ABI Research announced that more than 39 million tablets shipped worldwide during the first calendar quarter of 2013, representing the second largest volume of shipments to date; only bested by the previous quarter ending calendar year 2012. The spending power of the largest three world regions and availability of new, higher cost Windows devices from PC OEMs are continuing to drive market awareness and growth.
Tablets remain a lucrative market for the three largest world regions for consumer electronics and computer adoption: North America, Western Europe, and Asia-Pacific’s Japan and South Korea. “Three regions of the world are expected to yield 97% of tablet revenues in 2013,” says senior practice director Jeff Orr. “North America is forecasted to claim nearly half of the estimated $72 billion expected to be spent this year on tablet devices. Western Europe and Asia-Pacific will also have their hands in the honey pot for a combined 50% of world tablet revenues, respectively.”
Contributing to the revenue growth is the broader availability of Windows-based tablets. ABI Research estimates only 1.5 million Microsoft Surface tablets shipped during 1Q’2013. “The average selling prices for Windows 8 and Windows RT are higher than other platforms, which is keeping price erosion minimized,” adds Orr. Several tablet partners have joined Microsoft in launching Windows tablets, including Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, and Vizio. Businesses, many of which have loyal Windows PC followings, are a prime growth audience for tablets.
These “Media Tablets and eReaders” Market Data findings are part of ABI Research’s Media Tablets, Ultrabooks & eReaders Research Service which includes Research Reports, Market Data, Insights, and Competitive Assessments on technologies and vendor ecosystems shaping the tablet computing industry.
Esri has announced increased subscription value for ArcGIS Online that it says enables users to do more with the web mapping platform. Because of the popularity of ArcGIS Online, Esri is now able to reduce the cost of several services and make others available as part of the subscription. This means that organizations can create more interactive maps and apps and share them using fewer credits, or for no cost, Esri said.
“Organizations everywhere are succeeding with ArcGIS Online,” says Jack Dangermond, president, Esri. “Its popularity has resulted in economies of scale that translate into reduced costs. We’re passing those savings on to our users. By increasing the value of ArcGIS Online credits, it’s easier than ever for businesses, governments, and individuals to create, publish, and share maps in the cloud.”
Organizations with ArcGIS Online will have:
• Unlimited bandwidth usage (outbound data transfer) is now included with the ArcGIS Online subscription.
• Uploading tile packages from ArcGIS for Desktop is now also included with the subscription.
• Geocoding costs have been reduced by 50 percent.
• Routing and geoenrichment costs have been reduced nearly 65 percent.
• Infographics costs have been reduced by more than 80 percent per view.
Esri will continually introduce new services to the ArcGIS Online subscription. For instance, Esri Updated Demographics and other data will be available with the July release of ArcGIS Online.
Organizations can start taking advantage of the new subscription value with the July release of ArcGIS Online. At that time, Esri will provide more details about the service credit reduction.
View an interactive map of U.S. wildfire locations, perimeters, fire potential areas, global burn areas, wind conditions, and precipitation via streaming data from NIFC, GeoMAC, NHSS, MODIS, METAR/TAF, and the USDA Forest Service, Fire Modeling Institute. Click the About menu for more information.
See the real-time effects of the fires via social media posts. To change the search terms, go to the Social menu, click the settings icon, and update the keyword. Click here to visit the interactive website:
Bing Maps announces a number of updates to Bing Maps, including the largest shipment of Bird’s Eye imagery yet, nearly 270 terabytes of data, along with expanded venue maps and a new “Report a problem” feature.
Bing Maps Bird’s Eye View
According to the announcement, Bird’s Eye Imagery is captured at a 45-degree angle, giving depth and three-dimensionality to ortho photography.
To date, Bing reports it has published a total of 1,452,958 square kilometers, or half a petabyte of data, of Bird’s Eye scenes from around the world. Look for yellow in the below world map to see Bing’s new Bird’s Eye coverage from this release:
Earlier this week, I stepped outside of the box I’ve resided in for many years when I wrote a GPS World article about a specific product. It was unusual because for the more than seven years I’ve been writing for GPS World, I’ve never written specifically about a certain product. No, I’m not caving into advertiser (or potential advertiser) pressure or influence. I don’t play that game. I’ve chosen to write about specific products or services when I feel they represent significant industry changes.
Now, for Geospatial Solutions this week, I’m in the same predicament. So, for the second time in a week, I’m stepping outside of my box.
Since its incorporation, Trimble Navigation’s name has been synonymous with GPS devices. Its mission, at least to me, was to build GPS receivers and software solutions to sell its GPS receivers. Historically, the company has made it difficult for other companies to utilize their technology. I recall back in the 1990s when I was in charge of GPS mapping hardware/software for one of Trimble’s competitors. Trimble submeter GPS base stations blanketed the U.S. (and many parts of the world) and the company kept the data in the proprietary SSF format so that none of its competitors could use its base-station data. Trimble’s GPS/GIS ecosystem was closed to their competitors and their market share for GPS mapping devices (such as GeoExplorer or GeoXT/XH) dominated the GPS/GIS mapping industry. Trimble’s distribution channel thrived, which further contributed to its market dominance.
For a long time, the device-centric marketing strategy worked well for Trimble employees and shareholders. However, every party must come to an end, and this case is no exception.
In Trimble’s latest financial release (April 30, 2013), the company reported that GIS revenues declined in its third quarter and that “Non-GAAP operating margin was down primarily due to product mix in GIS sales.”
The days of high-end GNSS receivers dominating the GIS data-collection market are coming to an end. Yes, there will be some innovative new features like inertial positioning, MEMS and other positioning technologies that will allow manufacturers to command a higher price, but the cost of mainstream, high-precision GNSS devices is declining and will continue to decline. Furthermore, tablets and mobile phones muddy the waters as they are increasingly more powerful devices that can run powerful data-collection software.
What is Trimble doing about this?
This week, the company introduced the Trimble TerraFlex software ecosystem.
I saw a sneak preview of the concept a couple of months ago. When I saw it, I knew it was a paradigm shift from the classic Trimble device-centric ecosystem to a device-agnostic, workflow-centric ecosystem.
Translated: You can use any mobile device and/or GPS receiver of your choosing within Trimble’s TerraFlex ecosystem.
Perhaps the coolest feature of the software is that you can run it on an Apple (iOS 5 or later), Android (4.x or later), or Windows Mobile (6.5 or later) device. In these days of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) to work, that’s a powerful feature. Support for Windows Phone devices is missing, but that’s understandable because of the lack of traction for those devices to this point.
TerraFlex supports iOS (5 or later), Android (4.x or later), and Windows Mobile (6.5 or later)
Of course, it’s still an ecosystem, so although the mobile apps are free, you must subscribe to Trimble’s cloud service ($250/year per user), much like using the free ArcGIS for Android/iOS/WindowsMobile apps requires an Esri cloud subscription. However, at $21/month it’s very affordable and flexible. Use any GPS/GNSS receiver you like and use the mobile device you are comfortable with.
With the desktop software, you can build the data-collection form for the mobile device, complete with attributing.
TerraFlex Form Editor for designing mobile device data-collection forms
In speaking with the Trimble marketing folks about the ecosystem, their intent is not only to reach the traditional people involved in GIS data collection, but also those who aren’t, such as a city public works crew, a utility worker, a construction worker or others who are already comfortable with the mobile device they carry. Will it work? Perhaps, but it will take someone at the enterprise level to assume the lead in designing the forms. Either way, it’s probably got the best potential to reach the non-GIS market that I’ve seen so far.
However, building a better mousetrap doesn’t always work. In 1960, Jerome McCarthy published Basic Marketing: A Managerial Approach, which discussed the four Ps of marketing: product, price, promotion, place (distribution). With geospatial technologies, especially geospatial hardware, place (distribution) has played an important role. In fact, dealer support can make or break a new product or deny a company access to the market. In thinking about Trimble, its mapping and GIS division (in its various forms) has built a strong dealer network over the past 20+ years, and salespeople in its distribution channel have been selling device-centric products since the beginning. This is going to be a serious issue in promoting Trimble’s TerraFlex software. Trimble dealer salespeople are accustomed to selling hardware, not services. Furthermore, Trimble dealers are accustomed to receiving 20 percent margin on GPS receivers that sell for thousands of dollars, and sales of those devices has been pretty easy due to Trimble’s market dominance. That won’t be the case with TerraFlex. It’s a new concept that will require the salesperson to sell the concept, not a device that one can hold in one’s hand. How seriously will salespeople promote a service that sells for $250/year per device? How can one convince and transform a dealer salesforce from being device-centric to workflow-centric? That task may be more difficult to accomplish than the effort it took to design and write the TerraFlex software.
Summary: A look at the challenge of dealing with horizontal datums in your GIS. We are moving into a new era in dealing with datum transformations. Geodata 2.0 is coming, and it can create big headaches when attempting to combine disparate geospatial databases. Sensors such as GPS receivers, remote sensing imagery, and 3D scanning provide much more accurate data, setting up a collision with outdated and mismatched legacy horizontal datums.
Speakers:
Kevin Kelly, Geodesist, ESRI, Inc.
Kevin Kelly is a Geodesist with ESRI in Redlands, California where he researches and implements geodetic algorithms and applications for the ArcGIS software. His experience spans over 35 years in hydrography, geodesy, surveying and most recently, geographic information systems. He has held the posts of Manager of Geodetic Services for the Province of Ontario, Chief Geodesist for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Military Survey Department and Senior Project Surveyor for The Keith Companies (now Stantec, Inc.). Mr. Kelly received a Master of Applied Science in Geodesy at the University of Toronto, Canada and holds an Honors Diploma in Hydrographic Surveying Technology from Humber College in Toronto. He is also a licensed Geodetic Surveyor in the Province of Ontario, Canada.
Craig Greenwald, Technical Director, GeoMobile Innovations
Craig Greenwald is the Technical Director and a principal at GeoMobile Innovations Inc. He has worked in the GPS and Mobile GIS industry for over 13 years, including seven years for GIS software leader, ESRI and is well known for his work on the ESRI ArcPad team. Craig leads the GeoMobile software development and consulting team specializing in Mobile GIS and field data collection applications and technology providing Mobile GIS software, consulting, and training services to GeoMobile Innovations? clients. Craig has real world experience designing, implementing, and consulting on all sizes of projects, ranging from local campground trash mapping to the U.S. national census, and has been a key developer in GeoMobile?s commercial applications such as LaserGIS for ArcPad and Geo-Photo Inventory Tool for Garmin GPS solutions.
Michael L. Dennis, RLS, PE, Geodesist, NOAA
Michael L. Dennis, RLS, PE, is a geodesist at NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey (NGS) where his duties include analysis of geometric (“horizontal”) and vertical datums; evaluation of data processing and survey network adjustment procedures; development and promotion of standards and guidelines; integration of NGS products and services with GIS; and public outreach. Mr. Dennis is also a registered professional engineer and surveyor with private sector experience, including ownership of a consulting and surveying firm. Mr. Dennis is an officer of the American Association for Geodetic Surveying (AAGS), an American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) Fellow, and a member of the Arizona Professional Land Surveyors Association and the Geomatics Division of the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Moderator:
Eric Gakstatter, Editor of Geospatial Solutions Monthly and Survey Scene
Eric Gakstatter has been involved in the GPS/GNSS industry for more than 20 years. For 10 years, he held several product management positions in the GPS/GNSS industry, managing the development of several medium- and high-precision GNSS products along with associated data-collection and post-processing software.
Trimble has introduced TerraFlex, a new software and services platform to manage data collection activities for everyday geospatial projects. Trimble TerraFlex helps managers maintain control of the flow of geo-enabled field data, the company said.
According to the announcement, two essential components comprise the TerraFlex platform — cloud services and a mobile app. With an online data repository and streamlined toolset for creating custom form templates, TerraFlex Cloud services provide managers and team leaders with a centralized system to configure and manage the data collection process. In the field, the TerraFlex Mobile app provides a common interface for users of a range of common mobile and smart devices. The result is more flexibility in the field and streamlined integration of data into the office environment.
Trimble reports that regardless of the type of mobile device preferred — iOS, Android or Windows Mobile — the TerraFlex interface provides a consistent experience. For dedicated data collection activities, a user can choose a professional field device such as a Trimble Juno GPS handheld. For ad-hoc fieldwork, the user can also use a standard smartphone to access the same flexible form templates. Managers responsible for integrating field data can now be confident that all users, regardless of field hardware platform are following trusted field workflows.
With the evolution of smartphones, more field workers now have access to basic positioning technologies and can contribute to the geospatial initiative. Trimble TerraFlex provides an intuitive interface for capturing data in the field, standardizing workflows and streamlining integration of data with the office.
“With Trimble TerraFlex, organizations can deploy a common workflow to collect or inspect their assets,” said Daniel Wallace, general manager of Trimble’s GIS Data Collection Division. “Designed for simplicity in a mobile environment, Trimble TerraFlex can enable a new generation of field workers to contribute to geospatial initiatives.”
Regardless of whether mobile workers are using Trimble devices or smartphones, virtually everyone can be both a producer and consumer of geospatial data. With minimal or no training required for field crews, managers and project leaders can get diverse teams working together fast. All field data is captured via the cloud for integration into a GIS, database or mapping application.
Trimble TerraFlex is available online now. The Mobile apps are available in Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play store. TerraFlex is also available through Trimble’s authorized GIS and Survey distribution channels. To learn more about Trimble TerraFlex and register for a free 30-day trial of the system, visit www.trimble-terraflex.com.
Google announces the Google Maps Engine API, allowing developers to bring the power of Maps Engine into their own applications. With a single map, an organization can locate underground pipelines, decide on the best place to build their next store, or inform customers about cell phone coverage areas.
According to the announcement, Maps Engine lets organizations use Google’s fast and reliable cloud infrastructure to layer their data on top of a Google Map and share their custom-made Google Maps with employees, customers or the public-at-large. At the push of a button an organization can share their maps internally or publish them on the web, making it easy to access their data from anywhere.
The API provides direct access to Maps Engine for reading and editing spatial data hosted in the cloud. With the API, organizations can develop on any platform – web, Android, iOS and server-to-server – and build applications like store locators, crowdsourced maps or crisis-response maps. For example, FedEx.com uses the API to query its more than 50,000 retail locations and IRIS creates applications for utilities to track underground pipelines.
Google, on its official blog, reported that it has acquired Waze:
Google Maps and Waze, outsmarting traffic together
We’ve all been there: stuck in traffic, frustrated that you chose the wrong route on the drive to work. But imagine if you could see real-time traffic updates from friends and fellow travelers ahead of you, calling out “fender bender…totally stuck in left lane!” and showing faster routes that others are taking.
To help you outsmart traffic, today we’re excited to announce we’ve closed the acquisition of Waze. This fast-growing community of traffic-obsessed drivers is working together to find the best routes from home to work, every day.
The Waze product development team will remain in Israel and operate separately for now. We’re excited about the prospect of enhancing Google Maps with some of the traffic update features provided by Waze and enhancing Waze with Google’s search capabilities.
We’ll also work closely with the vibrant Waze community, who are the DNA of this app, to ensure they have what’s needed to grow and prosper.
The Waze community and its dedicated team have created a great source of timely road corrections and updates. We welcome them to Google and look forward to working with them in our ongoing effort to make a comprehensive, accurate and useful map of the world.
Posted by Brian McClendon, Vice President, Geo (Google)
On the same day, Waze CEO Noam Bardin blogged about the acquisition:
Waze Joins Google!
Dear Wazers,
I am excited to announce today that we have accepted an offer to join Google. I’d like to share some information about what this means for Waze.
Larry Page, Brian McClendon and the Google Maps teams have been following our progress closely and are excited about what we’ve accomplished. They share our vision of a global mapping service, updated in real time by local communities, and wish to help us accelerate. We are excited about the prospect of working with the Google Maps team to enhance our search capabilities and to join them in their ongoing efforts to build the best map of the world.
Nothing practical will change here at Waze. We will maintain our community, brand, service and organization – the community hierarchy, responsibilities and processes will remain the same. The same Waze people will continue to collaborate with you, and we will continue to innovate our product and services, making them more social, functional and helpful for everyday drivers. Our employees, managers, founders and I are all committed to our vision for many years to come.
Why not stay completely independent? We asked ourselves: “Will Waze still be a fun project to participate in, and a fun place to work, as a stand-alone public company?” Choosing the path of an IPO often shifts attention to bankers, lawyers and the happiness of Wall Street, and we decided we’d rather spend our time with you, the Waze community. Google is committed to help us achieve our common goal and provide us with the independence and resources we need to succeed. We evaluated many options and believe Google is the best partner for Waze, our map editors, area managers, champs and nearly 50 million Wazers globally.
Together, we can accelerate our mission to outsmart traffic. We will continue to make a real impact on drivers globally, helping them save time and money while making everyone’s daily commute a bit more efficient and fun.
So, it’s back to work for us with some great new colleagues and resources to enhance our project. Thank you for your participation in shaping Waze to what it is today, and we look forward to continuing to build out Waze together with you.
See you on the road,
Noam
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Waze Board member John Malloy is interviewed by Bloomberg TV about the acquisition:
Safe Software, makers of FME, announce the availability of FME 2013 Service Pack 2 (SP2) that includes the latest fixes and updates for FME Desktop and FME Server, plus some exciting new functionality. These added capabilities, as always, enable users to access more data in new ways, but also improve FME’s ease-of-use and compatibility with the world’s evolving technology. Highlights Include enhanced Microsoft Excel support, data viewing with Esri ArcGIS Online basemaps, and support for single-sign-on technology.
New and Improved Handling of Excel and CSV Data
Further enhancing its non-spatial capabilities, SP2 includes an entirely recreated reader and writer for Excel with improved viewing and handling of sheets, columns and cell types for greater control of data manipulation. The CSV reader has also been changed to enable greater control over the structure of incoming data.
Further Updated Read Support for Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D
SP2’s support for AutoCAD Civil 3D® data has been revised to include versions up to 2013 and adds the ability to read pipe and structure objects allowing users to transform and use richer Civil 3D designs from the more recent versions in other spatial applications.
Introducing FME Server Compatibility with Single-Sign-On Systems
FME Server 2013 SP2 includes enhancements that ensure compatibility with evolving system security protocols, particularly for any organization that has adopted the Single-Sign-On (SSO) Active Directory technology in attempts to reduce “password fatigue” while maintaining tight security levels. Once a user has logged into their workstation, this new feature of FME Server will automatically accept these credentials at any security checkpoint that the user subsequently passes through in FME Workbench or the FME Server Web Interface, eliminating the need for additional logins.
“Technology is constantly evolving,” says Dale Lutz, Co-CEO and VP of Development at Safe Software. “With every release and service pack we want FME to meet the needs of this rapidly changing landscape. Whether it’s new versions of software or new system protocols, we want our clients to be able to seamlessly adopt the latest and greatest while still being able to harness the full transformation power of FME.”
Background Map Viewing Using ArcGIS Online Basemaps
SP2 adds a feature to the FME Data Inspector that enables users with an ArcGIS Online account to view whatever data they’re working on against background maps from ArcGIS Online, thereby providing additional context for their data.
New Support for MariaDB – A Relative of MySQL
SP2 adds a feature to the FME Data Inspector that enables users with an ArcGIS Online account to view whatever data they’re working on against background maps from ArcGIS Online, thereby providing additional context for their data.
Exciting New Functionality Added to Several Transformers
Useful adjustments and additions have been made to the capabilities of several transformers including the AttributeCreator, FeatureMerger and AttributeRenamer that broaden the possibilities of what they can achieve while simplifying their configuration and the overall workspace.
A new office software program, Leica Infinity, has been launched by Leica Geosystems for easy management, visualization, processing and georeferencing of combined total station, imaging and scanning data from the Leica Nova MS50 MultiStation. Part of an extensive portfolio of software that completes the Leica Nova solution, Leica Infinity provides users with custom deliverables and helps them make informed decisions, Leica said.
With a simple user interface, optimized data organization and dynamic data visualization, Leica Infinity gives a project overview and ensures streamlined workflows, Leica said, Scan data can be inspected, cleaned up automatically to remove outliers and re-calculated together with the total station setups. Multiple scans can be combined for the creation of information-rich surfaces.
The instant access to raw data at all times allows users to combine and cross-check scans against processed or archived data and survey results with only a couple of clicks in order to make the right decisions. Leica Infinity offers all the tools to document and report on individual steps and final results before data can be exported for further processing to a broad choice of CAD software packages.
MicroSurvey, the maker of MicroSurvey CAD and the MapScenes System, announces the release of three new software versions optimized to make full use of datasets from the new Leica Nova MS50 MultiStation. MicroSurvey CAD Ultimate 2013, MicroSurvey CAD Studio 2013 and MapScenes PointCloud 2013 provide complete point cloud and Leica Nova MS 50 support in an intuitive interface that allows users to quickly and easily integrate 3D point cloud data into their workflows, the company said.
MicroSurvey CAD Ultimate 2013, a complete desktop survey and design software solution for surveyors, contractors and engineers, provides a field-to-finish CAD survey solution with the Leica Nova MS50 MultiStation. Users can import datasets from the Leica Nova MS50 complete with all TPS measurements, pictures, points and scan data. For users who need to enhance their data visualizations with fly-through movies and animations, MicroSurvey CAD Studio 2103 includes all the functionality of MicroSurvey CAD Ultimate plus a powerful animation module capable of creating movies.
MapScenes 2013, a powerful drafting, point cloud data visualization and animation tool for forensic investigators, accident scene reconstructionists and other public safety professionals, now includes the ability to take advantage of the rich 3D datasets captured by the Leica Nova MS50 MultiStation, MicroSurvey said. MapScenes 2013 lets the user quickly and easily draw in the point cloud view for extremely fast, accurate linework as well as use the scan data from the Leica Nova MS50 in animations for accurate and compelling reconstructions.
OpenGeo, a commercial open source geospatial company, launched Mapmeter beta, its server analytics console, while at FOSS4G-North America 2013.
According to the announcement, Mapmeter is a full administration and management tool for analyzing GeoServer systems. Formerly dubbed “The Enterprise Console,” Mapmeter sits on top of GeoServer, either within the OpenGeo Suite or standalone, and makes it possible for organizations to monitor production geospatial deployments. OpenGeo’s flagship product, The OpenGeo Suite is commercial open source software that gives customers access, control, customization and more while also providing standards compliance and expert support. With the addition of Mapmeter, spatial monitoring and reporting merge into a complete IT workflow.
For more information on Mapmeter and the potential of server analytics for spatial deployments, visit Mapmeter.com.
