Google Analytics spatial data visualised with BigQuery and CARTO

Google Analytics spatial data visualised with BigQuery and CARTO

Google Analytics is a staple component in most business intelligence team’s decision making processes. It provides insights about traffic sources to your website, tracks the success of your paid Ad campaigns and monitors the buyer’s purchasing behavior.  However, despite the wonderful insights you can glean using Google Analytics, the location data attached to each prospect’s…

Read article

Transform, store and analyse your GIS data with FME and BigQuery

Transform, store and analyse your GIS data with FME and BigQuery

Good news Feature Manipulation Engine (FME) users! If you want to crunch your GIS data in BigQuery, it’s now possible with FME available in the Google Cloud Marketplace. This announcement is a gamechanger as it means that geospatial data processing power can now be performed at a previously unmatched level. GIS professionals are really excited…

Read article

The merits of using the Python API in Google Earth Engine

The merits of using the Python API in Google Earth Engine

My own GIS weapon of choice was born of a development by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Construction Engineering Research Laboratory over 35 years ago – and I attest that GRASS GIS is still one of the best GIS desktop tools in my opinion (but that’s for another Geotech Friday).  However, two other weapons that have…

Read article

What to expect after Google Cloud Next 19′

What to expect after Google Cloud Next 19′

NGIS’ Richard Greene attended Google Cloud Next 19’ last week in San Francisco. The conference convenes Google’s international network of partners, developers and anyone passionate about an accessible, scalable, socially responsible cloud to discuss expected product developments, news and releases. Richard reflects on his week at the conference:  Day one  I arrived in San Francisco…

Read article

How Google is integrating augmented reality into Maps

How Google is integrating augmented reality into Maps

Google Maps is integrated into our everyday lives and helps us navigate from point A to point B. Constantly looking for ways to improve, Google acknowledged that the familiar blue dot and line overlaid in Google Maps has left some users lost or confused about the corner they were meant to turn or has simply…

Read article

Tips to reduce your Google Maps bill

Tips to reduce your Google Maps bill

Organisations are now being charged for each API call they make on the Google Maps Platform which has resulted in a surge in company billing.  However, there are ways that developers can significantly reduce costs by limiting their Google Maps usage. Here are four questions to consider: HOW INTERACTIVE IS YOUR MAP?  Are you using…

Read article

Getting started with Google Cloud Platform

Getting started with Google Cloud Platform

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is the challenger brand in the cloud space, trying to make room for itself in a market dominated by AWS and Azure. Ease of use, usage based billing and discounts and some really powerful machine learning tools is how GCP is differentiating itself amongst the competition who have been around for…

Read article

Why should you work with a Google Maps partner?

Why should you work with a Google Maps partner?

Google has changed the way it structures licensing for Google Maps Platform customers and applications that were once using Google Maps for free are now faced with uncertain pricing per month. Receiving a shock Google Maps bill could be due to inefficient coding or a lack of understanding of the changes that are taking place….

Read article

Google Maps in apps isn’t free anymore

Google Maps in apps isn’t free anymore

If you’ve built an app in the past for Android or iOS you would have benefitted from Google’s generous usage limits for mobile, most of which were unlimited for Maps API. Under Google Maps Platform, map loads through the Mobile SDK are still free, but all the other services you might rely on are on…

Read article

Is your Google Maps bill bigger than expected?

Is your Google Maps bill bigger than expected?

The new commercial model of Google Maps suits businesses really well with its monthly, pay on consumption billing, but the new price table can lead to unexpected costs. You might have been on the free version of Google Maps (the now-deprecated Standard Plan) and now find you are having to pay for usage you previously…

Read article