Soul Solutions

Guide complet de la cartographie interactive

veblog@soulsolutions.com.au — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 23:43:57 GMT

Nicolas Boonaert’s book on Bing Maps has been released and it looks awesome! Nicolas lives in France and is an active developer in the Bing Maps community.

The book is in French, but amazingly I can still understand much of it :) It covers quite a bit in 450 pages:

History, including TerraServer, MapPoint Web Service and Virtual Earth
Architecture of the platform
AJAX control
Silverlight
Bing Maps Web Service
Building Mobile applications
3rd Party Projects, including DeepEarth
Comparison with Google Maps, Yahoo Maps and OSM.

If your interested in Bing Maps or web mapping in general and can read French this is a must. If you don’t speak French but this sort of title interests you, then ping Nicolas and encourage him to do an English translation, he is on twitter here. Great work Nicolas!

Technorati Tags: Bing Maps,Nicolas Boonaert,Book Review

High CPU usage issues solved in the Silverlight MultiScaleImage control

veblog@soulsolutions.com.au — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:27:39 GMT

Good news for all Bing Maps developers with windows update 979202 solving a major performance issue.

CPU usage is high when you use the Deep Zoom feature in Silverlight 3. This problem occurs when the Deep Zoom feature cannot load or decode a tile. The problem persists even if you minimize the Web browser in which the Silverlight 3 application is running.

This would occur if you had either :

a custom tile layer that would return 404 errors when tiles were requested (typical for a simple file system on edge tiles that don’t exist but are still requested by the control) or
if you disabled the coverage map of the base layers and zoomed into the non-covered area.

Additionally my tests prove that an additional problem with animations causing the MSI control to redraw have also been solved.

This is great news and allows us to do some clever things with dynamic tile layers and animated icons on the map without major performance hits. I hope to share some of these with you in coming posts.

Presenting at QLD MSDN User Group 8 December

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:16:47 GMT

To finish up the year we’re presenting at the QLD MSDN Usergroup to show off a bunch of Silverlight 3 features like perspective 3D and Deep Zoom and combine these with Dallas, Pivot, PhotoSynth and Bing Maps.

The official blurb:

Data Visualisation with Silverlight 3

To finish up the year come join Windows Live Platform MVPs Bronwen and John for a festive drink and a look at how you can visualise your data on the web using Silverlight 3. We will explore some of the many controls available including the new Bing Maps control giving you some great ideas for your next project.

Date and Time: 8 December, 2009 17:30 for 18:00

Location: Microsoft Brisbane Office, Level 9, Waterfront Place, 1 Eagle St, Brisbane.

RSVP: mike@fitzsimon.com.au

Technorati Tags: Data Visualisation,Silverlight,Bing Maps,QLD MSDN User Group

Pivot from Microsoft Live Labs

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:40:36 GMT

Announced at PDC this week in awesome new technology preview called Pivot. I was lucky enough to get an invite code to this private preview, I highly recommend you sign up today for your invite or at least watch the HD video below.

In short this for me takes what we have seen in custom Silverlight DeepZoom applications like Vertigo’s Hard Rock Memorabilia site and then blows it away. Not only does Pivot show you that dynamic DeepZoom collection with metadata and filters but it handles seemingly unlimited number of objects, provides a standardised format to put your collection data into and then does amazing things like the range sliders applied to dates.

The application is currently only running on Windows7 with a recent 3D graphics card, my new XPS Studio 16 runs perfectly while my older XPS M1330 is very stuttered. But the idea here to see the concepts working and they really do, given time clearly this is going to be possible in Silverlight and, if that is so, then that means this technology will be available to PCs, Macs and even your phone.

Win your share of $10,000,000 with Bing Maps and Navteq

veblog@soulsolutions.com.au — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 00:57:54 GMT

This week I caught up with Laura Diaz from NAVTEQ to chat about how Bing Maps developers can win their share of US 10 million dollars in the global LBS Challenge. This is the first year that web based applications can be submitted and with Microsoft’s Bing Maps use of NAVTEQ data the ideal platform to build your entry is clear.

Your browser does not support iframes, download the MP3 directly below.

You can download the mp3 here.

“First launched in 2003, the NAVTEQ Global LBS Challenge is focused on driving the development and visibility of innovative location-based solutions (LBS) for wireless devices. The Global LBS Challenge has become the premier event in the wireless industry and a global symbol of LBS innovation and opportunity. From business applications to sports, travel and security, integrating the accuracy and richness of NAVTEQ digital map data facilitates the discovery of the next wave of LBS using dynamic positioning technology.”

Highlights:

$10,000,000 in prizes consists of cash and data licenses.
Real opportunity to meet some of the top companies in this field.
Competition is broken into regions, must register soon, North America closes 20th November!
Web applications can simple be submitted as a working URL
Mobile applications making it to the next round will get a sponsored device if they choose that device in their entry.
Open to non-commercial applications
With the release of the new Bing Maps Silverlight control will we see some very cool entries?

For more information visit the competition homepage there is a great PDF to step you through the entire registration process here:

http://www.nn4d.com/getDocument.do?docId=5837

Laura can be contacted on her email address: laura.diaz at navteq.com

Please follow me on twitter for all the latest Bing Maps Developer news: http://twitter.com/bingmapsdev

Technorati Tags: Bing Maps,NAVTEQ,Competition,Silverlight

Give me some Windows7 and a HP TouchSmart 600

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:20:18 GMT

October 22nd is Windows7 day, I didn’t think I’d see anything new but the HP TouchSmart 600 has really impressed me. Like many I’ve been running Windows7 on my daily machine since beta2, I love the windows management, new taskbar and speed. Mainly everything just works and works well. So what makes this new “all in one” computer so amazing? It’s because it’s the complete package!

When you combine all the new features of Windows7 with all the latest hardware and then wrap it in a sleek all in one unit you get the HP TouchSmart 600. And the best part is this thing is actually affordable – RRP for the top of the range model is AU$2,499.

Let’s talk features

Windows 7 Home Premium
1920x1080 23” LCD
Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T6600 2.2 Ghz
4GB DDR3
750GB SATA HDD
Slot load Blu-ray
NVIDIA GeForce GT230M 1GB, DirectX 10
DVB-T Digital TV Tuner
10/100/1000 network
Wireless 802.11b/g/n
Slim Cordless Keyboard, mouse
Media Centre Remote

The screen is 1080p, crisp and very watchable, Blu-ray movies like The Dark Knight look amazing. This machine isn’t your 9 to 5 development machine, this one is for your home, your parents home or your friends. Its for photos, surfing, games and movies.

So what is the out of the box experience like? Its got one cable to plug in, the power. HP have everything pre-installed, even the keyboard is already paired. Just boot up and follow the Windows7 wizard to get started.

Next to the older 540 model it’s virtually identical in size. In comparison apart from getting Windows7 already installed you jump from 1650x1050 to 1920x1080, get blu-ray, a TV tuner, faster nvidia graphics and a faster processor.

The TouchSmart comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse but you don’t need them, the multi touch screen combined with Windows7 lets you touch and flick your way through your tasks. Up the DPI setting to 150% (now works properly in Windows7) and you’ll have no issues with using your finger to control thing and since this is pretty high resolution it makes it more usable from a distance. When using your finger to control things just think a little beyond the old mouse days. Want to maximise the window? Don’t aim for the maximise button, just drag the top of the window to the top of the screen.

Need some more connections? Pop the cover off the side to reveal the Gigabit ethernet a bunch more usb connections. You can get a digital audio out or analogue if you want to connect to your stereo but the built in speakers are very good. A digital TV tuner is built in so plug in a good antenna and connect up the IR cable to get better reception for the supplied Media Centre remote. You do remember that Windows7 comes with media centre right? What better way to use this, now it’s a TV, VCR, DVD player, music jukebox and photo gallery. Windows7 home group lets you share your photos, music and video between all your computers with ease.

While playing a full screen HD movie (The Dark Knight) the cpu was at about 28% utilisation. The NVIDIA GeForce GT230M is a mobile GPU, low power usage but awesome modern performance and acceleration for that blu-ray unit. It’s not going to power your latest FPS @ 1080p but you’re going to get pretty good performance for modern games, I wonder when we will see multi touch support for real time strategy games?

Lastly the built in webcam is now tilt adjustable, just manually tilt it from the back. A big thankyou to HP for the demo unit, we’re using this machine for an upcoming museum project. What better machine to put into a modern exhibit? 1080p resolution, built in webcam and speakers, touch screen interface and dedicated graphics.

So if you’re looking for a family computer, something for the living area or even the kitchen I’d highly recommend this unit. HP does have a non blu-ray version for a little cheaper and also 2 smaller 20” units. I always wanted a surface computer as a coffee table but this maybe the next best thing. Checkout the TouchSmarts on HP Australia’s website:

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/au/en/ho/WF02a/12454-12454-3352963.html

MVP Certification Award 2009

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:48:03 GMT

Back in February Microsoft had a special promotion that allowed you to get 10% off you Microsoft Certification exam and if you failed, you got a free retake. The MVP’s were given special discount codes that they could give to people to claim the 10%.

Today I received this shiny plaque in the mail: ASIA MVP Certification Hero Award 2009. This was given to the top 3 MVP Australia and New Zealand contributors to the promotion.

I’m not sure who the other 2 were but if you’re one of them, let me know so I can add to to this post.

Technorati Tags: Microsoft Certification,Certification Hero Program,MVP

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Girl Geek Dinner 8 – Open Mic Night

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:54:12 GMT

Who is invited?

If you are a geek and a girl or know of one who is willing to escort you then you are welcome and encouraged to come along. There is a technical focus with the intention of having fun and connecting with other women in IT.

This month we're having an open mic night. Please let us know if you'd like a 5 min speaking slot to talk about a topic of your choosing.

Who pays for dinner?

This month is not sponsored so you will have to pay for your own dinner

Where + When

Date: Tuesday 24th November, 2009

Time: 7:00 pm

Where: Greystone Bar & Cellar - 7/116 Grey Street South Brisbane QLD 4101

Menu: http://www.greystonebar.com.au/sites/default/files/Enitre%20Menu.pdf

Technorati Tags: Girl Geek Dinners,Brisbane,WIT

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A small taste of something fun

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:03:16 GMT

We’re in the process of building a new house here in Brisbane. It will serve as our new home upstairs and as a much larger home office downstairs. Since we’re working with clients around the world we do spend much of our time working from home.

To remember the “experience” we have been taking a tonne of photos, I have been taking a panorama (about 8 photos across) from each of the four corners of the property every time something interesting happens. They are about 25 Megapixels each and capture all the detail.

Although we are only a few days into the build I thought I would see how well things would line up, here is a small taste:

(Animated Gif – 1MB, I’m swamped with work at the moment to do any more)

The end goal is to make a full resolution DeepZoom with a temporal aspect, allowing you to zoom into the detail and then wind through the calendar to see the construction.

I’m still not sure on the interface but since I will have 4 different angles all synced I should be able to do some sort of a cube with perspective 3D, need some time to make a POC.

Let me know what you think and any ideas.

Your essential Photo tools from Microsoft

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 06:19:51 GMT

At TechEd Australia this year I sat down with the Delicate Genius to talk about all the software Microsoft makes for those that love taking photos. You can see the video here:

http://www.msteched.com/online/view.aspx?tid=2a425f94-3718-46fe-8269-4c4bcfad7c61

It runs for 20min, we don’t get through everything and get way too side tracked with Multi touch in Windows7.

These are the products we covered with links to download and play for yourself:

Windows Live Photo Gallery

http://download.live.com/photogallery

Part of Windows Live Essentials this photo viewer is aimed for all windows users. It offers many ways to sort and tag your photos including people tagging. If you have a multi touch Windows7 device then pinch-zoom, rotate and flick through your photos.

Pro Photo Tools 2

http://www.microsoft.com/prophoto/downloads/tools.aspx

Pro Photo Tools 2 is aimed at more professional photographers wanting more control in tagging larger collections of photos. One feature is geotagging, you can review and correct tags from you camera or manually tag or even load a trail from a GPS logger.

Photosynth

http://photosynth.net/

Photosynth is an amazing experience creating an immersive environment from your photos. Talking to Michael who has been involved in many commercial synths we had some top tips:

Take lots of photos, hundreds.
Overlapping shots
Shots of features, unique items. (avoid repeating patterns)
Add some unique patterns to your canvas to help the program, for example a non-repeating table cloth.

Image Composite Editor

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/redmond/groups/ivm/ICE/

This is simple the fastest and most accurate stitching tool for panoramas I’ve found and it’s free. I still use PTGUI for HDR and if this fails but for speed and ease of use this rocks.

Autocollage

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/cambridge/projects/autocollage/

The is the result that you missed at the end of the video but it is better on your own photos, download the trial and play. In the options menu you have to enable the face detection and manual ranking to really tweak the results.

HDView SL

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/redmond/groups/ivm/HDViewSL/

HDView is a set of tools to show more novel photos on the web. This includes really large photos, 360 degree panoramas and High Dynamic Range. It has evolved from a separate plug-in into a template for Silverlight called HDView SL. Tools include Photoshop export plug-in and integration with ICE.

Do go watch the 20min interview (I’m trying to source a higher quality version, the cameraman had a 50K lens and the original footage was sweet, the compressed version however is average at best):

http://www.msteched.com/online/view.aspx?tid=2a425f94-3718-46fe-8269-4c4bcfad7c61