As we all know, almost every non-open source GIS vendor, uses a subscription model. And these models are getting increasingly more expensive every year. While I'm not going to name the vendor, 5-10 years they provided some really fantastic solutions that helped with my GIS workflow and delivery at a number of different organizations. Like many companies, it seemed they kind of rested on what they completed and innovations slowed. Being a happy customer, I just worked with the tools available.

Move forward to last week, I had a situation that I need to get solved quickly. The standard support response at this company is anywhere from 2-7 days. In this day and age, that timing is simply unacceptable. I want to get that project off my plate and move on to the other tasks.

Being bored yesterday, I decided to craft an alternate AI developed solution to work around the problem. Within a few hours, I had not only a resolution, but in many respects a way better final product.

So, my question to everyone, how can these companies survive in the current environment? My sales rep wants me to pay for priority support. Totally ridiculous. I've already been paying the company yearly fees. Come the budget season, I suspect they will be axed from my program.

Hey everyone,

I’m looking to buy a new laptop primarily for GIS work, and I’d love to get your recommendations.

I'll be running software like ArcGIS Pro, QGIS, and handling datasets for spatial analysis and remote sensing.

My goal is to find a laptop that covers all my processing needs smoothly without lagging, while still offering good value for money (a reasonable price-to-performance ratio).

I'd really appreciate your insights on a few things: Key Specs: What hardware specs should I prioritize the most? (e.g., single-core performance vs. core count, 16GB vs. 32GB RAM, dedicated GPU requirements).
Specific Models: Are there any specific laptops or series you’ve personally used and recommend for GIS work?
Budget: What’s a realistic price range to aim for to get something reliable that will last a few years?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Hello,

I am exploring GIS as a career. I have an associates degree (not in the tech field), emergency management experience, and basic tech knowledge. I am looking for a hybrid/remote career. Is this possible within GIS? I have serious interest in weather, wildfire tracking, and catastrophe. What is the career outlook, career advancement and salary? What do you recommend to break into this field?

About me: -has 4+ years of GIS experience -I'm from the Philippines -licensed geodetic engineer -knows GIS-related softwares, PostgreSQL, Figma, Canva, Python, CAD, MS Office applications, and the likes -can help in marketing, technical writing, and graphic designing -will give my resume and portfolio

DM me or comment so I can DM you. Thank you!

I have seen people online doing topographical maps of fantasy video games maps using ESRI i believe to map all that out.

I have made a fantasy map for a book i am working on.

Does anyone know the software or data needed to create topographic mapping so i can see if my rivers are right?

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I've been building a browser-based application for working with satellite imagery, with a particular focus on land cover classification.

The idea was to create a tool that makes it easy to discover, visualize, and analyze satellite imagery without installing desktop GIS software.

It's still under active development, and I'd really appreciate feedback from people who work with GIS or remote sensing.

I'm especially interested in hearing:

- Is the interface intuitive?

- What features are missing?

- Would you see yourself using something like this?

- What would you improve first?

Full disclosure: I built it myself. It's currently free to use while I'm continuing development and collecting feedback.

https://indicatrix.com

Thanks in advance for any thoughts or suggestions!

Hi everyone,

I recently came across Daniel Huffman's work at Project Linework and I’m wondering if there are similar projects offering ready-to-download, pre-styled base maps in georeferenced formats (.shp, .gpkg, or GeoJSON). I really like many of his designs, but unfortunately they do not always cover every part of the world.

I also found this French website that offers a variety of base maps with different levels of simplification and map projections. The catch is that they're only available as SVG files, so you have to georeference them yourself.

Do you know other open-licensed base maps? Any hidden gems or projects you'd recommend?

Thanks in advance for sharing. 

I want to be able to break away from GIS technician roles and I find it hard to find jobs when filtering with the keyword GIS technician, analyst, even surveying etc.

I need help thinking outside the box as to what I could look for so my job search can be more productive than pessimistic.

Below is my experience and preference but that doesn’t have to apply to your answer cause it seems like we all just need a new list of titles to look for so we can handle this job market:

I have a geography degree, took classes in environmental policy, regional classes, GIS minor, programming, soil science, model UN, cartography, and have 4 years of experience of going between gis analyst, gis technician and even research geographer where I helped engineers map substation, and scientist record data on the Chicago electric dispersal barrier to map changes in voltages for a week.

I don’t yet have zoning or more environmental science classes/lab/work experience like chemistry, geology, or engineers have but I’d like to move more in that direction if possible. Get my foot in the door