Three Cool Things in Geospatial

Corning Glass

After watching this video (5:33 in length), you may feel like buying stock in Corning Glass!

How important are graphic displays to the geospatial professional? I’d say vital. I’m not sure about all the consumer glass stuff they show in the video, but it does show where glass technology is heading. I was at a municipal transportation advisory meeting last night and I can imagine a dual-purpose whiteboard/mointor in a city planner’s conference room where one could display the City GIS for detailed discussions instead of the dated, static maps taped up on the wall. The only question is cost. Given the cost reduction of large, high-resolution monitors in the past two years, Corning’s vision, at least for geospatial apps, may not be that far off.

Augmented Reality

Hmmm…do you see a trend here? Tablet computers, glass displays, augmented reality software.

It’s pretty clear where things are heading. You can already see this on mobile phones today.

A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I bought a Samsung Galaxy S (Epic 4G) phone. It’s screen is large enough (4″ display) that you can use it like a tablet computer. The touch screen display is such that I use it like you saw in the Corning video using Swype or similar technology.

This week, Juniper Research concluded from their research that Augmented Reality will be a $1.5 billion business by 2015. They cited the availability of software development tools, device manufacturers decision to pre-load augmented reality apps on mobile devices, and trends in mobile device advertising as key drivers of augmented reality.

I have not found a better one-minute video than the one below that exemplifies the beauty of augmented reality. It’s truly an example of technology integration as GPS and digital compass data are used to correctly position the mobile device.

iPad 2

Although it hasn’t panned out to be the geospatial tool it could have been, the iPad has given the tablet industry some mojo. It’s pure speculation on my part, but I think it’s safe to say that more tablets have been introduced in the past year than in the previous five years, thanks to the iPad.

What does the the iPad 2 offer?

33% thinner, 15% or so lighter, faster processor, front and rear cameras. Nice features, but it’s more of an update than an upgrade. Still no support for Bluetooth SPP (Serial Port Profile), so you still can’t interface it to external GPS receivers.

iPad 2

Thanks, and see you next week.

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