Define: Geographic Exploration Systems

Geographic Exploration System (GES) is a new buzzword, in case you hadn't noticed. The term, in its recent incarnation, seems to date back to ESRI announcing ArcGIS Explorer last summer in San Diego and last fall in Warsaw. More recently GeoWorld editor Matt Ball tackles the topic in a feature called, "Digital Reality: Comparing Geographic Exploration Systems." In it, he distinguishes this class of products as offering "the ability to visualize the globe in three dimensions."

Ball includes a series of products in his comparison: Skyline's Terra Suite, GeoFusion's GeoPlayer and GeoMatix Toolkit, NASA's World Wind, GeoTango's GlobeView (recently acquired by Microsoft), Carbon Tools Gaia, and ESRI's ArcGIS Explorer. Google Earth, of course, fits in this group, too.

The interesting thing to remember here is that these are all client/server solutions, true systems. Ideally, you download an app and run it on your local machine and tap into data served up by one or more providers (via open or proprietary standards, or a mix) on the Internet. So, while these are all 3D viewers, the ability to visualize the entire globe is really up to those providing the data. And, of course, if you are planning to be offline, you'd better download the data you'll need when disconnected.

Google Earth is giving everyone the idea that all viewers must "come with" oodles and oodles of high resolution data when in fact, some come with basically none and send you out to find it. When comparing Google Local/Earth and Live Local many reviews go into great depth about the data available, as they should. Some geographic data still costs money and we as well as the consumer level user need to know that. ESRI wants users to know that; that's how it hopes to leverage ArcWeb Services, which of course, includes data and services.

One historical note. If I recall correctly, in about 1992 ArcView (good old desktop ArcView 1, I think) was described as a Geographic Exploration System. It was 2D and accessed existing ESRI formatted data from its sample CDs, your existing GIS implementation or from data you purchased (including Directions Magazine founder Scott Elliott's 15 CD Wessex data). Times have changed…

Interestingly, ESRI's website does not appear to include the term "Geographic Exploration System." In fact, "geographic exploration" is only found on K-12 and library pages, where I should add, it most certainly belongs.
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Posted by Adena Schutzberg at 06:54 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)



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Adena,
Yes! The term 'Exploration System' was used in San Diego and I definitely heard it from the front row in Warsaw when it was announced last fall.

Thus, I am not too surprised to hear it because, from what I have seen and how I look at this, it is an exploration system. It fits.

While none of us have the final product, the distinction I made at the time, was that it 'accepted' data into the 'system' for more 'exploration'.

I think people got hung up on Google Earth and have missed the essence of ArcWeb Services and ArcGIS explorer. If one misses the connection - the conduit - then they miss the purpose and direction and fall back to lumping the ESRI product 'against' Google Maps, Yahoo and Earth and so on.

That is a big mistake... because...Google is a centralised processor system. ArcWeb services are dependent upon 'users' creating stuff with tools - then - sticking it into the system. The accent is on GIS tools - the rest of the Explorer is exactly that -Exploring someone else's creation.

I did a review of ArcGIS 9.0 some time ago - it was published - I forget which magazine. In that review I mentioned one of the issues about these new products pertains to the naming conventions used.

Maybe that is intended, maybe not

Maybe its still all exploratory?


Jeff
#1 Vector One (Link) on 2006-02-07 15:58 (Reply)
Jeff,

Thanks for the follow up. Good to hear from you!

I can't help but note this quote from Jack Dangermond in the Atlantic Monthly (sub required, but there's a temp link, see link below) that Stefan and Ogle Earth cites (http://www.ogleearth.com/2006/02/ogle_earth_ment.html).

It makes me think you and Jack may have different ideas on this. And, as Stefan notes, there are many efforts currently to do just what Jack says is not possible.

"There’s no way to connect a professional data set to Google Earth, so in a sense it is pretty thin. [...] But because it is spellbinding to customers, it can only build awareness of geography."
#1.1 Adena Schutzberg (Link) on 2006-02-08 12:40 (Reply)
Hi Adena,

Ok, I went to read the note you mentioned.

Actually, to me, it is quite straightforward. My thought is as follows.

Google Earth is an exceptionally good product (for Americans, Canadians and those in some big cities
#2 Jeff Thurston (Link) on 2006-02-09 14:17 (Reply)