Point of Beginning articles from June 2003

Point of Beginning archives from June 2003

Sam the surveyor. (Editor's Note).(Editorial)
June 1, 2003... A couple of months ago, I asked my troop of 16 Brownie Girl Scouts, age 6 to 8 years old, to share with the group what they wanted to be when they grow up. I received answers of doctor, nurse, veterinarian, horse trainer, hockey player,...

The latest news. (Letters to the Editor).(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2003... April 2003 We all know as surveyors that technology is a double-edged sword. ExpressMap is a perfect example of the wrong side of the sword for the surveying profession. Nevertheless, First American is doing what any other company would do...

Erratum.
June 1, 2003... The article "The Fine Points of Scanning" in the May 2003 issue contained an oversight in the name of the agency that issued contract work at the World Trade Center highlighted in the article. The Port Authority of New York should have been...

GPS IIR-9, we have lift Off! A new addition to the GPS constellation. (The Latest News).
June 1, 2003... A new member of the GPS family was introduced late this March. A Boeing (St. Louis, Mo.) Delta II booster carrying the NAVSTAR GPS IIR-9 satellite built by Lockheed Martin of Bethesda, Md., for the U.S. Air Force, lifted off from Gape Canaveral...

Lewis and Clark dedication held at Harpers Ferry. (The Latest News).
June 1, 2003... The shopping list that Meriwether Lewis brought to the U.S. Armory and Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, W.Va., when he arrived there on March 16, 1803, included 15 rifles, 15 powder horns, 30 bullet molds, 30 ball screws, extra rifle and musket locks,...

Images of efficiency: a practical guide to planning a laser scanner survey.
June 1, 2003... Tripod-mounted 3D laser imaging systems (or laser scanners) are new, incredible tools. With the unique combination of measurement rate, range and portability, laser scanners are capable of revolutionizing some areas of the surveying industry....

Leveling with four-wheeled chariots: motorized leveling systems lend ease and time to Wisconsin height modernization program.
June 1, 2003... To augment the vast economic benefits of the Global Positioning System (GPS) for surveying purposes, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) has created the Wisconsin Height Modernization Program (WI-HMP). The WI-HMP is a statewide...

Call before you dig: using your state's utility locating system could save money, infrastructure and lives.
June 1, 2003... About five years ago, a surveyor in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada, nicked a plastic gas line with an iron pin. At the time, nothing happened. But the following winter, a snowplow hit that same pin and a nearby house blew up. The surveyor...

The cost of safety: a few new economical products could save your life.(Editorial)
June 1, 2003... The only thing constant is change. We all know this, but human nature sometimes dictates that we also fight it. Change just for the sake of change is generally not beneficial, that we also fight it. Change just but change for a good reason...

Cincinnati State students combine GIS and surveying to map an aging cemetery. (From the Field).
June 1, 2003... Cincinnati State Technical and Community College is committed to experiential learning, from the instruction in hands-on labs to a required cooperative education component in the curriculum. We find that the students thrive on this type of...

2003 GIS Software Survey.
June 1, 2003... 2003 GIS Software Survey Program Name Autodesk Map Series 2004 Manufacturer/Distributor Autodesk Inc. Manufacturer's Phone Number 603/621-3270 Cost Per Seat ...

GPS modernization. (The GPS Observer).
June 1, 2003... In the surveying and mapping community, GPS modernization is most often thought of as improvements in GPS receiver technology. Those of us who surveyed with GPS in the early 1980s remember the four-channel single-frequency receiver that weighed...

Facing forward. (Professional Topography).
June 1, 2003... Surveying... is it a trade or a profession? If you have a license to practice surveying, what does that mean? Can quality be legislated? Do you care? These and similar questions may help answer whether you are a professional or not. How you...

Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions. (Turning Points).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions, Huntsville, Ala., acquired Terra Map Server GmbH, Dortmund, Germany. Terra Map Server, established in 1999, serves as a central geo-data and application services portal. Together, Intergraph Mapping...

Leica Geosystems. (Turning Points).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Leica Geosystems, Atlanta, Ga., appointed Jim Naismith as vice president of sales for the south central region, which includes Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri, and Rod Eckels as vice president of sales for the...

ASPRS. (Turning Points).
June 1, 2003... ASPRS elected Karen L. Schuckman as vice president for 2003. She will be sworn in as president in 2005, and will be the fourth woman to hold that office since the society was founded in 1934. New ASPRS officers for 2003-2004 include Donald T....

Tripod Data Systems. (Turning Points).(Brief Article)
June 1, 2003... Tripod Data Systems, Corvallis, Ore., appointed Joe Binder as regional sales manager for the western and central regions. Binder's appointment fills the position vacated by Tom Stevens' promotion to national sales manager. Binder reports...

DMTI Spatial. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... DMTI Spatial released CanMap Water V1.0, Canada's first detailed hydrography file complete with naming for major water features. This national file also has a combination of attributed boundary and point file features in addition to the...

DMTI Spatial. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Also, DMTI Spatial has expanded its topographic and land use classification file, extending its coverage from 157 to 745 urban centers. The inclusion of topographic and land use coverage for an additional 588 urban areas represents a near...

A.R.E. Inc. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... A.R.E. Inc. introduced the T-Series truck cap. Matching the height of the truck cab and gradually inclining to an extended height at the rear, the aerodynamic shape provides a smooth airflow over and around the truck. The fiberglass cap...

Laser Technology Inc. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Laser Technology Inc. released the MapStar Compass Module II, a newly enhanced digital compass that calculates azimuth (directional) measurement for all types of mapping applications. The new simple calibration procedure and streamlined menus...

Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions announced the GeoMedia Software Subscription Program. Through the program, customers may purchase one-year subscriptions to run one or multiple licenses of desktop and web products in the GeoMedia...

Schonstedt Instrument Company. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Schonstedt Instrument Company announced the GA-92XT magnetic locator. The new locator retracts to fit into a belt-mounted holster, freeing hands for work or for carrying other tools. (Schonstedt, Kearneysville, W.Va.) 406

PBS&J. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... PBS&J announced the DFIRM Tools Extension v1.0 for ESRI ArcGIS 8.2, a software extension designed to quickly and easily update and produce flood maps that meet the new FEMA DFIRM (Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map) specifications. Available on...

Research Systems Inc. (RSI). (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Research Systems Inc. (RSI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Eastman Kodak Company, released a free downloadable plug-in to ESRI's ArcGIS 8.1 and greater. The plug-in allows the ArcGIS user to import ENVI raster (image) files directly into the...

Autodesk Inc. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Autodesk Inc. began shipping Autodesk Envision 8 software, formerly Autodesk Onsite Desktop, a GIS and design tool for mapping, engineering and land-use professionals. Autodesk Envision 8 gives professionals the power to visualize, analyze,...

Autodesk Inc. (New & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Also, Autodesk Inc. introduced Volo View 3, its high-performance review, markup, measuring and plotting tool for digital design data. Volo View 3 is developed for design review team members, even those without access to the originating design...

Crain Enterprises Inc. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Cram Enterprises Inc. introduced 15' versions of its telescopic prism poles. An extension to the Alumilite, Gomposilite and Garbonlite/AL prism pole lines, the 15' poles have all of the same convenient features of Grain's other telescopic...

Crain. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Also, Cram introduced the Stedi-Rest as standard on all of their prism and GPS poles. The Stedi-Rest is a multifunctional tool that performs a variety of tasks, such as serving as an equipment "prop" to protect equipment from environmental...

Leica Geosystems. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Leica Geosystems announced support for Lizardtech's lossless MrSID technology in its ERDAS IMAGINE product line. IMAGINE users can now quickly and efficiently view and store original-quality imagery for feature classification, military...

Leica Geosystems GIS & Mapping LLC. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Also, Leica Geosystems GIS & Mapping LLC announced the Leica Photogrammetry Suite, a seamlessly integrated suite of digital photogrammetry products that empowers users to transform raw imagery into reliable data layers required for digital...

Thales Navigation. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... Thales Navigation is now marketing GNSMART reference station software from Geo++. The GNSMART, or GNSS State Monitoring and Representation Technique, software suite is designed for controlling networks of GPS reference stations, including the...

PCI Geomatics. (News & Notable).
June 1, 2003... PCI Geomatics released Geomatica 9 with GIS capa bilities, hyperspectral tools and an exclusive new hyperspectral data compression technology. A completely integrated solution, Geomatica 9 provides geomatics capabilities and...

Surveying solutions.
June 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.(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2003... Here are a few message from a thread called "Sense of Direction" Posted By HOLE DIGGER on 3/27/2003 at 10:44 AM Born and raised in checkerboard country. Almost all section lines have county or state roads running along them. Nearly all...