Tablet PC News...NOT from Apple

There was a minor amount of techno buzz a couple of weeks ago here and here when Apple raised the notion that they, in fact, were going to be coming out with their long-last tablet PC offering. I didn't really believe it because it is something I've heard since getting our marvelous Windows-based Compaq/HP TC1100 tablets back in 2004. Many higher educators kept holding their collective breath waiting for the Mac version.

I did blog about the first semi-real version of the Mac tablet. I didn't bother with the recent rumors.

But this new tablet PC buzz out of Gizmodo and video shows what looks like a larger iPhone, a slicker-looking Kindle/e-book reader and a touch/pen-based device. Maybe it's like an affordable and mini version of the Surface? But it's called Courier and comes from Microsoft.

Looks like the Courier, if the rumors are correct, could be a pretty nice mobile device. Doing GIS with a finger touch, anyone!?

Thanks, Tablet PC blog and OgleEarth (I didn't know Stephan Geens was a tablet enthusiast!) for pointing this out.

Coral Reef mapping with ReefBase

I was directed to the ReefBase website while contributing to a colleagues research and found it useful not only for the ReefGIS Online mapping application but also for the ability to download GIS data sets. The online mapping application made it easy for me to determine if the available data suited my needs.

Dutchess County's website nationally recognized

The Center for Digital Government and the National Association of Counties (NACo) recognized the Dutchess County government as the second-most digitally advanced county government in the country. Interactive website mapping applications, ParcelAccess and GeoAccess helped contribute to the popularity of the Dutchess County website. ParcelAccess enables users to easily obtain tax parcel and assessment data. GeoAccess provides selectable layers on various infrastructure throughout the county including schools, recreation sites and historic sites.
Thanks to the Dutchess County Planning and GIS Department for providing such a great resource!