Point of Beginning articles from February 2009

Point of Beginning archives from February 2009

Making connections: about a year ago, I received an invitation to connect to someone on LinkedIn. I have to admit I had fallen behind the times.(editor'spoints)
February 1, 2009... Despite the increasing popularity of online social networks, I had largely avoided them up to that point. I didn't have a LinkedIn profile. I had a Facebook account but didn't use it, and while I followed several online forums, I was mostly...

Virginia begins licensure requirements for surveyor photogrammetrists.(newsline)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Virginia law now requires land surveyors who use photogrammetry or other remote-sensing technology to hold a surveyor photogram-metrist license. The new law provides for a 12-month waiver period in which existing photogrammetrists can apply to...

NOAA appoints Blackwell as NGS director.(newsline)
February 1, 2009... Juliana P. Blackwell moved into the role of director of NOAA's Office of National Geodetic Survey (NGS) in January. As director, Blackwell oversees NOAA's responsibilities for the nation's spatial reference system. "I want to implement the...

COGO asks congress to designate geospatial subcommittees.(newsline)
February 1, 2009... The Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) formally requested Congress to establish House and Senate subcommittees with jurisdiction over federal geospatial activities. "Geospatial activities in the federal government have grown, and the...

URISA opens nominations for GIS Hall of Fame.(newsline)
February 1, 2009... URISA--the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association--is accepting nominations for its GIS Hall of Fame. Nominations are open to individuals or organizations from any profession and are not restricted to those having a past or current...

Connecting the dots: winning the business case for laser scanning requires patience and persistence.(newsline)
February 1, 2009... Creating a compelling case for investing in new technology can feel much like a game of dot-to-dot. The crusader starts at point one--the demystifying dot--and slowly moves from one dot of persuasion to the next, waiting for each stakeholder to...

The fast lane: a versatile instrument speeds.
February 1, 2009... The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is one of the largest engineering and surveying organizations in the United States. The department manages more than 45,000 miles of California's highway and freeway lanes, provides...

A winning bet: a strategic alliance gives surveyors an edge in the Las Vegas Convention Center renovations.
February 1, 2009... When the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) board of directors decided to embark on an $890 million project in 2005 to provide a face-lift to the Las Vegas Convention Center, they didn't fully anticipate the challenges of...

In the pipeline: successful utilities surveying requires smart project management and SUE.
February 1, 2009... The United States has a voracious appetite for energy, especially alternatives to costly conventional resources. To meet this demand, utilities must develop new infrastructure to transmit energy over long distances--projects that often require...

Eagle Point SMI 2008 software: a timesaving tool with solid data collection capabilities.(inREVIEW)
February 1, 2009... SMI data collection software has been a favorite of land surveyors for more than 20 years. I had the privilege of speaking to the software's creator, Stanley Trent, on several occasions, and it was obvious that he took a great deal of pride in...

A buyer's guide to insurance: When browsing at the local mall these days, I find myself having to repeat the phrase "just looking" more than usual.(insuranceforesight)
February 1, 2009... I hear others using it, too. It seems that all of us are holding tightly to our wallets and trying to make do. For me, avoiding the mall is a good game plan for keeping my money. But there are some purchases that cannot be avoided--like...

Using ArcGIS Explorer: in several prior episodes of this column, we have talked extensively about the importance of data. We have also discussed the role surveyors play in the overall GIS landscape.(surveyinggis)(Column)
February 1, 2009... Web-based mapping products such as Mapquest, Google Maps and Microsoft Virtual Earth have exploded onto the Internet and into our lives. Framework products are also available that can work with these online products to allow the user to...

Ohio court lays down the law on retracement: break out the champagne: the case I've been looking for is finally here.(traversingthelaw)(Column)
February 1, 2009... The courts have finally articulated what I having been saying in this column for the past four years. Can it be possible that I will no longer have to listen to surveyors who insist that we are finders of facts only and not entitled to, or...

Trimble.(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... TRIMBLE, Sunnyvale, Calif., acquired the FastMap and GeoSite software assets from KOREC, a privately held Trimble distributor serving the United Kingdom and Ireland. FastMap is an integrated field-based software suite for GIS data collection,...

Trimble.(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... Also, TRIMBLE acquired the assets of CALLIDUS PRECISION SYSTEMS GMBH, Halle, Germany, a privately held provider of 3D laser scanning solutions for the industrial market. Financial terms were not disclosed. Callidus will be part of Trimble's...

Rowe Professional Services Co.(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... ROWE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CO., Flint, Mich. (formerly Rowe Inc.), acquired surveying firm BURGIN & ASSOCIATES, Bay City, Mich. Former owner Donald R. Burgin, PS, manages the office, which provides enhanced services to the Saginaw, Bay City and...

Langan Engineering & Environmental Services.(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... LANGAN ENGINEERING & ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES opened a new office in Arlington, Va., and appointed Ryan C. Linthicum, PE, as senior associate. Linthicum has managed multiple major projects in the New York metropolitan area during his 11 years...

Missouri Department of Natural Resources.(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... The MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, Rolla, promoted Darrell Pratte, PLS, to land survey program director and state land surveyor. Pratte is a 23-year department employee. He succeeds J. Michael Flowers who retired in July. ...

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd.(turningpoints)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... BOWMAN CONSULTING GROUP LTD., Chantilly, Va., promoted Charles Powell, LS, to principal. Powell is a five-year Bowman Consulting veteran with more than 30 years of experience in land surveying. He oversees regional land surveying operations in...

American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS).(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... The AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING (ASPRS), Bethesda, Md., chose Thomas M. Lillesand as an honorary member. Lillesand, who has been a member of ASPRS since 1969, will receive the award at the ASPRS Annual Conference in...

U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's (ERDC) Topographic Engineering Center (TEC).(turningpoints)
February 1, 2009... The U.S. ARMY ENGINEER RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER'S (ERDC) TOPOGRAPHIC ENGINEERING CENTER (TEC), Alexandria, Va., announced that Ray Caputo, georeferenced PDF project manager for the Army TEC, received the United States Geospatial...

Geospatial Holdings Inc.(turningpoints)(appointment of David Vosbein)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... GEOSPATIAL HOLDINGS INC., Pittsburgh, promoted David Vosbein to president and chief operating officer. He retains his position as a member of the board of directors. Prior to joining Geospatial, Vosbein was the founder and CEO of several...

Satel-West.(turningpoints)(appointment of Mario Gosalvez)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... SATEL-WEST, Cupertino, Calif., hired Mario Gosalvez as region sales manager. Prior to joining Satel-West, Gosalvez was the Americas sales and business development manager for Pacific Crest Corporation, where he was responsible for the sales of...

Spectra Precision.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... SPECTRA PRECISION introduced the EPOCH 35, a complete GNSS system that includes a base, rover, field software, data collector and radio. The EPOCH 35 system uses highly accurate GPS and Glonass technology for cadastral, topographic, control,...

SECO.(new&notable)(SECO Manufacturing Company Inc.)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... SECO introduced two new ANSI/ISEA Class 2 and 3 vests that meet new FHWA mandates for highway workers. Suitable for any low-light situation, the vests feature stripes of 4-inch-wide contrasting reflective material and soft 2-inch-wide 3M silver...

SECO.(new&notable)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Also, SECO is now building Swiss-style prism poles with a user-friendly QLV locking mechanism. The fully adjustable QLV locking mechanism incorporates the high-vis 40-minute vial on the lock and out of the way of other accessories like data...

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS).(new&notable)(ArcPad)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... TOPCON POSITIONING SYSTEMS (TPS) released a new version of Field Tools for ArcPad, which supports the new GMS-2 Pro receiver and ArcPad v7.1.1. With this extension, customers can use the GMS-2 and GMS-2 Pro internal camera, internal compass and...

TPS.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... Also, TPS introduced the GMS-2 Pro, a hand-held GIS mapping solution with integrated autofocus digital camera and laser distance meter. The laser distance meter can be used in conjunction with the internal compass for offset measurements--shoot...

Applanix.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... APPLANIX announced that its POS AV products now support on-board OmniSTAR XP real-time differential GPS corrections using a purpose-built GNSS+L Band aircraft antenna and an embedded BD960 GNSS receiver. With the on-board capability and single...

Two Technologies Inc.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... TWO TECHNOLOGIES INC. introduced the Safari, a rugged IP65-rated hand-held computer for outdoor use in harsh environments. The Cycoloy-molded case offers extreme resilience to environmental stresses and a wide variety of chemical substances;...

Bentley Systems Inc.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... BENTLEY SYSTEMS INC. announced V8i, a comprehensive software portfolio for infrastructure. The V8i portfolio leverages and extends the core capabilities of its new interoperability platform for fully integrated project delivery. Core...

Blue Marble Geographics.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... BLUE MARBLE GEOGRAPHICS released the Geographic Calculator 7.2 via the Blue Marble Desktop 1.1 featuring two major functionality enhancements available with the purchase of a Geographic Calculator 7.2 license: multivector file translation and...

Zoller+Frohlich GMBH.(new&notable)
February 1, 2009... ZOLLER+FROHLICH GMBH released the Z+F IMAGER 5006i 3D laser scanner. The 5006i features improved point cloud data quality and operates in temperatures ranging from -10[degrees]C to 45[degrees]C. The integrated battery enables an independent...

SOKKIA GSR1700 CSX.(informationSHOWCASE)
February 1, 2009... Expand your survey potential with SOKKIA's GSR1700 CSX, our new powerful single-frequency GNSS. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * High Performance: Fix fast, reliably and accurately * GPS + GLONASS Advantage: Survey anywhere--even in...

Trimble Access[TM] software: connect to a world of new possibilities.(informationSHOWCASE)
February 1, 2009... Sharing data throughout the surveying workflow improves collaboration and control for both the field and the office. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Missing a job file? * Change of plans? * Client needs data right away? Trimble...

Surveying solutions.(funandgames)
February 1, 2009... Each month, we present a surveying problem from the second edition of "1001 Solved Surveying Fundamentals Problems" by Jan Van Sickle, PLS. The answer appears below the problem in a shaded box. We hope you enjoy this exercise for the mind. A...

The art of surveying.(funandgames)
February 1, 2009... VALENTINE GREETINGS. I claim you for my valentine I'm plumb discourged it is true. For on the level, I'm in doudt when I survey my chance with you. Photo courtesy of the National Museum of surveying [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...