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Welcome to this week's edition of the POB eNews...
Last week, after Autodesk announced that it will discontinue AutoCAD Land Desktop, POB asked Harry Ward to give his opinion on how surveyors will be impacted. In short, he believed that the impact would be minimal because Civil 3D offers essentially the same functionality as Land Desktop and, more importantly, many surveyors have already migrated over to other survey solutions.
We asked for your opinion, too, and we got it. Within minutes, the responses started rolling in.
Overall, it seems that most respondents agree with Ward. More than 70 percent indicated that they had already migrated to other survey solutions, including those from Autodesk, Carlson, Topcon, Trimble and Eagle Point and even some in-house integrations or homemade software. The top reasons cited concerned ease of use, price, support and training.
At least one respondent disagreed with Ward. "The majority of surveyors in my area use the ACAD program with Land Desktop," said Dean Clark, of New Hampshire. "I don't know of [a] surveyor that I work with [who] has migrated to another program."
While some indicated that they had successfully transitioned from Land Desktop to Civil 3D, others said they had aborted their transition to Civil 3D due to the difficulty. "We found the transition to be extremely intensive and difficult. Working with Civil-3D on ANY level takes a very different mindset than was required for Land Desktop ... But overall, Civil-3D is so much more powerful that we would not dream of using Land Desktop again," said Richard Sincovec, of Colorado. "Far from having 'little impact,' Civil-3D has actually been a major revolution. ... It was a long, hard road to get where we are, and we couldn't always see that light at the end of the tunnel. But now
that we're on the other side, we're finding Civil-3D to be significantly more-powerful than any other solution we've tried."
"I was really glad to read this announcement. While Civil 3D is a great product (we have 2 seats, vs. 10 seats of Land Desktop), it is kind of like using an atom-bomb to kill a mosquito--it works, but ..." says Wayne Applegate, of New Jersey. "We welcome the introduction of Autodesk Civil and will be looking forward (maybe) to hearing what the upgrade price will be."
As always, only time will tell. Fortunately, people adapt, find what best fits their needs and move on. And then, of course, it changes again. Why don't you expand the conversation to the industry's leading bulletin board, RPLS.com?
- Wendy Lyons, Editor
This month, we want to know which area of the economy is most affecting your business. Take a moment to vote in our Quick Poll at www.pobonline.com. |
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 Allen Precision Equipment recently expanded its Service Department continuing to be the industry's leading repair center. Our factory-trained-certified technicians provide service on ALL major brands of instruments. And now, for your convenience, APE will pickup your instruments that are in need of service.
Contact Terri Lamp at 800-241-6223 x 18 for detailed information. 800-241-6223 www.allenprecision.com |
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It's Time to Renew
If you receive POB magazine in the mail each month, it's time for your annual renewal. If you're not currently receiving POB, sign up today!
To subscribe or renew, click here to answer a few quick questions and receive your free subscription to POB. Note:
Even if you just renewed or subscribed, our audit year just restarted in June. Renew now to keep your subscription up to date until May 2009. Thank you! |
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Our July issue is now online!
 The July issue features your 2008-09 surveyor's directory, Geo Locator. In addition, this month, we offer some unique perspectives on surveying. For example, you can learn the surveyor's role in bald eagle protection in
An Eagle Eye, see how the National Integrated Land System helps to manage public land records in Framing the Land
, see what it's like to survey in the Antarctic in our technology profile, On Thinner Ice, and find out why the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers had to re-assess vertical datums following Hurricane Katrina in our Web exclusive,
Lessons Learned.
This month's edition also includes contributions from industry experts John
Palatiello, Robert Foster,
Jeff Lucas and Mark
Meade.
And, if you're thinking about purchasing a laser rangefinder, before making your important decision, click to POB's annual product
survey and check out product specifications in our searchable, user-friendly online format.
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Altus APS-3: The industry's new leading satellite surveying receiver
-GPS and Glonass RTK for a modest investment
-Base and rover functionality
-Internal GSM modem allows easy access to network corrections
-Utilizes Surv CE, the world's No. 1 survey applications and data collection package
Contact Sales@altus-ps.com for introductory pricing. www.altus-ps.com |
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Surveyor wanted. Land and construction. Field and office skills preferred. Minimum of 5 years responsible experience. Option to buy business after (1?) year possible. Location in "Bush" area of Alaska. Pay DOE.
Send resume and/or letter of interest to:
Surveyor
P.O. Box 1945
Kodiak, AK 99615
or Fax to 907-486-3637. |
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Clear Seas Research Forms Online Community for Building Industry
You're invited to join an online research-panel community for surveying and mapping, geomatics and other building-industry professionals. Panel members have the opportunity to shape their industry and give insight to the future trends of their trade, and they receive Amazon.com gift cards and eNewsletters that include research results.
First GPS Network with RTK in Nebraska is Announced
Lamp, Rynearson & Associates Inc., of Omaha, announced the recent availability of the Metro Area Reference Network (MARN). MARN is the first GPS network in eastern Nebraska with RTK.
TerraGo Technologies Announces Geospatial Alliance Agreement with Adobe
As part of the agreement, Adobe will provide support for TerraGo's GeoPDF in the new Adobe Acrobat 9 software; TerraGo will fully support consumption of geo-enabled PDF files from Adobe and other venders.
Sewall Forms Geospatial Solutions (GS) Group
James W. Sewall Company announced the formation of Geospatial Solutions (GS), a new GIS-oriented technology group that will develop and deliver innovative products and services to Sewall clients in government and industry. |
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| | AEC Store Corner:
Surveying Instruments of the 1950s
Need a gift idea for your favorite surveyor?
How about our popular Surveying Instruments of the 1950s poster? This high-quality art print by Michigan artist Dan Kistler meaures 24" x 18." It's only $22.
CLICK HERE to purchase! |
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Joke of the Week: Professional Test
The following short quiz consists of four questions and tells whether you are qualified to be a "professional." Scroll down for the answers after you have thought about it. The questions are not that difficult.
1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
Problem: Surveying Astronomy: Zone Time
Which of the following would reckon noon from the upper transit of the mean sun on the Greenwich meridian?
(A) Greenwich sidereal time
(B) 7th zone time
(C) international atomic time
(D) universal time
Cool Link of the Week: BizChatBoard.com
BizChatBoard.com is a new online community where entrepreneurs and small business owners can share ideas, learn from each other, find resources and discuss common issues.
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Northern surveyor explored new frontiers
Nothing can beat surveying work on the Canadian frontier, says a newly retired land surveyor as he looks back over his career and how the times and technology have changed.
Living markers tamed wilderness
Before there were highways, Native Americans had a system of trails marked by bent trees. In the 1850s, a Lake County surveyor noted one of these trees and used it as a landmark. The tree is gone, but a metal detector might turn up the steel rod and give a clue to what the tree was pointing to ...
Click here for more national headlines related to surveying and mapping. |
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2401 W. Big Beaver Road, Ste. 700
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