Point of Beginning articles from December 2003

Point of Beginning archives from December 2003

Do-It-Yourself-ers and disclaimers.(Editor's Note)
December 1, 2003... In October, a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) video advertisement was brought to my attention. The advertisement for the video, dubbed "How to survey your own property," called for potential buyers and viewers to learn the mystery of "how land surveyors...

Viewpoint August 2003.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2003... I enjoyed [Bill Beardslee's] article and could not agree more. I too am a transprofessional and I find it as challenging in the surveying profession, if not more so, as in the engineering [field to practice] with a level of ethical confidence....

Viewpoint August 2003.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2003... Put me down as agreeing 110 percent. In addition to being such great consumer advocates by keeping fees low, land surveyors allow "scope creep" to further erode fees. Surveyors are now tasked with providing a plethora of extraneous information...

A step ahead September 2003.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2003... I was interested to see the article on the use of cell phones for RTK GPS. The Oregon DOT has also secured this capability in an effort to get "a step ahead" of equipment budget cuts and decreased staffing, while the workload continues to climb...

A Leica representative responds.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Many of the Oregon DOT problems have been caused by a weakness in the cellular coverage and cellular providers in their area. As [Mr. Artman] said, the technology and the theory is great, and in many areas of the country it works very well. For...

Unveiling Lincoln as a surveyor.(The Latest News)(Abraham Lincoln )
December 1, 2003... Surveying's prestigious presidential connection was commemorated recently when a new statue depicting Abraham Lincoln as a surveyor was unveiled in central Illinois on October 4th. The bronze statue, titled "Abraham Lincoln Deputy County...

Accepting a new ACSM.(The Latest News)(American Congress on Surveying and Mapping )
December 1, 2003... What was for some time a rather heated debate among some surveyors belonging to the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) was settled earlier this year. On June 18, 2003, the Tellers Committee for ACSM counted ballots asking...

Hamburg hosts INTERGEO 2003: German geomatics exhibition remains as largest show worldwide.
December 1, 2003... The 2003 INTERGEO exhibition and conference, the 87th annual meeting of the DVW, the German Society of Geodesy, Geo-information and Land Management (an organization with approximately 10,000 members) was held in Hamburg, Germany, from September...

A surveying chronicle: how and why a Chicago firm surveyed a world war II German warship.
December 1, 2003... One of the oldest museums of its kind in the Western Hemisphere, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago was faced with a unique challenge: to relocate its popular U-505 submarine to an underground structure currently under construction....

It started here; honoring the work of surveyors during the bicentennial celebration of the Louisiana Purchase.(Louisiana Purchase bicentennial)
December 1, 2003... In the bicentennial years of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (2003-2006), historians, researchers and the public alike are recognizing the important work of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. Another esteemed bicentennial celebration is that of...

Stepping back in time: participants in the Surveyors Historical Society Rendezvous '03 head back to school for a lesson in surveying history.
December 1, 2003... On the grounds of Michigan State University (MSU) in East Lansing, Mich., this fall, students young and old gathered in a different sort of classroom--a vast conference room at the college--to hear lectures and presentations during the...

A monumental call: imagining a memorial for surveyors of the Outer Banks base line.
December 1, 2003... Imagine that it's 1848. You are working for the United States Coast Survey founded in 1807, establishing a highly accurate survey base line along the coast of North Carolina. This base line is being used for the first-ever coast survey, mapping...

From milkmen to mainstream: a compendium of emerging technologies in land development and surveying.
December 1, 2003... As time goes on, technology improves and firms advance, and certain technologies end up by the wayside. In much the same way that we no longer have TV repairmen or milkmen, we have seen drafting people give way to designers, and now workers who...

POB 2003 CAD/surveying software survey.
December 1, 2003... POB does not assume responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be contained within the survey. POB 2003 CAD/Surveying Software Survey PROGRAM/VERSION Autodesk Civil Series/2004 MANUFACTURER ...

Taking advantage of handheld GPS units.(The Business Side)(Column)
December 1, 2003... An important part of this business column is to give you, the business owner, my ideas on the type of equipment your company may need and the services it may perform in the future. This month I want to focus on GPS technology. If you are the...

Professional giving.(Offsets)(Engineering Ministries International)(Column)
December 1, 2003... Once again the world is getting caught up in the hectic holiday season. People are often focused on gift-giving and other festive activities, whether they are motivated by tradition or faith. And here in America, the giving is often lost on a...

Proposed: an ALTA/ACSM Record of Survey.(Viewpoint)(Column)
December 1, 2003... For the greater part of surveying history, it has been the location of property boundaries that defines the essence of what we as surveyors do. From relocating the markers lost by the annual flooding of the Nile, to the establishment of...

ESRI.(Turning Points)(Enviromental system Research Institute)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Former Wyoming Governor Jim Geringer joined ESRI Redlands, Calif., as a spokesperson. In his new role, he will spread the message that GIS technology leads to better decision making. Geringer completed his second term as governor in January...

NavCom Technology Inc.(Turning Points)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... NavCom Technology Inc., Torrance, Calif., added Western Latitudes to its global family of distributors. Western Latitudes offers NavCom's complete line of high accuracy, high precision GPS products as well as the Safari SR-7100 Network Radio....

Ohio Beam Inc. dba Blue Beam with operations in Ohio and Michigan, Spectra Laser & Precision Instrument Inc. with operations in Texas, Laserline Ontario with operations in Ontario, Canada, and Construction & Survey Instruments Inc.(Turning Points)(GeoShack North America Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Ohio Beam Inc. dba Blue Beam with operations in Ohio and Michigan, Spectra Laser & Precision Instrument Inc. with operations in Texas, Laserline Ontario with operations in Ontario, Canada, and Construction & Survey Instruments Inc. dba GeoShack...

John Copple was appointed CEO of Sanborn.(Turning Points)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... John Copple was appointed CEO of Sanborn. The company, formerly based in Pelham, New York, relocated its headquarters to Colorado Springs. Copple is based in the Colorado office. Copple joined Space Imaging in 1995 when the company was in its...

SECO Manufacturing Company Inc.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... SECO Manufacturing Company Inc. introduced the 5198-50 ATV Pole Bracket System. This system, designed to fit a rover rod and radio antenna pole to an ATV, makes mobile surveying easier and safer. This new system connects to the ATV's luggage...

Leica Geosystems.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Leica Geosystems introduced GradeStar 3D machine control system Version 4.2, which has been expanded to provide GPS- and TPS-based machine control capability for bulldozers as well as motor graders. GradeStar is designed to work with Leica...

NavCom Technology Inc.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... NavCom Technology Inc. introduced the NCT-2030M, a 12-channel, versatile, low-cost, dual-frequency GPS engine offering 64 megabytes of internal memory for data logging. The sensor delivers sub-millimeter dual-frequency, carrier-phase...

Topcon.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Topcon introduced a new line-up of improved theodolites, the DT-200 series, which replace the DT-100 series. The DT-200 series integrates the same high-quality advanced absolute circle reading technology found in Topcon's total station...

Iliff's Land Survey Store.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Iliff's Land Survey Store at www.dwiliff.com offered the Invertometer, a tool used to measure the elevations of pipe inverts by subtracting a calculated distance "A" from the man hole rim elevation. Eliminating the need for string lines and...

Tripod Data Systems (TDS).(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Tripod Data Systems (TDS) announced Survey Pro 3.8, the latest version of its best-selling surveying software, and the new TDS Recon rugged handheld data collector running Windows Mobile 2003 software for Pocket PCs. Survey Pro 3.8 is designed...

Trimble.(New & Notable)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Trimble announced that its Geo-Explorer CE series of GPS handheld receivers are available with Bluetooth wireless technology and the Windows CE.NET operating system. Bluetooth capability provides true wireless connectivity and easy data flow...

Problem: geodetic and control surveys: state plane coordinate systems.(Surveying Solutions)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... 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...

RPLS.com connection: here are a few messages from a thread called, "when did you get 'it'?".
December 1, 2003... Posted By John Hogan on 9/5/2003 at 9:41 AM Being a surveyor, I assume that all surveyors have gotten "it" at some time or another. The "it" I am referring to is the awareness, the visualization, the understanding, the feeling that comes...