Point of Beginning articles from August 2006

Point of Beginning archives from August 2006

Who are you serving?(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... In June, I wrote about prestige and satisfaction related to your career (or your job, depending on how you view it). The level of prestige and satisfaction you have in your particular position will dictate whether you remain and grow in it,...

Letters: June 2006.(letters)(Letter to the editor)
August 1, 2006... I read a letter to the editor in the June 2006 POB [that] makes an argument against monumenting possession rights and makes the concluding comment, "... our professional training and area of recognized expertise is in understanding the record...

Point of view: May 2006.(letters)(Letter to the editor)
August 1, 2006... I agree 100 percent with Mr. Mokanyk's column concerning surveying fees. I have had the same experiences with mortgage inspection surveys so many times now it is like a broken record. There are other factors contributing to our dilemma in...

NGS to replace and rename CORS in the NDGPS network.(newsline)
August 1, 2006... The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is renaming CORS stations in the maritime and Nationwide Differential GPS (NDGPS) network as the U.S. Coast Guard replaces old antennae with new Trimble Zephyr antennae. NGS processed relevant GPS data to...

New York society commemorates surveyor of Adirondacks.(newsline)
August 1, 2006... On May 25, 2006, the New York State Association of Professional Land Surveyors (NYSAPLS), in cooperation with its eastern chapter, unveiled a new historic marker at the former home of Verplanck Colvin, the surveyor credited with preserving New...

3D model of British Columbia on display.(newsline)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... A 40-foot by 74-foot, three-dimensional, full-color model of the entire province of British Columbia is now on display in a new discovery center in Victoria, B.C., Canada. The model, manufactured and installed by Solid Terrain Modeling (STM) of...

NCEES to administer first exam in Japan.(newsline)(National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) will administer the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam in Japan this October. Although the FE exam has been administered in Japan through the Oregon State Board of...

Thales renamed Magellan in buyout.(newsline)(Thales Navigation to be named Magellan Navigation Inc. )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... On July 20, an investment group led by Shah Capital Partners (SCP), Santa Clara, Calif, and Paris, France, reached a definitive agreement to acquire Thales Navigation, provider of solutions in the consumer, survey, GIS and OEM GPS navigation...

Calendar of events.(newsline)(Calendar)
August 1, 2006... AUGUST 5-8 ESRI Survey and GIS Summit ESRI San Diego, Calif. 909/793-2853 www.esri.com/surveysummit 16-18 FSMS 51st Annual Conference Florida Surveying and Mapping Society Orlando,...

Creating a new GIS solution: combined technologies aid GIS data collection for a range of innovative applications.
August 1, 2006... Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are spreading across the globe like wildfire. The range of applications for GIS is wide and diverse, including urban planning, land development, emergency services and response (911), watershed analysis,...

A New Geospatial World: from mapping-grade data to survey-grade accuracy, an improved Ohio county's GIS now better serves its residents and meets government regulations.(Geographic Information System)
August 1, 2006... Dubbed the "Incredible County" by its residents, Warren County, Ohio between Dayton and Cincinnati is one of the fastest-growing counties in the nation. With a population of 189,276, the county covers 408.9 square miles including both suburban...

DEM decisions: Ferris State University team evaluates and utilizes national digital elevation models for orthophotography applications.
August 1, 2006... Two of the freely available national Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data sets--the National Elevation Dataset (NED) and the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM)--are important for many engineering and mapping applications. Compared to...

Restoring the reservoir: LiDAR technology supports remediation efforts following a dam breach in the Missouri Ozarks.
August 1, 2006... In the early morning hours of Dec. 14,2005, in the heart of the Missouri Ozarks, a 20-foot wall of water rushed down into the east fork of the Black River, flooding portions of Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park and causing substantial damage to...

Protecting your best: focusing on workers' compensation benefits.
August 1, 2006... Workers' compensation coverage, often referred to as workers' comp, is an insurance that pays employees who have been injured on the job. Benefits cover all medical costs related to the injury and disability benefits cover employees unable to...

Mobile GIS with ESRI ArcPad 7.0.(surveyinggis)(Geographic information systems)
August 1, 2006... The term "mobile GIS" and what it represents continues to gain popularity in the world of mapping. But some of us have been doing it and calling it something else for years--surveying. That's right! Just what do you call taking your data to...

Operating a successful one-person survey company.(the business side)(Column)
August 1, 2006... This column is directed to one- (or two-) person companies performing survey work. Most of us know that one or two people today can do the work of a four- or five-person crew of 20 years ago. I can tell you from personal experience that...

Low-cost surveying.(on the level)
August 1, 2006... An old industry adage in the manufacturing arena says you can make money by producing the best product, or you can make money by producing the cheapest product--but you can't make money by producing the best and the cheapest product. What...

Rewriting legal descriptions.(traversingthelaw)
August 1, 2006... In my last column (July 2006), I attempted to explain in about 2,000 words how to make a boundary determination that will win in court. One of the suggestions I made was that flawed legal descriptions should be rewritten to remove...

2006 web-exclusive GIS Software Survey: POB rolls out 2006 GIS Software Survey in searchable, user-friendly online format.
August 1, 2006... Doing product research can be a lot of hard work and can consume a lot of your time. As many of you are aware, Geographic Information Systems are very much about the making of maps. To assist you in selecting a GIS product, we at POB have put...

Trimble.(turningpoints)
August 1, 2006... TRIMBLE, Sunnyvale, Calif., opened an office in India. Trimble Navigation India Pvt Ltd., located in Gurgaon, is the primary base for sales and support of all survey and construction as well as mapping and GIS solutions for the country. ...

Optech Incorporated.(turning points)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... OPTECH INCORPORATED, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, announced that Dr. Allan Carswell, founder and chairman of Optech Incorporated, has been honored with the John H. Chapman Award of Excellence by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) for his significant...

Design Professionals Inc.(turningpoints)
August 1, 2006... DESIGN PROFESSIONALS INC. (DPI), South Windsor, Conn., hired Lawrence R. Geissler Jr., LS, as director of surveying. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

C.H. Fenstermaker & Associates Inc.(turningpoints)
August 1, 2006... Larry J. Broussard joined C.H. FENSTERMAKER & ASSOCIATES INC., Lafayette, La., as senior surveyor/section manager. Broussard has more than 40 years of experience and is registered in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. He...

Avatech Solutions Inc.(turningpoints)
August 1, 2006... AVATECH SOLUTIONS INC., Owings Mills, Md., acquired Sterling Systems and Consulting, Madison Heights, Mich. Sterling Systems is a provider of Autodesk design technology solutions, consulting services and civil engineering solutions. Sterling...

The Wisconsin chapter of the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC WI) presented Fred Halfen with the 2006 President's Award.(turning points)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... The Wisconsin chapter of the AMERICAN COUNCIL OF ENGINEERING COMPANIES (ACEC WI) presented Fred Halfen with the 2006 President's Award. Halfen was also elected president of the WISCONSIN LAND INFORMATION ASSOCIATION (WLIA). Halfen, a certified...

Nikon-Trimble Co. Ltd.(new and notable)(DTM-652, NPL-632 and NPL-522)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... NIKON-TRIMBLE CO. LTD. introduced three new total stations in its 602 and 502 series: the DTM-652, NPL-632 and NPL-522. Both the DTM-652 and NPL-632 feature a CompactFlash (CF) slot and a USB port for data transfer. The DTM-652 is fast,...

Carlson Software released Carlson Civil 2007.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... CARLSON SOFTWARE released Carlson Civil 2007, which includes more than 50 new commands and 150 improved commands across the program spectrum comprised of survey, site and road design, hydrology and GIS. Carlson Civil 2007 works with AutoCAD...

Autodesk Inc. introduced Autodesk Civil 3D 2007 Extension for Google Earth--Technology Preview.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... AUTODESK INC. introduced Autodesk Civil 3D 2007 Extension for Google Earth--Technology Preview. This publishing utility is designed for civil engineers and surveyors who need to keep all constituents involved in a project, from the planning...

Satel launched the SATELLINE-3AS VHS.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... SATEL launched the SATELLINE-3AS VHS, a versatile VHF data modem and network management software bundle designed for professional remote monitoring and control applications. The SATELLINE-3AS VHF transmits data at up to 19.2 kbits per second...

Tripod Data Systems (TDS) announced the Recon X-Series of rugged handheld computers.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... TRIPOD DATA SYSTEMS (TDS) announced the Recon X-Series of rugged handheld computers. The Recon 200X features a 200 MHz Intel XScale processor and 128 MB of Flash memory; the Recon 400X features a 400 MHz processor and 256 MB of Flash memory....

Bentley Systems Incorporated released ProjectWise V8 XM Edition.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... BENTLEY SYSTEMS INCORPORATED released ProjectWise V8 XM Edition, a system of collaboration servers for managing, finding and sharing CAD data and geospatial content. ProjectWise V8 XM provides the following tools: a project framework offering...

PBS & J released the beta version of Flood Map Desktop (FMD).(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... PBS & J released the beta version of Flood Map Desktop (FMD), an extension for ESRI's ArcGIS 9 Desktop software. FMD software tools enable users to create FEMA DFIRM paper maps and Standard DFIRM Databases that are compliant with FEMA...

Intergraph Corporation announced the availability of Z/I Mission.(new & notable)
August 1, 2006... INTERGRAPH CORPORATION announced the availability of Z/I Mission, a comprehensive photo flight management system for aerial survey procedures. The Z/I Mission Core module facilitates basic functions such as viewing of projects, data import or...

Surveying solutions.(fun and games)(Reprint)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... 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 beside the problem, in a shaded box. We hope you enjoy...

Vintage ads.(funandgames)
August 1, 2006... Courtesy of The Museum of Surveying. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]