new jersey geographer

ArcGIS on the iPhone

ESRI has released ArcGIS for iPhone. It’s now available through the App Store. It’s an iPad/iPhone app, so it should work well on both. I just tried it out on my iPhone, and it’s pretty snappy. The data loads quickly and the interface is clean. There are many layers already available through the app, such as OpenStreetMap.

I like the support for ArcGIS Server, as we will be able to provide our local data to iPhone users. I hope that a later revision will also support WMS, as there are many more free and useful WMS-based services out there than ArcGIS services. Greater support for GPS would be useful. ArcGIS for iPhone can locate you using the embedded GPS, but I don’t believe you can use the GPS to record features. I believe these features will come. James Fee points out that ESRI’s response to the UC FAQ regarding iOS support is positive, claiming that updates will feature editing and geoprocessing. As much as I prefer to edit on a big, widescreen monitor, it would be nice to update my data on the go.

If you have an iPhone or iPad, download it for free from the App Store and check it out.

This semester, I integrated OpenStreetMap into my GIS II class by requiring students to research an area on OSM that lacked detail and update the map. OSM is a great real-world demonstration of some of the GIS principles we’re discussing in the class, such as topology and how different models represent features in the real world.

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Over the course of 2009, I got involved with OpenStreetMap. If you haven’t used OSM, I suggest you check it out. It’s being updated and used throughout the world, from mapping campuses in New Jersey to aiding the relief efforts in Haiti.

So, during 2009, I had noticed that on OSM, the State of Georgia had land use data. I started to look into how Georgia was so lucky. OSM relies on user contributions, so some savvy user must have added all of those polygons to the map. I contacted that savvy user to find out more. Liber pointed me to some of the methods he and others have used to import GIS data into OpenStreetMap. I was unsatisfied with the existing software, so I looked into the OSM API and wrote my own code to export directly from ArcGIS into the .osm file format.

ExportToOSM.py is my crack at programming an export utility. I wanted something that would export multipolygons from ArcGIS as OSM multipolygon relations and would produce a file free of redundant nodes. I used an earlier version of my script to export the buildings on Rowan’s campus. After fixing a few issues – namely the multipart polygons (take a look at Evergreen Hall, still need to punch in the interior courtyard as a doughnut hole) – I began developing a plan to export NJ’s 2002 Land Use data to OSM.

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Just two days after I wrote about OpenStreetMap, PC Pro, a UK computing magazine, posted a blog about the brilliance of OpenStreetMap.  This entry is a much better introduction to OSM than what I previously wrote.

I recently became involved in OpenStreetMap. After watching it from the sidelines for the past year, I recently started contributing to the map. I wrote a python script to export lines and polygons from ArcGIS to OSM. You can see the results of the script by zooming into Rowan University, where I’ve exported the campus buildings and uploaded them. I’ve also been working to get the various cycle routes throughout the State into OSM. Cycle routes are managed by a myriad of local and state entities, and considering DOT informed me that they do not keep any GIS records of the bike routes or facilities, OSM seems like a natural repository for volunteers to collect and share cycle route data.

I’m also planning a course exercise using OSM. I’m going to encourage students to print out their neighborhood using Walking Papers, recording any updates or fixes, then modifying the OSM data via Potlatch or JOSM. Though it will likely be offered as an extra credit assignment initially, I’m hoping I’ll be able to integrate it and other elements of OSM into my courses in the future.

If you have an interest in mapping or GIS, you should check out OpenStreetMap. Sign up for an account, and start updating in your neighborhood. If you’re in New Jersey, I’ve updated OSM’s wiki with links to the cycle maps to be added, as well as instructions on how to add features to OSM using the State’s 2007 aerial photography. If you’d like to collaborate with me on sharing information via OpenStreetMap, let me know. You can follow me on OpenStreetMap here.

Starting with Kenya, Google is allowing users to download the base data collected through the Map Maker service, as either KML or Shapefile format. Google’s licensing allows for only non-commercial use. Hopefully, this data will support some of the non-profit mapping efforts taking place on the continent. The license also restricts (or at least, severely limits) competition with services provided by Google. This puts OpenStreetMap in an odd position – OSM is restricted from incorporating the data into its own service. Considering OSM has been around since 2004 and Map Maker only 2008, and seeing how many people in over 100 countries have been offering Google data, OSM needs to better align (or contrast) itself with the work Google is doing. One of the reasons I believe Map Maker has gathered the amount of user-generated content in the past year is that Map Maker is incredibly easy to use and if you do run into issues, there is clear and concise help. This is compared to the OSM Beginner’s Guide. Now, I understand that OSM is geared towards a more technical audience than the Map Maker service, but OSM needs to spend more time fostering a community outside of the devoted submitters. What is going to prevent Google from offering up a GIS service akin to the Virtual Earth on ArcGIS platform currently being offered by ESRI and Microsoft? A service built on TA/Navteq data, enhanced with local knowledge? A service that is available now from OSM, but much easier to use? Providing base data for Kenya is just the beginning.

Mikel Maron has some more thoughts about OSM and Map Maker, as well as some comparison screenshots. (Via Mapperz)