The Scourge of GPS

Once upon a time, the average person had a modicum of geographic awareness. Most had a Thomas Guide or Rand-McNally atlas on the back seat of the car. To navigate you had to understand the concept of multi-level spatial tiling (using the index) and compass directions,...

Mapping Spatially Complex Variables

Many of the subjects we map in these pages are spatially complex and the choice of geographic scale can have a significant impact on the patterns that appear to the user, especially on the physically limited maps that can be quickly displayed on web pages. Often as...

The Curse of Interesting Data

Over the years, AGS has created a number of data products which have been widely commended as being as interesting and sometimes even fascinating. And many were commercial failures. These days, we are often asked “do you have mobile data?” The GPS enabled mobile...

Analytics in the Trenches

“There are two things that you should never see being made, sausage and demographics” — Jim Stone, Geovue, 1998. Today we tour the sausage factory, at least as it relates to our recent foray into weekly small area unemployment estimates. Typically, our models...

A Field Guide to the Canis Notitia

Are you a data hound? This is not something you can easily fake. You are or you ain’t. And with just one simple question, I can tell if you are. Don’t you just love the smell of fresh data in the morning?  If you have a bewildered look on your face or find the...