fredag den 30. januar 2009

Google Timeline - Mapping 4D

Tid til det hele ...
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Time waits for no map ... 
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TimeMap is a Javascript library to facilitate using Google Maps with a SIMILE timeline. The library allows you to load one or more datasets in JSON or KML onto both a map and a timeline simultaneously. By default, only items in the visible range of the timeline are displayed on the map.

Version 1.3 Now Up!

This version has been re-licensed with the MIT License. It also includes a number of new features, including export functions, better filter support, the first release of a jQuery-dependent editing UI, and various bugfixes and tweaks.

Note: The file timemapinit.js has been removed from this version and its functions moved to the core timemap.js file. The function timemapInit()still works, but it's been deprecated in favor of TimeMap.init().

Getting Started

The BasicUsage page gives a good rundown of how to get started. CustomInitScript covers what's required if you want to write your own initialization script. For more support, see the newly-formed TimeMap development discussion group.

Examples

Simple Three-Item Dataset (using inline JSON data)

Post-Election Violence in Kenya (using KML data)

Artists & Authors of the Renaissance (using JSON data from a freebase.com query)

The library is designed to be developer-friendly, offering as much access as possible to the underlying APIs. Dependencies: Google Maps API v2.93, SIMILE Timeline v1.2. Comments welcomed at nick (at) nickrabinowitz (dot) com.

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Demyko iPhone application - based on BlomURBEX

Super applikation (og en sej klode) ...
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Great app (and fancy globe) ...
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Demyko is an IPhone Application and it enables the users to locate themselves and their friends, and search for addresses, and see the position in real, oblique images. The oblique images available through the Demyko application are streamed directly from the BlomURBEX platform. BlomURBEX will contain oblique images from more than 1,000 of the largest cities in Europe.
Read more: http://www.demyko.com/Public/Home.aspx
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torsdag den 29. januar 2009

Earths Moon Map 1969

Så nær og aligevel så fjern ... Zoom og pan og se månen som du msåske aldrig har set den før ...
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So near and yet så far away ... Zoom and pan and see the moon as you might not have seen it before ...
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Explore the moon in striking detail with this educational map published in February 1969. Featuring detailed illustrations of both the near and far sides of the moon, this map also contains an abundance of illustrations and information about the moon including its physical properties and features, phases, eclipses, orbital paths, and the Apollo mission. [...]
Read more: http://www.ngmapcollection.com/product.aspx?cid=1562&pid=15599
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Internet Explorer 8 (RC1) - Accelerator Mapping

Efter en periode med mange halv kiksede Microsoft versioner begynder verden måske at se bedre ud. 
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1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Windows 7, IE 8 ....
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As you would expect IE8 (RC1) renders Live Search Maps very fast (faster than the IE8 beta versions).

Google Maps in Internet Explorer 8 RC1
So this new browser finally displays Google Maps correctly and with the Release Candidate 1 version. Users of Google Earth 'Earth' Mode (tested with the lastest version of the API herehttp://mapperz.googlepages.com/LargeMapControl3D_GE.html(click earth) will notice the biggest performance difference - it's much better at rendering the globe at high and low altitudes. [...]
Read more: http://mapperz.blogspot.com/2009/01/internet-explorer-8-rc1-accelerator.html
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The need for a standard cloud taxonomy

Skyer er ikke bare skyer ...
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Some where over the rainbow ...
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Posted by James Urquhart

[...] As you might imagine in such a situation, most of the day was taken by attendees expressing their personal visions of cloud interoperability and standards building, only to boil next steps down to developing a taxonomy and sorting out a small list of the most pressing concepts to be explored. A wiki was proposed, and I will share the URL when I get it.

Here is the whiteboard at the end of the day (artistry courtesy of David Berlind, one of the founders of the event):

While the whiteboard may suggest that there was a large amount of agreement on the core concepts and that taxonomy was but a minor player, the reality is exactly the opposite. We couldn't agree on much of anything, except that there is a need for taxonomy and that trust (namely security) was one of the most pressing issues. [...]

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-19413_3-10148806-240.html
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Digital Planet

BBC er et af de få medier som jeg har hørt som virkelig har forstået at gå i dybden med kort og GIS og brugen af dette i bredere forum ... Tak for det BBC ...
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BBC is one of the few traditional medias with an insight into maps and GIS and the usage og these in a wider forum ... Thank you BBS ...
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This week, a special edition all about the Geographic web.

Google Maps in Brazil 
Google is adapting its web-based mapping application to cell phones and other portable devices. Marcello Quintella is geo project manager at Google’s Brazilian Headquarters in the city of Belo Horizonte. He shows Gareth some of the latest features bringing maps to your mobile. Using an Android-powered handset, he walks Gareth through some of its latest geo features:

Google maps

Google Android

Geocaching 
Gareth goes on a 21st century treasure hunt with Gill Clough PhD student at the Open University in England. ‘Geocaching’is a technological twist on the age-old pastime of treasure hunts – where players swap compasses and cryptic notes pinned to trees for GPS devices and geo-enabled mobile phones to track down hidden treasure. Here, the treasure is called a cache – hence the term ‘geocaching’. Gareth goes on his first geocache to find out why its becoming so popular around the world

Geocaching

Terracaching

[...]

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/digital_planet.shtml
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Check 'I Agree' to Continue – The Scary Yet Intriguing Truth about Web Mapping Terms of Service

En meget grundig gennemgang af de betingelser man underlægger sig ved brugen af mere eller mindre gratis kort og data ... En gennemgang af det som står med småt imellem linierne ...
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A very in depth walk through of all the terms of use ... Almost free means a lot more than that ... Very important stuff that only a few really dive into ...
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By Adena Schutzberg , Directions Magazine 
[...]
Building Mashups
Let's move on to a "deeper" use of mapping services: building mashups using an API. In that case an additional document or one substantially different from an "end user" ToS may apply.

Google uses a single document for both the Google Maps and Google Earth APIs. At the very top is the date of the document's last update. As of this writing, that update occurred on November 26, 2008. That's a good reminder that ToS agreements change. Google (and many others) include details about the licensee's (that is, the developer's) responsibility regarding ToS changes in the document.
"1. 1.5 Changes to the Terms. Google reserves the right to make changes to the Terms from time to time. When these changes are made, Google will make a new copy of the Terms available at http://code.google.com/apis/maps/terms.html. You understand and agree that if you use the Service after the date on which the Terms have changed, Google will treat your use as acceptance of the updated Terms. If a modification is unacceptable to you, you may terminate the agreement by ceasing use of the Maps APIs."
Be aware that these terms do not say that Google is obligated to tell the licensee the terms have changed. The licensee is responsible for keeping up-to-date. Indeed, this set of terms changed several times within the month of November 2008 alone! Further, this ToS references and requires acceptance of two other documents, which may themselves change: Google's Legal Notices and Privacy Policy.  [...]
Read more: http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=3007&trv=1
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onsdag den 28. januar 2009

Introducing Measurement Lab

Hvor mange lang er din bred-båndsforbindelse?
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Measure up ...
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Users: Test Your Internet Connection 
Learn about your connection & support broadband research.


Researchers: Get Involved 
Use and support this platform.

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When an Internet application doesn't work as expected or your connection seems flaky, how can you tell whether there is a problem caused by your broadband ISP, the application, your PC, or something else? It can be difficult for experts, let alone average Internet users, to address this sort of question today.

Last year we asked a small group of academics about ways to advance network research and provide users with tools to test their broadband connections. Today Google, the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute, the PlanetLab Consortium, and academic researchers are taking the wraps off of Measurement Lab (M-Lab), an open platform that researchers can use to deploy Internet measurement tools.

Researchers are already developing tools that allow users to, among other things, measure the speed of their connection, run diagnostics, and attempt to discern if their ISP is blocking or throttling particular applications. These tools generate and send some data back-and-forth between the user's computer and a server elsewhere on the Internet. Unfortunately, researchers lack widely-distributed servers with ample connectivity. This poses a barrier to the accuracy and scalability of these tools. Researchers also have trouble sharing data with one another.

M-Lab aims to address these problems. Over the course of early 2009, Google will provide researchers with 36 servers in 12 locations in the U.S. and Europe. All data collected via M-Lab will be made publicly available for other researchers to build on. M-Lab is intended to be a truly community-based effort, and we welcome the support of other companies, institutions, researchers, and users that want to provide servers, tools, or other resources that can help the platform flourish.

Today, M-Lab is at the beginning of its development. To start, three tools running on servers near Google's headquarters are available to help users attempt to diagnose common problems that might impair their broadband speed, as well as determine whether BitTorrent is being blocked or throttled by their ISPs. These tools were created by the individual researchers who helped found M-Lab. By running these tools, users will get information about their connection and provide researchers with valuable aggregate data. Like M-Lab itself these tools are still in development, and they will only support a limited number of simultaneous users at this initial stage.

At Google, we care deeply about sustaining the Internet as an open platform for consumer choice and innovation. No matter your views on net neutrality and ISP network management practices, everyone can agree that Internet users deserve to be well-informed about what they're getting when they sign up for broadband, and good data is the bedrock of sound policy. Transparency has always been crucial to the success of the Internet, and, by advancing network research in this area, M-Lab aims to help sustain a healthy, innovative Internet.

You can learn more at the M-Lab website. If you're a researcher who'd like to deploy a tool, or a company or institution that is interested in providing technical resources, we invite you to get involved.

Posted by Vint Cerf, Chief Internet Evangelist, and Stephen Stuart, Principal Engineer
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Sound Impressions on Google Maps

Husk at skrue op for lyden ...
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Remember to turn on sound ...
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Philipp Lenssen

Aporee.org is a mashup bringing sounds recorded from a specific location (or speech talking about the location) onto Google Maps.
Read more: http://blogoscoped.com/archive/2009-01-28-n57.html
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Vancouver in 3D

København har nogle enkelte 3D bygninger skulle man ikke have bemærket det ...
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First we take Manhattan then we take ... Vancouver ...
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Growing up in Vancouver during its mushrooming period, which began in the mid-'80s, I witnessed a small city's downtown core give way to a cosmopolitan urban center (or "centre," as we write) of glass towers. Approaching the peninsular downtown, encased by rugged mountains and the Pacific, any local still feels awe at its newfound density and how much it's grown.

Yesterday, more than 1400 buildings in Vancouver became visible in Google Earth's "3D Buildings" layer. With the 2010 Winter Olympics just a year away, I'm especially excited that you can now get a richer sense of Vancouver's distinctive splendor, which marries advanced urban development with a dramatic coastal landscape. You can see places like Moishe Safdie's colosseum-like Library Square, the waterfront Canada Place (with its "Five Sails"), and Olympic venues such as the domed B.C. Place stadium. 

I think you'll see why this city is routinely voted one of the world's most livable:



To those seeing Vancouver for the first time, I hope you'll realize it's a city worth visiting (I'd suggest in the summer, when it rains less). To the other Vancouverites, I hope this rich, rain-free view of your home makes you appreciate it even more.

Posted by Tamara Micner, Canada Communications Team
Read more: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2009/01/vancouver-in-3d.html
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More Open-Source Goodies for Flash API Developers: DragZoomControl, MarkerTracker

FYI
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FYI
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Posted by Pamela Fox, Maps API Team

You know what's awesome about open-source code written in one language? It's fairly easy to port it over to a similar language, and suddenly it's useful for a completely new audience. That's what's happening in our open-source JavaScript/AS3 Maps API utility libraries, and I'm loving it. Check out the most recent ports:


DragZoomControl: This custom control lets user drag a rectangle on the map to zoom in to just that area, and it's one of my personal favorite ways of drilling down on a map (particularly since I'm usually on a laptop, without a scroll-wheel mouse). The port comes courtesy of developer Brian Richardson. Check out the demo or the reference.
MarkerTracker: This class lets you assign "trackers" to markers, so that when a marker moves out of the visible viewport, a ghost marker and arrow points in the direction of the tracked marker. For maps where there's one very important marker/POI, it's a great way of showing the user how to get back to the original marker. This port comes courtesy of developer Michael Menzel. Check out the demo or reference.
KMLParser: The KML parsing classes, which were a minimal port of the C++ libkml library, now have support for KML styles. This enhancement comes from developer Cecil Reid. Check out the demo or reference.

Thanks to all the developers helping to grow the library! If you're a developer with some code to contribute, just follow the steps in the wiki to get involved.

Read more: http://googlegeodevelopers.blogspot.com/2009/01/more-open-source-goodies-for-flash-api.html
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How We Test Software at Microsoft

Book


Discover how Microsoft implements and manages the software-testing process company-wide with guidance and insights direct from its test managers. Organizing any testing program the people, processes, and tools can be challenging and resource intensive. Even when the necessary tradeoffs are made, no development team can test every scenario. This book explains how a worldwide leader in software, services, and solutions staffed with 8,000 testers implements and manages its testing process effectively company-wide. Whether you re a tester or test manager, you ll gain expert insights on effective testing techniques and methodologies including pros and cons of various approaches. For interesting context, the book also shares such facts as the number of test machines at Microsoft, how the company uses automated test cases, and bug statistics. It answers key testing questions, such as who tests what, when, and with what tools. And it describes how test teams are organized, when and how testing gets automated, testing tools, and feedback with illuminating insights for software-development organizations of all kinds.
Buy: http://www.amazon.com/How-We-Test-Software-Microsoft/dp/0735624259
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Digital pen puts GIS to work

James Bond - her er din nye super gadget ...
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Super cool ...
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By Patrick Marshall
Sometimes the simple innovations make the biggest splash. The paper clip is a good example. [...]

The pen contains an integrated digital camera and an image microprocessor. As a user writes with the pen it takes digital snapshots – at the rate of 75 shots per second – of the markings made on the hard-copy map. The data is stored in the pen’s on-board memory until it is docked to a computer. The user then has the opportunity to review all the collected data and selectively process it into the appropriate GIS file. [...]

“Time-saving is the biggest benefit,” Marino said. “I can hand the pen to a policeman who has never seen GIS and show him how to check off the features and place them on the map and he can do that in five minutes.” [...]
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A History of the Order of X, Y and Z – and Why It's Important

Få koordineret dimmensionerne ...
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Ex, why Z?
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By Sam Bacharach , Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. 

[...] A two-axis system of east-west and north-south was defined using the algebra coordinate system created by mathematician René Descartes in the 1600s. In this Cartesian coordinate system, the tradition is to use (x, y) as the order of the coordinate pair locating a point on a plane. But when north is up - the predominant (though not only) pattern for maps since Ptolemy made maps of ancient Egypt - x measures east-west and y measures north-south. That is, the latitude–longitude order favored by geographers is y, x. So the axis confusion we deal with today has, itself, a longstanding history dating back to the first efforts to relate two different reference systems with two methods of defining the axes. As long as people communicate clearly and accurately the characteristics of the axis-systems in use - "truth in advertising" - the confusion is minimized.

_

When geodesists connect coordinate systems to the Earth by specifying a datum (locations on the Earth for the axes), we in OGC call that a Coordinate Reference System (CRS). The equator was a natural for a worldwide datum on the east-west axis and over time the Greenwich Meridian, running through Greenwich, U.K., has become the most common location for the north-south axis.  [...]
Read more: http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=3001&trv=1
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What the Web knows about you

Vi har allesammen en cyber identitet i form af informationer som man enten selv (næsten frivilligt) har lagt på nettet og så alle de oplysninger som andre (venner og det der er værre) har lagt derud. Det kan man enten vælge at leve med eller lade være - sidstnævnte bliver dog svært og firmaer som hjælper folk med at sløre deres net identitet har/får massere af vind i sejlene i årene der kommer ...
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We all have a cyber identity in the shape of informations you either yourself (almost freely) have distributed to the net or informations that your friends (and others) have contributed with. You can either choose to live with it or you don't - if not you'll have a hard time 'cleaning' up the mess. Companies helping people with the cleaning will today and in the future have lots of work to do ...
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How much private information is available about you in cyberspace? Social Security numbers are just the beginning.
Robert L. Mitchell
What information is available about you in cyberspace? Where does it come from? What risks does it present and what, if anything, can you do to protect yourself? To answer those questions I decided to use my own identity, Robert L. Mitchell, a national correspondent at Computerworld, as my research subject. [...]
Read more: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=printArticleBasic&taxonomyName=Security&articleId=9125058&taxonomyId=17
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Building Rich Internet Applications with ArcGIS API for Flex

FYI
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FYI
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Presented by Matthew Baker

Seminar overview

The ArcGIS API for Flex enables developers to create powerful and interactive applications by taking advantage of the GIS capabilities of the ArcGIS Server services and the rich user experience capabilities of the Adobe Flex framework. 

The presenter will present the tools and concepts needed to create your first Web mapping application with the ArcGIS API for Flex. This seminar will introduce the concepts of Rich Internet Applications, capabilities of the Adobe Flex framework, and discuss the functionalities of the ArcGIS API for Flex to create rich and powerful mapping applications. 

The seminar will also show how to use existing Flex components with the ArcGIS API for Flex, considerations for authoring and deploying applications in a Web server, and further resources for building Flex applications.

Key points

The presenter will discuss:

  • Features and functionality of the ArcGIS API for Flex
  • Rich Internet Applications
  • Adobe Flex framework
  • ArcGIS Server Services directory
  • Deploying Flex applications

Intended audience

The seminar is designed for developers of both simple and advanced Web mapping applications, who would like to combine the characteristics of Rich Internet Applications (RIA) with the powerful ArcGIS Server services. Participants should be familiar with the basic concepts of ArcGIS Server and Web application development.

Read more: 
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