Point of Beginning articles from April 2008

Point of Beginning archives from April 2008

Time for action.(editor'spoints)
April 1, 2008... The "Education Debate" continues in the surveying profession. In general, parties remain divided on whether two years or four years of formal schooling should be required to sit for the licensure exam. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In...

USGS satellite-imaging programs progress despite FY 2009 budget decrease.(newsline)
April 1, 2008... President Bush proposed a $968.5 million FY 2009 budget for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in February, a decrease of $38 million from the FY 2008 funding enacted by Congress. "Clearly, in a constrained budget environment, tough choices...

ASCE report promotes increased educational requirements for civil engineers.(newsline)
April 1, 2008... The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released the second edition of its report, "Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge for the 21st Century: Preparing the Civil Engineer for the Future." According to ASCE, educational requirements...

Alabama Legislature introduces controversial bills to create rural surveyors.(newsline)
April 1, 2008... Two bills were introduced in the Alabama Legislature in February providing for the establishment of rural land surveyors in areas with populations of less than 5,000. The bills amend Section 34-11-2 of the Code of Alabama 1975. According to the...

Calendar of events.(Calendar)
April 1, 2008... APRIL 8-12 2008 CELSOC Annual Conference Consulting Engineers & Land Surveyors of California Incline Village, Nev. 916/340-6304 jvernon@celsoc.org ...

LiDAR grows up: the 2008 International LiDAR Mapping Forum showcases maturing technology and applications.(conferenceRECAP)
April 1, 2008... EVENT: 2008 International LiDAR Mapping Forum HOST: ILMF, www.lidarmap.org LOCATION: Denver DATES: Feb. 21-22, 2008 NUMBER OF ATTENDEES: 570 FUTURE DATES AND LOCATION: TBD The 2008 International LiDAR Mapping Forum...

Rapid replacement: overnight construction of Canada's first accelerated bridge replacement draws crowd of hundreds.
April 1, 2008... Last summer, an eight-lane bridge on Ottawa's Route 417 was replaced in just 17 hours using SPMT, computer-controlled platform vehicles that move bridge systems weighing up to several thousand tons with fraction-of-an-inch precision. It was a...

The winds of change: surveying technology preps Pennsylvania mountains to host a new generation of renewable power.
April 1, 2008... Set amid the Allegheny Mountains near Altoona, Pennsylvania, the Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm will be the state's largest wind farm and one of the largest in the mid-Atlantic region when complete in a few years. Under development by Gamesa Energy...

Bringing GNSS to South Africa.(technologyPROFILE)(Global Navigation Satellite System)
April 1, 2008... Located at the southernmost tip of Africa, the Republic of South Africa is enclosed by the Atlantic and Indian oceans to its south, west and east sides, and capped by the remainder of the African continent to its north. It's only about twice...

Hacia la excelencia toward exellence: an inside look at the growth and success of the University of Puerto Rico's land surveying program.(Cover story)
April 1, 2008... While many lament that new surveyors are entering the profession with insufficient mathematical skills or drive, this is not true of the surveying graduates at the University of Puerto Rico (UPR). Surveying students at UPR are very comfortable...

Expanding boundaries: a Texas Society 's new educational focus exposes high school students to surveying.
April 1, 2008... Like many things in the Lone Star State, the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors (TSPS) Education Committee is big. "It's been divided into several subcommittees," says TSPS board member Bill Coleman, RPLS. "We have a whole division that...

A body of knowledge: defining profession of surveying is paramount to reversing inaccurate public perception.
April 1, 2008... In February, two bills altering the licensing requirements for surveying in rural areas were introduced in the Alabama Legislature. In a news story on the bills, the following rationale was given: "PVC pipe made everyone a plumber. The wire...

GPS in 2008 and beyond.(thegpsobserver)
April 1, 2008... The GPS constellations are now more than 30 years old. The first satellite, launched on Feb. 22, 1978, was in the Block I constellation. It was designated SVN 1/ PRN 4 and remained operational for 21.9 months. A total of 11 Block I...

Company planning for the future, part 4.(thebusinessside)
April 1, 2008... This is the fourth and final installment of my series on company planning. We've reviewed business concepts and types of business structures (September 2007), management of the firm (October 2007) and new technology (February 2008). Now we will...

Elevation for the nation.(fromthegroundup)
April 1, 2008... Many of the presenters at the International LiDAR Mapping Forum (ILMF) in February discussed the growing interest and need for a new nationwide elevation data collection. New nationwide high-accuracy, high-resolution elevation data would...

The surveyor's duty and responsibility.(traversingthelaw)
April 1, 2008... As we traverse the law, we can't overlook the secondary sources (1) of the law: survey texts, learned treatises and articles published in our professional journals and magazines. If we are looking for authoritative sources on what the...

Questions for the presidential candidates.(capitolgains)
April 1, 2008... As this column is being written, the American people have begun the quadrennial process of choosing a president. The early primaries have begun, and debates are broadcast almost weekly. I have to confess that I'm a political junkie and that...

A photogrammetry primer.(thetechnologybenchmark)
April 1, 2008... Part of the curriculum in the class I teach at George Mason University includes a brief introduction to the field of photogrammetry. When I was introduced to this field many years ago, I observed how ground control was established and...

Professional Land Surveyors of Wyoming.(turningpoints)
April 1, 2008... Vickie Sue Hudson died on Feb. 12, 2008, at the age of 58. She was married for almost 20 years to R. L. Hudson, RPLS, a founding member of the PROFESSIONAL LAND SURVEYORS OF WYOMING (PLSW). She was co-editor of Lines and Points, the PLSW...

Allen Precision Equipment.(turningpoints)(appointment of Royce Bain)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... ALLEN PRECISION EQUIPMENT hired Royce Bain as outside sales representative for the state of Georgia. Bain has more than 30 years of experience in the surveying industry as a surveyor and as a product specialist. He holds Leica certifications in...

ESRI.(turningpoints)
April 1, 2008... ESRI opened a satellite office in Sacramento, Calif. Staff and GIS software users can attend technical workshops and seminars, host meetings and project briefings, and participate in ESRI-authorized training at the new office, which is located...

Woolpert Inc.(turningpoints)(appointment of Joe Seppi)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... WOOLPERT INC. hired Joe Seppi, CMS, as photogrammetry and remote sensing project director at its Dayton office. Seppi is primarily responsible for directing management, deliverables and budgets across multiple projects while establishing and...

Joseph A. Schudt & Associates.(turningpoints)(appointments)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... JOSEPH A. SCHUDT & ASSOCIATES, Frankfort, Ill., appointed Michael G. "Mickey" Shackelford, PLS, and Matthew C. Anderson, PE, as vice presidents. Shackelford has been in charge of all surveying services for the firm since 1995 as survey...

2008 ASPRS Fellow Award.(turningpoints)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... Allan Falconer, Peggy J. Harwood, Frank L. Scarpace and Bernard "Barney" Schur have been named the 2008 ASPRS FELLOW AWARD winners. The designation is conferred on active society members who have performed exceptional service in advancing the...

Trimble.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... TRIMBLE introduced the GPS Pathfinder ProXRT, a high-performance GPS receiver combined with Trimble H-Star technology, OmniSTAR correction capability and optional Glonass capability. Trimble H-Star technology allows users to relocate assests in...

Topcon Positioning Systems.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... TOPCON POSITIONING SYSTEMS unveiled TopSURV 7 software for Windows PC or CE Mobile systems. TopSURV 7 stores configuration files for every Topcon instrument, and its new database engine reduces file size by 60 percent. Its new large graphical...

Topcon.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... Also, TOPCON introduced the FC-2200 alphanumeric field controller. The FC-2200 features: a full keyboard; color, sunlight-readable touchscreen; Windows CE-based architecture; built-in wireless Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and WLAN connectivity; USB flash...

SECO Manufacturing Company.(new&notable)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... SECO MANUFACTURING COMPANY introduced a rear-locking 62 mm prism assembly. The assembly features a new locking mechanism on the back of the yoke for easier sighting and adjustment, a tilting axis height of 115 mm and an all-metal Premier target...

SECO.(new&notable)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... Also, SECO introduced fiberglass builder's rods. The eight models come in 8-20 feet heights and are graduated in 10ths or feet/inches. Most major sensor clamps will fit, and no special brackets are required. The rods have a wide, easy-to-read...

Magellan.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... MAGELLAN introduced the MobileMapper 6, a rugged, water-proof, handheld GPS/GIS receiver. The receiver comes standard with a built-in microphone, Microsoft Windows Mobile version 6, a touchscreen, Bluetooth for wireless connectivity and an...

Magellan.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... Also, MAGELLAN introduced the ProMark 500 dual-frequency GNSS receiver that processes GPS, Glonass and SBAS signals. ProMark 500 delivers state-of-the-art RTK features in a light, cable-free rover. The embedded Magellan BLADE (Baseline Accurate...

Optech Incorporated.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... OPTECH INCORPORATED announced that MAPTEK has enabled direct file import functionality of ILRIS-3D open format IXF point cloud data into its I-Site Studio product. ILRIS-3D is a fully portable, laser-based ranging and imaging system....

Faro Technologies Inc.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... FARO TECHNOLOGIES INC. launched Photon 80 and Photon 20 laser scanners. The two devices scan, digitally re-create and record all of an object's or area's dimensions in 3D. Advancements include: 300-percent less noise for greater clarity;...

Javad GNSS.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... JAVAD GNSS unveiled its JAVAD brand of GNSS products. Javad GNSS' Triumph receiver chip is built on 90nm design architecture housed in a 17 mm x 17 mm package and features 216 channels grouped in three categories to track GPS, GLONASS, Galileo,...

Delorme.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... DELORME released Public Land Survey System (PLSS) data for use in all current versions of XMap GIS software. The free downloadable Openspace GIS layers display township, range and section boundaries for each of the 30 states covered by the...

Autodesk Inc.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... AUTODESK INC. launched AutoCAD Civil 3D 2009. New functions include: a comprehensive storm water hydraulics and hydrology solution for storm sewer design, watershed analysis, detention pond modeling and culvert analysis; complete survey...

Eagle Point Software Corporation.(new&notable)
April 1, 2008... EAGLE POINT SOFTWARE CORPORATION introduced its SMI 2008 field survey software. Data Collection, the first product released under the SMI 2008 product line, is compatible with most devices running Windows Mobile and Windows CE. Although the...

Prefiniti.(new&notable)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... PREFINITI debuted its Internet-based network available to the public. Prefiniti enables businesses to manage employee schedules, process timesheets, instantly view and share project-pertinent information to employees and clients regardless of...

Surveying solutions.(funandgames)(Reprint)
April 1, 2008... Each month, we present a surveying problem from the second edition of 1001 Solved Surveying Fundamentals Problems by Jan Van Sickle, PLS. As in the following example, the answer will appear below the problem in a shaded box. We hope you enjoy...