2024 Edition
ISSN 0742-468XEsri is serving Saudi partners across industries and organisations
In 2016 the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced Vision 2030, a plan built on three intrinsic pillars: a vibrant society, a thriving economy, and an ambitious nation. Data is key to the vision's success--so location intelligence derived through geographic information systems (GIS) will play a pivotal role. Government officials, c-suite executives, and architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) firms around the globe have adopted a geographic approach to finding solutions for issues like quality of life, urban and community planning practices, and the construction of smart cities.
Read full story at ArabianBusiness…
ArcGIS Mapping Technology Will Enable Network of 1.4 Million Nonprofit Organizations to Address Critical Global Challenges
“TechSoup is excited to partner with Esri, providing our nonprofit members with access to Esri's ArcGIS mapping products,” said Conor Mulherin, general manager of validation services at TechSoup. “Esri provides great tools for [nonprofit organizations] because [its] ArcGIS mapping products enable [them] to transform data into actionable insights, advancing their missions and driving real change in the communities they serve.”
Read full story at Esri…
Federal Trade Commission settled its complaint against InMarket Media for tracking and selling consumers' precise location data for targeted advertising
According to the FTC's complaint, Texas-based InMarket offered two apps to consumers: shopping rewards app CheckPoints, and shopping list app ListEase. According to the FTC's press release, the FTC alleged in its complaint that when InMarket requested consent to use a consumer's location data, it told the customer that it was only using the data "for the app's function, such as to provide shopping reward points or to remind consumers about items on their shopping list." The FTC alleges that InMarket “fail[ed] to inform users that the location data will also be combined with other data obtained about those users and used for targeted advertising.”
Read full story at National Law Review…
Geospatial professionals from across West Virginia gathered at the Capitol … to teach the public about their field.
Geospatial science is colloquially known as the study of "where," and examines geography trends. Plus, it can be applied across industries, according to Taryn Moser, state geographic information system (GIS) coordinator with the West Virginia Office of GIS Coordination.
“We are not just maps,” Moser explained. “We work in real estate. We work in banking and business. We work in the DNR. There's a wide spectrum of disciplines here today, and a wide spectrum of geographic data within the state of West Virginia.”
Read full story at WV Public Broadcasting…
With a nearly unobstructed field of view, NavVis VLX 3 delivers comprehensive coverage of any environment you are scanning. Capturing 1.2 million points per second per sensor, you can scan with confidence knowing that your data is accurate and thorough.
With a nearly unobstructed field of view, NavVis VLX 3 delivers comprehensive coverage of any environment you are scanning. Capturing 1.2 million points per second per sensor, you can scan with confidence knowing that your data is accurate and thorough.
With these innovative new features and improvements, users are better able to generate high-quality point clouds of buildings, construction sites, roads, bridges, tunnels, and more. Seamlessly integrated with NavVis IVION, our platform for spatial data, customers have the foundation of a digital twin for smart collaboration and decision-making to help build the world we want to live in.
Read full story at NavVis…
Leveraging Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in mining has resulted in the effective and optimal design of the mine development process.
The new era of mining is marked by greater automation and digitalisation, with data-driven decisionmaking at its core. The key to unlocking this potential is GIS innovation, which will provide mining companies with the tools they need to understand their environment and make informed decisions about how best to mine it.
While traditional mining practices are often inefficient, environmentally damaging, and can pose safety risks to workers, GIS optimises processes and enhances efficiency.
Read full story at Mining Review Africa …
Mark Headd, Philadelphia's former chief data officer, and others offer practical steps any government can use to start or improve open data programs.
Officials from local, state and federal governments are still probing what it means to “open data.” Benefits of machine readable government data are ample, and include data-based business creation, cost reduction … civic apps and government accountability. …On Sept. 24 Mark Headd, Philadelphia's former chief data officer … offered advice at the 2014 Code for America Summit. Headd delivered tips alongside fellow open data Developer Evangelist Seth Axthelm and Senior Product Manager Brian Gryth … The team's message focused on practical steps any government can use to start or improve open data programs.
Given the significant implications for our supply chain and national security, policymakers need to decide on an approach and act.
For decades, we have recognized the national security implications of our reliance on overseas raw materials and supplies. These implications have prompted a growing recognition that our nation needs a strong industrial base. The pandemic and its aftermath only further exposed the fragility of our supply chains in all parts of the economy.
Two prominent procurement laws address supply chains and the industrial base: the Buy American Act (BAA) and the Trade Agreements Act (TAA). As the names imply, the BAA favors domestic end products using a certain percentage of domestic components, and the TAA allows products made in allied countries to compete with domestic supplies. Although the BAA sounds like the best, most patriotic choice from the standpoint of assuring economic, strategic and national security stability in our supply chain, the TAA, in its implementation, may provide the best overall results.Read full story at Federal News Network…
Surveys of government tech officials ranked digital services as a top concern and described artificial intelligence as a force multiplier.
Artificial intelligence is very much top of mind for state and local government CIOs, and they may well examine how AI can accelerate digital services for citizens, note the National Association of State Chief Information Officers and the Public Technology Institute in a recent joint webinar.
…NASCIO Executive Director Doug Robinson reported that cybersecurity and digital services tied for first place among state CIO priorities in the association's survey, “State CIO Top Ten Policy and Technology Priorities for 2024.” While cybersecurity has topped the list for a decade or longer, no other priority has tied it for first place until now. CIOs placed a greater emphasis on digital services for citizens after the pandemic, Robinson said.Read full story at StateTech…
Apple may leave the UK if required to provide advance notice of product updates.
Apple is “deeply concerned” that proposed changes to a United Kingdom law could give the UK government unprecedented power to “secretly veto” privacy and security updates to its products and services, the tech giant said in a statement provided to Ars.
If passed, potentially this spring, the amendments to the UK's Investigatory Powers Act (IPA) could deprive not just UK users, but all users globally of important new privacy and security features, Apple warned.
Read full story at arsTechnica…
Fact and fiction frequently collide when it comes to the technology we use in our daily lives. We set the record straight.
It's possible you're worried about something that isn't true--or maybe something that used to be true but isn't now, as new discoveries and updates cleared up the problem. Go through our list below, and then pass on the real deal to your friends, family, and social following, so they won't fall prey to tech disinformation.
and 14 more …
Read full story at PCMag…
It brings employees' avatars together in a customized space.
While many organizations are pushing for their employees to return to offices, Microsoft suggests trying a new type of "hybrid" working. The company has announced the launch of Microsoft Mesh , a feature that lets employees' avatars meet in the same place, even if the actual people are spread out. The virtual connection platform is powered through Microsoft Teams .
Read full story at engadget…
Looming over any predictions are the growing concerns about the reliability and stability of the U.S. grid. Any major reliability event this year could instantly reshape FERC's agenda and priorities.
Recently, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy have proposed many rules supporting the Biden administration's push to build transmission infrastructure to ensure reliability and support new generation resources. Many of these rules are in the final stages of the rulemaking process and we expect 2024 to be a significant year for FERC action on transmission infrastructure.
The U.S. is facing ongoing challenges in its transformer supply, impacting the renewables industry and power grid stability due to market volatility in grain oriented electrical steel and inadequate coordination among transmission projects.
… A recent article from Renewable Energy World shed some light on the ongoing transformer shortages in the U.S. In particular, the article highlighted why those much-needed transformers aren't being built. The article speculates that RTO's (regional transmission organizations) and ISOs (independent system operators) are partially responsible for the nation's insufficient transmission capacity. 30 years ago, these organizations aimed to inject competition into an industry dominated by utilities. Now, however, there is much more to consider.
Read full story at Yahoo!Finance…
Over the last six months, two major US utilities have been selling off their commercial solar PV assets to private investment groups.
According to Syliva Levya Martinez, principal analyst of North American utility-scale solar at Wood Mackenzie: “These are not the last of these types of transactions we're going to see"”
Duke sold its commercial utility-scale renewables wing to Canadian asset owner Brookfield Renewables for US$2.8 billion last year, and then sold its commercial distributed renewables generation arm to investment firm Arclight Capital.
Read full story at PVTECH…