Looking for a fine, Android WorldPhone solution?? Look no more… oh, andit starts at just $199! Obi and Ammunition celebrate the launch of Obi Worldphone SF1 & SJ1.5 smartphones at Autodesk Gallery in San Francisco. Obi Worldphone co-founder John Sculley, former head of Apple and Pepsi-Cola and an international investor in consumer tech companies, and Robert Brunner, founder and partner in the world-acclaimed Ammunition design firm collaborated to create elegant design at attractive prices for select markets the world over. Introducing them is Satjiv Chahil, Global Marketing & Innovations Advisor to Obi. See more about the device in the official launch PR
Archives for August 2015
Esri Shares Tropical Storm Erika Interactive Map
Here we are again with hurricane season upon us and just in time to monitor the extreme weather, Esri has shared a story map to help monitor Tropical Storm Erika. This interactive map features live data from NOAA showing Erika’s projected path, as well as storm watches, warnings, and storm surge information. You can also explore geotagged social media from Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube related to the storm.
Stay safe this season to all of our friends who live and work in hurricane prone parts of the country!
Rugged Hardware Tip – A Handheld Built For Extremes
Here’s a gadget tip for any of you that work in remote forests, urban jungles, dry desert regions, or isolated wetland areas – the Trimble Nomad® 1050 series of handheld. These ultra-rugged and field-proven handhelds are ideal for carrying out GIS data collection and inspection activities just about anywhere.

Some of the key featured include:
- Work productively in challenging environments on ultra-rugged IP68-rated handhelds that meet rigorous MIL-STD-810G military standards
- Work for longer in the field with the 15 hour battery life that provides continuous use, even in cold temperatures
- Process field data faster with a powerful 1 GHz processor
- Store substantial amounts of data and images with the Nomad’s 8 GB of built-in storage plus 512 MB Ram
- Maintain field compatibility with your back-office apps using the latest Microsoft® Windows® Embedded Handheld version 6.5 operating system
- Capture high resolution images for maintenance and repair applications with the 5 megapixel integrated camera with flash and geo-tagging capabilities
- Easily track assets using the optional 1D/2D integrated barcode scanner
- Connect from the field back to the office via an optional integrated 3.75G dual-band GSM/CDMA wireless cellular modem with internal cellular antenna
See also the Spec Sheet / white paper {PDF}
Keywords: Trimble, Nomad, GPS, rugged, mobile, data collector
UAV cinematography and Geotech in ABC News Animas River EPA Spill Story
I caught wind of an impressive use of technology in a recent ABC news story covering the EPA spill in the Animis River in Colorado. The story uses Google maps technology to show the area extent but even more impressive is the UAV captured video providing an incredible perspective to convey to the viewers the damage that has resulted to the affected areas. The UAV videography technology was provided by Terra Imaging – jump directly to the video HERE
Event Tip – 2015 Digital Reality Symposium
An event of interest this fall…
“Where Technology Meets Business Reality” — Join us this fall in Las Vegas for the 2015 USIBD Digital Reality Symposium, September 16-17 and network with industry leaders and professionals such as those shown below.
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HitchBOT Journey Across America Comes to a Sudden end in Philly
So, you may be wondering, what’s up with that cool, little robot that’s hitching across America this summer? Recall early in July we shared the official pre-trip announcement titled “Canadian hitchhiking robot to cross the U.S., relying solely on the kindness of strangers“. Well, I guess not all strangers are kind as Tripbot’s journey has come to a sudden end, sadly, this means that USA won’t get to experience all the fun that could have been!
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USC Infographic – Career Paths in GIS
Flood Safety, Safety Checklists, and Preparation Tips
With the sudden downpours to which we’re prone at this time of year, and in preparation for storms in the next few months, this is a great time to get educated and prepare for if a flood disaster should strike. The following are just a few of the useful resources available to anyone who lives in or near flood prone areas – stay safe out there!
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Never Get Lost Again with Avenza PDF Maps on your mobile clients
I always make the time to have a one on one at ESRIUC with Ted Florence, CEO and get caught up on his flagship product, chat some hockey, and get some candid comments about life as a software solution provider. This year Ted pulled out his iPad and showed me the most recent build of PDF Maps (http://www.avenza.com/pdf-maps) and as usual, I was Wow’d!
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Infographic – What Goes into a Flood Map
FEMA has provided an interesting visual overview of what FEMA flood maps are and how the map update process works using the Flood Map Infographic. Year to year, flooding is the most costly disaster in America. Flood maps play a vital role in helping us prepare for flooding by informing communities about the local flood risk. Flood maps help communities to incorporate flood risk into their planning. They’re also the basis for flood insurance rates through the National Flood Insurance Program, which FEMA administers at the direction of Congress. By law, you may be required to get flood insurance if you live in the highest risk areas. But flooding can happen anywhere — about 20 percent of all the flood claims come from areas with lower risk. And you don’t have to live close to water to be at risk.