Boyd's Map of the Pines beta available

Boyd

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Let's hope it's ready by then…. has been running for 10 hours now with 3gb transferred. Estimating 6+ hours to complete. Using my phone as a hotspot with a different computer now so there is nothing to interfere with the upload. :)
 

Boyd

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LIDAR in the Pines 2017 is now available for download at this link:

[bad link removed]

Please post your download times and how fast your internet connection is. My guess is that a fast internet connection won't help much since the server is slow. Until we see actual times, you should probably allow 8 to 12 hours for your computer to do the download. I don't think there would be any way to resume an interrupted download.

The map is packaged inside a file named LIDAR_in_the_pines_2017.zip. On a Mac, just double-click the file and it will create a folder named LIDAR_in_the_pines_2017.

On a Windows computer, right click LIDAR_in_the_pines_2017.zip and choose Extract All. For some reason, on Windows there's another folder of the same name inside, so open it to find the files.

Either way, you will find a map file, a mapsource file and a READ_ME file with full instructions for installing the map and MOBAC software. Hope there are no problems with the file, it took 16 hours to upload, just like the original estimate.

Technical note: this file is too large to be stored on a device that uses the FAT32 filesystem. USB flash drives and SD memory cards 32gb and smaller are usually formatted with FAT32, so just a heads up. You would need to reformat the card with a more modern filesystem to make it compatible.

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Update: December 2023
Sorry, boydsmaps.com no longer offers downloadable maps, but you can view aerial imagery overlaid on LIDAR terrain in 3d here with either your computer or phone:

https://boydsmaps.com/#17.00/39.807395/-74.589451/mbx3dortho/-43.20/64.40
 
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Jon Holcombe

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Dec 1, 2015
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Medford
I downloaded "LIDAR_in_the_pines_2017" in about 12 minutes. I have a very fast FIOS 75mps connection. The expanded file is about 5.28 GB. However, I am not fluent in using my Garmin, let alone map making, but I have used your LIDAR many times when heading into a location. As I learn some of this stuff I will hopefully make good use of your hard work. Thank you Boyd!
 
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Boyd

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Wow! Guess I was wrong about the speed of that server. Which Garmin do you have? Older models like the Oregon 4xx can load an area of this map that covers about 11 x 11 miles with 1 zoom level. Newer Garmin models like the Oregon 6xx and Montana can load an area about 27 miles x 27 miles with 1 zoom level. Most people feel that Garmin has intentionally crippled this feature to prevent competition with their own maps.

A smartphone app can load the entire map with all 6 zoom levels. :)
 
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Jon Holcombe

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I got the Oregon 650T about a month ago. I've taken it out a handful of times, but to be honest I am too impatient/busy/focused on photography, to sit down and go through the menus, and actually learn how to use it. I hang it off my belt with a carabiner. I figure if I get lost somewhere deep in the forest, I'll learn on the fly, which may not the most sensible strategy. Eventually, I will start using it, maybe when I have the time to do some serious exploring and not just hit and run trips to the river/bog/pond at sunrise and race home to go to work. I am looking forward to loading your maps and start using them.
 
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Boyd

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This was an interesting project from a photographic standpoint, trying to bring out as much detail in the 2012 aerials as possible while converting the native 24 bit imagery to 8 bit. Compare this screenshot to the same 2012 aerials at NJPB Maps: http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.647891993059076&lng=-74.68142050903322&z=13&type=nj2012&gpx=

lp1202.jpg
 
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bobpbx

Piney
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Oct 25, 2002
14,567
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Pines; Bamber area
Boyd, I have a preference for looking at Lidar the way you have it colored on Bens NJPB Maps. Reason is, when I use Lidar (and I do use it often), I really have no interest in sand or towns or clearings, or vegetation type. I'm just looking at the topography from an elevation standpoint. The other stuff clutters it up.

Will you be keeping the solid colored one around?
 

Boyd

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I have no plans to take down the version that Ben is using but will not update it either. I will probably take it off my own site (not interested in using Google's API anymore) but will leave the files in place so that NJPB Maps can access them. Have also been thinking of offering a downloadable version of "just LIDAR" in the future. More about that later.
 
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Boyd

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Here's new map for Bob and anyone else who likes the atlas-shaded style. I call it Just LIDAR. No roads, no labels, just LIDAR. :)

JL-1.jpg



Here it is in Mobile Atlas Creator
JL-2.jpg



And this is the Galileo app on the iPhone.

JL-3.jpg



Installation is the same as LIDAR in the Pines 2017. Download the map here:

[bad link removed]

After downloading open the .zip file (right-click > Extract All on Windows, just double-click on the Mac). The README file has complete installation instructions for the map and the free Mobile Atlas Creator software (if you haven't already installed).

This file has a maximum zoom level of 15, which fits the resolution of the LIDAR data, so it is only about 1.2gb. Just like the other map, you can use MOBAC to export the whole map or portions of it for many different apps on Windows, Macintosh, iOS and Android.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Update: December 2023
Sorry, boydsmaps.com no longer offers downloadable maps, but you can view shaded LIDAR terrain in either 2d or 3d here:

https://boydsmaps.com/#14.00/39.752358/-74.464747/mbx3dspectrum/0.00/0.00
 
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Boyd

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Working on this map, I found that there were a few patches of missing LIDAR data in the previous map. It isn't immediately noticeable since the aerial photo is still there and they are flat coastal areas. Here's one area along Delaware Bay, you can see the line where the LIDAR stops in the middle. There are other sections in Atlantic City and Point Pleasant, but they are so built-up that it's hard to tell.

missing1a.jpg



But with "just LIDAR", the missing data is immediately noticeable, since those areas were completely blank. ;) I was able to download one area, and then the USGS shut down its servers for two days of maintenance. I had all the other pieces of the map, so I just "faked" the missing areas by using the tradional DEM that was originally derived from the contour lines on paper topo maps. It's really different from LIDAR, but there are just a few coastal areas.

missing2.jpg
 

Teegate

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Just Lidar can be a little confusing without roads or landmarks for guidance. The good thing is it may make my skills a little better with knowing the landscape.
 
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Boyd

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I debated putting roads on the map, but thought it would be best to just provide the pure data. You can use another map, like LIDAR in the Pines or OpenStreetMap to locate an area, then switch to Just LIDAR.

But I have to say, after spending all these years working on maps of Southern New Jersey, I know my way around pretty good. ;)
 

Teegate

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Coyle field with "Just Lidar" and 1995 aerial using Google Earth.

coyle.jpg
 

Teegate

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I debated putting roads on the map, but thought it would be best to just provide the pure data. You can use another map, like LIDAR in the Pines or OpenStreetMap to locate an area, then switch to Just LIDAR.


Thats what I did. So it is important if you are a Mac user to get the bookmarks working. Without that you are surely screwed.
 

Boyd

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It's unclear to me how much development is still taking place with MOBAC. The changelog only goes as far as 2015 with version 2.0.0 beta 1, however the current version is 2.0.0 beta 3. Would be nice if they fixed the Mac problems, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Are you using Sierra? I have only tried it on 10.8.5, so there might be problems with newer versions of MacOS.
 
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