There are lots of ways to measure the extent or impact of human or natural disasters but sometimes it is challenging to gain a true perspective on their scope.  The current oil spill impacting the Gulf of Mexico and the nearby coastal areas is a case in point.  Morgan Brown whose blog I follow largely for his insight into internet marketing and related topics posted an example of how web-based mapping an imaging tools can help frame events like the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in terms that are familiar to us.

He points to a great Google Earth application built by Paul Rademacher that allows you to compare the spatial extent of the oil spill to a geography you are more familiar with.  For example, here is a clip from the application overlaying the spill over the area where I live – including many of my favourite fishing spots!   Give it a try.  A great example of how spatial technology can help us understand what is happening in the real world.   And hopefully in this case will galvanize us into action!

The location of information sources is useful information itself. Where information is published can be valuable in many ways. Hyperlocal news services are one example. They benefit from the ability to aggregate news information based on the source of that news.

Another interesting application is in mapping source information about a particular subject. I came across an interesting blog post from InSTEDD (Innovative Support to Emergencies Diseases and Disasters). Their recent blog post illustrates the value of mapping source information on a map.  In the post they show recent information tagged with ‘influenza’ by location.  They have then overlain a representation of  the data using what is called a heat map.

It should be clear that in this particular example the InSTEDD results are not necessarily pointing to events of influenza itself but they do show patterns of information dissemination that tell their own story for those knowledgeable in this field.  Depending on the nature of the source posts, the mapped results could provide useful information about the underlying issue or simply provide insight into the patterns around the actual post sources themselves.   In either case, map representation can aid in the interpretation of the results.

One of the underlying requirements for mapping data is the need to somehow attach a location to data – in this case the location of sources who published information about influenza.  This location information has to be in a form that will allow an association with a point or region in order for it to be represented on a map.   The technical term for this is geocoding and it is fundamental to all location based services or applications.

There are a number of ways in which geocoding can be accomplished.  They vary in method, degree of difficulty, accuracy and cost.  In a future post, I intend to discuss geocoding in more detail and provide and overview of various approaches that are being used.

Location base services have emerged as one of the trending wireless application areas and as new applications emerge, the conversation about user privacy grows.

With respect to LBS, the privacy issue revolves around the need to make a user’s location known.  Location awareness allows the user to benefit from the application or service but on the downside, making ones location known can bring on a potential range of unintended, unpleasant or even dangerous results for the user.  So for LBS providers, a key question is how to balance the collection, use and dissemination of user location and related information so as to provide benefits without serving up or facilitating unintended results.

While the discussions around this topic are many, I found it encouraging that the CTIA – a leading representative for the wireless industry association recently published “Best Practices and Guidelines for Location Based Services” which focuses on user privacy and information security.  The document is intended for LBS providers with an objective to ensuring the LBS applications being developed and offered to users promote and protect user privacy.

The guidelines are developed around two fundamental principals – user notice and user consent and state:

• LBS Providers must ensure that users receive meaningful notice about how location information will be used, disclosed and protected so that users can make informed decisions whether or not to use the LBS and thus will have control over their location information.
• LBS Providers must ensure that users consent to the use or disclosure of location information, and LBS Providers bear the burden of demonstrating such consent. Users must have the right to revoke consent or terminate the LBS at any time.

Specific elements of the guidelines include:

• Provision of notice to users
• Obtaining user consent and allowing users to revoke their consent
• Establishment of information safeguards

As the guidelines points out, there are many groups who could be the LBS provider so the challenge will be to bring about concensus on appropriate guidelines and then broad adoption.  It is encouraging that the industry is take steps to meet these challenges.   From an industry and individual provider perspective, I believe proper attention is key to healthy growth.

If you are an LBS provider I encourage you to read and consider how to implement the guidelines. While there is nothing binding about the CTIA guidelines, they are encouraging LBS providers to self-certify for the benefit of users.

In a previous part of my career I spent a lot of time trying to understand icebergs and their behavior (is that what they consider anthropomorphism?).  A lot of years have gone by since then but I am still curious about these massive pieces of ice.  So I had to post this picture of a massive Antarctic iceberg colliding about to collide with the Mertz Glacier Ice Tongue.

Antarctic Iceberg About to Collide With Ice Tongue

Even more impressive is that NASA captured a time sequence of satellite images showing the collision and fracture that calved a new iceberg.  The first iceberg B-09B is approximately the size of Rhode Island and the new iceberg is estimated to have a mass of 700-800 billion tons!  Talk about a major collision.

Satellite imagery has a wide range of applications – not the least of which is their use in monitoring massive events like this in remote parts of the world.

I came across a very nice Google mashup today.  There are so many of them out there but this one caught my attention for a number of reasons – both from a personal and technical interest standpoint.

Lindsay Wright has created a website called Tidespy that provides tide  and solar information for tidal stations in many countries.

From a technical standpoint some of the interesting things he has built into the site include:

• the incorporation of dynamic data (both tide and solar information) into a mashup environment
• information rich pop up windows with user control of which data to view
• simple user tools to modify how the data is presented
• tools that allow users to customize the how information is presented and search tools for finding specific locations
• nifty little location markers which at the local level show whether the tide is rising or falling and change color in accordance with the tide level

Tidespy shows that it is possible to create an attractive, interesting and informative mapping application with readily available mapping tools.

A recent article in the Financial Post reminds us of what the real estate industry has known for a long time – location is everything.  Many factors influence the price of property but in the end, location is fixed and according to Elton Ash of Re/Max “The location is always critical. The location is directly tied to price. Nothing beats location. Ever.”

So what about other industries?  Absolutely for many.

Geo-industry analysts predict returns to strong economic growth in 2010 for technology companies in the sector while broader based technology gurus are consistently recognizing the importance of location within other technology products and services.  Erick Schonfeld of TechCrunch puts “Geo” in second spot in his prediction of technologies that will have a significant impact in 2010.  He points to the recent Twitter acquisition of Mixer Labs, creator of the GeoAPI as evidence that tech companies see geolocation capability as a must have in their products and services.

My opinion is that increasingly opportunities will exist for geo technology companies to leverage their expertise in markets outside their traditional areas of business.  The challenge will be to identify the real opportunities from the fluff.  Many of the opportunities will look quite different from traditional location based markets and the winners will be the ones who can figure out how to structure themselves to match the market requirements.

Rabkin’s ROI has a great post on the impact new technology has on our “baseline experience”.  Barry Rabkin points out that when new technology is seen to add value to our lives or improve the way we go about our business, a new baseline of expectation is established against which we measure future technology.

His post is a good reminder that disruptive technologies are always changing market expectations.  While we may believe our product is the disruptive one, we can can never lose sight of the reality that our competitors are also responding to changing market conditions.

For companies in the spatial technology world, this change is all too evident.  Particularly as one observes the business of organizations such as Microsoft and Google and others as they continually raise the bar of expectation among consumers with respect to access to spatial information, ease of use, etc.  What was pretty heady stuff a few years ago has now fallen below the threshold of user expectation.

I not sure the saying “a rising tide lifts all boats” is entirely true in a competitive market place but it is clear that even when the bar is being steadily raised by some large market players, opportunity remains for others.  In the spatial technology field we continue to see many companies thrive (not all to be sure) and new companies emerge, set to introduce their own technologically disruptive products and services into the market.

The challenge remains to innovate around sound technology with a sharp eye on what the market requires.  Recognize the market expectation is always changing, don’t forget that your competition is probably gauging the market as closely as you are, anticipate what  they will do and have a plan to deal with it.

So how do you go about creating a dialogue between technical experts and those who may be able to benefit from the technology in question whether they realize it or not?

Location Intelligence Conference bridges this gap and creates dialogue.   LI 2009 has come and gone, in the process offering a wide ranging presentation of location technology trends and their application.

While not the opening talk, Jeff Christensen’s (Rhiza Labs) presentation entitled “Designing Simple Tools for Powerful Analysis” framed the discussion when he reminded those in attendance that ultimately data is used to tell stories and make decisions.  Regardless of complexity of the solution or the technology applied, the end goal is the same.

From a technology perspective, LI 2009 opened with Steve Coast founder of OpenStreetMap describing the phenomenal growth of the crowd sourced alternative to Navteq and TeleAtlas street network data.  As much as anything OpenStreetMap is a reminder that new paradigms can lead to technology advances and amazing new applications.

Cloud computing was a recurring theme throughout the conference with various speakers offering their expert opinion and hands on experience with cloud computing.  Discussion touched on cloud computing concepts, benefits, technical challenges and trends.  A particularly interesting presentation by Mark Sundt described the development of Appistry’s CloudIQ that provides a cloud solution for clients who want the benefits of cloud services but want to deploy it in their own data centres.

On the application side presentations covered the spectrum of location technology application from the complex with John Bennett (Hunt Energy IQ) describing Hunt Energy IQ’s work to integrate a range of sensors to develop green intelligent buildings where it is possible to calculate and manage energy costs in real time through the role of IP location information at the foundation of Examiner.com (Dave Shafer, Co-Founder and COO) allowing them to provide users with hyperlocal news content.

Three days of presentations, panel discussions and individual conversations provided a basket load of information on location technologies and their application.

My takeaways from LI 2009:

1. Confirmation that location intelligence technologies continue to evolve and offer opportunity for new applications, and
2. Successful applications of location intelligence technology consistently exhibit clear understanding and very specific use of technology regardless of the simplicity or complexity of the technology.

Yesterday I watched an inspiring interview with Jessica Jackley, co-founder of Kiva.org.   The interview was part of an event called The Leadership Summit which is an annual faith-based leadership event that includes presentations from recognized leaders from all walks of life.

While there were many things about the interview with Ms. Jackley that I found fascinating and inspiring, one thing that stood out in particular was how clearly Kiva understood the importance of defining its mission statement and then how that permeated the organization.  Kiva’s mission is “to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty”. The organization links individual credit lenders (some lending as little as $25) with entrepenuers in developing countries through in-country micro finance organizations.  When the interviewer asked her how Kiva managed to grow (Kiva has helped raise tens of millions of dollars in capital since its formation in 2005) while maintaining a relatively flat organizational structure Ms. Jackley referred to the importance of Kiva’s mission statement as providing the guidance and direction for a growing organization.  She asserts that Kiva’s mission statement provides an important mechanism for self-governance and reduces (not eliminates) the need for organizational structure and bureaucracy, allowing for great creativity and productivity within the organization.

So, a Mission Statement can be more than a line item or paragraph in your business plan but also a guiding light enabling an organization to operate efficiently and to flourish.

It seems like I am hearing a lot about the problems with personal navigation technology these days. A recent twitter post by @mapserving of a news article by the BBC describes another case of GPS misadventure. And only a few days ago, my wife and I, attending a reception listened to an extended dinner table discussion of the problems of in car navigation. Some of the accounts are humorous but sometimes the consequences may be serious.

So as a one promoting the benefits of spatial technology, what does one make of these types of reports?

As the growth in location aware applications and services is upon us, we need to remind ourselves first, that technology in itself is probably not the complete solution to any user’s needs.

In the case of GPS navigation there are many potential sources for error including the following:

• Outdated map data – recent street addition
• Incorrect or incomplete data
• Inaccurate geocoding
• Poor routing models
• GPS satellite system responsiveness and accuracy
• Interpretation of user queries
• Operator error

Take a look at the manuals that accompany your GPS device. If these issues are addressed at all, it is not in an overt way. And even if they were spelled out more prominently, would it make a difference? My sense is that in today’s technological world, there is a tendency among all of us to focus on the benefits of technology while losing site of its limitations.

There is a fine balance between promoting new technology and ensuring that users are aware of the limitations of its use or the need for other information, common sense, etc. One of the challenges of those providing technology based products and services is to minimize the limitations of the technology during the user experience. This can be accomplished by:

• Understanding the use case – this will change as products and service uptake moves from early adopters to mainstream users;
• Ensuring you have thought through and are able to provide a complete solution to the user – are things like documentation, training, etc necessary and how should they be implemented to be effective; and
• Constantly work to solve technical limitations or provide workarounds.

These are pretty fundamental and there are probably others but we need to keep at least these three in the foreground as we work to advance the use of spatial information and technologies.