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Where To Now?

Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates

Posted 10 May 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) °

Open Source, Gov 2.0:Very Compelling

Open Government
Title: Open Government
Author(s): Daniel Lathrop, Laurel Ruma
Publisher:O’Reilly Media
Released: February 2010
Cost: $44.99

I have just started reading “Open Government” and I am already thinking I need to buy this book for my friends in government and expense it. I really would like to see a lot of comments on this book, before I finish it, because I don’t completely want to believe the author’s take on where US is going.

However, I will just post before really getting into this book, I might need to retract my comments. So please read on with this in mind.

As the book starts off in the first person, I hear Mr. Lathrop, and then another author chimes in, then another as this is a collection and a discussion of ground breaking ideas.
However, I am on the edge of my seat as the young and talented authors expression and thought pour out of these pages. I am suspicious on where this is going and what he/she is selling…. which is to get me to think of Government as a Platform.

My perspective, I don’t really like what happened during the dot com bubble and I am disappointed with all of the start ups promising glory and the investors who seem to have been suckered. I am not an expert on any of it, but during this time I really was wondering why the old timers where buying into the kids selling cracked ideas. While so many of us Spatial IT types where cutting amazing ground, but there was less interest in pulling in grounded concepts than the high world changing smoke and mirrors.

Okay, I am jealous, but I have heard of so many stories of Computer Science grades with zero experience, spending a week or two, creating a webpage and a database, and selling it for millions. I suspect the whole event was more of a hacking of wall street, through the ingenuity and genius of the DotCom’ers.

I can’t put it down, I need to know where this is leading, it sounds like great ideas, but still I am not sure. This better not be Cool-Aid.

Gov 2 point O?

I am already believing he might be right, maybe he is.

We need to be clear, we need to test this, we need to debate this before buying in.

Radical Thoughts, Life Changing Ideas.

I hope US is ready.

Regards,

Harley Powers Parks

Posted 25 March 2010 § Book Review ‡ Comments (0) °

Flex Knob

Creating a knob in flex is pretty easy if your not to big on the design. Here is a very simple knob, click to see the source here. It uses a button component, png, and rotate. Keith Hair does a great job on a knob component. Although he might be waiting to update his swc files for Flash Builder 4, released yesterday.

Posted 23 March 2010 § FlexBuilder 3 ‡ Comments (0) °

3D Urban Modeling, Animator, Scientist and Code Monkey Starts Blog

Ellery Chan is finally starting a blog that will no doubt draw thousands of hits a day. It’s a great url too. http://auxmem.com

That’s a great name… and the reason why I blog. Mostly being able to get back to an idea that started a while back is a bonus. Also, it might be a community service, besides self-serving. One of the most viewed pages is the flex tree; but no comments so, it must be the “underground” theme. Also, I never followed up on completing the post, adding the example, and the code. I promise to start posting working examples and code. Also, with the arduino interest and some simple mash-ups I hope to have something cool.

Next Post: Flex Knob Component.

Posted 19 March 2010 § Uncategorized § Urban Modeling ‡ Comments (0) °

More Arduino, Post No. 3

So for a few entries, Arduino has been the topic, and essentially it seems to be the most exciting as the ultimate mash-up, with components that can track, communicate, navigate on their own. Since the quad-helicopter, this hex-helicopter is the most impressive diy by MikroKopter.

MikroKopter - HexaKopter from Holger Buss on Vimeo.

With a solid 30 Minute flight time, imagine a fleet of these conducting an aerial video survey remotely…. okay, that’s a bit much…. or is it? There’s an App For That!
It’s actually an Iphone app game based on similar technology.

Impressed yet? you can get involved at ARDrone.org

Posted 09 March 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (0) °

We Need To Know More

In 1992, GIS wasn’t mainstream and in 1994, I remember having discussions as to, it might be better to rip maps from a phone book for Environmental Mapping than developing GIS because in the end, the client’s not buying information, because all we’re doing is “selling man hours.” In ‘96, it was clear that X files was the truth. In ‘98, we didn’t think Windows could get any worst. In 2000, the world was sure to end as time would stop.  In 2002, we morned after 911.   In 2004, I made my first photo realistic, 3D Urban Model of Honolulu. In 2006, Adobe Flex AS3 introduces oops to flash. In 2008, the Large Hadron Collider opens a worm hole and nothing happens. And now, in 2010, even though “Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Software” was published in ‘94 I can get “boot up” using Antorpy, PureMVC, Flex and MooTools.

Posted 02 March 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (2) °

Reading: BYO - CNC Machine

Besides Arduino, I am reading about CNC (computer numerical control) machines. Most everyone has seen a 3D “printer” or some form of physical 3D modeling. For the geospatial industry it was just so impressive to see 3D terrain models cut and painted. However, these guys have been so busy for years, and the professional 3D printing machines way to expesive. However, the cnc technology, for DIY, might provide an interesting application of 3D geospatial information systems and a physical model. I have post a review on Amazon.

Posted 01 March 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (0) °

Data Visualization Analytics - Grammar of Graphics

Just a quick note, again for a reminder and something I need to discuss again is BirdEye as well as Protovis and anything related to the Grammar of Graphics.
http://dataspora.com/blog/dataviz-sf-salon-no/
http://code.google.com/p/protovis-js/
http://www.jstatsoft.org/v17/b03/paper

order from: Springer

Posted 22 February 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (0) °

Arduino, GIS PINS, Post No. 2

I have a wait before I get my first arduino.  So plenty to read up on.  It seems Geographic Information System and Global Positioning Systems are everywhere; But next will be the GIS and Personal Inertial Navigational Systems.  Check out this quarter size Inertial Measuring Unit by SparkFun. 2 axis gyros, and 3 accelerometers.

Posted 02 February 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (1) °

Arduino, Post No. 1

For the last week, I was trying to remember the API for working with Micro-controllers called Arduino.  This is a post to help me remember Arduino and why I am interested in Arduino.  First, I like to prototype since it doesn’t require that it works perfectly. However, prototypes are very rewarding, since it helps lay a foundation for doing the real thing.  The Arduino might help me prototype physical projects using 3D spatial information without costing me alot of money, but proving a concept to the skeptics.  And if it doesn’t, I can have some fun with it anyway, while release some stress too.  It would be really exciting to create a GIS Arduino application.  More exciting than coding a tree or drop down menus which sadly is something I like too.

Which brings me to how I remembered this Open Source Arduino project. I googled much about hobbies, kits, geek devices, with API’s for Micro-controllers. I just couldn’t find it, I remembered it sounded like the google’s android phone… which of course it’s not… for some reason I kept thinking of Tejuino, a friends band and fermented tortilla drink, which seemed silly.  However, my search did bring up something about those little tin boxes Altoids are packed in.  Maybe that would let me fit my project in it.  But Altoids sounded familiar because of android.  Surprising, I found “make something out of the Altoid Tin box” as item number 23 on the Geek’s list of 100 Must Do Things.  But down at item 95 is “How To Unleash A Laser Pointers Full Potential”, I just had to know. But there, on “Hack N Mod” listing under the 30-Days most popular hacks was the Arduino Powered 4 rotor Helicopter.  Now that’s cool.  4 rotors can provide a very stable platform, mounted with a remote video camera, and you have your very own Kino.

Although my Associative Memory didn’t kick in completely, I did find some interesting things.

Posted 02 February 2010 § Soup-of-the-Day ‡ Comments (0) °