Batch Geonews: Google Working with Esri, ArcGIS Pro Released, Turf 1.4.0 Released, Facebook using iBeacons, and much more

Here’s the recent geonews in batch mode.

On the open source / open data front:

  • That’s fast development, the open source Web GIS Turf 1.4.0 has been released with several new interesting features, if you don’t know Turf, look at it now, it’s part of our geofuture
  • I learned about OpenChargeMap in this discussion named Japan Now Has More Car Charging Points Than Gas Stations
  • Bug fix for a major software, GDAL 1.11.2 released, and if you know what Docker is, GDAL in Docker
  • It’s coming, the first beta of MapServer 7.0 is now available
  • Maker-style with OGR, your own woodcut maps visualization
  • Two new GeoServer Books
  • An interesting entry on open standards for 3D geospatial data and the entry on the 3D geo software
  • Tidbit; Paul Ramsey is moving from Boundless to CartoDB
  • Thanks Mexico, Improving OpenStreetMap with Mexico’s new open data

On the Esri front:

  • Google is working with to transition Google Earth Enterprise and Google Maps Engine customers to Esri, several competitors have seen this change in Google’s focus on geospatial as an opportunity, open source software benefits too, Monster Milktruck ported to Cesium and OpenGeo Suite & Google Maps Engine
  • Here’s the official entry on ArcGIS Pro – Reinventing Desktop GIS, on the same topic, an entry on Spatial Analyst in ArcGIS Pro and another one named Analysis & Geoprocessing in ArcGIS Pro: Frequently Asked Questions and while we’re at it, Learn ArcGIS Pro with online lessons
  • For mobile users, Collector for ArcGIS v10.3 is out
  • Global Ecological Land Unit map at a stunning 50m resolution, New Map Shows the World’s Ecosystems in Unprecedented Detail

On the Google front:

  • A how-to for the now-free Google Earth Pro, Google Earth Pro importing addresses
  • Makes sense, Airport Using Google Glass For Security and Passenger Information

Discussed over Slashdot:

  • Noise levels, New Map Shows USA’s Quietest Places
  • There’s still places to discover, Drones and Satellites Spot Lost Civilizations In Unlikely Places
  • About drones; FAA Proposes Rules To Limit Commercial Drone Use and Hundreds Apply For FAA Drone Licenses and NoFlyZone Aims To Keep the Airspace Above Your Home Drone-Free
  • Makes sense right? Police Organization Wants Cop-Spotting Dropped From Waze App
  • If you had doubts, you are tracked, DEA Cameras Tracking Hundreds of Millions of Car Journeys Across the US and it includes DEA Planned To Monitor Cars Parked At Gun Shows Using License Plate Readers
  • The geopuzzle that lies ahead, DOT Warns of Dystopian Future For Transportation
  • The germans are at it too, Germany Plans Highway Test Track For Self-Driving Cars
  • A good use of location tracking, Uber Will Add Panic Button and Location/Journey Sharing In India
  • Something we’ve seen a few years ago, Employees In Swedish Office Complex Volunteer For RFID Implants For Access
  • More data, NASA Launches Satellite To Observe Soil Moisture, WIRED also has an article on the topic A New Satellite Will Watch the Western Drought from Space
  • A satellite that served for 13 years, QuickBird satellite mission ends
  • Map included, By the Numbers: The Highest-Paying States For Tech Professionals

In the everything else category:

  • More geo from Facebook, Facebook gets more location-aware with Place Tips and iBeacons
  • Good news, new Latin America Geospatial Portal launched
  • There has been several rumours about Apple acquiring data for their own Street View or self-driving cars, Mysterious Apple Van Captured on Video in Palo Alto Residential Neighborhood and Hundreds of Apple Employees Working On Apple-Branded Electric Vehicle
  • It’s running towards you! Mapping the Microbes of the New York City Subway
  • Nice visualizations, The Greenland Ice Sheet in 3-D and not good news, Perennial Arctic Sea Ice Continues to Shrink
  • Time for an 1h video? ‘Big Earth Data’ documentary freely available in German, French and English
  • Ready for an online course? Skills for the Digital Earth
  • A topic we haven’t touched in a long time but is still pertinent, Safe Software’s Ultimate Guide to CAD & GIS Integration

In the maps category:

  • Map of US federal land as percentage of total state land area

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