Archive for 2012
Friday, October 12th, 2012
I’ve been wondering what would happen with in-car navigation as a result of the new turn-by-turn navigation now available in smartphones. In-car navigation is much more expensive than the $50 app that allows you to use turn-by-turn navigation on your cell phone. The big plus of in-car navigation is the fact that you don’t have to hold your device while trying to navigate busy streets. But the higher price tag of in-car navigation has car manufacturers thinking up ways to utilize the smartphone navigation system.
Solutions are in the works, according to an article in today’s New York Times: Ford has teamed up with the navigation company Telenav to enable Telenav’s Scout software to run on compatible vehicles outfitted with Ford’s Sync system and software called Applink. A $25-a-year app, Car Connect, lets drivers connect Android phones to the dash. (An iPhone version is in the works.)
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Tags: geospatial, GIS, global positioning systems, GPS, iPhone, maps, navigation, smartphones, TeleNav, turn-by-turn navigation
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Thursday, October 11th, 2012
As the markets closed this Monday, Google (GOOG) shares are at $249.1 billion, much higher than Microsoft’s ($247.2 billion). Despite Microsoft’s healthy performance over the past year, in which shares are up nearly 20 percent, it is reporting it’s first ever quarterly loss since going public.
Industry experts say that although Windows 8 is debuting this month, the Windows platform is waning in popularity. Microsoft has been slow to pick up mobile, and now has come forth claiming that the new oeprating system will translate well from PCs to mobile devices.
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Tags: Android, geospatial, Google, Microsoft, mobile, Windows 8
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Tuesday, October 2nd, 2012
Disaster management and emergency services can benefit greatly from Crowdsource Mapping, according to an article in the UN-SPIDER Newsletter. The idea is to collect data from as many on-site sources as possible and translate that real-time data into maps. Being aware of the surrounding and the infrastructure, locals can render accurate geo-referenced information or comment on existing data and thereby help disaster managers expand the information they need for emergency operations. That is of course not only true for on-going disasters, but also for risk assessment and preparedness efforts.
Crowdsource mapping UN-SPIDER Newsletter
Tags: crowdsource mapping, disaster management, emergency services, geo-referenced data, geospatial, GIS
2 Comments »
Tuesday, September 25th, 2012
Apple’s iPhone 5 maps aren’t anywhere near as good as Google’s Maps, according to an article in ZDNet, but it doesn’t seem to matter because the two companies needed to separate since they are competitors in the mobile mapping market. What may occur however, is that new options might be in the stars.
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Tags: Apple, geospatial, Google, Google Maps, iOS, iPhone 5, mapping, Reuters
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Tuesday, September 25th, 2012
Today CanWe Studios LLC, of Austin, TX, launched CanWeNetwork, a mobile app for business networking that uses geospatial technology and a powerful matching engine to recommend people nearby who you should meet for professional networking and business opportunities. This is an interesting development in the world of social business networking. Recommendations are based upon location, skillsets, shared interests and personality traits gleaned from LinkedIn profiles. If you are traveling, you might be able to visit people at organizations within close proximity to where you are staying. It would be easier to make those contacts than say, doing a Google search before you left on a trip. This geospatial technology encourages users to develop face-to-face connections that may lead to business connections.
CanWeNetwork is now available and can be downloaded in the Apple App Store and Android Market (Google Play) by visiting www.can.ws/go.
“Social networks have made us more connected than ever but have had the negative result of limiting real life experiences,” said James Sinclair, vice president, CanWe Studios. “We can take a users’ LinkedIn profile and identify, with a high degree of accuracy, people around them they should meet because they are likely to succeed together. The app uses the power of big data and mobile technology to see and capture actionable opportunities that without CanWeNetwork would simply pass you by unknown. We believe that conversations create opportunity and that’s what CanWeNetwork does, it creates conversations.”
CanWeNetwork utilizes the most in-depth proprietary engine available, developed in-house by a team that includes the scientist behind one of the leading online dating services. The engine builds complex models of users through its Open Developer program and other sources and augmenting LinkedIn data. It is then applying statistical analysis to the models to predict the kinds of people users are most likely to succeed with. Strong privacy controls gives users complete control of how and when they are contacted and by whom.
The app will run in the background of your mobile device and seek connections for the user. One might hope that source data other than LinkedIn data might be also used in order to extend the reach of CanWeNetwork, but it is definitely technology to watch.
This application is not affiliated with nor endorsed by LinkedIn Corporation
Tags: business networking, CanWeNetwork, CanWeStudios LLC, geospatial, GIS, Google, LinkedIn, mapping, mobile app
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Thursday, September 13th, 2012
The iPhone 5 is accompanied by a lot of buzz, and some of that is pretty exciting. Customers of past iPhone models will be pleased to know that the iPhone 5 is made of all glass and aluminum, making it the thinnest yet. It measures 7.6mm thick, 18 percent thinner than previous iterations. It features “Ultrafast Wireless,” thanks to GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, HSPA+, DC-HSDPA and LTE.
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Tags: 3D renderings, Apple, geospatial, Google Maps, iPhone 5, mapping, Tom Tom, vector graphics
1 Comment »
Tuesday, September 11th, 2012
Since September 11th, 2001, geospatial technology shifted its emphasis to be more focused on emergency response, disaster recovery, terrorist action and other domains of the federal, state and county governments. Indoor mapping derived from this event, when it became evident that knowing where assets were located in buildings, would be vitally important in a time of disaster or terrorist action. If there is any one single event that showed the need for geospatial information, this was it.
The need for disaster management and recovery has escalated with the greater number of natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornados, floods and other acts of nature that have torn the fabric of the U.S. as well as other countries. Geodesign has emerged since that time, tracking requirements for marrying geographic sciences with design professionals and information technologies and the data provided by the people in a geographic location. There must be some overlap of these perspectives which would not overlap if not for the desire to merge information into a cohesive whole.
Other disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, have shaped the way geographic information has been disseminated to the public. Each time one of these disasters hits, there is more to learn about how to disseminate information to the public, how to find resources during a disaster and how to save lives and manage the recovery from these events.
Tags: 9/11, disaster management, emergency response, geospatial, GIS
2 Comments »
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