Between the Poles

Autodesk Announces Free Three-year Software Licenses for Students

Autodesk has announced that it is extending the license term for free software available through its online Education Community from 13 to 36 months. The license term extension applies to over 25 products, including Inventor, Revit, 3ds Max, Maya, and AutoCAD, available for free download on the Autodesk Education Community.   The  extension is part of Autodesk’s contribution to supporting careers in science, technology, engineering and math.  Since the launch of the Autodesk Education Community in 2006, it has grown to more than 1.3 million members in 145 countries.

GPS, GIS and Surveying

There is a discussion going on across the country about who can legally use a GPS to determine the location of man-made objects. For example, at the moment there is a bill before the New York Assembly that could be interpreted as proposing that using a device such as a GPS to determine the "location of man-made structures and other objects related thereto" would be restricted to licensed surveyors.

Backround

The following is quoted from an article (cached) entitled In Line with GIS: GIS and Surveying Issues, Part 2 by Rj Zimmer, LS:

"The following e-mail excerpts, reprinted with permission, are from Sara Frankenfeld, GIS Administrator for Warren County, New York.

“In New York in January 2002, the GIS Administrator for Warren County was contacted by an investigator from the New York State Education Department s Office of Professional Discipline regarding a complaint from a surveyor that the Warren County GIS Administrator was surveying without a license. The county was using a hand-held GPS unit to collect fire hydrant locations and plot them on a reference map. Two investigators from the New York Office of Professional Discipline met with the GIS administrator, the Warren County Planning Director, and the Warren County Attorney to discuss the matter. The investigators were unfamiliar with GPS and GIS, at that time, and were initially doing fact-finding concerning the complaint.

"Issue Not Yet Resolved

“In March, the investigators met with the Warren County representatives along with an attorney from the New York Office for Professional Discipline and a surveyor from the New York State Board of Licensed Engineers and Land Surveyors. The state s attorney informed the county at the beginning of the meeting, that after reviewing the facts in the case, they felt that the county was in violation of the state statues and that the county was practicing surveying without a license. However, in August, the investigators then informed the county that they had not developed evidence to support taking any disciplinary action against the county and were closing the case. They recommended that the county involve the County Engineer in any future GPS projects that the county pursues. The investigators also noted that the Office decides each case on an individual basis."

Proposed Amendment

There is a bill now before the New York Assembly that proposes to amend the education law, in relation to the practice  of  land surveying.  Specifically it proposes to modify the act as follows (proposed changes in italic upper case):

"e. Making of surveys by professional engineers, except that the determination of real property boundaries, RIGHTS OF WAY, EASEMENTS, AND OTHER INTERESTS IN REAL PROPERTY AND THE LOCATION OF MAN-MADE STRUCTURES AND OTHER OBJECTS RELATED THERETO, may be done only by a licensed land surveyor;"

which could be interpreted as meaning that under this amendment the use of a device such as a GPS to locate man-made objects would be restricted to licensed surveyors.

How the Autodesk Assistance Program Helps Laid-off Workers

There's a new video that provides feedback from participants at a recent Autodesk Assistance Program networking event in San Francisco on how the program helps displaced workers, architects, engineers,and others prepare for future new employment.

There is also an update on the program from Steve Blum.

GITA's Continuing Education Unit (CEU) Program

Continuing Education Units (CEU) are nationally recognized education credits that record your accomplishments in the realm of continuing education.  GITA has a CEU program that allows you  to accumulate CEUs by participating in GITA's Professional Development Series.  For example, at this year's 2009 Geospatial Infrastructure Solutions Conference, there were about a dozen Knowledge Immersion Seminars for which you can acquire CEUs. Topics included Geospatial Contributions to Sustainability, Critical Infrastrcture Dependencies, Enterprise Information Management, and The Unseen Utilities: Critical Underground Infrastructure Protection.  A CEU represents attending 10 hours of education.  Each of these seminars was 3.5 hours long, so by attending each seminar you acquire 0.35 CEUs.

Speak at Autodesk University: Request for Proposals

Autodesk University 2009 (AU 2009) will be held from December 1-4 at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

If you are interested in speaking at AU 2009, you're invited to submit a proposal online. AU welcomes multiple submissions from experienced presenters and also offers several formats, such as classes, lectures, hands-on labs, and discussion panels, to fit your speaking style. Also, new this year is the addition of a 60-minute Virtual session.

We’re definitely in need of intermediate and advanced classes in using geospatial tools like AutoCAD Map 3D, MapGuide, FDO, Autodesk Utility Design, Raster Design, and Topobase, but we’re also very interested in industry case studies for the utility/telco industry segment.  For example, how are you addressing key issues such as smart grids and sustainable design, aging infrastructure renewal, substation design, plant design, and network design and management,  in the electric & gas, water / wastewater, and telco industry segments?

The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2009, so there’s still time to become a speaker at AU 2009.

Click here to submit your proposal. 

AutoCAD 2010 Available for Free for Student Engineering and Design Community

Autodesk has announced that AutoCAD 2010 software will be available for free to members of the worldwide Student Engineering and Design Community.  The Student Community was created three years ago to help architecture, engineering and digital entertainment students gain access to educational resources and technical expertise. The Student Community now has more than 570,000 members representing more than 19,000 schools in 139 countries. 

With AutoCAD 2010, the Student Community has access to more than two dozen free software products. 

Autodesk Assistance Program for Unemployed Designers, Engineers, and Architects in All Industries

Autodesk  has announced the Autodesk Assistance Program which will offer free student software term licenses, free online training, reduced cost classroom training, and a path to certification for unemployed designers, engineers, and architects in all industries.  Autodesk Assistance Program will be made available through an online portal, where users can access:

• Free Software License: Any 13-month term student license of AutoCAD, Autodesk Revit Architecture, Autodesk Inventor Professional, and/or AutoCAD Civil 3D software. 
• Free Online Training: On-demand training available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week provided online through vBooks - powered by Retrieve Technologies, Inc. (internet access required)
• Reduced-Cost Classroom Training: Many Autodesk Authorized Training Center (ATC) partners are offering classroom training at their training facilities for free or for a significantly reduced fee. 
• Certification: Certification preparation and exams are available at discounted rates through Autodesk Authorized Certification Centers.

Autodesk has also partnered with various industry organizations on local initiatives. The new Autodesk office in Waltham, Mass. is teaming with the Boston Society of Architects to offer free volunteer-led immersion seminars on building information modeling (BIM) to unemployed design professionals in the Boston area. Seminar attendees receive a free* Revit Architecture student term license, and can also receive American Institute of Architects (AIA) continuing education credit for the seminars. 

The Autodesk Assistance Program is being launched in North America. Autodesk hopes to roll the program out in other countries over the next few months. 

You can watch a video on the Autodesk YouTube channel.