Like StackOverflow? Check out GeoExchange

If you've ever used Stackoverflow, you might want to give GeoExchange a look. StackOverflow is a collaborative site that aims to be a Q & A or knowledge base for all kinds of computer programming questions. GeoExchange just debuted and is running the same software, but is set-up to become the Q & A or knowledge base for all kinds of Geo and GIS questions.

I checked it out earlier, it appears to be in it's infancy. But it's worth keeping an eye on.

New DoD Memo On Open Source Software - What does it all mean?

As a number of people have reported today, a new DoD memo was released that clarifies the DoD's usage/participation in OSS. See here, here and here for more details. And the actual memo should appear on the DoD's site soon. For now, you can read it from any one of the other posts I've linked to.

So, what does this memo mean?

• Well first of all this memo clarifies an earlier DoD memo on open-source that was released in 2003.
• And this memo dovetails with the OTD Technology Roadmap released in April 2006 that also outlines the reasons to use OSS within the DoD.
• And this memo dovetails with the open-sourcing of Opticks in December 2007, which was originally written for the DoD (disclaimer: I am a committer for Opticks).
• And this memo dovetails with the creation of software.forge.mil, a DoD only repository for implementing OSS practices within the DoD.
• And this memo dovetails with the open-sourcing of FalconView in June 2009.
• And this memo dovetails with the creation of the Mil-OSS working group and it's first meeting in August 2009.

I think you can see that momentum has been building and progress is being made. The OSS movement within the DoD hasn't stagnated from 2003 to 2009. So, why then is this memo so important? Because it is going to help remove some long-standing and problematic roadblocks and if you attended the Mil-OSS working group August session or join the Mil-OSS Google Group, you'll see there are still quite a few roadblocks.

So, jump in and help out. And by that I mean keep an eye out for the next Mil-OSS working group session in Spring 2010.

GEOINT 2009 - Recap

My colleague, Tony Wolf, just back from GEOINT 2009 and wanted me to post the following:

"Just got back from GEOINT 2009... Very cool

Lots of great exhibitors this year showed off some pretty cool tools. One that comes to mind was the "Liquid Galaxy" booth set-up by Google. It was a 340 degree view of LCDs all displaying Google Earth, steerable by a 3-D connexion controller. I want to build one in my garage. BAE showed off their new plug-ins for SOCET GXP, which included more Spectral enhancements than in the past. Finally, PAR Government built more capability to their FMV tool, GV 3.0.

The fun didn't stop there. Got to hear some great talks by people like James Clapper, Major Gen. John Custer, and of course Vice Admiral Robert Murrett from NGA. These guys speak plain english reminding us of the value of geospatial intelligence.

Of course no GEOINT is complete without the GeoWalk. Coincidentally, WorldView 2 got it's first collection over San Antonio that same day, just 12 days after launch!!! This called for a celebration. And no one throws a better party than DigitalGlobe. I got the chance to speak with Jill Smith, CEO of Digital Globe, who couldn't be more enthusiastic or grateful for the success of WorldView. Live music and open bar, what else can I say? The river walk itself was the perfect setting which made the GeoWalk even better than in years past.

I gave close to 30 demos of Opticks. All of which were well received. And I made some new friends along the way. I got the chance to show off just how many different types of data that Opticks will support and what that means to the open-source community. The thing people liked the most about Opticks is how easy it is to get your hands on a copy, without having to sign up for anything, become a member of anything, etc. All in all, great time, looking forward to next year."

New Direction of this blog

Originally, this blog was to be pretty limited and scope and only talk about Opticks. Since then, I've decided that I'm going to use it principally as my personal blog. So, continue to expect topics about Opticks, since I am a committer on that project. But, I'll also discuss programming, website development, installation and the like, or whatever else I happen to be interested in.

New Opticks Website

I've just flipped the switch on the new Opticks website. Just go to http://opticks.org/ to see the new site. The goal of the new site is to better separate the Opticks community into three user groups (end-users/analysts/scientists, extension developers, and opticks developers) and then tailor the site towards those users. So, check out the new site and let us know what you think, either as a comment here or on the Opticks mailing list or real-time chat.

Over the next week or so, I'll be updating the old site (http://opticks.ballforge.net/) to point people to the new site.

GEOINT 2009 - Come See Opticks

GEOINT 2009 starts today and if you are attendance, stop by the Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. booth to see some of my colleagues demo Opticks.

New Mouse Pan Feature

Opticks 4.3.1 introduces a new panning mode that I happen to think is quite useful. It allows you to pan around the image quickly while retaining knowledge of what you were doing before you started panning. So, if you were drawing arrow annotations or creating AOIs (areas of interest) for an algorithm, you can now engage this new pan mode, pan around, exit the pan mode and continue drawing arrow annotations or AOIs. In addition, this mode allows for variable speed panning with very quick change of direction. All you have to do is middle-click in an image to start the pan mode and then start moving your mouse around. To exit the pan mode, you just need to click (left, middle or right will do). You can watch the following video to see it in action.

Length: 30s Download