Discussion: mapping on the iPad

the ipad was just launched in australia today and i was having a fiddle with one in the store and i just thought what about mapping in the the field with an i pad at hand. i know some mappers take out a small hand held pdf style thing with them on larger mapping adventures. im sure there could be an Ocad app.
i think the only problem is that you would need a little touch pen to create lines etc

biggins is on it. see thursday.

sweet i knew it was possible

> biggins is on it. see thursday.

Goodie! (as if i didn't already need another reason to buy the iPAD).

I think you can already run OCAD on PC tablet computers, which have been around for a decade or more.

So biggins, is this a true port of OCAD to MacOS or just something specific to the ipad? i.e. when can I use OCAD (and CF for that matter :) native on my macbook?

Indeed tablet PCs have been around since the early 1990s, and able to run OCAD. The main complaint of mappers has been the inability to see the screen in sunlight. Bulkiness/heaviness/lack of ease of use have not been important.

The main complaint of mappers has been the inability to see the screen in sunlight.

No longer a problem - I use mine in direct sun all the time. I will say that the OCAD User Interface is not ideal for the field, but it works.

eddie - Definitely not a full feature replacement of ocad, just enough for quick and dirty fieldwork. I'm leaving out all the parts that I never use or would never use in the field. It could be built for Mac without too much trouble, but you'd have to use the interface like a multitouch screen (which is possible, I do all the dev on non-touchscreen windows). Don't hold your breath for Mac-CF though, that one is unchangably windows. But not out of consideration for CF2, and I do accept bribes.

Haven't had any problems with glare on the ipad yet, though every time I've been out in the field so far its been snowing...

Also battery time is an issue with some tablet PCs. But they claim the ipad lasts 10 hours, which should be enough for most mapping tasks.

Such claims should be tested in the field before believing. That is certainly the case in the PC world. Perhaps Macophiles are more trusting.

People seem to be getting 11-12 hours per charge on the iPad, with WiFi on. It should only be better w/out wifi or 3g connectivity activated, which is what I imagine people would do if they were mapping.

Do iPads work in the rain?

...or as a fly swatter for FDFs?

So what is the output of this software, biggins? Can you spit out something that can then be pulled into 0CAD once you're indoors? This brings up the interestingt point that software for fieldchecking may not need to be the full software that one would want for final drafting, any more than we could create camera-ready artwork with pencils in the old days. A data capture package for the field might well be much skimpier on features than 0CAD, provided you can put down point, line, and area objects that you can identify (although cutting holes in area objects would also be a very good thing to be able to do).

When I field check with OCAD, I don't directly update the base map. Instead, I load it and the underlying orthorectified photos as templates to a blank map and then make my notes on the blank map. Back home, I'll swap that - using the field notes as a template underneath the base map and make the updates. Cutting and adjusting objects in the field is too time consuming - it's much faster to do it with a mouse while sitting comfortably in front of a 23" monitor where I can easily see all the handles. I don't use the OCAD line or area symbols. I just draw the outlines using an appropriate color and then drop a digit inside the area or along the line to tell me what that represents. This allows me to get part of a vegetation boundary done, stop to check something else, and come back to the rest of the boundary without having to re-edit an area object.

This is pretty much a direct translation of how I used to do it with mylar: field notes on top of the base, then scan the field notes underneath the base for cartography. There may be better methods, but it works fine for me.

As for batteries, I don't know about iPads, but most ruggedized tablet PC's have hot-swappable batteries. I have extended batteries on mine that last 14 hours so I've never had to swap them in the field, but it's easy enough to do.

jj - Either ocad files or jpgs.

Any new info on the ipad o-mapping app? Screenshots, photos from terrain... welcomed. How bad weather can the iPad handle? How long can the battery last?
I am about to buy a tablet for mapping. But I have not decided yet if this is going to be iPad or Windows tablet. Has anyone tried the Intel classmate? http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/02/intel-refreshes...

I'm back at home and sortof working on this again, and I'm just about ready to give out some test versions for people to play with. So if anybody else wants to help guinea pig the super beta version, drop me an email with your 40-digit device id by next weekend and I'll put you on the list. It'll work for all ipads, or any iphone/ipod touch with the latest system update on it (iOS4).

olles - If you're planning on doing any really serious mapping with it, I'd actually suggest not using this one. Its called ghettocad for a reason =). At this point its more of a toy than anything, and its still missing several probably important features (area holes for example). That being said the ipad is pretty tough, I've dropped it in a swamp, wiped all the mud off and it still works fine. The touch screen works fine through a plastic bag if its really bad out. With the gps/cell going full time I seem to get about 5 hours on a full charge, and maybe 10 or so with gps off.

My students highly reccomend the otter box defender series for iPhone or ipad during our fieldwork - and we work in wetlands. Water resistant and full functionality though more expensive than a map case.

http://www.otterbox.com/ipad-cases/ipad-defender-s...

How can a get a trail version

Send me an email with your 40-digit device id, I'll put you on the list.

Is a droid version a future possibility?

biggins where can a find your e-mail ,to sens 40 digit device id

@Edje, go to his user profile by clicking on his name.

i no JanetT but this e-mail don,t work

You need to replace the "at" with the normal symbol...

Matthew
Thanks a lot

Some iPhone/iPad questions.

- can you use bluetooth gps units with them without any hassle? When I google it there is something about jailbreaking the device and other hacking, loosing warranty and stuff like that. Devices internal gps chips aren't the best out there and at least not optimally placed for mapping (body shadow). BT gps on top of your cap would improve performance quite a bit, so this is quite essential for other than sprint mapping.

- how capacitive touch screen actually works for mapping? I mean, you can't use sharp stylus so you can't see well what you are drawing, right? I know devices with resistive screen works fine, like System Asmund uses device with 3.5" resistive screen and they seem to be able to do mapping just fine with it. IPad has large screen, so i guess it works if you zoom close enough, but you kind of loose the advantage of the large screen if you have to zoom so close. And how it works with iPhone's screen?

With Biggins' software on the iphone, when you put your finger on the screen to draw something, a magnifier circle pops up nearby (but not under your finger). In the magnifier circle you have a dot that you can move precisely to place a point. It is a little hard to explain, but it allows your finger to work as if it were a sharp stylus.

One of the iphone screen shots shows the magnifier circle:

http://okansas.blogspot.com/2010/08/downtown-sprin...

That looks impressive!
Also read about a GIS program for the Android phone called "Geopaparazzi". I have not tried it, but it looks like a mobile companion for desktop GIS programs.

*thread bump*

Mate of mine just pointed me at these screens:

http://www.pixelqi.com/products

Retrofitted into a netbook, they would be pretty much perfect for O mapping

Mapping with netbook ? How does it looks like ? What are you going to do with it on a wet day ?

Stay home and talk bollocks on AP like usual, I guess. Why, what do YOU do on wet days? :)