Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts

Saturday, July 09, 2011

LBS Apps Source Code Released by Microsoft

As posted by MSDN: As part of Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to consumer privacy, we are providing more transparency about how we gather information through managed driving to provide location-based services. We are sharing relevant portions of our data collection software source code that demonstrates both the type and amount of data we collect through managed driving.

The information collected during Managed Driving includes Cell tower, Wi-Fi and GPS data. The collected data is used to build a positioning database that helps create location capabilities and services for Windows Phone and other Microsoft products and services.

The code has been written using a combination of native and managed code, and uses publicly documented interfaces for accessing Cell tower, Wi-Fi and GPS data. The software only detects management frame subtypes called probe request frames, which do not contain any personal user content. The software does not observe or collect any data frame packets, which are the type of Wi-Fi packets that may contain user content transmitted over a network nor does it attempt to connect to any open networks. The software only observes information that is publicly broadcasted by the Cell tower, Wi-Fi access point and GPS satellites. The information we collect includes elements like latitude, longitude, direction, speed, mobile country code, mobile network code, location area code, cell identifier and only specific Wi-Fi information such as BSSID (i.e, the Media Access Control aka MAC address), signal strength, and radio type.

During the collection process, we collect and retain only as much Wi-Fi access point data as necessary to build our positioning database, and none of data collected is associated with personally identifiable consumer information.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Microsoft Streetside Competes with Google Streetview

Microsoft Streetside is Microsoft's answer the Google Streetview!

Streetside provides a true-to-life view you can explore to get a feel for a place and plan your activities. Travel along streets, view storefronts and parks, and navigate to destinations without an address (or even street names) by using landmarks and familiar spots as visual cues. It's easy to see where you want to be, so you'll never be lost again! To provide this immersive 360-degree experience for even more areas, mobile Bing teams may soon be using a car-mounted camera to map public roads in your country, city, or community.

Try it here.

Friday, April 08, 2011

Microsoft UltraMap 2.2 Software Released

The Microsoft UltraCam team is pleased to announce that UltraMap 2.2 and UltraMap/AT 2.2 has been released as of April 5, 2011 and will begin rolling-out to the UltraCam customer base April 6, 2011.

UltraMap 2.2 features new improvements to the Framework, the Raw Data Center, the Radiometry and the Viewer.

UltraMap/AT 2.2 includes significant new features such as a new User Interface and a revised and improved tie point strategy. This impacts the granularity of the AT tasks and leads to a reduced number of tasks but each task requires more time. We have been able to further improve the robustness of the algorithm. Also, automatization and results have been further enhanced, underscoring our commitment to provide our customers with industry-leading photogrammetric solutions.

- The software will be available for customers beginning April 6, 2011

- Customers whose current maintenance agreement entitles them to software upgrades through that date will receive download instructions and dongle upgrades from our implementation team

- Customers who do not have such a maintenance agreement should contact their sales representative for a purchase or upgrade quote for UltraMap 2.2 and UltraMap/AT 2.2

Download link is here.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

How to find and delete empty cells, rows in Excel

I thought I should share this with you - Microsoft Excel tips. I am working with some data points in Excel right now and encountered unnecessary empty cells or empty rows that I don't want to be included in the database. I could have just deleted it one by one, however, it will take me forever to finish 23,000 rows.

Googling led me to DigDB Excel add-in. It is an Excel macro add-in file that you can download and use for free.

Download the Excel macro add-in file:

DigDB.xla.zip for Excel 2000/XP/2003 (or DigDB.xla)
1 meg

DigDB.xlam.zip for Excel 2007 (or DigDB.xlam)
1 meg (supports 2007's million-row limit)

How to install?

1. Download the zip file
2. Open the zip, take the DigDB file out, place it on desktop.
3. If you never had DigDB before, just double-click DigDB to run it. If Excel has DigDB previously installed, start Excel first, click DigDB->Uninstall to uninstall the old version, close Excel. Double-click the new DigDB and run.
4. Add DigDB to Excel menu if you want to.

Add DigDB to Excel menu

You don't need to do this if you only use DigDB occasionally. You can simply place the downloaded macro on desktop and open it when needed. But if you use DigDB frequently, it's easy to make DigDB load up automatically when Excel starts.

For Excel2000/2003, go to Excel->Tools->Add-ins..., use "Browse..." to find and select your DigDB.xla file, make sure Digdb checkbox is checked, ok out.

For Excel2007, click the upper-left Office button, then "Excel options"->"Add-ins"->"Manage 'Add-ins' Go...", then use "Browse..." to find and select your DigDB.xla file, make sure Digdb checkbox is checked, ok out.

Thanks to digdb.com.

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Bing maps updates with Twitter feed

Microsoft updates Bing Maps with Streetside eye-level views and a Twitter feed.

Microsoft on Dec. 2 released new features for Bing, its search engine, set to roll out over the next few days. Prominent among these new features is the beta version of the updated Bing Maps, featuring Streetside and Photosynth imagery. Although Streetside works very similarly to Google's Street View, in that it offers an eye-level perspective on local terrain, Microsoft took pains on the official Bing Blog to imply differences between the two applications.

Many of the adjustments to Bing Maps seem to echo a Microsoft mission to pair traditional online cartography with real-time information from the Web. Particularly in that spirit is Twitter Maps, which displays Tweets originating from particular geographic locations; for example, typing in "New York" will display the most recent Tweets originating from Bryant Park, a Madison Avenue bar and other locations, marked by a Twitter-branded pin on the Bing Map.

Other "Map Apps" include current traffic, live traffic video feeds from across the United States, local attractions and businesses, a hotel finder, Photosynth, and Signs & Billboards. A feature called Local Lens indexes local blogs from around the country, showing events happening within particular communities.

There is also a new Bing for Windows Mobile application with "improved auto-locate and voice search". The application allows users to speak a search query into their phones and provides streamlined access to maps and driving directions, quick bookmarking of local businesses and locations for later reference, and saved favorites and recent searches.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Google, Microsoft, Yahoo sued over mapping software

Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and a dozen more US based companies that offer web based mapping applications are being sued by WebMap Technologies for infringement of a US patent called Method and Apparatus for Collecting and Expressing Geographically Referenced Data, says report.

The patent from 2004 was originally assigned to Cornell Research Foundation and National Audubon Society. The patent is an outcome of work done by the University and the society with regards to locating and plotting bird migrations.

WebMap Technologies is based in Frisco, TX and claims to be the only licensee of the patent. WebMap Tech alleges in the complaint that Google has known about the potential infringement for some time before the suit was filed. The plaintiff wants a permanent injunction enjoining defendants, damages, costs, expenses, interest, enhanced damages, attorneys' fees and other relief to which it may be entitled. The suite was filed Nov 3 2009.

If WebMap wins, it will mean a rather everyday and commonly done act of attaching a placemark on a web map if not done by paying the necessary royalties will be tagged as illegal.

Friday, October 30, 2009

DigitalGlobe and Microsoft for High-Resolution Aerial Imagery

DigitalGlobe, a leading global provider of commercial high-resolution world-imagery products and services for defense and intelligence, civil government, and commercial customers, today announced it has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. to launch the Clear30 program, an initiative to distribute high-resolution, 30-cm aerial imagery of contiguous landscapes, initially in the U.S. and Western Europe. These orthophoto mosaics will be available through Bing Maps and through DigitalGlobe channels.

The Clear30 initiative is a new agreement that expands the current relationship between Microsoft and DigitalGlobe and reflects a commitment to increase accessibility and use of high-resolution digital imagery. To collect the first ever multicontinental aerial imagery from 30 cm, the companies will use the UltraCamG, a large format digital aerial camera manufactured by Vexcel Imaging GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft, which is based on Vexcel’s UltraCam large format camera systems, the top selling large format aerial sensors internationally.

“We’re excited about the launch of the Clear30 program and our continued relationship with DigitalGlobe,” said Steve Stanzel, general manager of Bing Maps at Microsoft Corp. “By providing DigitalGlobe exclusive access to our advanced UltraCamG imagery, we can provide our mutual customers easy access and integration of high-resolution digital aerial orthophotos for vast landscapes around the world.”

“We are very pleased to be expanding our relationship with Microsoft and look forward to introducing the UltraCamG imagery into our world imagery solutions,” said Jill Smith, chairman and chief executive officer of DigitalGlobe. “The addition of large quantities of very high-resolution digital aerial imagery, collected quickly and published on a consistent update schedule, will further enhance our ability to distribute a comprehensive digitized globe to our customers.”

The companies did not provide financial details concerning the agreement.

Imagery from the UltraCamG will further expand DigitalGlobe’s industry leading ImageLibrary and will complement the satellite imagery products available from the DigitalGlobe high-resolution satellite constellation, including the recently launched WorldView-2 satellite. Current collection areas for the UltraCamG program include the 48 contiguous United States and Western Europe.

To learn more about advanced DigitalGlobe’s constellation of sub-meter satellites, please visit www.digitalglobe.com.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Map Suite Silverlight Edition 3.0 released

ThinkGeo has announced the release of Map Suite Silverlight Edition 3.0 Beta 1, the newest entry in the Map Suite family of GIS developer controls for the Microsoft .NET Framework. Silverlight Edition is claimed to be a full-featured GIS control designed to bring powerful spatial features to Microsoft Silverlight-based applications, where developers can take advantage of user interfaces and animation effects to give their applications visual appeal.

Microsoft Silverlight technology helps developers impress their customers with user interface designs, animation effects, mouse wheel scrolling, dynamic refreshes, track zooming and more.

Unlike scaled-down GIS software for Silverlight, Map Suite Silverlight Edition is a full-featured GIS control with the same power and flexibility of ThinkGeo's other Map Suite products. Developers can use it to add maps with advanced functionality like spatial queries, interactive shape drawing and editing, point animation, distance calculations, rich tooltips and markers, and projections.

ThinkGeo plans to release additional new beta versions of Map Suite Silverlight Edition 3.0 in the coming weeks, all of which will add even more features and capabilities.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Free download Virtual Earth 3D 4.0, now available

Virtual Earth 3D 4.0 is now available for download from Microsoft. The latest iteration of the Virtual Earth 3D Control went live on the Microsoft Download Center on April 9, 2009, concomitantly with additional changes introduced by the company to its mapping, location and search platform. In this regard, Microsoft also delivered the April 2009 release of the Virtual Earth API (application-programming interface), which brings to the table an evolved AJAX control. While new features are available with the latest release of Virtual Earth 3D, Microsoft has emphasised that the upgrade is, in fact, focussed on delivering a consistent performance boost ahead of anything else.

Among the enhancements that end-users will be bound to notice, in addition to the boost in performance is the introduction of Anisotropic Filtering. Microsoft indicated that the appearance of the terrain was improved no matter the angle of view, but that the new feature was off by default in order to tailor Virtual Earth 3D to the array of graphics cards. But once switched on, Anisotropic Filtering will deliver a high level of detail and reduce blur.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Microsoft Virtual Earth for ArcGIS users

A new agreement with Microsoft Corporation gives ArcGIS users fast access to Microsoft Virtual Earth for their GIS projects. As part of ArcGIS Online at the ArcGIS 9.3.1 release, ArcGIS Desktop and ArcGIS Server users will be able to connect directly to Virtual Earth and quickly start their GIS projects with ready-to-use content.

ArcGIS Desktop users who are current on maintenance and have an Internet connection will have access to Virtual Earth for a variety of up-to-date mapping content including aerial imagery, roads, and hybrid (aerial with labels) imagery. With a familiar look, imagery access will appear as another data layer in GIS. The imagery will provide excellent background maps on which users can overlay their operational data. This means users will be able to focus more on their business data than on its context.

ArcGIS users can build Web applications that support geospatial services through ArcGIS Server and ArcGIS Web software developer kits (SDKs), including APIs for JavaScript, Flex, and Microsoft Silverlight. This enables them to provide their clients with access to Virtual Earth content from their applications.

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Virtual Earth Webcast Series

Virtual Earth will be conducting two webcasts this month as part of their bi-monthly Webcast series. The February webcasts will focus on Virtual Earth the retail industry.

See below for more info of the upcoming Virtual Earth webcasts "Show your retail customers the big picture with Virtual Earth".

In today's challenging economy, retail companies need to build a strong connection with customers, differentiate their brand, and make it easier for customers to spend with them. Virtual Earth can help retailers:

* Showcase locations, products, and promotions on the Web.
* Boost business, particularly among multi-channel retailers that offer purchase online and pickup in store.
* Connect with customers through rich experiences that differentiate their brands.
* Gain insight for better decisions by visualizing business data in the context of location.

1. Show Your Customers the Big Picture
Join Chris Pendleton, Microsoft Virtual Earth technical evangelist, to learn how Virtual Earth can help your company connect with customers, build loyalty, and boost profits.

Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Time: 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time

2. Virtual Earth Empowers Developers to See and Show the Big Picture
Learn how you can use Virtual Earth as a development platform to build immersive end-user experiences that connect customers with your locations, products, and services offered--on the desktop or on mobile devices.

Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Time: 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time

Register today to join this webcast and receive a free white paper on how Virtual Earth can help retail companies maximize their business.

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Free Microsoft Software for College Students

Free Microsoft Software for College Students. That's right. The software suite includes Windows Server, Microsoft Visual Studio, Expression Studio, Virtual PC and more.

Both undergraduates and graduate students are eligible to receive free software from Microsoft.

If you have a high bandwidth connection, you may download the software online from dreamsparkindia.com.

[Note: This may apply for Indian students only]

[via]

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Microsoft Live Search Maps for India

Microsoft India on Monday launched Live Search Maps for India that offers users access to detailed listings and street maps for 9 Cities, business listings across 29 Cities and access to highway networks to 20,000 cities and towns. Live Search Maps for India is on Microsoft’s Live Search Service, thereby allowing users to search for geographical information, places of general interest and business listings both on the PC and Mobile at http://maps.live.co.in and http://m.live.co.in. This is the first version of its local mapping service for India with the key features developed by the Microsoft India Development Centre (MSIDC) based in Hyderabad.

Speaking on the launch, Rishi Srivastava, Consumer & Online Marketing Operations Head, Microsoft India, said, “We are proud to launch Live Search Maps for users in our country. This is the first version of Live Search Maps for India and Microsoft will continue to introduce new features and improvements in the near future to meet emerging needs of consumers. Over the last two years, Microsoft has made significant investments into research and development for Live Search, acquired global resources and introduced several new features which we believe are extremely relevant and will deliver great value to our users. Live Search Maps will be accessible on the PC and the mobile, thus ensuring that users get the information they need anytime”.

Users can now access on their PC or Mobile
…..

* Addresses, roads, localities, landmarks, detailed street maps and places of general interest like monuments, restaurants, hotels and other places of interest across 9 Indian cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, and Jaipur.

* Business listings across 29 major Indian cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Agra, Allahabad, Amritsar, Bhubaneshwar, Chandigarh, Cochin, Coimbatore, Jaipur, Jalandhar, Kanpur, Lucknow, Ludhiana, Mangalore, Nagpur, Nasik, Patiala, Patna, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara and Vishakapatnam.

* Basic geographical information on the national road network of India across 20,000 cities and towns.

Key features of Live Search Maps for India include Street Maps, Location Search, Business Listing Search, Routing or Directions for Navigation and options for users to print, share collections through email, blogs on Windows Live. “After recent innovations for Live Search such as Image Search, Video Search, Local Search, xRank and Instant Answers, we have rolled out Live Search Maps on our search platform to enable people to learn, discover, and explore specific locations in India”, said Rishi Srivastava.

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Tuesday, October 07, 2008

DigitalGlobe and Microsoft's Virtual Earth, partnership

DigitalGlobe, a leading global content provider of high-resolution world imagery solutions, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. for a multi-year contract under which DigitalGlobe will provide Microsoft's Virtual Earth with its premium, high-resolution satellite and aerial imagery.

Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will have access to DigitalGlobe's vast ImageLibrary, which contains over 460 million square kilometers of premium earth imagery, as well as new images being collected every day by its growing constellation of satellites.

"DigitalGlobe's strategic approach to collecting earth imagery allows us to provide our customers with the high-resolution content they need," said Erik Jorgensen, corporate vice president of Virtual Earth at Microsoft. "With its growing constellation of satellites, large network of aerial partners and a proven track record for delivering a large volume of new earth imagery, DigitalGlobe will be a key content partner for the Virtual Earth Platform."

DigitalGlobe has been the pioneer in making earth imagery available worldwide for web portals and mobile mapping applications. Its high-resolution satellite constellation and aerial program collect nearly 1 million square kilometers of earth imagery each day, with much of this imagery available via its online services.

"We are proud to partner with one of the world's great technology companies," said Marc Tremblay, senior vice president and general manager of DigitalGlobe's Commercial Business Unit. "We look forward to working with the Virtual Earth team in the years to come as they continue to expand this powerful geospatial platform."

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Visit DigitalGlobe for more info.

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Digital Map Products' Applications Benefit From SQL Server 2008's Spatial Enhancements

Digital Map Products (DMP) today announced its current and future products fully support the spatial technology enhancements in Microsoft SQL Server 2008. DMP said the support of spatial data in SQL Server 2008 will be a key enabler to bringing GIS technology to the entire organization.

"Our mission has always been to bring GIS to the entire organization we serve, not just GIS experts but also end users," Geoff Wade, chief technology officer at Digital Map Products, said. "We've long used SQL Server to store our spatial data, but previously had to embed proprietary components which limited the accessibility of our spatial platform and corresponding data."

That all changes with SQL Server 2008, Wade said. "Our spatial applications such as LandVision™ and CityGIS™ can readily integrate with other applications, melding myriad spatial data sets and putting the power of spatial data in the hands of end users, who can best exploit it."

SQL Server 2008 puts spatial data in hands of the non-technical end user

For the past eight years, Digital Map Products has been developing a robust spatial platform on top of SQL Server that enables drawing, editing, query, and visual analysis of spatial data. "Now companies that want to take advantage of our platform don't require our proprietary API to reach their organization's spatial data," Wade said. "SQL Server 2008 bridges the gap between SaaS GIS solutions and traditional enterprise GIS solutions."

For DMP end users, that means data is more easily shared and DMP applications can access spatial data from other systems more easily than in the past. Ultimately, that allows DMP customers to tailor the software to their unique needs, enhance productivity and make better decisions, Wade said.

DMP Customers Benefit from Partnership with Microsoft

"Digital Map Products has been one of the pioneers in creating spatial applications," Ed Katibah, Spatial Program Manager for SQL Server at Microsoft Corp. said. "The combination of SQL Server 2008 and DMP's spatial platform will help meet the needs of many customers who have been challenged with how to take advantage of spatial data across their organization."

DMP CEO Jim Skurzynski said the new spatial technology in Microsoft's SQL Server 2008 is just another indication of a "spatial revolution" in the business world. Skurzynski said government, real estate and a host of other businesses have gotten a taste of the power of visualizing their data and are demanding more.

Please visit http://www.digitalmapproducts.com for more.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

u-blox GPS Technology to Power Microsoft MapPoint 2009 USB Stick

u-blox Holding AG today announced that Microsoft Corporation selected its latest positioning engine, u-blox 5, for a new "GPS Locator" USB stick. The "GPS Locator" USB stick will be bundled with the next release of MapPoint, Microsoft's business travel and map software package.
The new u-blox 5 GPS chipset is a highly integrated, cost-efficient GPS engine that offers users accurate positioning in a small package without compromising on performance. GPS devices are often bulky and too big to connect to a notebook without a USB cable. With u-blox' innovative u-blox 5 GPS chipset, Microsoft was finally able to overcome this problem, offering users a compact, easy to use GPS-enabled USB stick that feels very much like memory sticks they are used to.

The "GPS Locator" USB stick provides users with reliable positioning and a USB 2.0 port for fast and easy data transfer all in one tiny package that easily plugs into any computer.

Microsoft expects that this bundled solution, leveraging on Microsoft's leading location software with u-blox' GPS excellence, will further expand the market reach of MapPoint.

"We are very proud that Microsoft uses u-blox 5 for its new MapPoint package," said Nikolaos Papadopoulos, President of u-blox America. "The ultra-fast start-up time of the u-blox 5 positioning engine, added to the engine's high sensitivity, as well as cost and space efficiency make it ideal for mass-market applications like Microsoft's innovative MapPoint location product."

The 2009 edition of MapPoint with u-blox 5-based "GPS Locator" USB Stick is expected to be on the shelves in August 2008.

[via]

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Microsoft: API for MSN Direct's send-to-GPS feature

Microsoft Corp. has released an open application programming interface (API) for the Send-to-GPS feature on its MSN Direct service.

This will enable any web site to offer visitors the ability to send addresses, business listings, or other locations directly from the site to a site visitor's GPS unit, according to Microsoft. The API is an extension of the MSN Direct feature initially launched at the International CES earlier this year, the company said. With this updated version, MSN Direct allows any Web site to send location information to navigation devices either wirelessly or via a USB connection.

The wireless delivery is compatible with MSN Direct-enabled devices that have the Send to GPS feature, including units from Garmin including the Nuvi 780, 880, 5000, 750, 760, or the Nuvi 2x5 series devices with the optional MSN Direct receiver. USB delivery is also compatible with the majority of other Garmin navigators, according to Microsoft.

"MSN Direct opens up opportunities for Web sites in a variety of areas -- real estate, travel, event planning and food service -- to make it fast and simple for visitors to have access to turn-by-turn directions on their navigation device," said Joe Coco, product unit manager of the MSN Direct initiative at Microsoft.

A number of MSN Direct partners, including Garmin and Alpine Electronics Inc., plan to ship or are already shipping GPS products that are compatible with the MSN Direct Send to GPS feature, the company said. For developers the API is free.

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Microsoft Virtual Earth to be offered with ESRI’s ArcGIS Online Services

Microsoft Corp. and ESRI today announced that ESRI ArcGIS users will have access to the robust mapping and imagery content provided by the Microsoft Virtual Earth platform inside ArcGIS Desktop and ArcGIS Server. With Virtual Earth seamlessly integrated into ArcGIS 9.3 Desktop, ArcGIS users are now able to easily add base maps, which feature rich aerial and hybrid views, to perform data creation, editing, analysis, authoring, and map publishing with one-click access.

“Microsoft and ESRI have a long-standing history of delivering complete geographic information systems solutions,” said Erik Jorgenson, corporate vice president at Microsoft Corp. “The integration of Virtual Earth and ArcGIS 9.3 at both desktop application and platform levels enables customers to better view, analyze, understand, interpret, and visualize geographic data. This new offering further extends the software-plus-services choices available to our mutual customers.”

“With the new ArcGIS Online Virtual Earth map services, ArcGIS Desktop, and ArcGIS Explorer users will have nearly instant access to some of the world’s finest base map layers,” said S.J. Camarata, Director of Corporate Strategies at ESRI. “Through this collaboration with Microsoft, street maps, vertical imagery, and hybrid maps will be available on an affordable, annual subscription fee basis.”

Together, Virtual Earth and ArcGIS Online services will enable customers to access resources that add comprehensive depth to their projects. The seamless integration of Virtual Earth throughout the entire ArcGIS system makes it easier for ArcGIS customers to offer their end-users better insight into their services, which can inspire deeper involvement and participation with their valuable GIS data.

The ArcGIS Online Virtual Earth map services will include high-resolution street maps, imagery, and hybrid maps. Street map coverage is available for more than 60 countries and regions including North America, Europe, South America, the Asia Pacific region, and Northern Africa. Aerial and satellite imagery includes worldwide coverage, but varies by region. ESRI integrates with other Microsoft products that may be part of a user’s Virtual Earth solution to incorporate internal and third-party data—making information more discoverable, more visual, and better to take action upon.

Land planning, site selection, crime analysis, road network analysis, and delivery network management are just few examples of how ArcGIS desktop users, including ArcGIS Explorer users, can leverage ArcGIS Online Virtual Earth map services. ArcGIS Server users will be able to connect to ArcGIS Online Virtual Earth Map Services at a later date, through a service pack.

Users can preview Virtual Earth street maps, imagery, and hybrid map layers at http://resources.esri.com/arcgisonlineservices .

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Orion Technology: Top Finalists 2008 Microsoft Partner of the Year Award

Today, Orion Technology, a Rolta Company, announced it has been selected as a finalist for the Microsoft Partner of the Year award in Data Management Solutions, Database Management.

"We are proud to have been selected as a finalist. This is a testament to the hard work of our talented team, and the fruits of our valued partnership with Microsoft. We are pleased to see how the power of Orion and Microsoft technology can be leveraged to benefit so many global clients." said Satinath Sarkar, Vice President of Product Development for Orion Technology.

Awards will be presented in a number of categories, with winners chosen from a pool of more than 2,000 entrants worldwide. The Data Management Solutions, Database Management Partner of the Year award recognizes exceptional partners who support customers with their mission-critical applications. The winning partner's solution will showcase how Microsoft SQL Server 2005 reduced application downtime, increased scalability and performance, and tightened security controls.

"Partners are critical to delivering rich business solutions and innovative excellence to customers," said Allison Watson, Corporate Vice President, Worldwide Partner Group, Microsoft. "Congratulations to the 2008 Partner Award winners who have each demonstrated innovation beyond measure and an unswerving commitment to delivering the highest levels of customer satisfaction. We look forward to these partners continuing to raise the bar in the design and deployment of customer solutions built on Microsoft technologies."

Orion Technology, a Rolta Company, is a product development and integration company, specializing in GeoSpatial Fusion™ web applications. Orion's focus is on helping organizations incorporate spatial technology into all facets of their business. Orion's wealth of knowledge in the GIS domain and top-notch software-development expertise is showcased by the award-winning flagship product OnPoint™.

OnPoint provides out-of-the-box advanced security and configuration tools that provide unparalleled data and application integration solutions.

The Microsoft Partner Program Awards recognize Microsoft partners that have developed and delivered exceptional Microsoft-based solutions over the past year.

[via]

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

The Carbon Project attains gold status in Microsoft partner program

The Carbon Project, an innovative,high-energy technology company specializing in mapping and geosocial networking, today announced it has attained Gold Certified Partner status in the Microsoft Partner Program with competencies in ISV/Software Solutions.

This certification recognizes the expertise of the company, its impact in the technology market place and its ability to meet customer needs.

The Carbon Project serves professionals, software developers, government agencies and businesses that develop mapping solutions or use geospatial data. The Carbon Project also provides geographically enabled solutions for sharing digital news, video content, targeted marketing and intelligence analysis.

"We're pleased to achieve Microsoft Gold Certified Partner status. This allows us to further advance our technical expertise and relationship with Microsoft to our customers," said Nuke Goldstein, CTO of The Carbon Project.


"Customers are looking for companies that can bridge the gap between business requirements and technology," said Jeff Harrison, President and CEO of The Carbon Project. "Our Gold Partner status demonstrates our expertise solving customer challenges using Microsoft products and technology."

Some of The Carbon Project's Microsoft-based technologies include:

CarbonTools PRO - An extension to the Microsoft .NET Framework that supports location content handling and sharing from an array of sources, including Microsoft Virtual Earth.

CarbonArc PRO - A Microsoft .NET-based extension to the ESRI ArcGIS 9.2 desktop that enables the OGCR Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) 1.0 baseline and Microsoft Virtual Earth on the GIS desktop.

Gaia 3.1 - A popular open geospatial viewer for OGC WMS, WFS, Microsoft Virtual Earth and many other sources based on Microsoft .NET.

CarbonCloud - An advanced IPv6 peer-to-peer (p2p) framework for sharing location content and other information based on Microsoft PNRP.

Echo myPlace - A people-to-people social networking application using the latest in Microsoft Virtual Earth visualization and Microsoft Silverlight 2 Internet media technologies.

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