Yes, OGC WMTS has been implemented

Last week I attended a meeting where discussions on WMTS broke out. During the verbal sparring, some folks made the comment that "nobody has implemented OGC WMTS!" Well, not true - proof positive above where multiple REST WMTS from CubeWerx and others are shown "in action" with Gaia.

The episode reminded me of several years ago when established vendors decried WMS indicating, "but nobody has implemented OGC WMS!" I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same ;-)

With the release of a proposed standard for tile-based web mapping, Web Map Tile Service (WMTS), the OGC is poised to provide an open alternative to proprietary web mapping services like Google Maps. Worked on quietly by the gurus at CubeWerx, CREAF and the Autonomous University of Barcelona - the candidate WMTS Interface Standard is much like OGC's popular WMS, but with faster performance.

- Jeff

Data.gov - a step into the cloud

Data.gov launched last week to mixed reviews. Marshall Kirkpatrick from ReadWriteWeb summarized some thoughts floating in cyberspace -

"There are many, many sets of data available from the federal government but the Data.gov site says it was selective about quality and standards when choosing what to include. It's hard not to compare other sources of government data and feel disappointed, though. The privately built USGovXML.com contains far more data and was built by one independent developer over four months."

Other reviews were more positive and pointed to data.gov as an important first step. However, the site raises questions like - where's the API? (a big issue!) Why's the government using a proprietary data format? Are there going to be location-based data feeds and services?

I'm left thinking about GPS - When it opened for public use a new geospatial industry was born. There's the same potential for federal data services and feeds w/location content on data.gov - and I'm hoping it will evolve beyond an FTP site with a Web 2.0 front-end.

- Jeff

Microsoft adds Cloud-based Content Delivery Network to Virtual Earth

Microsoft has added a Cloud-based Content Delivery Network (CDN) to Virtual Earth. According to MSDN, the addition of CDN to the Virtual Earth core infrastructure has improved delivery speeds of Virtual Earth content up to 82%. CDN is part of Microsoft’s cloud computing strategy and is comprised of multiple worldwide datacenters that allow Microsoft to host Virtual Earth content closer to end users.

- Jeff

OpenStreetMap, CarbonTools and Gaia? Yes we can

We got some great initial results with OpenStreetMap, CarbonTools PRO and Gaia 3.4 – and we’ll be adding this to upcoming releases.

OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a collaborative project to create a free editable map of the world. The maps are created mostly from GPS traces - plus some data from aerial photography and other free sources. The philosophy of OpenStreetMap was inspired by sites such as Wikipedia.

For the Gaia platform we're connecting to the REST interface on the tile service using the DataRasterTile components in CarbonTools - so soon Gaia users can select from Microsoft Virtual Earth, Yahoo! Maps and OpenStreetMap. Democratic access indeed.

- Jeff

Carbon Project Presents NextGen Applications at AIXM/WXXM User Conference

The Carbon Project took a key role at the first annual Aeronautical Information Exchange (AIXM) and Weather Information Exchange Model (WXXM) Conference on May 13 in Arlington, Virginia.

The Conference was hosted by the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and focused on AIXM and WXXM information exchange, graphical visualization and common situational awareness for next-generation air transportation systems.

On Wednesday May 13th The Carbon Project demonstrated the company's Aeronautical Information Management (AIM) solutions for building Electronic Flight Bags (EFB) with cutting edge user interfaces and AIXM 5/WXXM capabilities to an audience of several hundred attendees.

The demonstration showcased the power of the company's unique Source-Handler-Data technology and the CarbonTools PRO toolkit to rapidly build advanced spatiotemporal applications based on the AIXM 5, WXXM, digital NOTAMs and Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Feature Services (WFS). The demonstration was part of the OGC OWS-6 Testbed and featured in collaboration with OGC Testbed participants.

A video demonstration is available on The Carbon Project's YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/thecarbonproject

"We were pleased to demonstrate our NextGen AIM and EFB tools at the first AIXM/WXXM User Conference," says Nuke Goldstein, Chief Technology Officer. "Our participation in this global forum enhances The Carbon Project's position as the reference platform for developers that want to build the most advanced software for next-generation air transportation systems."

Event details are available at http://www.aixm.aero/. For more information on The Carbon Project's AIM and EFB solutions based on AIXM and WXXM please contact info@thecarbonproject.com.

Geodata.gov Dashboard - VE Killer App for Windows 7?

The Virtual Earth blog wonders where all the MSVE killer apps for Windows 7 are - and points to The Carbon Project's GeoRSS-powered dashboard for Geodata.gov as an example of the potential.

- Jeff

One day, soon...

This ‘one day soon’ slide in a 2005 EUROCONTROL Aeronautical Information Management (AIM) briefing outlined a compelling vision for data exchange using AIXM, WXXM, xNOTAM and WFS - and the results of recent testbeds indicate we may be able to match, and possibly surpass, some aspects of that vision. More to come in the next few weeks...

- Jeff

Add Location-based Data Feeds to Recovery.gov

The Carbon Project has contributed its idea to The National Dialogue that's gathering technical ideas for implementing Recovery.gov.

What is the idea?

Publish a location-based data feed with Recovery.gov so applications can be developed that enable "at-a-glance" visualization of projects starting up and completing across the country. This feed would be a key part of the Recovery.gov service and offer a geographic version of the popular RSS news format (called GeoRSS). An open source "mini-map" tool being developed for Geodata.gov illustrates how publishing such federal data feeds can spur significant innovation. Examples are available on YouTube here - for government users unable to access YouTube another example is available here.

Why is it important?

Publishing federal government information in open data feeds has the potential to transform the technology industry. When DOD opened GPS readings for public use, an entire new industry of location-based applications was born. We see the same potential with federal data feeds that include location content.

- Jeff