Category: Thoughts

Tim Sutton just announced on the QGIS blog that 0.8.1 has been released.

It is our great pleasure to announce the immediate availability of Quantum GIS (QGIS) Version 0.8.1. Quantum GIS (QGIS) is a user friendly Open Source Geographic Information System (GIS) that runs on Linux, Unix, Mac OSX, and Windows. QGIS supports vector, raster, and database formats. QGIS is licensed under the GNU General Public License. QGIS lets you browse and create map data on your computer. It supports many common spatial data formats (e.g. ESRI ShapeFile, geotiff). QGIS supports plugins to do things like display tracks from your GPS. QGIS is Open Source software and its free of cost (download here).

The release notes are here.

BTW, what is up with the new icon? Seems a little retro to me…

I got an email from a fan:

from xxxxx@hotmail.com
to james.fee@gmail.com
date Jun 15, 2007 6:04 AM
subject re: James Fee GIS Blog
James,

You are such a wikicracker. Grow up.

I had not heard of the term wikicracker before, but Urban Dictionary is my friend.

ESRI has introduced their new ArcGIS Online Content Sharing Program.

The ArcGIS Online Content Sharing Program enables your organization to contribute geographic data content to be published and hosted by ESRI. By participating in the program, ESRI will integrate your content with that from other providers for publication in ArcGIS Online services. Once your data is published, the data can be accessed by users throughout your organization and by other users with access to the Internet. This program is available to any ESRI user and other geographic data providers interested in making their data content broadly available.

Interesting, I’ve always wondered why ESRI never offered up such a service before. I’ll be interested to see who starts offering their data through the service.

Anyone wonder when they’ll offer ArcGIS Online via KML?

ESRI customer handing keys to their data over to ESRI

We’ve been kicked out of our office building due to a bomb scare at the bus station below. What does any respected GIS professional do in that situation? Grabs his laptop and a copy of Manifold. I figured I might as well get Manifold reinstalled and give it another try.

I’m sure Microsoft Popfly is really cool, but until you get around to sending me an invite (I’ve been waiting for weeks), I’m stuck looking in from the outside.

Respectfully yours:

James Fee

The police have pulled down the tape and we are back in the office. The suspicious package lunch box has been destroyed by the Tempe Bomb squad. No word on the status of the ham and cheese sandwich.

I was talking with a “CAD Operator” the other day and he mentioned to me that he noticed that Shapefiles are the GIS equivalent to the DWG. I explained to him how technically it wasn’t like that, but I guess you’d get that feeling as almost everyone uses the Shapefile in one way other another.

There was some talk about the OSG-SD not happening, but it looks like its a go.

From the OSG-SD mailing list:

Hi All

Well its on !

Tim Foresman has agreed to be our speaker again ! Fresh from the ISDE5 conference in Berkeley.

http://www.isde5.org/

We had a Great time and made lots of new friends. Lots of good news to share about the Digital Earth Exchange and the new
announcement from Spot Image of France about Planet Action Collaboration to Provide Climate Change Tools.

I will also be showing some of the latest coolest open source software on the planet 🙂 We will also be opening it up for others to share what they are up to! Feel free to contact me if you would like to present something but its not required.

We will buy Pizza and refreshments for all so we would like to know how many want to attend… reply to the list or me directly! Invite folks you meet at the ESRI conference 🙂

The plan is to start around 6PM at the Vizlab on SDSU campus.

http://citi.sdsu.edu/directions/

The trolley runs from downtown and stops on the south side of campus or its a short drive east on Rt.8

Hope to see you all on the 18th of June at 6PM

John Graham
Chief Scientist, Visualization Center
San Diego State University
johngattelascience.org

All had a great time last year and it is very easy to get there via the Trolley. Trust me, if you want to see some amazing stuff head over. And don’t worry, it isn’t an ESRI hate session. Most (though there are some folks that are close minded) understand the reality of ESRI and their place in GIS and try and work with them as opposed to fighting them. That is what makes what you see so special.

If only I had vacation time to go to Omaha. Oh well I’ll have to watch the CWS and the ESRI UC both on TV this year.