Friday Geonews: ESRI's Open Source Geoportal Server, Yahoo Local Offers, REST Explained Again, MapQuest My Maps, and much more

Here's the weekly batch of geonews, finally on a regular Friday.On the ESRI front:

• Recently, ESRI open sourced the ESRI Geoportal Server. Some twitter users were quick to mention that you still need ArcGIS Server software to use the Geoportal Server. To me, that's still a nice step. Their definition of a geoportal: "A geoportal is a gateway to Web-based geospatial resources, enabling users to discover, view and access geospatial information and services made available by their providing organizations. Likewise, data providers can use the geoportal to make their geospatial resources discoverable, viewable, and accessible to others."
• The popular blog SpatiallyAdjusted shares some elements that could be improved about the ArcGIS 10 user interface

On the open source front:

• O'Reilly discusses a new open source software called WEAVE (Web-based Analysis and Visualization Environment), which obviously include a mapping component
• If you're into FDO, you'll be happy to learn of the new SequentialProcess for batch mode processing
• QGIS gets new label tools
• Remember Polymaps? The open source mapping framework Polymaps is now integrated into GeoCommons

In the miscellaneous category:

• REST and RESTful was widely discussed in the past few years in the geospatial community, including within ESRI, the open source and OGC rings. Thanks to this entry named Richardson Maturity Model: steps toward the glory of REST, I think I finally correctly understand what REST is about! ;-) (sorry I don't remember how I ended up on that article)
• TMR informs us MapQuest launched My Maps last June, with the same name of the similar feature provided on Google Maps, basically allowing you to save and share user-created maps
• SS shares a long perspective entry named What forces are at play in the evolution of geospatial industry sectors?
• NAVTEQ acquires the 3D modeling company named PixelActive
• APB informs us Yahoo has launched a new service called Local Offers: "that it said will give users information about local merchants along with coupons and information on deals at stores in their neighborhoods."
• Kurt shares interesting thoughts on GIS, followed by What is GIS? A workflow definition

In the maps category:

• Here's the evolution of active Facebook users by region
• A nice entry on The Human Development Index in Africa and Across the World
• SS shares an entry named Mapping Opportunity in America
• While I was aware of it, we mentioned mentioned it yet. The GEB discusses the USGS "Earth as Art" beautiful collection of Landsat imagery

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Post originale: http://slashgeo.org/2010/11/19/Friday-Geonews-ESRIs-Open-Source-Geoportal-Server-Yahoo-Local-Offers-REST-Explained-Again

My GIS Day Video – 50 location-aware Apps and things you can do with your smartphone #GISday

To celebrate GIS Day I put together a short demo video this week that I used in a presentation on mobile, social location technology. The video shows off 50 location-aware things you can do on your GPS-enabled smartphone that take advantage of your location and Geo technology… enjoy! The video was part of a [...]

Post originale: http://blog.gisuser.com/?p=8087

Slashgeo: Friday Geonews: ESRI's Open Source Geoportal Server, Yahoo Local Offers, REST Explained Again, MapQuest My Maps, and much more

Here's the weekly batch of geonews, finally on a regular Friday.On the ESRI front:

• Recently, ESRI open sourced the ESRI Geoportal Server. Some twitter users were quick to mention that you still need ArcGIS Server software to use the Geoportal Server. To me, that's still a nice step.

lue lisää

Post originale: http://slashgeo.org/2010/11/19/Friday-Geonews-ESRIs-Open-Source-Geoportal-Server-Yahoo-Local-Offers-REST-Explained-Again

MapQuest Introduces My Maps -- Wait a Minute

MapQuest's new tool allowing people to save and share their own personal maps is called My Maps. The MapQuest Blog introduces the feature. Are they absolutely sure that name is a good idea ... ?...

Post originale: http://www.mcwetboy.net/maproom/2010/11/mapquest_introd.php

My GIS Day Video - 50 location-aware Apps and things you can do with your smartphone #GISday

To celebrate GIS Day I put together a short demo video this week that I used in a presentation on mobile, social location technology. The video shows off 50 location-aware things you can do on your... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my websi

Tags: video

Post originale: http://www.blogcatalog.com/search/frame?term=location&id;=ccb71f579bad7773d4cc4536f8c6b0a0

My Nightmare Interviews With Google (GOOG)

Editor's note: Google is on a hiring binge! The company says it plans to hire 2,100 new employees ASAP. Because that means a TON of job interviews, we thought it would be useful to republish this story, first published late last year.

Google came to Syracuse’s campus to recruit new graduates when I was a senior.  I attended the information session and learned which jobs I could qualify for.  I created a fancy cover letter and resume, crossed my fingers and e-mailed them my documents.  One week later I had an email in my inbox from Google. 


Google wanted to interview me!  Forbes’ #1 company to work for was interested in speaking with me about an Associate Product Marketing Manager position in Mountain View, California.  I called everyone I could think of, ecstatic and day-dreaming that my job hunt might end quickly and painlessly with me surfing during lunch breaks at the Googleplex. 

Bonus: 15 Google Interview Questions That Will Make You Feel Stupid

Everyone says your GPA doesn’t matter when you’re finding a job—those people obviously never applied to Google.  My 3.6 suddenly seemed inferior.  Google also wanted to know if I had received any job offers.  They wanted to know who was recruiting me and how far along I was in my job search.  Talk about salt on an open wound to a college senior.  Sad and dejected, I ticked off the “No” [no one wants me] and “Yes” [I’m still unemployed] boxes.  I should have realized then that this was shaping up to be a grueling interview process, but I was too excited to pay much notice.


To prepare for my two back-to-back conference calls, I googled Google and learned their history, products, current news, founders, locations, business models, competitors, AdWords, investors and mottos.  My heart had never been in anything more and I was prepared for any curve ball they could throw.  I practiced interviewing with friends and felt confident when my cell rang at 4:00pm sharp.



A young man was on the other line sounding just as nervous as I felt.  The first five minutes of the allotted 30 were small talk.  We went over my resume, previous internships and my career goals.  My interviewer, Oliver, nervously cleared his throat between awkward silences during which he recorded my responses.  I was on top of my game. 

About ten minutes in, Oliver turned the tables.  “I’m going to ask you a few questions that may sound strange,” he premised.  I paused.  Is there really any good response to a comment like that?  He seemed to read my mind because he elaborated: “These questions are meant to test your analytical thinking.”  Oh no.  He was about to ask me the famous, ridiculously impossible Google questions I had been reading about online.

If you’ve never interviewed with the Internet giant, you may have never heard the types of questions they ask their interviewees.  The searches I had done warned me that Google might inquire how much I’d pay someone to wash all of the windows in Seattle or what I’d do if I was shrunk to the size of a nickel and placed in a blender with churning blades.

“I want you to estimate,” Oliver began, “how much money you think Google makes daily from Gmail ads.”  Oh. My. GOSH.  Was he serious?  The answer depended on so many different factors, none of which I had any clue how to guesstimate. 


“Um, you mean a hard number? Maybe…$70,000?”  Oliver’s hearty laugh told me my response was foolish.  “Wait, can you just totally ignore that response?  Scratch it out of your notes and pretend I never said that?” 



“Don’t worry,” he mused, “I already did.  You don’t have to give me an exact number, just tell me how you would figure out the answer.” 



“Ok,” I began and I regurgitated everything I had learned about AdWords.  “Google places four ads per e-mail opened in Gmail.  Advertisers get to pick their click-through rates, which can be as little as $0.05, and they can set a maximum daily charge, which can be $5.  The amount of money Google would make in a day would depend on the number of Gmail users, the number of e-mails those users receive and open per day, the number of advertisements they click on, and the rates the advertisers are charged.” 



This answer wasn’t good enough.  Now I was asked for an exact amount of revenue.  “Say each G-mail user opens seven new e-mails a day.  They would see 28 ads.  If they click on ¼ of those ads, then only seven ads are clicked.  If all advertisers are charged $0.05 per clicked ad, then the amount of revenue would be whatever $0.05 x 7 ads x the number of G-mail users is.  Does that make any sense at all?”



“Kind of.”  Oliver sounded confused.  “You lost me at the ‘only clicking on ¼ of the ads’ comment.  Let’s move on.” 



The interview ended shortly afterward.  Oliver politely indicated that HR would contact me again in a few weeks and he wished me good luck.  My confidence was slightly bruised but I felt that, overall, I handled the interview well enough.  I was left with 15 minutes to prepare for my next phone call, all of which I used to regain composure and review what I could have done better. 



I thought Oliver was intimidating; the woman I spoke with next put him to shame.  I gathered from Anna’s cold greeting that she did not have much time for me.  We got right down to business.  “Name a piece of technology you’ve read about recently.” 



“Ok, today I was reading about Nike and Apple working together to make a shoe with a chip in it that helps you run in time with your music.” 



“Now tell me your own creative execution for an ad for that product.”



My mind swirled as I pulled some crazy concoction out of my ass.  “Well, Nike is known for having inspirational ads with little copy.  I guess I would have a person running in Nike shoes, listening to their I-Pod, looking exhausted.  The music would then pick up and each stride would coincide with the beat.  The runner would get a second wind, reach their goal, and the “Just Do It” line would appear on the screen above an I-pod with a Nike swoosh background.” 



She laughed a little before continuing which I took as an encouraging sign.  “Now I’m going to ask you math problems.” Math?!  I hadn’t taken a math course since freshman year of college.  I was in trouble.



“Say an advertiser makes $0.10 every time someone clicks on their ad.  Only 20% of people who visit the site click on their ad.  How many people need to visit the site for the advertiser to make $20?”  I froze.  The problem sounded easy but I didn’t want to cause an awkward silence trying to solve it. 



“Um…well, ok.  So, 20 out of 100 people click on the ad.  Every ten clicks make one dollar…and you need 20 of them…”  That’s as far as I got before I resorted to guessing answers, none of which were right.  I was panicking and I couldn’t do a thing about it.  My nerves were taking over.  Anna could sense this and began to give me hints.  None of them helped my frazzled brain. 



After five painful minutes the annoyed interviewer gave me the answer.  “100 people make two dollars, and two times ten is twenty. The answer is 100 people times 10 which is 1,000 people.”  She made it sound so easy; I felt like a moron.  As if she enjoyed my misery, she immediately fired off another math problem.  



“Estimate the number of students who are college seniors, attend four-year schools, and graduate with a job in the United States every year.”  This time I remained poised. 



“There are about 300 million people in the nation” I began.  “Let’s say 10 million of those are college students at four year schools.  Only ¼ of those 10 million are seniors, so that would be roughly 2-3 million.  If half of those students graduate with jobs, you’re looking at about 1.5 million kids.” 



“Would you say that number seems high, low, or just about right?”



“I would say it sounds low, but maybe that’s because I’m going through the job-search process and I’m wishing the number was higher.” 



I didn’t even get a sympathetic laugh.  “That’s all.  Good luck with your job search.”  The phone clicked-- I was stunned.  The abrupt sign-off was a clear indication that I wouldn’t be considered for round 2.  Interviewing can be demoralizing, and that’s just how I felt as I sat with my cell in my hand, vowing to switch to Yahoo for life. 

Think You Could Do Better? Try: 15 Google Interview Questions That Will Make You Feel Stupid

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• 15 Google Interview Questions That Will Make You Feel Stupid
• Answers To 15 Google Interview Questions That Will Make You Feel Stupid
• 15 MORE Google Interview Questions That Will Make You Feel Stupid

Post originale: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/alleyinsider/silicon_alley_insider/~3/J544fQZf44g/my-nightmare-interviews-with-google-2010-11

Ask the Headhunter: How Do Headhunters Get My Name?

A Reader Writes:

I recently graduated from college and have joined the IT consulting arm of a big accounting firm. I consider my compensation to be very good, the work exciting, and I am largely happy with where I am.

Lately I've had quite a few telephone calls from a number of headhunters. My questions really are twofold: How do these guys get my name, and how do I vet them? I am open to the idea of changing jobs, and I know that I have skills which are highly in demand right now, but want to ensure that the headhunters I select are going to do the best job for me with Fortune 100 companies. Any advice?

Nick's Reply:

The good headhunter gets your name from people in your industry who know about you. (If you had more experience, they might get it from publications in which you are referenced.) In other words, they're experts in your industry and they do solid research to find you. The slothful ones get it from databases which they buy from all sorts of sources, including publishers of industry journals you subscribe to. It's debatable where the "line" is with regard to how random or thoughtful the process is. Since you're with a big accounting firm, your name is probably on a lot of lists.


"I want to ensure that the headhunters I select are going to do the best job for me."



Always bear one fact in mind: Headhunters don't work for you. They don't do a job for you. They do a job for the client who is paying their fee. The best ones will respect you and treat you fairly. Make sure that your interests and wishes are completely clear when you deal with a headhunter. If necessary, get certain things in writing; for example, their agreement to not distribute your resume to anyone without your specific consent.



Also remember that while you may not need a headhunter's attention now, you may need it later. If you like a headhunter, be helpful when he asks for suggestions and referrals of possible candidates for a search. Of course, you may ask that your name not be disclosed. Your assistance keeps you high on the headhunter's list of cooperative industry insiders, and increases the likelihood he'll keep you in mind when a good assignment comes along. It also makes it likely he'll take your call when you need help or advice.



Otherwise, there's nothing mysterious about headhunters. Feel free to ask them for references and for information about their firm. Check them out! And, always expect them to act professionally and courteously. You'll recognize the best ones from their behavior.



For advice about specific issues when dealing with headhunters, please check the resource book listed below.



Copyright © 2010 Nick Corcodilos. All rights reserved. Ask The Headhunter® is a registered trademark. Nick Corcodilos is president of North Bridge Group, Inc. and the author of two new e-books, How to Work with Headhunters and How Can I Change Careers? He shares his contrarian advice and hopes to learn a lot from you, too. Got questions or comments? Please join the discussion!

Post originale: http://career-resources.dice.com/articles/content/entry/how_do_headhunters_get_my

My short list of QA / Testing Stuff

For all you QA folk out there (and those who aren’t but dream of being) here is a little list of some neat sites and tools to aid in your testing efforts… SITE ANALYSIS – TECHNOLOGIES USED: Built...


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Post originale: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PracticalTechnologiesClanross/~3/T2wERbdVbRo/my-short-list-of-qa-testing-stuff.html

Google: Can I Have My Email Back?

I rarely attempt to get things done via my admitedly short soapbox and, as anyone who knows me will attest, I'm a bastion of sweetness and light on the Internet. But dammit, Google, give me my email back. See, we run Google Apps for Domains. This allows us to run the crunchgear.com mail accounts independently of oversight by our Master and Commander and eventually, I'm sure, we'll have to move over to AOL's Phoenix Platform provided we are able to get enough free hours in the mail (I have 1000 right now and the rest of the guys have like 750 each so that should keep us until February.) On Sunday night, my email, john@crunchgear.com, went into maintenance mode and hasn't come out. I haven't had IMAP/POP/web/WAP/WebTV/Gizmondo access for three days now. The other guys all have working email addresses. Only I have been chosen to suffer.

Post originale: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/r-q2pUqLRZ0/

Ask The Headhunter: How Do I Tell My Boss I'm Overworked?

by Nick Corcodilos

Question:

As has happened with every job I've ever had, I've come in entry level, and have had more and more work piled on me until I'm a bundle of nerves and stress. I've handled this very well until now. My current job (software documentation) is the first I've had that recognizes my abilities and has compensated me fairly, both monetarily (not too fairly, though!) and with responsibility and management duties. However, I have now inherited more work than I can handle. I've absorbed the workloads of two individuals who are no longer working with the company. HELP! I'm only one person and can only do so much in a 16-hour day! (Isn't it supposed to be 8 hours?) I look forward to any suggestions or comments you are willing to provide!  

Nick's Reply:

I've known more than a few people with a good work ethic who don't know when to tell management "this is too much!" The fact that you keep getting yourself into these situations isn't surprising: It's a bit of a personality trait, I think. You've got to deal with it.

Part of what you're paid for is to tell management the truth. The truth is this: The documentation function in your company requires additional staff.

Prepare a simple plan that outlines:

 

1. The work that needs to be done (the source of the work, the nature of the work, the time it takes to do it).

2. The profit produced by the work. (Remember, Profit = Revenue-Cost: You contribute to either or both, but you must produce profit or your job gets eliminated).

3. The cost of manpower and tools required to do the work profitably (you, and any additional proposed staff).

4. A description of the relationship between size of the department and the amount of output you can produce (16-hour days are not allowed).

 

No matter how much work you keep taking on, as long as you accept it the company will continue to heap it on. It's their fault for expecting so much, but it's more your fault for letting them think you can handle it.

Schedule a meeting with your boss. Don't tell him you're having a problem. Tell him you think you have the documentation function organized now. Then show him your plan, including the requirements for additional staff. Don't complain, don't be defensive. Just give him the facts. Not wanting to work 16 hour days is not something you have to apologize for. However, it is your responsibility to show the company what needs to be done to handle the work effectively.

If you don't deal with this problem now, on this job, you will continue to face it at any future job. The sign of a good employee is dealing with the problem, not compensating by working 16 hour days.

One caution: Some companies prefer to kill an employee with work rather than spend what it takes to do the job fairly and do it right. If this describes your company, be prepared to start looking for a new job. I hope your employer is ethical. You owe it to yourself to have a job that's reasonable.

Copyright © 2010 Nick Corcodilos. All rights reserved. Ask The Headhunter® is a registered trademark. Nick Corcodilos is president of North Bridge Group, Inc. and the author of two new e-books, How to Work with Headhunters and How Can I Change Careers? He shares his contrarian advice and hopes to learn a lot from you, too. Got questions or comments? Please join the discussion!

Post originale: http://career-resources.dice.com/articles/content/entry/ask_the_headhunter_how_do4

Esri pushes GeoMedicine, shares My Place History and goes mobile on iOS

I received a cool tip off from the good folks at Esri who’ve enlightened me a little not only on a great effort called “GeoMedicine” (FYI, the topic of medical geography was a favorite of mine back in my U Vic days when I was studying my fave classes on medical geography under the late [...]

Post originale: http://blog.gisuser.com/?p=8027

These Are A Few Of My Favorite [Geo] Tweets…

Once again, here’s a sampling of a few of the interesting Tweets (and Geo tweets) that I’ve “faved” over the past couple of tweets. Even if the tweet doesn’t bring value to you, I’m sure the authors of them would make great followers to add to your stream… enjoy!

@sloanb I’m considering calling it quits [...]

Post originale: http://blog.gisuser.com/?p=8045

My Aspen

Aspen rentals at My Aspen Rental for the best in location and luxury for your next Aspen vacation rentals by Owner.

Tales From My Carryon Suitcase...

...Or Why I Could Never Travel Around The World With One Pair of Underpants

our columnist Daisann McLane argues against self-imposed baggage regulations.

I followed my fellow traveler Rolf Potts' "No Baggage" around the world stunt trip with a mixed feeling of awe and bewilderment. I was certainly impressed by Rolf's grit and determination to stay on the road for 30 days, carrying nothing but what he could stuff into a specially-designed, multi-pocket gear vest. But I wondered: what's the point?

The trip's premise was that traveling with no baggage at all clears your path to more interesting, spontaneous and authentic travels. But I don't buy that. (I've actually had some interesting travel encounters because I was carrying baggage). Baggage isn't an obstacle, it's just a traveler's tool. And what takes up more travel energy--carrying a satchel or small suitcase, or doing laundry every single night and feeling yucky and damp all day?

I was also more than a little horrified at the idea of having to wear synthetic fabric T-shirts and underpants day in and day out. Especially because you would never catch me wearing T-shirts, synthetic underwear, cargo pants or multi-pocketed vests--unless, maybe, I was on a wilderness expedition or embedded with the Marines on assignment.

But the big reason I'd never want to do a "stripped to basics" trip is that it would make my travel far less interesting and enjoyable. Dressing for the day is one of my biggest travel pleasures. Just like I love trying out my skill with new languages, and sampling new foods, travel is an occasion for me to slip into different ways of adorning myself in the world.

Microsoft Expression and YouTube animate my Resume

I decided to test the fabulous Microsoft Expression Capture / Encoder and see how easy it was to use in concert with YouTube. In a nutshell,, piece of cake. The video is once again a shameless self...


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Post originale: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/PracticalTechnologiesClanross/~3/Z7XG2qKpgtM/microsoft-expression-and-youtube.html

Comment on Why imeem Really Sold Out by Xentience (Internal) Blog » My 9 Favorite Startup Lessons From Startup School

[...] Imeem CEO Dalton Caldwell gave a crowd-pleasing talk about the failures of his music startup (which sold to MySpace and effectively died about a year ago). Imeem raised over $50 million from investors including [...]

Post originale: http://gigaom.com/2009/11/17/why-imeem-really-sold-out/#comment-299638

Comment on Moving to Mac — My First 3 Weeks by Scott Blitstein

Hi Praval, The blog editor is MarsEdit - I looked at a few different ones but that was the one that worked best for me. I still find it generally confounding though - I miss the simplicity of BlogDesk on the PC. That is also the Rocket Icon you see over in the dock. The te was text expander which I was trying at the time. I've since moved to TypeIt4Me which I prefer. thanks sb

Post originale: http://gigaom.com/collaboration/moving-to-mac-my-first-three-weeks/#comment-299819

Comment on My 9 Favorite Startup Lessons From Startup School by Eddie Gear

These are some great advice. I guess there are many more who meed to learn from this artilce. Thanks for sharing.

Post originale: http://gigaom.com/2010/10/16/my-9-favorite-startup-lessons-from-startup-school/#comment-299605

Comment on Moving to Mac — My First 3 Weeks by Praval Singh

Hi Scott! Thank you for sharing your experience. It's been almost 3 months since I switched to Mac, from Windows 7. I must say I have enjoyed it a lot, with of course, a few hiccups. In the screenshot you used for this post, I would want to know which apps are these: 1) The blog editor? It doesn't look like Ecto! 2) There is an app the dock The icon has "te" in blue background. What's that? 3) There is a app in the dock that has a rocket like icon. Which app is this? Thanks!

Post originale: http://gigaom.com/collaboration/moving-to-mac-my-first-three-weeks/#comment-299557