rcw@scicom.AlphaCDC.COM (Robert White) (09/17/89)
+----------------------------------------------------------------+ | GIS AND DIGITAL CARTOGRAPHY NEWSLETTER Vol 1 Issue 2 | | Friday, Sep 15,1989 | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Submissions for the newsletter should be sent clearly labeled | | with the submitters name, organization, and usenet address to: | | ncar!boulder!qetzal!gis-letter or rcw@scicom.alphacdc.com | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ LETTER SECTION: 1. Grass User 2. Rallying the GIS masses 3. Incompatible Digest Formats 4. How do I shade Digital Elevation Models? 5. Give a Paper at GIS '90 CONFERENCES 1. Training Seminar on GIS 2. Second Nat'l Conference on using GIS 3. GIS '90 4. Denver GeoTech ****0**** From: Robert White [rcw@scicom.alphacdc.com] Subject: Technical Submissions A surprising amount of traffic this week. Please keep working on your technical submissions, and we will devote an entire newsletter to them. -ed. ****1**** From: Lars Schylberg [larss@fmi.kth.se] Subject: GIS Newsletter Organization [Dept. of Photogrammetry, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden]] I'm very glad to see this newslettter. At our department we have just implemented the GRASS(Geographic Resource Analysis Support System) software on Apollo workstations. GRASS is GIS software that US Army Corps of Engineers have written and placed in the public domain. It is distributed via tape for handling costs. It runs on many different hardware platforms. I would like to get in contact with other universities or institutions that have used it in education or cartographical experiments. That is what I personally have thought about using GRASS for. [I will include some information about Grass that I received from the government in the next letter -ed] ****2**** From: Terry Ingoldsby [ingoldsb@ctycal.COM] Subject: GIS Newsletter [ctycal!ingoldsb@calgary.UUCP] Organization: The City of Calgary, Alberta I would *definitely* be interested in a newsletter, email list or newsgroup that discussed the concerns of GIS users. GIS doesn't seem to fit into any category; it has aspects of computer graphics, database, image processing. It is used on every sort of machine from IBM mainframes to workstations to PCs. Part of the problem with getting GIS going on the net is due to the nature of the agencies participating in GIS. Much of the GIS work is done by government groups who do not know about Usenet, electronic mail, etc., neither do they see any benefit (since there are no groups discussing GIS). Also, government agencies are very sensitive about possible security risks of tying to networks. This leads to a Catch-22 situation since you don't get a newsgroup unless there are users and there are no users without a newsgroup. Nonetheless it behooves those of us who are enlightened :^) to educate the rest about the benefits of the network. Starting a newsletter would be a good first step. ****3**** From: Mike Muuss [mike@brl.mil] Subject: GIS and Digital Cartography Newsletter Would you be so kind as to format your newsletter along the lines that ARPANET (internet) Digests are formatted? This would allow those of us with mail readers that know how to "burst" digests to handle your transmissions. There is an RFC on this format on file at SRI-NIC. Best, -Mike [Can someone provide me with this? I am not on the internet, and haven't the vaguest idea of how to get it. -ed] ****4**** From: Chip Chapin [chip@hpclisp.HP.COM] [chip%hpda@hplabs.hp.com] [chip%hpda@hp-sde.hp.com] Subject: Interest in Computer Mapping Systems Organization: Hewlett-Packard Calif. Language Lab Well, judging from the number of requests for "map databases" and such, I think there is a lot of interest in digital cartography, or geography or whatever-graphy. And not just from genuine geography jocks, but also from interested hackers such as myself. I finally got a chance to plot DEM data on my workstation, and I'm stoked! I want more! First [elementary] discussion question: I have a program that plots DEM data as successive planes from "back" to front. I am considering changing it to plot successive rows of quadrilaterals to form a true "surface". Then I'd like to shade them appropriately. My question is... Seems like all this must be well-understood, with some established algorithms (I *hate* re-inventing the wheel). I'm not a real graphics weenie anyway. Could someone please point me in the direction of some good texts or papers on this subject? ****5**** From: Chris Hermansen [uunet!ubc-cs!van-bc!tacitus!clh] Subject: GIS '90, Vancouver Organization: Timberline Forest Industry Consultants Anyone who is interested in submitting a paper for GIS '90 should contact Paddy O'Reilly at the Symposium Office ASAP. [see below -ed] For those who can't bear to use the telephone or snail mail, send me some e-mail and I'll pass it on. I have to moderate two panel discussions at GIS'90. One is "Sharing the Data: Networking and Communications"; the other is "GIS Hardware: Micros vs Workstations vs Mainframes". The idea of these panel discussions is that the three panelists will present their paper (about 20 minutes per paper), and the remaining half hour will be taken up by a discussion between panelists and audience. The papers are meant to be case studies - either why something works or why it doesn't (ie, no vaporware). If anyone is particularly interested in presenting papers in these topics, or has any valuable suggestions, please let me know via e-mail. **** CONFERENCES AND SEMINARS **** 1. Training Seminar on using Geographic Information Systems Who : Datagraphics Corporation Dr. Douglas Cargo, Ph.D. Mr. Ron Harris, Chairman, State of Texas Advisory commission on computer mapping, geographic information systems and user needs. Content : GIS graphics, spatial analysis, time series, performance management, budget allocation. Software & Hardware. State Emergency Communication application, voter registration application, appraisal district, public works, engineering, and budget applications. When : 9 AM - 4PM, October 10, 1989. Arlington Hilton, 2401 East Lamar Blvd, Arlington TX 76006. Info : $45. Contact Ken Dees (214) 437-1165 2. Second National Conference on Geographic Information Systems Who : Government Computer News 301-445-4400 Content : Management Issues GIS procurements GIS cost/benefits System integration strategies Interagency initiative Digital cartographic standards GIS survey results Management information integrated with spatial information Role of public domain databases GIS autonomous control within an integrated architecture GIS considerations prior to purchase Applications TIGER data Quality control of DLG data Developing countries GIS in emergency management GRASS and WHAG in wildlife management Army applications Non source point pollution Fundamental considerations in map analysis MRLIS mineral resources land information BLM land information systems Technology trends On screen raster and vector integration Hardware trends Distributed databases Desktop GIS Expert systems Federal trends Visualization Industry standards Remote sensing SPOT maps Courses Overview Raster - vector integration Multi vender GIS 3D geographic analysis Data capture When : San Francisco Airport Hilton, October 16-18, 1989. Info : $505 Government, $595 Non Government (301) 445-4400 3. GIS '90 Who : GIS '90 Organization (?) Content : Forestry professional and management meeting focused on the effective use of GIS in forestry and natural resource management. Offers current and practical information and an opportunity to meet leading GIS exports for the exchange of ideas. When : Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre, March 14-16 1990 Info : Write: GIS '90 Symposium Office 134 Abbott Street Suite 303 Vancouver B.C. Canada V6B 2K4 Voice: (604) 688-0188 Fax: (604) 682-2987 4. Denver Geotech '89 Who : Denver GeoTech, Inc. Content : Geoscientific information systems applied to exploration and research. Exhibitions, technical sessions, luncheons. When : Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center September 23-26, 1989 Info : ARC Enterprises 133 S. Van Gordon Street, Suite 200 Lakewood, CO 80228 Voice: (303) 980-1648 Fax: (303) 234-0921