Vancouver Interactive Digital Week

Jun 15, 2010 @ 7:32 PM by Britta Ricker -- game ipad iphone location:

Mapkist was fortunate enough to attend Vancouver Interactive Digital Week (VIDWeek) organized by Digi BC. (I am late blogging about it but this is definitely an event worth blogging about). I was the moderator for a panel in the Wireless Business & Innovation Track: You are Your Location - location and enhanced experience.

We had a stacked panel that led to a rich discussion covering topics related to location-based gaming and services.

Let’s meet the panel…

Jereon Mol, Co-Founder, buzzAR (Holland)

buzzAR is a Dutch company that has developed a new visual search platform and an augmented reality tool for smartphones. Jereon offered a unique perspective on “location-aware” search and devices because his apps use image recognition and are not bound by location. buzzAR is taking a context aware approach to Augmented Reality, not just location aware.

Dan Walton, Co-Founder, Retronyms

Retronyms – GeoSeek; games in the great outdoors. These guys make really cool apps for multiple platforms. They are specifically skilled in developing location-based games and music apps. Their coolest game is Seek ‘n Spell…think location based scrabble where you have to run to collect the pieces you need to form a word. Super fun. They also develop musical apps for the iPad. All of our lunch buddies got a kick out of these apps. Highly entertaining.

Ben Hesketh, Founder, Compass Engine

Compass Engine and Ben are currently working on an app called Catch the Canary. Ben invited me to come visit him at work in beautiful Gastown in Vancouver last week. It was really cool to get to preview his location-based game that will be launched soon… I will likely blog about it when it is ready.

Vladimir Savchenko, Founder,  Sound of Motion

Sound of Motion - creators of an app (VeloComputer) that transforms mobile devices into cycling computers that can track speed; lap and trip distance; acceleration and altitude.  It also records trip data on the phone in CSV files and can be uploaded to a spreadsheet for training analysis or Google Earth for tracking. This computer can be used for more than just biking too!

Here we are

Here we are!

If you have any questions about this panel session and what was discussed… give us a shout or comment below… would love to keep the dialogue going!

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Mapping Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill- From the water up

Jun 4, 2010 @ 4:48 PM by Britta Ricker -- google earth imagery map visualization

Here are some links to mapping initiatives taking place to monitor the disastrous Gulf Oil Spill.

This mashup by Paul Rademacher portrays the size of the spill in relation to major cities.  The map aims to give the reader a sense of the scale of this disaster (you will need the Google Earth browser plug-in).

Grassroots Mapping is covering the mapping of the oil spill. MIT students are using balloons and kites to map the disaster.

BP response maps – Static .pdf files

New York Times has a series of animated maps showing oil dispersion, where oil has made landfall, and links to multimedia coverage of the oil spill.

Also, almost every government agency is addressing the oil spill on their websites.

USGS is using satellite imagery. They also have a series of maps (static made with traditional GIS) showing the coastal washup of oil.

USGS data repository - Hazards Data Distribution System (HDDS). You could use this to make your own mashup!

NASA has the latest images of the oil spill here. They have also stitched together this movie. From a Geovisualization standpoint, this is a very simple animation of only satellite imagery but portrays a very powerful message.

EPA uses Google Earth!

This is by no means an exhaustive list of mapping the oil spill but a start.

Here is a picture of me at the Alligator Bayou about four years ago.

Here is a picture of me at the Alligator Bayou about four years ago.

Kumiko and I both did work mapping for FEMA in Louisiana post Hurricane Katrina and Rita back in 2005-2006. I spent about two months in the region and I would return in a heartbeat. The Gulf Coast is absolutely an amazing place full of people who are warm and fun loving hard workers.

The wildlife and ecosystem are extremely unique. If you ever get the chance, you have to check this place out! Holy cow! Actually I see that Alligator Bayou is closed and for sale!!! If you love wetlands and have some cash, buy it and preserve this wonderful place!

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