Geospatial World

So, I was playing around with some DEMs and the Create Contour Layer functionality in Map 3D the other day... When I noticed something 'odd'... Can you see the oddity from the screen capture of the Data Table Window below? In case you didn't notice, the Data Table Window is only reporting one record? What the? I know there are hundreds of contours in this resulting SDF, so why is it only showing 1 record? Well after performing a reality check with a fellow Map enthusiast Nicole Jung (who btw is also instructing at AU this year, so be sure to check out her class: GS304-1P Express yourself! Using the Expression Builder in AutoCAD® Map 3D 2009 and Autodesk MapGuide® Enterprise 2009! ) we investigated this for a bit and realized that there seems to be a little anomaly occurring with the refreshing of the Data Window for these SDFs generated via Generate Contours command. I found that if I toggled between Filtered and un-filtered Feature Classes the reocrds would show up... An...

One of the big problems (at least for me and many of our clients) with the initial release of Map 3D 2009 was that it would not allow you to create a theme based on a column from a joined datasource.  The problem was that the joined columns were just no t shown in the UI.  However... it would appear that this issue has been addressed in the latest map update . As you can see from the screen captures below, the joined columns are now available in the Property dropdown list, and the Expression Builder Property list.   For those who do not know how to create a join, some simple instructions are: Connect to both datasources and add to the map any required features.  In the sample image we've connected to and added to the map the Hydrants SDF for the point features, and made an ODBC connection to an Access database that contains more details for the Hydrants In the Display Manger, right-click on the datasource (Hydrants) that you want to create a join on and select Create Join.   In the...

Late last week Autodesk released an Update for Map 2009. The Update, or Service Pack, can be downloaded here . Numerous issues are addressed in this SP, and I would suggest anyone using Map 3D 2009 should probably download and install this. You can use the link above to download and install, or use the Communication Center to install: After the install is complete you can check the Product Information (Help > About AutoCAD Map 3D > Product Information) to ensure the update was successful: Some issues that I have personal experience with are problems with using FDO and 3D objects. These were quite flaky and un-stable, and was informed by Autodesk that this is supposed to be addressed in this service pack. The Join problem of not showing joined properties in the Expression Builder is supposed to be resolved as well... I have yet to verify this. Take care, Warren AU 2008 in 86 days...

Well we've been hearing about it ( Google Chrome ) for a while, and it's now available, so I thought I would install it and see what the fuss is about. Seems nice enough... really quick, thin... But most importantly is that a MapGuide site shows up just fine using Chrome: Although I did notice that it doesn't seem to format XML for display... This is the result of a MapGuide MapAgent query:

Have you ever created labels from a point feature set in AutoCAD Map? If so, you probably also turned off the display of the point symbol. So, have you then ever tried to ‘select’ the label graphically? You can’t! One workaround would be to leave the point display turned on most of the time, which would allow you to select it, and then turn it off for printing. This works… but that requires you to remember to turn it off… Another option is to turn on the point display, but set the color to ACI 255, which should plot as transparent, or invisible. On a white background you don’t ‘see’ the point, but can still select it by picking beside the text. To aid in the ability to select the text you can even increase the size of the point On a black (or any other color) background, you can see the point just fine, but it shouldn’t print out.

Finally!!! My two passions have been combined... Rock Music, and anything Geospatial. Rockin’ Remote Sensing: Aerotec Provides 3D LIDAR Models for Ground-Breaking Music Video While I personally am not a huge Radiohead fan, I don't think anybody can deny that the band is always willing to try new things. From releasing their latest album over the web, to creating a music video without any cameras or lights. Yes, no cameras, no lights... all 'Data'. Very cool! Check it out at: http://code.google.com/radiohead

It was great to recieve the acceptance email from the AU regading my proposal to instruct a class this year. The title of the class is: GS310-2 From AutoCAD® Map 3D® to Autodesk MapGuide® in 3 Simple Steps: Connect, Stylize, Publish Autodesk University is an awesome experience, and I recommend it to anybody that works with the wide variety of Autodesk products. Stay tuned to the AU site for class and lab listings.