Welcome to GISWeekly! In a press release this week, LizardTech, a division of Celartem, Inc., announced that the OGC has officially adopted the GMLJP2 standard proposed by LizardTech and Galdos Systems and a consortium of leading aerospace and geospatial technology companies. Jon Skiffington, product manager for LizardTech's GeoExpress, talks about the new non-proprietary standard for delivering and displaying large geospatial imagery.
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Industry News
OGC Adopts GMLJP2 Standard
By Susan Smith
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Jon Skiffington, product manager for GeoExpress, answered some questions for us about the announcement and what this means to geospatial users:
1) Last year LizardTech announced that they were working to extend Oracle Spatial 10g GeoRaster architecture to integrate native MrSID technology inside Oracle. This was said to be a precursor to bringing LizardTech closer toward providing JPEG2000 support for Oracle Spatial 10g in the future. Does the GMLJP2 standard adoption further that goal and if so, how, specifically?
JS: We feel that this will accelerate the adoption of JPEG 2000 for geospatial raster imaging, allowing increased interoperability between systems. While Oracle Spatial can not make use of GMLJP2 natively, LizardTech will work to make sure that GML metadata in JPEG 2000 files is preserved in the Oracle database.
2) Will the products created using the GMLJP2 standard be dependent in any way on Oracle?
JS: While we anticipate that JPEG 2000 imagery will be stored within Oracle, GMLJP2 is a non-proprietary OGC standard. This means that the number of applications that will support GMLJP2 is limited only by the number of organizations that choose to build support for it.
3) What is the difference between GeoExpress 6 "supporting JP2" and what the GMLJP2 standard allows?
JS: When the current version of GeoExpress was released, GMLJP2 had not yet been adopted. Therefore, LizardTech products currently support JPEG 2000 with geospatial metadata stored internally in GeoTIFF or MrSID style, or externally in a JPEG 2000 world (.j2w) file. With the adoption of GMLJP2, new versions of GeoExpress and other LizardTech products will use the OGC GML standard, in addition to the other interim methods. This should save users any problems with applications that are expecting different types of metadata, and also opens the potential in the future for more advanced metadata such as detailed sensor models, in-depth camera positioning information (camera angle, date and time, orbit track), and image quality information such as cloud cover and air quality at the time of image capture.
The OpenGIS(R) GML in JPEG 2000 for Geographic Imagery (GMLJP2) Implementation Specification. It is available for download.
Top News of the Week
Varion Systems, the software development and value-added reseller division of GeoAnalytics, has completed a public deployment of PV.Web for the City of Wheaton, Illinois. Through the City's website, Wheaton residents can now view City data and mapping functionality on their own computers via PV.Web. In conjunction with ESRI's ArcIMS and ArcSDE, PV.Web allows Wheaton residents to view several GIS layers including Registered Sex Offenders, Police Beats, Schools, Zoning Areas, Parcels, Addresses, Public Works data, Sewer data, Engineering data, Planning data, Transportation data, Trails and Paths data, and aerial photography. Training 4 GIS, the training and consultancy division of The GeoInformation Group, announced that it is offering its fourth national GeoDATA seminar series showcasing geographic data and the benefits they bring to those within both the public and private sectors.
The 1-day seminars will commence in Liverpool on 9 May followed by Glasgow on 11 May, London on 23 May and the final seminar will take place in Cardiff on 25 May 2006.
Analytical Surveys, Inc. (ASI) announced it has acquired a 20 percent working interest in a producing Oklahoma oil and natural gas well. The Company acquired the interest for $300,000 cash from TD Energy LLC, the operator of the well and owner of the remaining 80 percent working interest. The recently completed Welker 1-7 well is located in Pawnee County, Oklahoma and is part of TD Energy's 7,000-acre Skedee Oil and Gas Development Project in the Cherokee Basin.
DeLorme, a provider of affordable mapping, GIS, and GPS solutions announced the release of one-meter resolution aerial imagery for the state of Florida.
Processed into DeLorme's efficient XMap format, this imagery is available in a series of twelve seamless mosaics, each of which provides regional coverage on a single DVD or statewide coverage on a USB hard drive. Now it's possible to bring high-quality aerial imagery into the field without the need to download and manage dozens of individual files or to be connected to the Internet.
A new seminar from ESRI Virtual Campus reveals a powerful tool for geographic information system (GIS) organizations. Introduction to Job Tracking for ArcGIS (JTX) demonstrates how to use the software to manage enterprise GIS tasks while tracking changes to data, staffing resources, and time schedules. Participants can view the seminar on February 23, 2006, at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., or 3:00 p.m. Pacific time.
Acquisitions/Agreements/Alliances
GeoSpatial Innovations, Inc. (GSI), a developer of field technology solutions for energy and communications companies, and Itron Inc. announced that the two companies have teamed up to provide the most comprehensive field-to-office technology solution for electric line designers and engineers.
Under the agreement, Itron Distribution Staker will now come bundled with GSI's Pocket Designer field software. Utilities that purchase Distribution Staker will have access to a seamless field-to-office solution for creating overhead or underground electric line designs in the field. With this partnership, utilities now have the flexibility to complete their field design on a tablet, laptop or a handheld Pocket PC device.
BAE Systems has secured several international distributor agreements to expand marketing its software for image analysis, geospatial analysis, and photogrammetry, SOCET GXP(TM) and SOCET SET(R), to major mapping and intelligence centers and commercial customers. The extended distributor network includes offices in Germany, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, Singapore, Spain, and Taiwan.
East View Cartographic (EVC) announced an agreement with SPOT Image Corporation to become an authorized reseller of SPOT satellite imagery products. SPOT provides a wide range of medium-resolution imagery ideal for uses such as land management, telecom planning, or creating new street level vector data. SPOT satellites have been collecting imagery since 1986. The SPOT archives now include more than 10 million images covering most of the Earth's surface several times over.
Pictometry International Corp announced that its European partner, Blom ASA of Norway, through its subsidiary Simmons Aerofilms, has signed a contract with Ordnance Survey of Great Britain. The agreement establishes Ordnance Survey, Britain's national mapping agency, as the sole sales agent of Pictometry technology for its customers in government and private industry in Great Britain. Simmons Aerofilms will be capturing and processing the high-resolution aerial images and supplying Ordnance Survey customers with the image libraries together with training.
mPower Technologies, a technology consulting firm, software developer, and service organization; and PlanSight LLC, an ESRI authorized developer and provider of a full range of high quality GIS products and consulting services, announce their business partnership . Together they developed a new GIS-based land records portal application, CivX Integrator, allowing organizations to easily create, manage, distribute, and share GIS-based land records data without expensive and time-consuming programming or outsourced consulting.
Orbis Integrated Solutions Inc., a business consulting and technology integration firm which focuses on Investigative Solutions and Data Management Solutions, announced the partnership with ARCBridge Consulting & Training Inc. a GIS solutions firm, to deliver wireless GIS mapping solution leveraging handheld PDA technology.
Telvent GIT S.A., the Global RealTime IT Company, announced that it has acquired the remaining 30% of Miner and Miner, Consulting Engineers, Incorporated (Miner & Miner) that it did not already own. Telvent initially acquired 70% of the issued and outstanding shares of Miner & Miner in December 2004. Miner & Miner is a worldwide leader in the development and implementation of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software for utilities.
Announcements
Intergraph Corporation, a global provider of spatial information management (SIM) software, announced that General Colin Powell, USA (Ret.), will serve as the featured keynote speaker for Intergraph 2006, the Company's flagship international users conference to be held June 12-15, 2006 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort.
General Powell became the 65th Secretary of State of the United States of America in 2001 under President George W. Bush and retired from that post last year. Before becoming Secretary of State, Powell served as a key aide to the Secretary of Defense and as National Security Advisor to President Reagan. He also served 35 years in the United States Army, rising to the rank of Four-Star General and serving as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989 1993). During this time he oversaw 28 crises, including the Panama intervention of 1989 and Operation Desert Storm in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
Remains of the ancient Maya culture, mysteriously destroyed at the height of its reign in the ninth century, have been hidden in the rainforests of Central America for more than 1,000 years. Now, NASA and university scientists are using space- and aircraft-based "remote-sensing" technology to uncover those ruins, using the chemical signature of the civilization's ancient building materials.
NASA archaeologist Tom Sever and scientist Dan Irwin, both from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., are teaming with William Saturno, an archaeologist at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, to locate the ruins of the ancient culture.
Space-system-based disaster management support, space-system-based telemedicine and possible dangers posed by near-Earth objects will be key agenda items at the 43rd session of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), which will take place in Vienna, Austria, from 20 February to 3 March.
Other topics of discussion include the review of the implementation of the recommendations of the Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III), the use of nuclear power sources in outer space, measures for reducing space debris created by space missions and the International Heliophysical Year 2007.
Financials
According to a press release this week, for the 15th consecutive quarter, HP has outshipped all other major vendors in the worldwide server market while taking share in total server revenue, according to fourth quarter 2005 figures released by IDC.(1)
HP continued to be No. 1 in total worldwide revenue and units for Windows(R), Linux and the high-end UNIX(R) server market. HP also led in all three of the major operating systems combined (Windows, Linux and UNIX) -- which comprise more than 95 percent of all servers shipped worldwide and 78.7 percent of all server revenue.
Garmin Ltd. announced a record fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2005. Highlights of the quarter and full year include:
Fourth Quarter 2005 Financial highlights:
-- Total revenue of $319.3 million, up 45% from $220.9 million in fourth quarter 2004
-- Consumer segment revenue increased 50% to $260.2 million in fourth quarter 2005
See press release
Events
The First ESRI Developer Summit will be held on March 17-18, 2006 at the Palm Springs Convention Center in Palm Springs, California.
3n ( National Notification Network), a leading mass notification system provider, announced an upcoming Webinar, "Integrating GIS into Your Mass Notification Strategy," scheduled to take place on Tuesday, February 28, at 10:00 a.m. PT /1:00 p.m. ET. 3n and guest speaker Lew Nelson, ESRI public safety manager of law enforcement/homeland security, will explain how geographically targeted communications can be leveraged as a strategic tool within businesses and government organizations in emergency situations and as part of daily operations.
See website.
People
SANZ Inc., SANZ Geospatial Solutions Group, a provider of spatial data provisioning solutions, announced at the AFCEA Homeland Security conference, the addition of three new members to its Geospatial Solutions Group: geotechnology software industry veteran Jim McGowan as its director of sales, defense and intelligence; Nick Burrell as system engineer; and Jennifer Pelton as inside sales representative.
McGowan, who brings over twelve years of high-tech and geotechnology industry experience, will concentrate on supporting the growing opportunity for EarthWhere™ products and services in intelligence and general defense applications. Prior to joining SANZ, McGowan was federal sales manager at LTI Software.
New Products
Safe Software Inc., announced the immediate availability of a French localization add-on for their core product, the Feature Manipulation Engine (FME). The French localization was prepared by Veremes, one of Safe Software's resellers based in France, and is the second localization of FME to be completed. A German localization, prepared by con terra, has been available for over a year.
MapInfo Corporation, the global provider of location intelligence solutions, introduced Envinsa Version 4.0, a comprehensive unified location platform. With Envinsa v4.0, organizations in all industries can derive the greatest value from location information, resulting in increased revenue, lower costs, enhanced efficiencies and improved service.
MapInfo also announced the launch of a new version of its successful UK health sector mapping application suite.
MapInfo HealthPro2 provides NHS managers and analysts with access to the leading desktop solution for analyzing location related information. It specifically allows NHS organizations in England to fully capitalize on the digital map data now available to them under the recent Ordnance Survey Pilot NHS agreement. Ambulance Trusts, which will be covered by the agreement from April 2006, will also benefit from the scheme.
MWH Soft, a global provider of environmental and water resources applications software, announced the worldwide release of InfoWater UDF, a state-of-the-art geocentric solution for unidirectional flushing of drinking water distribution systems. InfoWater UDF delivers unprecedented power and flexibility in managing the systematic flushing of water distribution systems to remove stagnant water along with mineral and sediment deposits that accumulate over time - restoring hydraulic capacity and improving water quality.
Matrox Graphics Inc., manufacturer of graphics solutions for professionals, announces Extio F1400, the world's first remote graphics unit. With this solution, the user interface of the computer -- the keyboard, mouse, monitors, audio peripherals, and graphics hardware -- are separated from the rest of the computer by up to 250 meters (820 feet) of fiber-optic cable. Designed for professional applications, this product supports up to 4 digital or analog monitors at a time, and has passive (fanless) cooling.
The Geographic Resources Analysis Support System, commonly referred to as GRASS GIS, is a Geographical Information System (GIS) used for data management, image processing, graphics production, spatial modeling, and visualization of raster, vector and sites data. It is open source Free Software released under the GNU General Public License (GPL). The new features of GRASS 6 cover a new topological 2D/3D vector engine and support for vector network analysis. Attributes are now managed in an SQL-based DBMS. A new display manager has been implemented. The NVIZ visualization tool was enhanced to display 3D vector data and voxel volumes. Messages are partially translated (i18N) with support for FreeType fonts, including multibyte Asian characters. New LOCATIONs can be auto-generated by EPSG code number. GRASS is integrated with GDAL/OGR libraries to support an extensive range of raster and vector formats, including OGC-conformal Simple Features.
Ekahau Inc., provider of a Wi-Fi based Real Time Location System (RTLS) solution and Site Survey tools, announced the new version 2.2 of Ekahau Site Survey (ESS). The updated version can now provide large enterprises with better survey capabilities for large-scale networks.
Webraska, a provider of mobile GPS navigation solutions and high-end geospatial software platforms for wireless carriers and major service providers worldwide, announced that Orange has selected Webraska's new Webraska Navigation 6 software for the upcoming version of its Orange Navigation solution.
Letters to the Editor
I applaud your article regarding Landsat, and your proper emphasis on Landsat 5. It is impossible to overemphasize how much the tough decisions mankind will be forced to make regarding climate change and overall carrying capacity will be based upon that single mission.
What most people do not realize, however, is that the ability to continue Landsat collection over Africa, Russia, and elsewhere continues to fall through the cracks. Numerous ground stations have expressed a willingness to collect the data (limited to line of sight because of tape recorder failure long ago) and give it back to the U.S., but current policy would require them to pay the $50,000 certification and ongoing collection fees. And yet we utterly waste money jabbering about GEOSS, and emphasize manned space flight to Mars instead.
The U.S. needs to wake up to the fact that a Landsat replacement is still "over the horizon,” and work with partners to collect this invaluable baseline data now. Our decision-making for the future - and the world we pass along - will benefit immensely.
Chris Nicholas
Around the Web
New Orleans' Residents want Homes, but Data is a Start, Charles Babcock, December 12, 2005, Information Week - Since Katrina, city inspectors have scrambled to get information posted online.
Web Services Upend Old Ideas About the Little Guy's Role, Steve Lohr, February 21, 2006, The New York Times (registration required) - The second-generation Internet technologies - combined with earlier tools like the Web itself and e-mail - are drastically reducing the cost of communicating, finding things and distributing and receiving services online.
Upcoming Events
GITA Annual Conference 29
Date: April 23 - 26, 2006
Place: Tampa, FL USA
GITA's Annual Conference and Exhibition is the most highly regarded educational event for professionals involved in geospatial information technologies.