VizMAP continues to work closely with Praetorian Asia Pacific and End 2 End Visuals to create quite stunning work for a local port. We’re still not in a position to show off the results but I can guarantee it’ll be worth the wait. Stay tuned. In the meantime, the Recent Outing this time round showcases another in a string of Sydney parks that we completed recently for a federal government body.

If you didn’t already know, VirtualGeography is a collection of interesting snippets from all over the shop, dealing with industry issues concerning the computer based visualisation of geography and a few other associated (or otherwise) interesting bits and pieces. You are receiving this either because you subscribed to VirtualGeography or you have had recent dealings with VizMAP Pty Ltd. If you do not wish to receive further instalments of VirtualGeography, just click on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of this e-mail. 

A new VirtualGeography is pushed out every now and then when we’ve collated enough interesting bits and pieces, which shouldn’t be too big a drain on your mailbox if you’re not already subscribed (of course it won’t be a drain on your mailbox if you ARE subscribed, either ). The regularity of the distribution may vary depending on what else is going on at VizMAP at the time. If you know of anyone who might like to get VirtualGeography, feel free to forward this to them and ask them to subscribe. By the way, subscription and unsubscription details are at the bottom (click here).

So, g’day to all you enthusiasts requiring to visualise and simulate both urban and rural geographic information (GIS), cartography, photogrammetry, remote sensing, digital elevation modelling (DEM) and general mapping.

By the spelling of "Visualisation" you may have already guessed that we’re not US based – that’s a good thing, or at least not a bad thing. This comes to you from Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, Australia, where it’s beautiful one day and perfect the next. As a postscript to that, you can have a look at the Mooloolaba beach, now, 800m from where I sit as I write this, here.

The link between visualisation and mapping may seem a little esoteric if this is your first encounter with this sort of stuff, but let me tell you, the bond is significant… but enough of that: on with the show… I hope you like it. Any feedback you might have is highly appreciated. E-mail me here to make your comments. Enjoy… Graeme Brooke VizMAP Pty Ltd

P.S. You’ll need an active internet connection to view any images that are in the content. We’ve done it this way to keep the size of the e-mail to a minimum.

TerraSim demonstrated its current OneSAF OTF generation software capabilities each morning during the conference. The presentation highlighted TerraSim’s support for OneSAF Terrain Format 5.0 and 6.0 (OOS 1.1 and 1.5). Three specific areas of interest were: the creation of Ultra High Resolution Buildings (UHRBs), the discussion of sample OneSAF databases used for customer training and process validation, and the performance analysis including database construction timings using multi-core Windows workstations.

TerraSim also demonstrated its database reuse technology to extract source data content from legacy OneSAF Testbed (CTDB format) to produce correlated OneSAF Objective System (OTF format) and updated OTB databases. The conversion of OTB multi-elevation surface (MES) buildings to OOS UHRB buildings was also demonstrated.

Approximately 8 test and validation OTF databases were presented, as well as several customer success stories, including the 12 geo-cell White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) generated by ERDC TEC at Fort Belvoir using TerraSim’s TerraTools® rapid database construction product. 

High-performance computing in fields like the geosciences, molecular biology, and medical diagnostics enable discoveries that transform billions of lives every day. Universities, research institutions, and companies in these and other fields face a daunting challenge: as their simulation models become exponentially complex, so does their need for vast computational resources. 

NVIDIA took a giant step in meeting this challenge with today’s announcement of a new class of processors based on a revolutionary new graphics processing unit (GPU). Under the NVIDIA® Tesla™ brand, NVIDIA will offer a family of GPU computing products that will place the power previously available only from supercomputers in the hands of every scientist and engineer. Today’s workstations will be transformed into "personal supercomputers." 

"Today’s science is no longer confined to the laboratory; scientists employ computer simulations before a single physical experiment is performed. This fundamental transition to computational methods is forging a new path for discoveries in science and engineering," said Jen-Hsun Huang, president and CEO of NVIDIA. "By dramatically reducing computation times, in some cases from weeks to hours, NVIDIA Tesla represents the single most significant disruption the high-performance computing industry has seen since Cray 1’s introduction of vector processing." 

"Presagis is in line with CAE’s long-term strategy to create a single, unified, COTS simulation software business," said Marc Parent, CAE’s Group President, Simulation Products and Military Training & Services.  "The technology depth and international reach of this COTS business further extends CAE’s position as a global leader in the modelling and simulation market. 

"CAE is a recognized global leader in simulation and training and we are thrilled to continue its legacy of excellence and innovation," said Patrice Commune, President, Presagis.   "Presagis brings together a powerful product portfolio that will help our customers build applications faster, without compromising on value, training, creative vision and support. By drawing on the strengths of these combined companies, Presagis is positioned to break new ground in technology development and deliver the highest possible standards of innovation and customer service." 

The company will expand the possibilities for modelling and simulation by delivering an easier to use and integrated suite of COTS software. Presagis boasts a solid portfolio of technologies including S-Mission, STAGE Scenario, and AI.implant, its comprehensive Artificial Intelligence solution; powerful visualization tools such as Vega Prime and Lyra; Terra Vista and Creator, the world’s leading terrain and 3-D content software; and the VAPS product family of human-machine interface development tools. In addition, existing industry standards developed by Presagis, such as OpenFlight and TerraPage, will continue to be cornerstones of the Presagis technology portfolio.

Click on these small resampled images to view the full screen images from the VizMAP website. Bear in mind that these are just screen dumps from a dynamic, interactive, 3D "flythrough".

If you would like more information on this project, or need your own similar project performed, let VizMAP know

I.B.M. and Linden Lab, the creator of Second Life, think it’s time to free the avatars.

At the Virtual Worlds Conference and Expo at San Jose, Calif., the two companies are announcing plans to develop open standards that will allow avatars to roam from one virtual community to the next. The goal is let a person create a digital alter-ego that can travel to many virtual worlds, keeping the same name, look and even digital currency.

The companies speak of “a truly interoperable 3D Internet.” Think of it as passports for avatars. So that pink-headed cutie you made for Second Life can also take up residence in There.com, The Lounge, Virtual Laguna Beach and Entropia, for example.

“Now, for every world I touch I have to build an avatar,” said Colin Parris, the I.B.M. vice president in charge of virtual world technology. “It’s an obstacle to the development and spread of virtual worlds, both in the consumer and corporate space.”

The logic of the move is impeccable. The growth of the Internet andthe Web, after all, has been fueled by open standards. The more people who can communicate, inform and entertain each other freely on a network, the more valuable it is. Economists call this the “network effect.” And the Internet is the network effect on steroids.

• DirectionsMag Events 
• GISCafe Upcoming Events  
• Geoinformatics Calendar 
• ISPRS Events Calendar 
• National Centre for Simulation Calendar of Events 
• Position Magazine Calendar of Events 

1. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
2. He who laughs last, thinks slowest.
3. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
4. Those who live by the sword get shot by those who don’t.
5. Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.
6. The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there’s a 90% probability you’ll get it wrong.
7. If you lined up all the cars in the world end to end, someone would be stupid enough to try to pass them, five or six at a time, on a hill, in the fog.
8. If the shoe fits, get another one just like it.
9. The things that come to those who wait will be the things left by those who got there first.
10. The shin bone is a device for finding furniture in a dark room.
11. A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.
12. When you go into court, you are putting yourself in the hands of 12 people who weren’t smart enough to get out of jury duty.