software – The Map Room

Eduard, a New Mac-only Relief Shading App

Jonathan Crowe — Thu, 13 Oct 2022 21:35:40 +0000

Launching at NACIS, which is next week, but available on the Mac App Store now, Eduard is a Mac-only application that generates relief maps by “[using] machine learning to match the aesthetics and details of relief shadings created by Swiss cartographers.” (The name is a pretty obvious reference to Eduard Imhof.) The app allows you to adjust direction of illumination, aerial perspective and detail, and works with digital elevation models and a number of file formats. The launch price is US$69.99 (C$99.99) until the 23rd, after which I presume the price will go up.

Primers on Google Earth and Google’s Imagery

Jonathan Crowe — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 14:06:20 +0000

A nice, accessible (if overboosterish) history and overview of Google Earth—which despite its deprecation on the desktop is still a thing—from Sarvish Mathi at OneZero. [GIS Lounge] Related: this Google blog post on their imagery, how they get it and how it’s processed.

Flex Projector

Jonathan Crowe — Mon, 03 Apr 2017 14:13:31 +0000

With all this recent talk about map projections, it might be worth pointing out the existence of Flex Projector, a cross-platform Java application for creating map projections, now at version 1.0.6. Yes, creating: if you want to invent your own map projection and slap your own name on it, you can do that with this app; others certainly have. (You will need to have Java installed on your computer.) Heck, Tom Patterson’s Natural Earth projection was built with it. [GIS Lounge]

Previously: Shaded Relief World Map and Flex Projector.

Map Anniversaries

Jonathan Crowe — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 17:15:18 +0000

Google Maps turned 10 years old on Sunday—a milestone observed by Samuel Gibbs in the Guardian. See also Liz Gannes’s retrospective at Re/Code. My reaction on launch day was pretty effusive—I was blown away mainly by the user interface. But it wasn’t immediately dominant: it took roughly four years for Google to surpass MapQuest in traffic.

Meanwhile, the Pro version of Google Earth, which used to cost $400/year, is now free. Google Earth itself launched in June 2005, so is approaching its own 10-year anniversary, but it began its existence a few years earlier as Keyhole EarthViewer 3D.

Speaking of map anniversaries, National Geographic Maps is marking its centennial.

The photo above marks another anniversary: It shows Apollo 14 astronaut Ed Mitchell consulting a map during his second lunar EVA on February 6, 1971. Apollo 14 returned to Earth 44 years ago yesterday.

Error Reporting in Apple Maps

Jonathan Crowe — Wed, 26 Jun 2013 10:51:14 +0000

A major feature of Apple’s forthcoming Maps application for OS X 10.9 Mavericks is enhanced error reporting. AppleInsider has the details. This was inevitable, not just because of the uneven quality of Apple’s maps and the reputational firebombing they’ve gotten since their launch last year, but because all online maps suck and need error reporting. Of course, reports are one thing; how quickly and effectively they’re acted on—that’s what’s important.

Previously: Apple Maps on the Mac.