Welcome to my blog – field data collection to final reports. More and more organizations are seeing new mobile technology as an opportunity to become more efficient and effective, to gain a competitive advantage, and to exploit new business opportunities. But because all the technologies involved are evolving so quickly, there are a lot of questions.
This blog has been created so that people interested in these technologies can go to one place to share information about the newest advances, latest equipment and to see how people are applying their interesting new gadgets to real world applications. Topics will include: field data collection using photos, Android smartphones and tablets, iPhones, iPads, photography, geotagging, GIS, GPS, cameras, photo maps, and more. We will also discuss how these technologies can be integrated into existing workflows and processes.
When I first started GeoSpatial Experts in 2001, digital mapping was something foreign to most people outside of GIS (Geographic Information System) professionals. Google Earth and Google Maps didn’t exist. No one had heard the term geotagging. There weren’t commercial cameras with GPS, most cell phones didn’t have GPS, and a cell phone camera wasn’t commonplace. I developed my company’s first product, GPS-Photo Link to fill a gap, allowing people to marry a photo and GPS coordinates with the intent to map, report, or watermark the results. Now GeoJot+ is helping them to include more attribute information and use the latest mobile technology.
At GeoSpatial Experts, I have been working with customers who were on the bleeding edge of these technologies. They were using our products to carry out inventories, audits, site surveys, and to provide proof of performance. But these people were usually GIS professionals. The technology is now moving to a larger audience. Businesses without GIS departments are now seeing the value of location. Adding location to a photograph along with descriptive information (attributes), is a powerful and yet simple way to document existing conditions in a visual manner that is associated with a specific time and place.
A little more about my background – I have a Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering and pioneered GPS/GIS applications programming at avionics companies like Bendix/King and II Morrow Inc (precursor to Garmin) as well as several agricultural technology companies focusing on the use of GPS and GIS. GPS and photography are my hobbies, my livelihood, and my passion!
