President's
Message
I have been contemplating recent geospatial news and activities
that have caught my attention.
Technology advancements have a huge impact on us as
geospatial practitioners,
and on our management’s expectation of what is possible.
The core geospatial data sets that are being captured and
processed are amazing. A
recent news bulletin heralded the successful launch of the
world’s highest resolution, commercial
Earth-imaging satellite. The advancements of LiDAR
aircraft- and vehicle-based
point cloud data capture techniques brings natural and
man-made features to life in our
GIS platforms. The resolution and accuracy of image
acquisition continues to increase as
does demand by end users. We are talking about massive data
sets.
Conversely, the smart phone revolution forges
ahead to place smaller, lighter, and faster
technology capabilities in our hands. The numbers of smart
phones being purchased is
staggering. Smart phone technology supports a variety of
social and
business activities for users who want information, and
want it now.
Incorporate GPS and cell triangulation into the mix and the
devices can
know where we are and present what is around us. So, now we
have
massive data sets and ubiquitous handheld devices. What can
we do
with these divergent trends?
What we do with massive data sets and mobile technology is
being influenced
with the proliferation and use of digital maps and digital
globes,
public-facing web portals, and web mapping services. These
sites are
setting or impacting expectations by our management,
elected officials,
and the public on what is available and the ‘ease’ to find
and use the
information to solve our real-world business needs. Add to
the mix the
desire by organizations to make their enterprise knowledge
more available
to field employees, and perhaps the larger mobile
community, and
our challenges to operate and maintain enterprise
geospatial solutions
are exacerbated.
Are you ready to serve or consume massive data sets? Have
you enabled
mobile field staff? Have you considered how to make your
geospatial
information available to the smart phone community within
or outside
your organization? Perhaps this is an opportunity to
enhance your skills
to support these new and exciting technology trends.
On the subject of massive data sets, there are several
initiatives in the
geospatial world that are focused on implementing national
framework
themes with a goal of substantial nationwide savings.
Imagery for the
Nation (IFTN) reflects a vision that the nation will have a
sustainable and
flexible digital imagery program that meets the needs of
local, state, regional,
tribal and federal agencies. IFTN is well developed and
actively
promoted and Transportation for the Nation and Parcels for
the Nation
are in early stages of development and evaluation. We all
look forward
to seeing even more new developments and initiatives in
these areas in
the coming years.
What geospatial news and development are capturing your
attention?
Ciao,
Malcolm Adkins
2008-09 BAAMA President
Past President's Messages:Malcolm Adkins (2005-2007 President)
Phil Beilin (2004-2005 President)
Jeff Kapellas (2003-2004 President)
George White (2002-2003 President)
Lysee Moyaert (2001-2002 President)
Bruce Joffe (1999-2001 President)