North point compass is a handy thing thing to have but when it goes digital and has two decimals of precision, well, there are some things you should be aware of before you go after a neighbor's apple tree? As you will find, the modern always-in-your-pocket compass knows where north is but the finite accuracy and issues between "true north" and "magnetic north" has some issues. Modern electonics as well as connectivity have simplified the whole "true north" issue that more than likely has a +/- error in declination of several degrees rather than the two decimals of precision on the 360 degree compass rose.
You will generally notice that when needed your smartphone can reliably provide the eight and 16 compass rose points reliably. When and if you require better then a bit of attention to a calibration process can improve to a few degrees of uncertainty. There are complex more accurate calibration patterns and then there are quick and dirty.
EXAMPLE OF COMPLEX CALIBRATION
1. Be attentive to the metal mass(es) around you and away from magnetic fields. Simply changing a battery or presense of steel wire rimmed glasses in close proximity can shift accuracy of declination adjustments for true NORTH
2. Open GPS Essentials and tap on compass
3. Put the phone on a flat surface with the display pointing up
4. Move the phone slowly, 5 seconds per full rotation is ok
5. Rotate the phone three full cycles around the axis pointing upward
6. Rotate the phone three full cycles around the axis pointing away from you
7. Rotate the phone three full cycles around the axis pointing right
8. The direction of rotation doesn't matter
EXAMPLE OF FAST AND EASY CALIBRATION
Compass is the most precise compass app available. It supports magnetic and true north calculated using network location or GPS coordinates. Furthermore this compass displays the location coordinates and the strength of the magnetic field to see if it interferes with the compass sensor. It supports high definition displays and can be installed on the SDCard. Download the best compass for free!
PERMISSIONS
GPS and network location: Needed to calculate true north.
Internet Access: Needed for downloading ads and for completely anonymous usage statistics. Usage statistics can be disabled in the settings of Compass.
The YouTube link below will provide a play list of Red Hen spatial media patrols. If you click on FF in the player it will jump you to the next in this particular set of YouTube segments. FYI
13 Stops Dynamic Range in Rolling Shutter Mode (less in global shutter mode)
Active Micro 4/3 Mount
ISO 200-1600
Remote focus control via expansion connector when using compatible lenses
Can be controlled remotely with standard drone connections
Lens Control, Recording Parameters, Start/Stop wth LANC and PWM or S.Bus remote channels
1/8 Jack for Mic (integrated internal Mic)
1 Full HDMI port
Expansion Port — DB-HD15 serial connector provides support for Power input, LANC input, 1 x S.Bus channel input, 4 x PWM channel input, Genlock input, Composite video output
Powered by Canon LP-E6
SD Card Slot
Availability: Shipping Summer
Price: $1,000
Note, the Micro Cinema Camera does not have a screen on it, so you'll need an external one to see a live image preview and to change settings. Also please not the 3.5mm Micorphone input.
And here are some images and specs for the Micro Studio Camera 4K:
Sensor Size: 13.056mm x 7.344mm
Shooting Resolutions: 3840 x 2160, 1920 x 1080
Frame Rates: HD 1080p23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 50, 59.97, 60, 1080i50, 59.94, Ultra HD 2160p23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30
Focus: Remote focus control via expansion connector or ATEM Switcher CCU protocols via SDI when using compatible lenses.
Iris Control: Iris control via Up and Down buttons, remote control via expansion connector or ATEM Switcher CCU protocols via SDI when using compatible lenses.
Lens Mount: Active MFT mount. The Micro Four Thirds system (MFT) is a standard created by Olympus and Panasonic, and announced on August 5, 2008, for the design and development of mirrorless interchangeable lens digital cameras and camcorders.
Controls: 5 control buttons including Set, Up, Down, Menu, and Power.
Microphone: Integrated stereo microphone, active when camera is recording.
Mounting Options: 1 x 1/4″ (top), 3 x 1/4″ (bottom)
SDI Video Output: 1 x 6G-SDI 10-bit 4:2:2 via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector.
SDI Video Input: 1 x 6G-SDI 10-bit 4:2:2 via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector.
SDI Audio Output: 2 channel embedded audio support in SDI stream.
And the specs for Blackmagic's new 5" monitor and external recorder.
Codec Support: 10-bit 4:2:2 ProRes & DNxHD
SDI Video Input: 1 x SD/HD/3G-SDI via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector
SDI Video Output: 1 x SD/HD/3G-SDI via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector
HDMI Video Input: 1 x HDMI type A connector
HDMI Video Output: 1 x HDMI type A connector
SDI Audio Input: 16 channels embedded in SD and HD in QuickTime files, 2 channels in Avid DNxHD MXF files
SDI Audio Output: 16 channels embedded in SD and HD in QuickTime files, 2 channels in Avid DNxHD MXF files
HDMI Audio Input: 2 channels embedded in SD and HD QuickTime files and Avid DNxHD MXF files.
HDMI Audio Output: 2 channels embedded in SD and HD QuickTime files and Avid DNxHD MXF files.
Audio Output: 1 x 3.5 mm stereo analog audio output jack.
SD Interface: 1 x UHS-1 SD slot
Storage Type: Removable SDXC UHS-1 and SDHC UHS-1 cards. Supports DS, HS, SDR12, SDR25, DDR50, SDR50 and SDR104 SD cards.
Recorder Control: Integrated capacitive touch LCD screen with onscreen controls for settings and navigating menus.
Screen Dimensions: 5" 1920 x 1080p60 capacitive touch LCD screen.
Recorder Configuration: Via the device's USB port or the device's user interface.
Computer Interface: 1 x Mini-B USB 2.0 connector for initial setup, software updates and HyperDeck Utility software control.
Ever since Google announced this past December the eventual depreciation of Google Earth API, then the Google Maps Engine, and now the ending of their related BLOGSPOTs list, I have pondered what madness this could be?
The Death of the 3D globe.. sinking to obscurity like the encylopedia?
To me the Google Earth is what the www is all about. Is is now really "Oh, the places you might have gone?"
Why depreciate value added design and direct obvious intuitive use by literally "billions"? Google Earth deserves a Nobel award as a digital-age information access to everything via the Globe that shifted geo-sciences to the core? Worrisome stuff?
The response to why is a signal from Google that due to legacy design and security issues Google Earth's 'fusion engine" will increasingly disadvange future value of the current design. So what you now see is all of Google's geography newness and goodness is going down the track of Google Maps and its related 2D and 2.5D map API ecologies.
What about 3D and 4D goodness that Google Earth had/has? Is StreetView only to be flat, never to be experienced in Occulus? When pushed, Google Geographers only confirm the remain deeply committed to 3D. So what might be going on?
My bet is that Google is hard at work rebuilding(?) the next generation of a 3D world that will provide an immersive experience that will take you anywhere to meet new friends and have a reach-out experiece? You know a index of every thing anywhere at anytime for billions of digital explorers and virtual tourists? And for free....
Then you have the nearly 40-year old industry that Jack built - ESRI and its ArcGIS. Cartographically and spatially elite in methods and tools, some are critcial of its monopolistic positoning and its domination of GIS sciences, it is owned by the singular Jack and Laura Dangermonds. ESRI remains in their private ownership of ESRI which ranks them in top 1,000 most wealthy as defined by the Forbes list of the World's Billionaires. Who or what could possibly take ESRI - meaning buy out Jack and Laura, in one swat?
Google Inc Balance Sheets
The Google and Esri Surprise
So there I was sitting comfortably happily writing a blog post post entitled Enabling Jack Dangermond’s GIS Vision commenting on Jacks excellent ArcNews lead article when bam the following stops me in my tracks:
What is the Esri/Google relationship?
Google and Esri are working closely together to provide replacement software and training to all of Google’s enterprise customers and partners who have implemented Google Earth Enterprise and Google Map Engine technology. Esri will be providing the new 10.3 version of ArcGIS for Server and related client/app technology to all Google Enterprise customers and partners.
How will this collaboration effect the business continuity for Google customers and partners?
Many customers are both Google and Esri customers. Migration for these organizations will be relatively straight-forward. They will simply consolidate servers and introduce new clients. For customers who are new to Esri, this will be an opportunity to expand capabilities with a broader GIS platform technology.
For Google business partners it will mean new business opportunities in the geospatial marketplace with more extensive platform tools offered by Esri as well as new business programs for leveraging and extending their work.
Google is a consumer focused company. Its primary income is from advertising. That is the space it knows best, and its core. In contrast Esri have a quite different user base. Google’s Map Engine was direct competition to Esri’s ArcGIS. It’s launch shook Esri, and made for a certain degree of paranoia on both sides. Competition can be good, but not in this case. It was making two innovative companies focus away from their areas of strength.
We hope this announcement means a truce. Harmony and not opposition. If that is the case we all win. At the end of the day, as a location focused technology company, we are always looking to provide the best and most appropriate solutions for our clients. We are not in the consumer space, which is why we are an Esri partner. The rivalry between Esri and Google we found a distraction. These companies moving forward in parallel, and not in opposition, we see as presenting exciting possibilities.Curiouser and curiouser.
Gmap4 is an enhanced Google map viewer I developed that can (1) display user-specified ArcGIS MapServer layers and (2) display all the attribute data when the user clicks on MapServer geometry.
Any public-facing ArcGIS MapServer layer, along with its attributes, can be displayed. One Gmap4 map can have a combined maximum of 25 ArcGIS overlays and basemaps. All the standard Gmap4 features are available when MapServer data is being displayed. This includes an automatic touch-friendly interface on mobile devices (mouse interface on laptop/desktop), geolocation, Google aerials, highest resolution USGS topographic maps (basemap “t4 Topo High”), search, UTM grid, USNG grid and more.
The following simple syntax is all that is needed. Any necessary reprojection is handled by ArcGIS Server on-the-fly.
Method 1 - Specify GIS data as part of the Gmap4 link
This method is best if you have just a few GIS layers to display. Here is a map showing stream gages across the USA. Click a stream gage to see its attributes including a link to a very nice graph.
Use this method if you want to include more than just a few GIS layers on the map. Here is a link to a simple text file that specifies the stream gage layer. Anyone can have a free account on Google Sites where they can host text files.
And here is the map produced by passing the GIS specification via this text file. Note that this map is identical to the map produced with the first method.
Anyone is welcome to display GIS data with Gmap4 for non-commercial purposes. The Gmap4 documentation describes how to locate GIS servers and identify MapServer layers.
