The Forest Resources Institute (FRI) has launched a new web site!

FRI was founded in 1997 by a grant from the T. L. L. Temple Foundation. FRI's mission was and is to be a "Friend of the Forest" - an unbiased source of of information on forest heath and productivity for southern forest ecosystems.

In 2001, FRI along with the Humanities, Urban, Environ- mental Science (HUES) GIS lab initiated the GIS response to the Columbia Shuttle recovery effort. The success of that effort led to the formation of the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center. FRI and the Columbia Center continue to work closely together to further common goals.

FRI continues to collect data and sponsor research pertinent to the health and productivity of the forest. Visit the new FRI site today at http://fri.sfasu.edu

The Columbia Center has launched two new interactive web mapping applications for the community. The new apps are built upon a new web app model developed by the Columbia Center. The Nacogdoches County Interactive Map was constructed by Student Programming Assistant Daniel Yim under the direction of Geospatial Programmer II, Diana Gunter. The SFA Interactive Web App was created by Columbia Center Director, PR Blackwell, based on Mr. Yim's foundation application.

"The Nacogoches County Interactive Map and the SFASU Interactive Map are our first applications built on the notion of "Theme Based Map Browsing", said Blackwell. "The challenge we are addressing is how can we combine a simple, intuitive user interface with robust functionality. These applications do that by presenting user-selectable Themes that alter the information that is presented and the functionality available."

Both applications use the Center's state-of-the-art web mapping technology housed on the Campus of Stephen F. Austin State University and utilize ESRI ArcGIS Server Javascript Application Programming Interface(API). The result is a smooth, intuitive user experience that feels natural to anyone familiar with web mapping applications such as Google Maps or Microsoft's Virtual Earth. "The best way to get familiar with the sites is to visit them and just noodle around", said Blackwell.

The Nacogdoches County Interactive Map offers four operational themes:

• Transportation - a comprehensive road map of the county.
• Political - precincts and voting places with look-up facility.
• Community - restaurants, churches, schools and more.
• Imagery - aerial photography, hill shade, digital topography and more.

The SFASU Interactive Map offers six operational themes:

• Buildings - search, locate and identify campus structures.
• Parking - find and identify campus parking lots.
• Dining - locate dining establishments on and off campus.
• Recreation - locate recreational opportunities on and off campus.
• Safety - explore the campus safety features.
• Disability - locate ADA features such as ramps, doors and restrooms.

The Columbia Center is developing additional applications using this innovative approach and will continue to develop these as time and funding permits. Watch these pages for additional announcements.

Both the Nacogdoches County Interactive Web App and the SFASU Interactive Map are available to anyone with a network-connected computer and a web browser. Performance will depend on the speed of your network connection. Click on any of the bolded Interactive Map titles or the images in this article to visit the sites.

Earth Observation Day 2011 is Friday, April 8th. Earth Observation Day, an initiative of AmericaView, Inc., has two stated goals:

1. to recognize the importance of using remotely sensed data to monitor the Earth and its environments; and
2. to promote the use of remotely sensed data by K-16 teachers and students.

Rick Landenberger, Executive Director of AmericaView, recently was featured on the Got GeoInt blog discussing Earth Observation Day. Listen to Dr. Landenburger's comments HERE.

The TexasView Remote Sensing Consortium is once again participating in Earth Observation Day with a new and improved version of the TexasView Earth Observation Day website. This site is designed as a resource for K-12 teachers interested in using Landsat, MODIS and other earth observing satellite sensor data to teach children about the earth and earth processes. Learn more.

The Texas Property Tax Assistance Division and the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center are hosting a CAD and GIS meeting on the Stephen F. Austin State University Campus. In addition, the PTAD will host an afternoon workshop dealing with mapping compliance issues.

We welcome Chief appraisers, staff and mapping specialists to attend the one day seminar. The activities begin at 8:30 am and last until 3:30 pm. The meeting will be held in the Baker Pattillo Student Union in room 2.201. Lunch will be provided on site. Professional development hours can be earned for attending the session. Parking will be in the Raguet Street parking garage. There will be a Columbia Center staff person present to provide parking permits. The parking garage is located at the corner of East College and Raguet streets. It is a 5 minute walk from the meeting room. Additional parking, for a fee, is located directly adjacent to the Baker Patillo Student Center. To reach this parking garage turn east off of North Street at the Main entrance of the campus. Directions to campus can be downloaded from this site.

Topics to be discussed during the morning session will include: remarks from Buddy Breivogel, Senior Technical Analyst, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts office, discussion of potential roles of GIS in CAD activities, overview of how the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center system can provide support for GIS activities, the HPIDS program for imagery acquisition, and a presentation about the connections between next generation 911 and parcel data. An agenda can be downloaded from this site.

In the afternoon, Steve Atkinson, Methods and Assistance Program Supervisor, Property Tax Assistance Division will lead a information workshop on mapping compliance.

Registration (including lunch) is free. Please email lclark@crgsc.org to confirm attendance by 14 October 2010.

For Agenda and Map of events, email: cashton@crgsc.org.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Columbia Center at 936-468-6100.

Date:
October 20, 2010 from 8:30am to 12:00 pm

Event:
Mapping and GIS Information Meeting
For County Appraisal Districts

Location:
Baker Pattillo Student Center, Room 2.201 – Stephen F. Austin State University

Attendees:
Chief Appraisers and/or staff from eastern Texas area local county Central Appraisal Districts (CADs), representatives of Council of Governments (COGs), PTAD and representatives of university GIS mapping programs

Purpose:
Explain how partnerships with universities might benefit CADs needing assistant with mapping projects

AGENDA
8:30 – 9:00 Registration – Hosts Columbia Center and Lamar Geospatial Lab
9:00 – 9:10 Welcome by SFASU – Dr. Carrie Brown, Director ORSP
9:10 – 9:20 Opening remarks – Buddy Breivogel – Division Director – PTAD
9:20 – 9:35 P.R. Blackwell, Director Columbia Center – Introduction – CRGSCs
9:35 – 9:50 Jim Jordon, Director Lamar Geospatial Laboratory
9:50 – 10:00 What is GIS mapping? – Johnny Brown, Senior GIS Analyst,CRGSC
10:00 – 10:15 Break – networking
10:15 – 10:35 Justin Cure, ESRI Instructor, City of Longview, Texas
10:35 – 10:55 Johnny Brown and Diana Gunter – GIS Mapping applications for CADs
10:55 – 11:25 Buddy Breivogel – TNRIS HPIDS image acquisition program
11:25 – 11:45 Question and answer period – informal discussions with attendees
11:45 – 12:45 Lunch in the Baker Pattillo Student Center
1:00 PTAD workshop – Steve Atkinson (Regents Suite B, Baker Pattillo Student Center)

The Education and Training Lab in the Columbia Center has been upgraded! The upgrade includes an expansion from fifteen to twenty-four user stations each equipped with a Dell Precision Workstation running on the Windows 7 operating system.

The Education and training lab is designed to provide training for local and regional professionals and individuals interested in the use of geospatial technology for emergency response, natural resource management, and economic development. Customized classes and training are offered for the Texas Military Forces, law enforcement officials, mapping agencies, public schools students (K-12), activity groups such as the Boy and Girl Scouts of America or to anyone interested in learning about geospatial technology.

Training courses offered by the Columbia Center include:

• Introduction to GPS Applications – Level I
• Introduction to GPS Applications – Level II
• Introduction to GPS data Collection with ArcPad
• Introduction to Plume Modeling
• Economic Risk Analysis for GIS Users
• Geocoding with ArcGIS 9.3.1
• Introduction to Metadata
• The United States National Grid: Theory and Use
• Introduction to ArcGIS I (ESRI Certified)
• Introduction to ArcGIS II (ESRI Certified)

With first line computing resources, the latest in geospatial software, state-of-the-art Audio Visual capabilities and the ability to simulate Emergency Operations Center functionality, the Columbia Center training lab is well situated to provide public and private agencies with a high quality training experience. Come visit our training lab at our new location on the SFA campus McKibben Building Room 304.

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