Huge Detailed Maps With MapPoint 2004
Michael
Mattys of Mattys Consulting
continues to explore ways to create huge
map images with street-level detail using MapPoint 2004 (see John
Washenberger's 2/20/03 article, " Discovering
MapPoint Map Printing Capabilities"). The thumbnail
image at the left shows Manhattan, NY at street-level. Download this zip
file (1.5 MB)
to see the full image.
Normally you can only print what is displayed on
the screen (roughly 1 ft x 1 ft). With Michael's new method it is
possible to print the entire area of Manhattan at 3.5 feet x 5 feet.
While the tool for
creating these maps is not for sale, Michael
says he would be happy to do work for anyone who
needs captures of a city at street level, the U.S., or a state.
MapPoint 2004/MLS
Conspiracy Theory
If you follow the forum closely, you know there are some real gems and
otherwise interesting posts appearing regularly, here's
a new one:
"Microsoft's strategy
seems to be very well thought out.
First Microsoft
encourages fleet tracking companies to grow the market.
Second they add confusing
language to the EULA which seems to restrict use for Tracking. (But
they don't seem to enforce it. Hmmm, I wonder why?)
Third, they come out with
a product that is directed right at business users, which is the core
business of the fleet tracking companies.
Finally the coupe de
grace, (this is my guess) Microsoft targets Fleet Tracking companies
clients. (They even know who the MapPoint users are.) They starts
enforcing the EULA and within 1-2 yrs, they are the only company left
providing fleet tracking with MapPoint.
Ever feel like you've
been taken?"
I can't comment with any
authority, but I think this
is a mis-characterization of Microsoft. From what I know, they
would be very happy
not to have the fleet tracking EULA restrictions, these were forced
into the product by NAVTEQ.
To get another view of
the market, I asked Dave Ransier of
GeoMicro, a MapPoint competitor, for his thoughts about Microsoft's
strategy and if fleet companies were in fact moving away from MapPoint
due to the EULA changes.
"Microsoft continues to define it's
products by getting closer to the customer. Making it easier and easier
for developers within IT departments to get everything from Microsoft,
rather than going to a third party integrator. Fleet guys must find
ways to add value beyond the basic GPS location.
How intentional or coincidental these events are, only Microsoft knows.
The MLS seems to be more of a warning to
other companies thinking of entering the market. It copies features
typically offered by carriers or other LBS platforms. It is not really
a product announcement as a business strategy announcement. I do
remember hearing it would be released last year. Even if the MLS was
ready last year (to coincide
with the MP 04 EULA changes), they had to delay the release because no
carrier had a
GPS network except for Nextel. (I think we can safely assume that
Nextel told them they were not interested, that is why they bought
Autodesk.) Surely having only one carrier in Canada on board for the
launch has to be a major disappointment.
From what we have been hearing, Microsoft
has been telling [fleet companies] not to worry about the EULA. There
is not a lot of pressure to change immediately. The small guy is in a
bind. They simply can not afford to redevelop. If Microsoft enforces
the EULA they will disappear quickly. The larger companies have
strategies at various stages to address this issue.
One point that I do have a strong opinion
on is that Microsoft agreed to that EULA because they didn't have a
major issue with it. They had over a year to solve that problem.
They could have paid a higher royalty to make it worthwhile for NAVTEQ,
used TeleAtlas data or even bought a map vendor. They ultimately agreed
to the EULA because it fit into their plans. Blaming NAVTEQ is simply a
convenient excuse.
Conclusion: The conspiracy theory sounds
nice. But it was probably more external factors that drove Microsoft to
the current situation. They are trying to make the best out of it and
do what they always do - get closer and closer to the end user and sell
them more stuff. Not unexpected."
What
do you think?
Upcoming in MP2Kmag
In the next couple
months, we will be working on integrating the
Authors page with the MP2Kmag forum. If you are a regular in the forums
and would like to submit a bio for inclusion in the new
Biography listings, let us know and we'll set it up. Also, send us a
photo.
Articles in the works
include a MapPoint 2004 COM add-in for rendering
solar eclipse data in MapPoint a library for reading and writing to
Microsoft geography binary file formats.
Site developments
include a MapPoint Wiki and long-overdue FAQ as well
as two new RSS feeds - one of the forum and another which will be a
combination of all the other magazine content including new
newsletters, articles, new map gallery items, and more.
Finally, keep an eye out
for the first ever MP2Kmag Reader Survey. Many
cool prizes will be given away and your responses will be very valuable
to us in providing you with a highest quality resource for MapPoint
technology.
Please take the time to complete the survey when you see the
announcement.
Articles
Programming
with Microsoft MapPoint
Location Server, Version 1.0
Chandu Thota takes a
first look at Microsoft MapPoint Location Server and demonstrates how
to develop powerful location-based applications and services using
MapPoint Location Server and MapPoint Web Service
"Location-based services are
services that are provided
to a user based on the user's real-time location. These services can
range from a simple service, such as listing nearby restaurants, to
more complex features, such as analyzing real-time traffic conditions
and finding the least-congested route to a destination. For
location-based services to work, a locatable device, such as a wireless
mobile device, is usually necessary to identify the geographical
location of the user. In essence, location-based services are all about
identifying the best and nearest possible service based on where the
user is, in real time.
"Developing location-based
services conventionally is
tedious and expensive because GPS hardware and software are required.
But with the advent of Microsoft® MapPoint® Location Server,
the need for expensive hardware and software to develop location-based
services is history. Now you can develop powerful real-time,
location-based service applications that target mobile devices such as
Smartphones and Pocket PCs by using MapPoint Location Server and the
Microsoft .NET Compact Framework."
Full
article text Discuss
this story
Submit an article
MapPoint News
Microsoft Pocket Streets for Smartphone
From Geekzone
– "Pocket Streets for Smartphone offers great map guide functionality
right on your Smartphone. Locate addresses, intersections and points of
interest or customize locations by inserting your own pushpins.
Download maps of cities in the US, Canada and Western Europe from the
Pocket Streets web site, or create your own maps using Microsoft
desktop applications MapPoint, Streets & Trips or AutoRoute. Once
your maps have been synced to your Smartphone you can access them when
you need them most, when you are on the go."
Microsoft
Launches MapPoint Location Server
From Software Development Times –
"In an effort to increase enterprise adoption of its mapping
technology, Microsoft Corp. announced last month MapPoint Location
Server (MLS), an extension of the MapPoint Web Service the company
debuted in April 2002 that enables developers to incorporate real-time
location data from cell phones into applications.
Storm
Source to Release GPS.NET for the PocketPC
StormSource
Software has announced that it will be releasing its “GPS.NET” software
for the PocketPC. GPS.NET is a component which assists software
developers with writing GPS-enabled applications. The component,
currently available for Visual Studio and Visual Studio.NET, boasts
over 80 methods in 20 classes in a 100Kb assembly to perform virtually
any GPS-related task, from calculating the distance to any point on
Earth, to writing applications which require highly-precise positional
measurements.
Software Review: Pocket Streets for MS Smartphone
From msmobiles.com – "Pocket
Streets has been available for Pocket PC for quite some time, but most
MS Smarphone users have no prior experience with the Pocket PC
platform."
Chandu
Thota's BlogMap Goes Global
"I have been getting emails and
comments that the BlogMap should really be global to support blogs from
countries other than USA. Now you can submit rss/atom feeds from any
country to my BlogMap."
MapPoint
Developer Channel on DevX
Microsoft has launched a "Vendor
Development Portal" on DevX. More information on DevX Vendor
Development Portals can be found in the Advertising Info
section of the DevX web site.
Symbian
Falters in Battle With Microsoft
From the Register – "The battle
between Nokia and Microsoft to dominate the mobile operating system was
thrown into sharp relief this week as both upgraded their software
platforms."
Submit your news
Microsoft and Technology News
Microsoft's
Midlife Crisis
From BusinessWeek – "Threats
abound: Linux. European trustbusters. Key product delays. Can Gates
& Co. restore growth? Would you invest your hard-earned dollars in
a company like this? Its revenues soared an average of 36% through the
1990s, but now it's heading into miserly single-digit growth. It has
long been a powerful engine fueled by major updates of its products,
yet the next major one, an unprecedented five years in the making,
isn't expected until 2006. The company hasn't made much headway in
newer, promising markets. And its share price is stuck exactly where it
was in mid-1998."
Microsoft's
Innovation: 2004 and Beyond
From The Washington Post
(registration
required) –
"We are really creating what I think is an "ecology" of intelligent
computing devices that can make everyday objects much smarter and able
to perform their functions. A lot of the advances on the cell phone
front involve tying those devices into the broader computing
environment -- the Internet, your PC, backend databases, your other
devices."
Speech!
Microsoft Launches New Server
From Software Development Times –
"As anticipated, Microsoft Corp. launched Speech Server 2004 at the
combined VSLive, Microsoft Mobile Developer Conference and Avios
SpeechTEK events held here last month. Bill Gates demonstrated how
Windows-based mobile devices can work with Speech Server 2004 and
MapPoint Location Server to provide an integrated system for developing
wireless applications."
Microsoft
Research - The Company in 10 Years
From CNET TechNews – "We're
focusing more on research than ever. We're building the technology that
will enable computers to see, listen, speak and learn so people can
interact with them as naturally as they interact with other people." --
Bill Gates, chairman and chief software architect at Microsoft. In
2003, Microsoft spent over (all figures US) $4.6 billion on research
and development. For a company that had revenues of $32.1 billion in
the corresponding period, this is an impressive figure and to put in
perspective, they spent $6.5 billion on sales and marketing during the
same period. Clearly, R&D is important to the company.
GIS,
Location Technology and Where they Fit in the IT Value Chain
From Directions Magazine – "GIS and
location technology is not an industry. We are a technology sector.
Writing in Geospatial Solutions Magazine last month, Frederic
Corle, president of the Spatial Technologies Industry Association,
continually referred to the “spatial technology industry.” If we
continue to refer to ourselves like this, we'll remain a narrow segment
of the IT marketplace. Spatial technology is comprised of a group of
companies that sit within the value chain of the information technology
(IT) infrastructure, just as databases and spreadsheets do."
McDonald's
Chooses Wayport for New Wi-Fi
From Yahoo! News –
"McDonald's
Corp. has chosen Wayport Inc. to provide wireless Internet service in
dining rooms and drive-through windows at several thousand of its U.S.
restaurants. Wayport officials called it the biggest single deal yet to
create wireless Internet "hot spots." They said the familiar golden
arches will offer a reliable place for road-weary workers to download
e-mail or surf the Internet.
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