Sundial Geotags. Are There Any Sundials..? I am traveling to Portland this summer Are there any good sundials there? Social: Ask a friend, NASS member.

Sundial Geotags

Are There Any Sundials..?

• I am traveling to Portland this summer• Are there any good sundials there?• Social: Ask a friend, NASS member or

the sundial mail list• Computer:

– Check the NASS Registry– Google “Portland sundial”– Check Google Earth or waymarking.com

• Check your 3G Smart Phone

NASS Registry• Over 685 Sundials in North America, from the

Latin America through the USA and Canada• Data is stale and incomplete

– Pictures lacking on 118 of 685– Full information for perhaps half

• Technology has shifted to digital photos, GPS and less real information on what, where, how and why

• Local, historical and sundial info is often lacking• Opportunity Knocks!

– Register the dial and generate an interest leading to data

– Review the registrations in your home area– Add quality digital pictures and GPS location data

NASS Registry• On-line version (Link)

– http://www.sundials.org/registry_frame.php

• Digital versions– Pdf: one picture, one page per dial– MS Access version– Full data base and better pictures

• NASS Registry– Archive of registrations, correspondence, files– Available for research– Contact Registrar

• Future? To Be Determined

NASS Registry: Technological Change

• May 1996 First Edition published– Compiled by Allan J. Pratt with major input

from Fred Sawyer and other NASS members– List of 340 sundials, indexed by state, type,

designer and number– Black & White paper, 68 pages, no pictures

• Data base: Registrar – R. Kellogg, L. McDavid– MS Access, one page, one photo per listing– Not published until 2008 as pdf version

• Web Registry: Webmaster R. Terwilliger– Listing by state– Registry entries with links to photos– Incomplete, independent and limited– Accessible, user friendly, on line

Paper-Files-Inputs-PhotosAccessible

ComputerDatabase-Digital files-Digital photo-GPSInaccessible

Internet-digitalAccessible Limited Future?

iPhone 3G• Google Maps with

GPS• Find your location,

get directions, and see traffic — all from your phone

• Maps on iPhone 3G combines GPS, Wi-Fi, and cell tower location technology

• Multi-Touch interface

Blackberry® Storm

• Camera (3.2 MP) • Built-in GPS • Media Player • Video Recording • BlackBerry® Maps • Wireless Email • Organizer • Browser • Phone • Corporate Data Access

NASS Registry

• Check for Portland?– None

• Check for Oregon?– Web 2, PDF 3

• Check for Vancouver WA?– None

• Check for Washington?– 10 None nearby, mostly Seattle

Waymarking• An offshoot of route marking & geocaching• Record the GPS coordinates of an

interesting point, post the waymark and encourage others to visit the location

• Text, links, and pictures can be posted• Search waymarks by category and location• Sundials is a category of waymarks• Waymarking: http://www.waymarking.com • Sundials category: (link) 

Waymarking Sundials

• Sundial category active since 2006

• Over 775 sundials world wide– 50% NASS– 27% British

• Over 340 US and 42 Canada

www.waymarking.comSundial category, Portland Location (Link)

50th Anniversary Sundial Vancouver, Washingtonhttp://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM9NT

Analemma Sundial Skamania Lodge, Washingtonhttp://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM1K7N

Victoria Comparison• NASS Registry

– 2 Listed, 1 Pending– Significant sundials

• Victoria Sundial Tour 2006– 9 listed– 5 downtown

walking– 4 driving tour– Custom sundials

• Waymarking– 18 listed– Most garden

variety– 5 by RTB– All public sundials

• Victoria has many active waymarkers and geocachers

Registry vs Waymarking • Registry is well established • More sundials listed but

growth is slow• Better sundial info• Significant sundials• On line form works but

needs improvement– Lacks feedback– Too constrained

• Software is underdeveloped

• Out of date • Needs members’ input

• Waymarking has excellent software

• Easy to find waymarks• Easy to waymark

sundials on line• Requires digital picture

Requires GPS or equivalent location data

• Accepts large pictures• Accepts 15000 letters

in description• Minimum editing and

approval• Growth is rapid

Ours vs Theirs Can we work together?

Google Earth• Satellite images of any location• Terrain and 3 dimensions capability• Navigation controls for virtual flight • Add waymarks (placemarks) with location, text

description links and pictures• Create files to share placemarks or track logs• Keystone xml files: kml and kmz (zipped kml)• Google earth community: Sundials visible from space• http//bbs.keyholecom sundial collection (Link)

Google Earth CommunitySundial Collection

• Google Earth community: Sundial Collection

• http//bbs.keyholecom sundial collection (Link)

• Objective: – 1. Sundials visible from space – 2. Other sundials and sundial tours

• Now 192 sundial placemarks world wide– 73 in North America

• Last undated 30 Dec 2009• 887103-SundialCollection.kmz

Google Earth Placemark

• Click on Icon for typical placemark– Location,

description, picture

• Right click to see and edit properties of kml file

Google Earth kml file

• Right click on icon for properties of kml file

• Kml is a keystone markup language file

• Kml is a xml file specific to Google earth

• Good programers write kml files directly

• I hack as required to put in text, images, links etc.

• Edit Google Earth Placemark to create new kml files

Victoria Sundial Tour on

Google Earth

Shopshire Sundials• Phil Walker ( BSS) wrote

a kml for sundials in Shropshire (Link)

• File contains information and pictures

• Written in kml with interesting fly in effects

• Privacy and security a problem

• Historical sundials in old churchyards stolen and sold to collectors, often in US

http://www.shropshiredials.net/shropshiredials.html

• www.publicearth.com (link) • Technology start up in geo-location• Beta website available for testing• Interested in working with NASS

– Sundials a category, beta shows 62 sundial locations– No content yet: pictures, descriptions, links– Contact:

• Same features as waymarking.com– less developed software and content

• Depends of user supplied data base• Worthwhile to test and assess

• Specific placemark in Boulder CO (Link)

• Pearl Street Mall Sundial• Home turf for Public Earth• Not in seven for Boulder with

waymarking.com • Not in two for Boulder with

Google Earth• NASS registry #137• Seven listed for Boulder &

Colorado Springs

Using GPS• Geotag sundials

– Find the sundial– Take pictures– Mark location as POI– Add to photo properties– Register with NASS

• Record Waypoints• Record Track Logs

– Convert to route– Convert to kml files

• Show on Google Earth• Data format conversion GPS

Babel

Using GPS• Typical hand held GPS• Location data an maps, as

UTM coordinates, or Latitude/Longitude

• Latitude N 48º 39.448’• Longitude W123º 24.060’• Last digit is significant• 1’ Lat = 1 nautical mile• 0.001’ ~ 2 meters• Varies with signals:

satellites, WAAS, foliage• Dithering removed in 2000

Using Google Earth for Location• No GPS? No problem!• Find you house with Google earth• Put the cusor on it and record your location,

Latitude and Longitude• Find where the sundial was from the address

and surrounding buildings• Many sundials can be seen from space• Placemark the location• Edit to add name, location, sundial icon,

description• Hack to add pictures, links and view

NASS Registry Future• Options are available, we need discussion• Business as usual with improvements?• On line bytes of data or printed paper files & reports • New interactive software system?• Cooperation and sharing with waymarking.com?• A collection of Google Earth placemarks and kml files?• A partnership with Public earth?• Copyright issues? Ownership, maintenance?• Who does the work? You do! • All require members input and volunteer effort • No one is doing all this for you

Back to the Future• iPhone 3G and similar devices

are the future• Applications like Google Maps

exist and Google Earth is coming

• This on line capability is too expensive for most

• Options exist with GPS and digital cameras

• Sundial data base is deficient, needs user input

• If you want to use it, add to the NASS registry, waymarking and GE