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By BIXEL, December 31, 2009 1:20 pm

2009 was a big year for Ena and I. As with anyone a year filled with high points, with a few steep climbs along the way. We moved, I changed jobs, Ena kept hers and works from home full time, the dogs, Ena’s father being diagnosed with Parkinsons, the crappy economy (we survived), a year documented on Twitter… The list goes on.

“Its not that some people have will power and some don’t, its that some People are ready to change and others aren’t. ~ James Gordon M.D.

Change really is good! Ask anyone who knows us and they will tell you that we are on a 4.5 year move scheule. The urge hits, an opportunity presents itself, we weigh the options, if its best for US we pack up and go. See, its not that hard. Just don’t sweat the small stuff. Hell, we moved from Chicago to Austin mid year on less than a months notice. Was it easy? NO! Did we survive and come out of the ordeal better for it? YES!

“Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” ~ Carol Burnett

All to often I see people stuck (for a lack of a better word) in a life or a job they are not entirely happy living. My advice to them… Give it up, cut your losses, pack your shirt and haul bass for greener pastures and fish filled water. If you need a map let me know… thats kind of my thing!

“They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself” ~ Andy Warhol

The point is – all things change with time, we get old mature, we pick up fly rods our interest change, we eat too much mexican food put on a few pounds, we move south the witnters get colder, the summers get hotter not because of global warming, add your thoughts on change here…..

“Some people are still unaware that reality contains unparalleled beauties. The fantastic and unexpected, the ever-changing and renewing is nowhere so exemplified as in real life itself.” ~ Bernice Abbott

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, December 6, 2009 9:20 am

Recently, I’ve been tossing around the idea of starting a new Twitter account. One more focused on my outdoorsy babble. Thus, giving all my GEO/GIS friends a break from Fly Fishing, #getoutside, dogsrule talk, hiking, biking and vice versa.

My dilemma. From day one on Twitter I’ve followed one rule “tweet who you are” and the followers will come. It’s easy enough to click on that unfollow button and just be done with someone. Click, you’re gone! However, when that person provides quality content on more than one subject… making that click becomes a more complicated issue. To follow or not to follow? That is the question.

Surely, you have seen this on Twitter with some of your followee’s. Probably me, that crazy dude who can yak about GEO/GIS, Fly Fishing, #getoutside, his dogs and something funny his wife did or said in less than an hour. But, I have to say, that’s kind of what makes Twitter great, the open and honest release of thoughts, ideas and interest. Like them or not.

So, I guess what I’m asking is, do you continue to follow someone even though PART of what they say is of no interest to you, or do you drop them like a bad habit?

I’m seriously looking for feedback, please leave a comment with your thoughts.

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, December 3, 2009 7:56 pm

I came across this little guy today. He made me think about the little things in life that make it great.

Ok, the stuffed puppy may be a bad metaphor, but hey… it’s my blog and I’ll be happy if I want too!

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By BIXEL, October 23, 2009 1:04 pm

I posted a simple question on Twitter this morning asking: What’s one piece of advice you would give someone entering the GIS field? I was inquiring, because I was asked by a professor of mine to speak to a person interested in entering the geospatial field. (Just the fact that she thought of referring me to the guy was flattering.)

The response I got from the #geoarmy on twitter was outstanding. Responses came in from all over the map and from tweeps in Local govs, State govs, some working on Federal projects, Students, Geospatial business owners, Surveyors, Planners, Open Source evangelist and ESRI die hards… your basic Geonerd.

All of the responses were relevant to any newcomer entering the geospatial field as well as those actively engaged in the profession. Some of my favorites follow:

@DonMeltz – New GISers should view GIS as a tool, not a profession. Need to know enviro, transp, engineer, planning, helath, web, etc…

@geoDAWG – Easy… #geoglobaldomination = we are the people our parents warned us about. & Actually just getting involved is really important! Ask as many questions as possible in places like The GIS Forum

@Storm72 Not to limit oneself to any one set of apps or tools, but to become proficient with as many as possible.

@Taliesn – GIS is a tool to aid a love of explaining how the world works. Be proficient with the tool but embrace the fact that you’ll never be an expert.

@quakeguy – Run fast the other way Seriously, learn where the different types of data are and how to use them.

There were others about learning as much as possible, being involved in social networking, learning programming, be a jack of all trades and being involved within the geospatial community. Again, all were very relevant and practical for the newbie and experienced geonerd alike.

Getting involved with URISA is a good place to start but certainly not the only organization out there. There is any number of local, state and national GIS user groups to be active and participate in. Finding the one that is right for you is a simple Google search away.

After the meeting I posted that I had done my part to advance the movement of #geoglobaldomination and felt that I was successful in converting one new geonerd.

Selling points, you ask? There were 3 actually 1. That GIS is a tool that is applicable to many different professions 2. It’s ever changing, challenging and advancing in new directions 3. My enthusiasm for what I have picked as a career path.

There is only so much you can cover in a 30 minute meeting after all. However, like I said, I felt good about spreading the GIS gospel and hope that I have made a difference for the better in that particular person’s life. I wish them all the best in what ever direction they decide to take in their future education and subsequent life.

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, October 6, 2009 6:52 pm

I attended the ESRI User Conference Recap today that was presented during the 2009 Texas GIS Forum - the following are my thoughts and observations!

STREAMLINE - “reduce the number of concepts that you have to carry in your head” my favorite quote from the entire presentation and it seemed to be the theme for the entire show.

First let’s start off with the top 9 improvements that are new and upcoming in ArcGIS 9.4. and 5.6.7.8.9….. you get the point!

9. Upgraded User Interface – ArcCatalog will now be dock-able within ArcMap, The table of Contents can be removed and added without map redraw (completely awesome) 8. Dock-able attribute tables within ArcMap. 7. New search capabilities when adding data and for finding tools. 6. New reporting apps – kind of like MS office with the addition of usable templates. 5. Geo-processing in Model Builder – popups for tool tips, UNDO for auto layout, add models to toolbars, Geo processing will run in the background. 4. New layers tab in Table of Contents – a smart legend showing only visible layers (brilliant) 3. Change symbols through a search (my #1) 2. Time awareness – temporal maps, a system clock to show time and date of your data. There was something about setting multiple fields for map tips was in there somewhere 1. Fast base Maps – Continuous redraw of groups of layers and the ability to roam (think panning in Google Earth… just sayin’)

Some of the other stuff discussed for 9.4 that is equally as impressive as the top 9 list.

The new and improved editing experience – simplified, snapping options greatly improved, 3D editing, setting fields that are visible while editing, easy to use tools, deleting vertex improvements, mini editor toolbar that follows you while editing, web based editing.

Advances in mapping and cartography: Map automation through scripting, multi-scale generalization, embedded python scripts, improved map production through map books, dynamic text and multi-page pdf export.

Spatial Analysis – I had to answer an email through this so this all I got: Location/Allocation modeling, gravity modeling and time dependent routing.

A complete 3D GIS – Fast visualization, virtual cities, real time embedded video, ability to set symbology size based on an attribute field, embedded sketch up models, skyline tools and video layers. All very cool!

ArcGIS Server and new Imagery Integration – enhanced geodatabase, open API’s, topology rules and replication, mosaics live in the GDB, highly scalable, keep your image data in its native format, real-time and up to date imagery, on the fly reprojections and pan sharpening, image display and analysis tool in a toolbar in one central location. All in all it’s a complete imagery platform (think ERDAS but not).

New and improved ESRI support; they claim that 70% of support request are resolved within 1 day.

A few other things that were noted but, that are not really new… ArcGIS Online data and the Resource Center. I did find the addition of templates for ArcGIS Server a handy piece of information to be armed with. An announcement that the world base map in the resource center would soon be complete at a scale of 1:200,000 its now 1:1,000,000. Even though ArcGIS Explorer crashed 3 times during the demo it was very impressive and the crowd seemed very responsive to its use and mapping abilities.

Anyway, that’s what I got out of an entire week of the ESRI User Conference condensed into 3.5 hours. If you attend one of these presentation in the near future let me know your thoughts, I may have drifted while checking email or twitter and missed something important.

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, September 20, 2009 1:06 am

Doblars muddy feet

We spent a great day at the park with the huskies this morning.

 Click on the picture to see all the images.

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, September 11, 2009 8:52 am

The U.S. Interior Department’s National Park Service has announced that it intends to award a cooperative agreement to the Outdoor Foundation to carry out the Outdoor Nation project associated with the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance program.

The estimated total program funding available was cited as $15,000, although no specific amount for this award was indicated by the agency.

A funding notice from the National Park Service states: “This initiative engages young adults in leadership for outdoor recreation and conservation. Public, private and nonprofit sectors are all represented in the partnership. Further, Outdoor Nation will increase the effectiveness of recreation and conservation organizations in all sectors, public, private and non-profit; enhance relationships among all sectors of the outdoor recreation and conservation community; and invite meaningful participation and leadership in the fields of outdoor recreation and conservation from young people throughout the country.

The funding opportunity number is NPS-NOI-WASO-09-0005.

Full announcement

http://www.grants.gov

Taken from www.targetednews.com Written By: RAMESH NEGI

Thanks for playing along , now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, September 7, 2009 10:02 pm

I remember growing up and all of the outdoors was my classroom. Going to school was simply a side note, a necessary evil forced upon us by those who new what was good for us. In all honesty they did. As I’ve aged, I do know that my favortie classes were the ones that got us out of the classroom and under the sky. Rather it be Science, PE or Math, I think any class can be translated through an outdoor activity. The students at William N. Deberry Elementary School in Springfield Massachusetts will now get the chance to enjoy some of the same joys of learning outside that I did. READ MORE

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By BIXEL, September 6, 2009 9:37 pm

Testing the WP GEO location plug-in. This allows you to add geocoding or Google Maps to your post. Very cool and easy to use if you want to add some geospatial or location info to your writing. It does require you to go out and get a Google Maps API key, you can get one HERE. (requires a google account)

Thanks for playing along, now go outside and do something fun!

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By BIXEL, July 24, 2009 4:01 am

Austin Community College, in you guessed it Austin, TX, has finally had their new GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Certificates and AAS programs approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordination Board. This is big news for me, as I first studied GIS under the professor that has worked so hard for so many years to get these plans approved. I attribute the success I have enjoyed in my career to her excellent and entertaining teaching style. I would like to wish, Mary E. Booth, O.D. Assistant Professor, Geography my deepest congratulations and best wishes in the future success of the programs. I look forward to taking some of these classes myself upon my return to Austin to further my knowledge of this exciting and ever changing career we call GIS.

Below, are the details of the plans described in full and were copied directly from her email announcing the programs approval.

____________________________________________________________________________

Late yesterday afternoon, we got the official word that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (hereafter referred to as “The Board”) finally approved ACC’s new GIS Level I certificate, GIS Level 2 certificate, and the Associate of Applied Science (AAS) in GIS. We will begin offering these new programs this fall semester. We also have an Associate of Arts (AA) degree in GIS that we have been offering for more than 3 years.

I apologize in advance for the extreme length of this email, but I have been working for TEN years to get these programs implemented, and I wanted to explain the new offerings as well as I can. It’s worth reading the whole email so that you understand the options and how the curricula were developed.

Here is a link to view the curricula for all 4 programs:  http://www3.austincc.edu/it/cms/www/awardplans/awarddept.php?year=2010&type=CC&group=TFSSG&nid=3864.

The AA degree is an academic degree and is designed to be the first 2 years of a 4-year degree Bachelor’s in Geography with a concentration in GIS. The AA contains the 42 hours of core curriculum courses (such as Math, English, History, etc) that is required for all Bachelor degrees in Texas. The AA requires only 2 GIS courses: Intro to GIS (GEOG 2470) and GIS II (GEOG 2471 – it was formerly called Advanced GIS).

The 2 new certificates and the AAS degree are workforce degrees. This means that most of the courses do NOT transfer to a 4-year degree. These new programs are designed to get you the GIS knowledge/skills you need to get entry level GIS jobs. They are practical course with an emphasis on teaching you the skills employers want and need. Generally, courses with a GEOG rubric will transfer to a 4-year degree (though that is up to the 4-year university), while courses with the GISC rubric will usually not transfer to a 4-year degree. All of the new course we will be introducing over the next 2 years will have the GISC rubric.

The programs were designed to be started in the Fall semester. The only courses that will be offered every semester are Intro to GIS (GEOG 2470) and GIS II (GEOG 2471). The other courses will either be offered in the Fall or the Spring semester. If a course is listed in the first (or third) semester in the curricula, it will be offered in the Fall and if it is listed in the second semester, it will be offered in the Spring. We will be adding all the new courses over the course of the next two years. So this fall, we are offering GISC 1491 (Special Topics in Cartography – Introduction to Cartography) and the CIS department is offering ITSW 1307 (Introduction to Database: MS Access). In Spring 2010, we will offer GISC 1401 (Cartography & Geography in GPS & GIS – a big long name for a GPS course), GISC 2401 (Data Acquisition and Analysis in GIS), and GISC 1421 (Introduction to Raster-based GIS which is a remote sensing course). In Fall 2010, we will add GISC 2411 (GIS Applications), GISC 2459 (Web-served GIS), GISC 2250 (Scripting for GIS), and GISC 2231 (Advanced Problems in GIS).

To see the course descriptions, go to  http://www3.austincc.edu/it/cms/www/catalog/coursedetails_fox.php?year=2010&deptcode=geog#GISC2280

 The Board requires all workforce programs to have a “Capstone Experience” during the last semester of a program. You must be in your last semester of a certificate or AAS to take this “Capstone Experience” course. Our new programs offer three options: 1) GISC 2280 Cooperative Education, 2) GISC 2164/2264 Field Experience or 3) GISC 1391 Special Topics in GIS – Capstone Course. A cooperative is designed for those who are already working in a full-time GIS job. The Field Experience is a GIS internship. It is designed for someone who is not working full-time so that they have time to do an internship. The Capstone course is designed for someone who is working full-time in a non-GIS job. That person would not be able to have the time to do an internship, so the capstone simulates a real-world project. The Cooperative meets one hour per week and the Capstone meets 3 hours per week. The internship meets periodically with the instructor of record. This fall, Bonnie Brown will be supervising all three capstone experiences. I know at least 2 people on this mailing list who are already enrolled in the cartography & database courses, and just need the capstone experience to finish up the Level I certificate. If that is the case for you, please contact Bonnie Brown to arrange to be enrolled in whichever capstone experience is appropriate for you.  You can find her contact information on the Fall class schedule on the Web.  Please also cc me or email me. As the only full-time GIS instructor right now, it is my responsibility to keep track of the capstone experiences for the Board and our accreditation organization (SACS), so I would really appreciate being kept in the loop although I am not actually the instructor of record.

A little bit about how these new curricula were created. Eighteen months ago, ACC formed a GIS workforce Advisory committee which consisted of 13 GIS experts (including the State GIS Coordinator) from the Central Texas region. About half the members were from the public sector and the other half from the private sector. Some of the entities represented were the USGS, City of Austin, Texas Dept of Health, CAPCOG, DIR, TPWD, PBS&J, URSCorp, GeoAnalytics, Impact Resources, Halff, Baker-Aicklin and Texas State University. We had several meetings over the course of several months during which  the committee agreed on the final curricula. The TX Higher Education Coordinating Board’s rules dictated that I could serve only as ex-officio members of the committee. I provided insight to the community college population and guidance to make sure that the curricula met other requirements including those of The Board and our accreditation organization (SACS). After long and sometimes heated debate, the GIS Workforce Advisory Committee designed the curricula for the new certificates and AAS. Given the rigorous nature of the process, we are confident that our programs will be giving you the skills and knowledge that local employers want. I didn’t design the programs and we didn’t just adopt programs from other states/regions. These curricula were uniquely designed for the job market in Central Texas.

I am off-contract (i.e., not getting paid) until the week of August 17^th (not that you would know if for all the work I have done while I am supposedly on vacation) and I will be heading to Maine this weekend. I will have very limited email access while I am there, so if you email me between July 25^th & August 17^th, you may not hear back for a week or more. I know it is bad timing as I am sure many of you have questions, but the Board took so long approving these, that it just worked out that way. I will try to answer emails as I can while on vacation.

I hope to see a bunch of you in our new classes in the next few years. PLEASE spread the word about our new courses/programs. I think our new programs will be extremely beneficial to both students and area employers.

Mary E. Booth, O.D., Assistant Professor, Geography,  Austin Community College