporation into multimodal trip planners that includes travel by car, foot or by bus, train, car or ferry. Customers can also monitor unplanned events, such as service interruptions or system-wide notifications and advisories through the Incident Manager.

About Urban Mapping

Urban Mapping, Inc (UMI) provides web-based mapping services and on-demand data tosimplify the development and deployment of online mapping and data visualization applications.  With Mapfluence, UMI’s flagship product, organizations can access an on-demand catalog of 10,000+ high-value variables to query, visualize and analyze data using maps, tables and charts. Since 2006, leading interactive publishers like Microsoft, MapQuest and Yahoo! as well as leading enterprises like CoStar Group, Tableau Software and CoreLogic have been utilizing Urban Mapping's geospatial data and technology.  For more information, please visit us at www.urbanmapping.com.

In addition to today's other news about Microsoft named Bing Panorama Builder And Streetside Video, here's some more details on the two announcements. The first one focused on new features: Interior Views, Enhanced OpenTable Integration, Real-Time Transit, and Streetside for Mobile:

• Interior Views: Provides users with immersive 360-degree panoramas of local businesses
• OpenTable Integration: Lets users interact with OpenTable directly from restaurant pages
• Real Time Transit on Mobile: Gives users real time info if a bus is on-time or delayed
• Streetside for Mobile: Brings users street-level imagery + some mobile-exclusive enhancements

The second official entry is all about Bing Maps new map style, version 1.1. Key changes are:

• Increased city density while preserving a clean, visually appealing map
• Clearer differentiation between major and minor city streets
• Greater color contrast at the city-level so streets “pop” out more
• Altered font sizes and contrast for crisper, less cluttered map labels
• Improved highway shields for US and added new shields for 7 countries

Of course, the entry offers several screenshots to show the differences.