nearby.org.uk blog

http://utilitymill.com/utility/Goog_Your_Hash

If you dont trust your unhashed password to the app, try a javascript implementation of md5

Also a good demonstration that as an application developer you should be using a salt in addition to the password when hashing.

(via utilitymill.com homepage)

While playing with the new navigation in Google Earth 4.3, noticed its not always easy to get your bearings (bad pun), also been wanting to play in PSP today, so set to do something about both. The result? A ScreenOverlay showing a compass star on the navigation control.

. GE Compass Star (without numbers)

Note: I do also have a network link that shows the more exact bearing as a placemark label.

(part inspired by)

Updated to add: This has inspired a similar compass that rotates, nice work Gerardo64!

Well its taken some time, but finally managed to update 2.5(.1) - quite a while ago changed to upgrade via SVN which makes updating (usually) a dream, but not getting to 2.5.

No idea why, but the simple

svn sw http://svn.automattic.com/wordpress/tags/2.5/

Just didnt cut it,

PHP Fatal error: Cannot redeclare get_tag_feed_link() (previously declared in wp-includes/link-template.php:384) in wp-includes/feed.php on line 211
PHP Fatal error: Call to undefined function absint() in wp-includes/query.php on line 1346

etc. It seems it simply didn’t update all the files?

So back to basics, and doing a fresh install of 2.5 and installing my stuff into it (just like the first time setting up SVN) - now the working copy switches to 2.5.1 without issue!

Anyway, now have 2.5 running - quite like it, the admin is certainly more responsive, not sure of new features yet, dont tend to push WP that much.

Oh and then upgrading plugins, somewhere along the line Akismet got conflicted? Zapping it and checking it out again fixed that. Then Geopress, thought it would make sence to switch to using SVN for that, and found the/a repositoity, but that only gives me 2.4.1, whereas this suggests 2.4.3?? I guess that repro is either outdated or abandoned? Also this page is borked.

[Update: just noticed the KML output from GeoPress doesn't work - installed 2.4.3 in the end too, but seeing as I wrote the KML code, I guess its my responsibilty to fix - will work on that!]

[Update2: The correct geopress repro location is here - thanks to Andrew in comments!]

Anyway at least it now done (for now)

The Creative Commons licence used for ALL (768,000+) Geograph Images was chosen for a very specific reason - it allows moneyification - helps preserve the archive forever - but it also makes the archive freely available to all - at least as long as reuse is attributed.

As evidenced by the number of images put in forums, blogs, and en-mass in sites like Wikipedia, there is clearly interest in reusing our images, but it its also clear there is some confusion on how to credit photos, and many people also hotlink images directly from the Geograph Servers.

To make it easier we have recently introduced a new page that helps explain the requirements, however as its linked directly from each photo it can be aware of the photo in question, it can also provide snippets of code ready for copy/pasting.

We currently have HTML, code for BB-compatible forums, Creative-Commons RDF matadata, even Wikipedia templates. Example here, look for the link under the big image on the main photo page.

This last entry is particularly new and interesting - this outputs three Wikipedia templates, making sure the image has the maximum amount of the data we have available - this includes the information box (title, links and licence), geotagging, as well as the specific Geograph Template.

Suggestions for other snippets welcome….

Also while here will also mention we have created a Google Gadget, which makes it easy to embed a small selection of Geograph Images in any webpage, or iGoogle itself. To change the selection, run a suitable search on Geograph and copy the i number from the url into the Gadget preferences.

First - User Based Navigation - without a Special Controller, FINALLY! GEarthBlog has more details of the new navigation controls - quite different - and lots of options now, but first impressions - it works well.

But actually downloading it? I followed a tip here, to the older download page. Not been in the US, never heard of the Updater thing they talk about, but that’s another story. Anyway that page offered to download me the old version, but poking around in the source leads to the latest. Of course by the time you read this it should be live for everyone anyway!

Disapointments:

• Still no Space Navigator support inside the photoviewer - why, oh WHY?
• The Overview map is still broken But at least it doesn’t give error messages now - just big Red X’s!
• Not a biggy, but a quirk, the new ‘Sunshine’ - or rather the shadow doesn’t affect 3d Models :p (but the screenshot on GEB seems to have lighting - video driver?) [Update: it seems some do, but not all, possibly the new photorealistic ones that dont...]

But to end on positive note, the new buildings and streetview look good - even if not available here. Oh and the photoviewer hasnt managed to crash GE yet!

Update: Just noticed they fixed the bug with truncation in the Properties dialog when entering lat/long

Google Earth has just had its latest update, following tradition the Google LatLong blog releases a cryptic set of clues to the areas effected.

2) jumped out at me considering had to learn that name for school, and being reasonably local. However even more excitedly I notice that pretty much the whole of Wales looks distinctly uniform from far away - suggesting that this update covers pretty much the whole Country - the parts in the distant south not included seems to mostly in high res already - being the most populous!

Doesn’t Snowdonia look pretty now? (and the rest of Wales too!)

(Update: follow this post on gearthblog.com for other updates)

(appologies all, this post is simply a rant, and unfortunatly will almost certainly not reach the people its intended for!)

I just noticed that despite only having a very soft launch via this blog, already gokml.net* has attacted submission bots, which seems to have the sole purpose of seeking out submission forms and sending in their masters details, I guess in the hope of getting that little bit of search engine juice.

I guess need to roll out a captcha and/or email confirmation, or maybe even akismet.com?

(as a sidenote, I have a really old form that was intended for people to submit sites for a geoindex, in the nearby location search, I dont think its even linked anymore but it still gets hundreds of submissions daily, I’ve kept it open basically as a honey pot, but unsure what to do with the data, suggestions on a postcard…)

(* a ‘tinyurl’ site for creating network-links for KML content - must also get round to finishing it off…)

(more)

Just spotted a proposal for a standard icon to represent geotagged content, the homepage is at geotagicons.com, can’t say a big fan of the icon itself, but the idea is great.

<OT>Was sort of involved in trying to find a standard icon for GeoRSS (in fact they use my icon as the favicon ), but not sure (in hindsight!) if that a good idea, really it just saying this is a geotagged feed, which really shouldn’t mean much different to the end user than the standard feed icon. If their feed reader is geoenabled - great, if not tough, although it can help people specifically looking for geo-content.</OT>

Anyway to try the waters, have enabled it for geotagged content on this blog, see the PhotoSpot category for example

(via)

Nearby Coordinate Converter >>>
Following on from the Coverage map for Google Earth Layer usage, remembered I been keeping a log from the Coordinate Converter specifically for mapping (but only for GB) , but never actully got round to it, until now that is! Click the image for a full 1px per km version!

Update: Inspired by the above, heres one for the Geograph Search, ok so actully its for the British Isles!
<<<Geograph Searches