One of the popular open source desktop GIS software just got better, QGIS 1.6 has been released.

From the announcement: "This release includes over 177 bug fixes and many new features and enhancements. Once again it is impossible to document everything here that has changed so we will just provide a bullet list of key new features here."

The list of improvements is just too long to share here, head to the site to learn more. The categories of improvements are: General Improvements, Table of contents (TOC) improvements, Labelling (New generation only), Layer properties and symbology, and Map Composer.

Here's the weekly batch of geonews, finally on a regular Friday.

On the ESRI front:

• Recently, ESRI open sourced the ESRI Geoportal Server. Some twitter users were quick to mention that you still need ArcGIS Server software to use the Geoportal Server. [UPDATE: see comments below, it seems such a license is not a requirement after all.] To me, that's still a nice step. Their definition of a geoportal: "A geoportal is a gateway to Web-based geospatial resources, enabling users to discover, view and access geospatial information and services made available by their providing organizations. Likewise, data providers can use the geoportal to make their geospatial resources discoverable, viewable, and accessible to others."
• The popular blog SpatiallyAdjusted shares some elements that could be improved about the ArcGIS 10 user interface

On the open source front:

• O'Reilly discusses a new open source software called WEAVE (Web-based Analysis and Visualization Environment), which obviously include a mapping component
• If you're into FDO, you'll be happy to learn of the new SequentialProcess for batch mode processing
• QGIS gets new label tools
• Remember Polymaps? The open source mapping framework Polymaps is now integrated into GeoCommons

In the miscellaneous category:

• REST and RESTful was widely discussed in the past few years in the geospatial community, including within ESRI, the open source and OGC rings. Thanks to this entry named Richardson Maturity Model: steps toward the glory of REST, I think I finally correctly understand what REST is about! ;-) (sorry I don't remember how I ended up on that article)
• TMR informs us MapQuest launched My Maps last June, with the same name of the similar feature provided on Google Maps, basically allowing you to save and share user-created maps
• SS shares a long perspective entry named What forces are at play in the evolution of geospatial industry sectors?
• NAVTEQ acquires the 3D modeling company named PixelActive
• APB informs us Yahoo has launched a new service called Local Offers: "that it said will give users information about local merchants along with coupons and information on deals at stores in their neighborhoods."
• Kurt shares interesting thoughts on GIS, followed by What is GIS? A workflow definition

In the maps category:

• Here's the evolution of active Facebook users by region
• A nice entry on The Human Development Index in Africa and Across the World
• SS shares an entry named Mapping Opportunity in America
• While I was aware of it, we mentioned mentioned it yet. The GEB discusses the USGS "Earth as Art" beautiful collection of Landsat imagery

I've been overly busy lately, the consequence is you're getting your geonews in batch mode a little later than usual. Here they are!

On the Google front:

• Google provided an early look at HotPot, a local recommendation engine powered by you and your friends
• Google Boost, a local business advertising program, is now available to about 10 U.S. cities
• There's new panoramic photos in Google Earth

On the ESRI front:

• ArcGIS 10 Service Pack 1 Released
• V1 mentions GIS Tutorial books for ArcGIS 10
• SS informs us that Esri Adds an iOS App to Help Link Your Health to Your Environment

On the Microsoft front:

• There's a white paper on the new spatial features in the upcoming MS SQL Server

On the open data/open source front:

• O'Reilly is enthusiastic about Boston real-time transit data now available
• Here's an entry named Government institutions and OpenStreetMap in practice
• Also interesting is USGS Trialling OSM Software Stack for Editing
• A new feature for the Java Topology Suite: Single-Sided Buffers in JTS
• News of the integration of a 3D globe directly in QGIS, and while we're at it, a summary of the QGIS hackfest
• New releases: Geopublisher and AtlasStyler 1.6
• Shapely 1.2.7 has also been released
• Here's a discussion on ExifTool to modify location (GPS) metadata of your pictures

In the miscellaneous category:

• I do have to have to mention that we're in the Geography Awareness Week
• While we already discussed worldfile basics, here's to refresh our minds: the WorldFile explained
• Vietnam ojecting to China's depiction of disputed islands in Map World
• The FGT blog mentions the release of Dinamica EGO 1.6, software for spatial environmental modeling
• V1 discusses ‘What is driving the need for real-time geodata, and how does that impact the spatial information sector?’
• In another entry, V1 discusses the Strategic Citywide Spatial Planning of Port-au-Prince, Haiti
• In a last V1 entry, BIM – CAD – GIS Integration is discussed

In the maps category:

• A quick look to the map of landlocked and double-landlocked countries
• Here's Cartograms of the U.S. Midterm elections
• Might be useful, an Easy Magnetic Declination Value Website

Here's the recent geonews in batch mode.

On the Google front:

• The Maps Data API is being deprecated, replaced by Fusion Tables in the Maps API v3
• In addition to the Maps API for Flash, Styled Maps launched for the Static Maps API
• There was an imagery update this week for Google Maps and Earth
• Google also previewed StreetView imagery for Germany
• There's an official Panoramio Photo Contest

On the FOSS4G front:

• The next version of QGIS will feature raster masks, explained in this entry
• GeoServer gets a new file chooser

In the miscellaneous category:

• Slashdot started a discussion today named Nicaragua Raids Costa Rica, Blames Google Maps
• The GEB details Breadcrumbs, a software to visualize your GPS tracks in 3D
• The Russians are serious mapping land use land cover, with 12,000 Landsat-5 scenes acquired in
• TMR shares a review of the DeLorme GPS/Communicator Combo
• DigitalGlobe is reporting is third consecutive down quarter
• Everyblock released their API

In the maps category:

• A quick look at this map with a reversed Mercator effect for Africa and Greenland makes obvious how maps projections can be misleading, especially the omnipresent Mercator projection

Here's a few recent open source geospatial software and open data news.

On the open data front:

• MapQuest continues to dive into OpenStreetMap
• Here's an interesting graph on OpenStreetMap data accuracy per contributors density
• Denver will host the State of the Map Conference, at the same place and same month than the OSGeo's FOSS4G Conference.
• Here's an entry named Wikipedia makes OpenStreetMap more prominent
• There's a few entries a critique of OpenStreetMap, another specifically on city labels in OSM
• The Wall Street Journal estimates Open Source Mapping Poses Threat For TomTom, Nokia
• Here's OpenHeatMap, an online tool for creating heat maps and choropleth maps

On the open source software front:

• Shapely 1.2.6 has been released
• OpenGeo won a contract with UK's Odnance Survey
• Here's an entry on using QGIS on Windows with ECW
• And an entry about kml 2.2 in gvSIG

It's Friday! Here's the geonews that haven't made it into an individual story, in batch mode.

In the open source/open data front:

• The OpenGeo Suite Enterprise Edition version 2.2. was released
• Automated ground control points (GCP) collection is coming to QGIS. There's also an offline editing plugin coming for QGIS. And another welcomed improvement, new class breaks for graduated symbols in QGIS
• Here's tips on upgrading / backuping PostGIS databases
• The UK Ordnance Survey clarified what you can do with their open data.
• Slashdot discussed a story about CycleStreets for the U.K., hopefully someone was quick enough to mention OpenCycleMap that we mentioned in the past.

In the miscellanous category:

• Remember we when mentioned Autodesk's Project Butterfly? It's now announced as and renamed to AutoCAD WS: a web application that allows you to view, edit, and share drawings (.dwg) through a web browser or a mobile device.
• GeoCommons got overhauled. Finder! and Maker! disapeered for the sake of a new interface. It also now supports the time dimension visualizations.
• Microsoft mentioned the TweetHeat Map App: "helping users visualize the [Twitter] public response/feeling towards a product, event or really any topic."
• Google has an entry on Liquid Galaxy, eight 55-inches LCD screens showing Google Earth
• TMR links to an article on GPS reception myths and misconceptions
• Mapperz discusses TripGeo, offering directions with video StreetView
• The GeoNames Ontology version 2.2 has been released
• India's Bhuvan, their virtual globe, has been recently improved
• There will be 3 new UK commercial EO satellites planned, along with a new commercial earth observation company

In the maps category:

• TMR offers an entry named Google Maps Errors and Disappearing Cities
  
• TMR also offers a Roundup of iPhone and iPad Map Apps
• Ogle Earth warns us, the newly available Chinese iPhone 4 comes with a crippled Maps app, there's also a second entry on the same topic
• Kurt details his difficulties encountered to access USGS Topo Maps
• En entry on a New Map Offering a Global View of Health-Sapping Air Pollution
• The FGT blog has an entry on BBC's Dimensions website, showing how big things are relative to one another
• FTG also tells us how to embed a QR Position Code Losslessly Into A Geotagged Picture With QRStamper