Federal GIS Forum E-Newsletter Fall 2007

In This Issue

• Call for Case Studies and Screen Shots
• ESRI UC 2008
• Save the Date! Special Interest Groups, Summits, and Events
• Grants and Training
• Software News
• Industry News
• Case Study
• ESRI Employment Opportunities

Call for Case Studies and Screen Shots

GIS for Decision Support in Public Policy Making
The ESRI government industry team is compiling a book for government executives, managers, and elected officials that will make a compelling case for using GIS technology as a strategic tool in decision making. This book will feature case studies submitted by federal, state, and local governments' GIS professionals and GIS consultants and developers. ESRI invites you to share your success stories through the online submission page. Share your story.

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ESRI UC 2008

User Presentations for the 2008 ESRI User Conference
Abstract Deadline is November 2, 2007.

Submit an abstract for possible presentation at the 2008 ESRI International User Conference (ESRI UC), August 4-8, 2008, in San Diego, California. The ESRI UC is the largest GIS conference in the world.

ESRI GIS users will be interested in learning about your GIS successes, innovations, and solutions for meeting your organization's GIS challenges. Share your knowledge and communicate your insights directly to this respected audience. Presenting a paper enables you to

• Stimulate discussion and exchange ideas
• Broaden your professional experience
• Meet and influence your peers
• Make your expertise known

To submit your abstract, visit www.esri.com/uc.

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Save the Date! Special Interest Groups, Summits, and Events

Eighth Annual ESRI Federal User Conference
February 20-22, 2008
Washington Convention Center
Washington, D.C.

Join federal GIS users February 20-22, 2008, to discuss challenges and solutions that are unique to your industry, such as the complex nature of building a national GIS. Learn from your colleagues about successful GIS applications in many government agencies that can provide new ideas and inspiration. Be part of this annual conference to connect with other federal GIS users and increase your GIS knowledge. For more information, visit ESRI FedUC.

GIS users are invited to submit an abstract for consideration as a paper presentation at the conference. The submission deadline is November 16.

2008 ESRI Survey & Engineering GIS Summit
August 2-5, 2008
Concurrent with the Annual ESRI International User Conference
San Diego Convention Center, San Diego, California

GIS technology is breaking past traditional professional boundaries and building new opportunities for surveyors and engineers. Whether enhancing core business practices or expanding capabilities in the field, the technology is shaping the future. Join more than 400 surveyors, engineers, and GIS professionals at the 2008 ESRI Survey & Engineering GIS Summit as they explore the latest developments in the industries.

Registration for the 2008 summit opens this December. Get more information and view this year's conference proceedings at www.esri.com/surveyengsummit.

Visit ESRI at more upcoming trade shows!

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Grants and Training

ESRI Grant Assistance Program Provides Complimentary Support to Government
ESRI's Grant Assistance Program (GAP) is rolling out some exciting changes that will help government GIS users find funding for their projects. GAP is a no-cost program that GIS users can use to receive assistance in finding the best grants to suit their needs as well as in the grant application process. GAP is available to all interested entities across all industries. Learn more.

No-Cost Live Training Seminars
Did you know ESRI Training and Education routinely holds complimentary live training seminars? View upcoming seminars. View other no-cost training options. Listen to instructional podcasts.

Take your GIS skills to the next level through ESRI Training and Education.

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Software News

Microsoft Windows Installer Technology and ArcGIS
Did you know that ArcGIS software products and patches can be deployed from a central server using Microsoft's Windows Installer (MSI) technology? Centralized distribution of ESRI software allows you to efficiently plan for and control installations and updates. Read the complete story in the Fall 2007 issue of ArcUser magazine. For more information, download the ESRI white paper Deploying Managed ArcGIS 9.2 Setups from ESRI's Support Center at support.esri.com.

Think-Sketch-Share
ESRI and Wacom have teamed up to provide you with an integrated solution that allows you to easily capture important ideas, quickly turn them into geographic information, then share them over the Internet. Collaboration has never been easier or more powerful.

To learn more, read ESRI and Wacom: Partners in Idea Transformation.

ArcGIS Survey Analyst 9.2 Offers a Survey-Based Approach to Land Information Management
Includes Cadastral Editor - A New Workflow to Help You Incrementally Improve the Accuracy of Your Data

New parcel editing tools make the latest version of ESRI's ArcGIS Survey Analyst with Cadastral Editor the most comprehensive release yet. The application's new capabilities enable users to record and maintain survey data and continuous parcel layers as elements that are part of an integrated dataset and data model, called the cadastral fabric. This extension is available as part of ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 3. Evaluate now.

Learn more: ArcGIS Survey Analyst [PDF-745 KB]

Introducing Census Tools for ArcGIS
A Complimentary Add-on to Help with LUCA and BAS Programs for the 2010 Census

Accurate census data is important in apportioning seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, allocating federal monies to state and local governments, and helping communities plan for future needs. As a state, local, or tribal government employee, you have the opportunity to share your knowledge with the U.S. Census Bureau to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the 2010 Census.

Census Tools for ArcGIS is a complimentary add-on from ESRI that supports local governments participating in the Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) and Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) programs for the 2010 Census. The add-on gives you the data and tools you need to review and update the Census Bureau Master Address File (MAF) in an ArcGIS environment, providing an effective, more familiar method to produce these Census Bureau-defined datasets.

Jointly developed by ESRI and Citygate GIS LLC, Census Tools for ArcGIS provides functionality that takes into consideration Census Bureau business rules. Using Census Tools for ArcGIS, you can read spatial data from the Census Bureau in shapefile format, perform census-specific workflow tasks, and output a revised shapefile compliant with Census Bureau standards.

Census Tools for ArcGIS requires ArcGIS Desktop and is expected to be available for download from the ESRI Web site in October 2007.

For more, visit www.esri.com/censustools.

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Industry News

Discover How GIS Technology Is Building New Opportunities for Surveyors
Surveyors play a central role in a range of government agencies and private organizations, from planning and construction to engineering and land boundary determination. ESRI's GIS software solutions are interoperable with the many data formats used in the field and office, allowing surveyors to provide data to various agencies in the required format while maintaining the data's core integrity. Learn more: GIS Solutions for Surveying [PDF-3.11 MB]

Chas. H. Sells, Inc., Earns Top Honors for Innovative Use of GIS Technology
Chas. H. Sells, Inc. (SELLS), received a 2007 Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award at the ESRI International User Conference on June 20, 2007. SAG Award winners stand out from more than 300,000 organizations worldwide that use GIS software to make a difference in the world. SELLS used GIS to create a central data management system for its survey needs. Using an ArcGIS Server (9.2) architecture running on a Windows Server Operating System, SELLS developed an over-700-process geoprocessing model as the backbone of its tool, as well as other tools for creating annotation.

New White Paper Available
A new ESRI industry solutions white paper is available: Building a Public Works Information System. The paper presents the idea of a consolidated geocentric system that will help public works provide a common operating picture for most, if not all, of their information needs. Examples of blended technology implementations are given and the supporting concepts of a public works information system are discussed. Download the paper [PDF-414 KB].

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Case Study

USDA Forest Service Quickly Delivers High-Quality Imagery with ArcGIS Image Server
For years, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service struggled with providing its staff across the nation with imagery they needed. To improve the delivery of imagery, the Forest Service recently implemented ArcGIS Image Server, which delivers imagery to the regional, forest, and field offices within seconds. Now, the agency can quickly and seamlessly serve large amounts of imagery throughout its enterprise via an intranet, eliminating the need for users to download large files to their computers.

The ArcGIS Image Server implementation is in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the Forest Service's Remote Sensing Applications Center (RSAC) where Mike Morrison, the training and technology awareness program leader for RSAC, manages the image software program deployment for the Forest Service.

Read the complete story [PDF-2.88 MB] in the Summer 2007 issue of Federal GIS Connections.

Read more case studies.

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ESRI Employment Opportunities

Federal Marketing Specialist
Put your knowledge of the federal market to use in this critical position on ESRI's industry solutions team.

Engineering Industry Marketing Specialist
Utilize your years of experience in the engineering field to provide assistance, coordination, and some independent management of ESRI's marketing efforts related to products and services within this market.

Community Development Industry Manager
Use your passion for assisting governments worldwide to advance their missions and operations through the use of GIS to help broaden the applicability of ESRI's software solutions within the wider community development marketplace. The ideal candidate will have experience in any combination of the community development disciplines emphasizing planning, economic development, building and safety, redevelopment, or housing.

Industry Marketing Coordinator
An individual with strong organizational skills is needed to coordinate the tactical activities of industry marketing plans and ensure they are completed in a timely, accurate manner. Reference Code IMCc/HP/TF.

Search for additional employment opportunities with the ESRI government team.

Search for additional employment opportunities at careers.esri.com.

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