The New Age of Cloud Computing and GIS

IT professionals' top concerns when considering moving to the cloud: Security and privacy.

By Victoria Kouyoumjian
ESRI IT Strategy Architect

Cloud computing is emerging as an important technology trend in almost every industry, including for those users in the GIS community. Offered by vendors such as Salesforce.com and Amazon Web Services (AWS), cloud services are moving into the mainstream. Cloud computing furnishes technological capabilities—commonly maintained off-premise—that are delivered on demand as a service via the Internet.

However, before moving to the cloud, it's important to understand its basics: the service and delivery models, the potential benefits, and the risks and concerns an organization faces as it considers becoming a cloud consumer.

Read the article.

Tip of the Month

Change Where Toolboxes and Models Are Stored

A set of system toolboxes containing tools and toolsets comes with ArcGIS and can be accessed from the ArcToolbox window or the ArcCatalog tree. Learn to create custom toolboxes to organize frequently used tools, custom tools, and models. Read this tip.

Connect with ArcWatch

ArcWatch is published monthly by ESRI and contains GIS news, practical advice, and updates about the company's software and events. To submit article ideas,
e-mail editor Carla Wheeler at arcwatch_editor@esri.com.

• ArcGIS 9.4 Renamed ArcGIS 10

  Listen to ESRI president Jack Dangermond talk about what's coming in ArcGIS 10 and the reason behind the name change from ArcGIS 9.4. According to Dangermond the beta testers said, "This is much bigger than a dot release. Call it 10."

• Good Health: Geography Matters to Patients, Doctors

  The electronic health record (EHR) will become ubiquitous at medical centers, clinics, and doctors' offices over the next decade. After suffering a heart attack, ESRI's Bill Davenhall studied what role geography may have played in his medical problem. At the most recent TEDMED conference, he made a good case for including a geographic component in EHRs. Listen to Davenhall's TedMed talk.

• GIS Software Supports Guyana's Low-Carbon Strategy

  ESRI is providing GIS software and training to Guyana's government to support the country's low-carbon forest management strategy. Read the article. Download the free ESRI Best Practices booklet GIS for Forest Carbon Management.

• GIS on the Forefront of the Fight to Save Orangutans

  Find out how biologist Willie Smits uses GIS in his campaign to rebuild orangutan populations in Indonesia while restoring forest habitats there and in other parts of the world.

• Download the Twitter Add-in for ArcGIS Explorer

  The Twitter add-in for ArcGIS Explorer gives you the ability to geotag your tweets and perform a number of geospatial operations using the Twitter API.

• Colorado County Grows the Economy with GIS

  Using GIS, the Pueblo County, Colorado, GIS team helps local businesses, nonprofits, and other organizations map out a winning strategy to thrive economically.

• Download ArcGIS 9.3.1 Service Pack 1

  This latest service pack ensures the highest-quality experience when working with ArcGIS 9.3.1.

• Make the GeoWeb More User-Friendly

  These four lessons will help GIS application developers streamline the workflow for non-GIS professionals. Lesson 1: Always hide the details. “Highly usable systems hide complex GIS operations from the user and get the desired answer quickly,” say the authors of this article.

• Hone Your Developer Skills

  Created for and by developers, the 2010 ESRI Developer Summit gives attendees more than 30 hours of job-critical training. They will also gain confidence in application development, whether it involves ESRI software, Web mapping, or information technology. Join us March 22–25, 2010, in Palm Springs, California. Register today.

• Discuss the Future of Community Planning at the Spatial Roundtable

  Ahmed Abukhater, ESRI's community development manager, explains how social media and the GeoWeb are enhancing community involvement and transparency in the planning process. Join the discussion.

• GIS Takes a Role in Renewable Energy Projects

  Organizations use GIS to increase the ability to tap into renewable energy, such as wind and solar power. Read the article.

• Podcast: How to Use GIS to Assess Areas for Wind Generation

  Mitchell Garnett, ESRI's electric utility industry solutions manager, talks about how GIS can be used to analyze the best areas for wind farms. He adds that the ModelBuilder application in ArcGIS software accelerates and simplifies the process.

• Boston Showcases Solar Power Potential with Web GIS

  The story of the Solar Boston map is told in this podcast with Greg Knight, senior GIS application developer for the Boston Redevelopment Authority. Created using Web GIS from ESRI, the mapping application lets users see the locations of renewable energy installations in the Massachusetts city and calculate the solar potential of building rooftops.

• GIS Day Celebrated in Diverse Ways

  Read how organizations and individuals from Alaska to Sri Lanka celebrated GIS Day.

• Register for the Geospatial Technology Update Seminars

  Join ESRI and GIS Development magazine for a series of Geospatial Technology Update seminars in Southeast Asia that begin January 26, 2010, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Representatives from mapping organizations and affiliates, including national hydrographic and aeronautical agencies, are invited to attend. Register today.

• Find Profitable New Markets for Your Business

  ESRI Business Analyst Online delivers market potential reports and maps of customers' spending and retail activities. Industry-specific reports, including electronic, financial, restaurant, and retail, are available for all ZIP Codes in the United States.

• Join the Mapping for Everyone Community

  Visit the Mapping for Everyone Web site and make a map for free and share it. You can also post a question or comment in the Mapping for Everyone Community forum.

• New Version of ESRI Business Analyst Online Available

  Easily find your competition and locate and target businesses for your services using the new Bing business search capabilities. Find out what else is new.

• Request a Free Trial of ArcGIS 3D Analyst

  Need a tool to help analyze your data in a realistic 3D perspective? Try ArcGIS 3D Analyst free for 60 days.

• Download the White Paper

  Read the white paper Performance and Throughput Tips for ArcGIS Server 9.3.1 Cached Map Services and the Apache HTTP Server.

• Building Applications Using the ArcGIS Mobile SDK

  In this new instructor-led course, you will learn how to design and build custom mobile applications that enable situational awareness and real-time geographic data collection in the field.

• New Book Delves into Modern Land Administration Strategies

  Land Administration for Sustainable Development from ESRI Press discusses new and innovative land administration system (LAS) policies and technologies worldwide. Learn about the positive impact LAS has on social equity, economic growth, and environmental protection. Buy the book.

• Take GIS Software Training without Leaving Your Desk

  ESRI now offers online two of its most in-demand courses, ArcGIS Desktop II: Tools and Functionality and Building Geodatabases. You receive live instruction from an ESRI professional trainer without leaving your office or having to request approval for travel. See all the Virtual Campus courses.

• Free Course: Introduction to ESRI Mobile GIS Solutions

  
  

• Imagery: A Core Component of GIS

  
  

• Want to Be a GISP?

  
  

• Visit the Enterprise GIS Resource Center

  
  

• ESRI Mapping Center: Make Great-Looking Maps with GIS

  
  

• GIS for Gov 2.0

  
  

• See the Latest ArcScripts

  
  

• Stop by the Geoprocessing Resource Center

  
  

• White Paper: Maplex for ArcGIS

  
  

• See Who Is a GIS Hero

  
  

• Shop for Solutions Online

  U.S. customers may take advantage of several ArcGIS enterprise server offers from ESRI and INLINE Corporation/IceWEB, Inc., which include the ArcGIS Data Appliance MLP Portable Solution, ArcGIS Data Appliance Server Bundle, and ArcGIS Data Appliance. The ArcGIS Data Appliance, based on the data collection package purchased, can provide terabytes of prerendered nationwide and worldwide data that includes street and transportation, place-name, administrative boundary, and raster imagery data. Learn more about all the ESRI and INLINE/IceWEB offers.

  Visit the ESRI Store to find more software and extensions, upgrades, data, books, and hardware bundles.

• Bloggers' Corner

  The Support Center News Blog is chock-full of great technical information and tips.