Google Maps pricing changes -- please read

[Philip Gladstone]

I just got email from Google notifying me of pricing changes to the
Google Maps API (which is what drives the map display). As of June 11th,
the current map page will cost me in excess of $2k/month (it is
currently free for the PskReporter level of use). This is (obviously) a
fee that I am not prepared to pay, and it doesn't make sense to try and
raise those funds either.

If anyone has ever done any work with OpenStreetMap, then I'd love to
hear from you. If there are any other alternatives that don't have silly
prices, then also let me know. According to Google, PskReporter is using
around 12K map loads per day.

Philip

[Murf Dude]

Wonder if they can sell spac

Sent from my iPhone

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[Dave R]

https://switch2osm.org

[Dave R]

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqC3rFN6pDezPK0NifkGCSMop3vcXQEEU

osm tutorials

[Barry Smith]

In message <6bec46ba-0754-f113...@gladstonefamily.net>

Has any progress been made on this?

I find it very useful for seeing where my signals are reaching and
would be quite happy to pay - something like $10/year ??? - rather
than have the site disappear or "invaded" with advertising.

If others feel the same maybe enough money can be raised to keep the
existing arrangement, even if it only turns out to be temporary.

Barry
G4IAT

--

[Philip Gladstone]

On 24/05/2018 10:14, Barry Smith wrote:
>
> Has any progress been made on this?
>
> I find it very useful for seeing where my signals are reaching and
> would be quite happy to pay - something like $10/year ??? - rather
> than have the site disappear or "invaded" with advertising.
>
> If others feel the same maybe enough money can be raised to keep the
> existing arrangement, even if it only turns out to be temporary.
>
> Barry
> G4IAT
>

The short answer is Yes. There are still issues in the rendering and
stuff like the day/night terminator and the maidenhead overlay are not
yet done. The connecting lines are also straight and not geodesics.
However, progress is being made.

Philip

[Dave R]

Advertising doesn't kill the deal for me, as long as it doesn't induce seizures or make any sounds. It does ruin the whole open-source vibe, but so does Google Maps. QRZ dot com has choice of free ad-supported or no ads with donation. In any case I trust Phil to make wise decisions. 73

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[Bob D.]

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjQhKzlpbfbAhVrs1QKHeRwCyYQFgg1MAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgeoawesomeness.com%2Flooking-for-google-maps-api-alternatives-here-are-the-best-picks%2F&usg=AOvVaw3SSLiZV__q0oz2AyaRQnhj

I used Google to find an alternative to Google :-)

Seems there are a few.

But you have already probably done this I am sure.

Is there are any map data available from Uncle Sam that you (and we) have already paid for with your tax dollars?

Too bad they are so greedy that they can't support our hobby. It's not like you are making a profit (or any income for that matter) off your use of the Google Maps data.

[Roger Rehr]

HI Philip,

I just saw this while looking for something else...hence the delayed response.

I use the Bing Maps Provider in my AircraftScatterSharp software and I have been very happy with it.

It is free of charge.

If you want to see what the Bing Maps look like, you can look at some of the images on this webpage:

http://www.nitehawk.com/w3sz/AircraftScatter.htm

or download AircraftScatter# software from here:

http://www.nitehawk.com/w3sz/AircraftScatterSharp.exe

or look at more images here:

http://www.nitehawk.com/w3sz/NEW_W3SZ_AircraftScatterSharp2017.pdf

A list of the top 10 map providers is here:

https://www.programmableweb.com/news/top-10-mapping-apis-google-maps-microsoft-bing-maps-and-mapquest/analysis/2015/02/23

73,

Roger Rehr

W3SZ

On Thursday, May 3, 2018 at 12:04:30 AM UTC-4, Philip wrote:

[gd0...@manx.net]

is this of any use? https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=2/52.1/-61.2

 

[Philip Gladstone]

On 25/06/2018 11:41, gd0...@manx.net wrote:
> is this of any use? https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=2/52.1/-61.2
>

I now have a version that runs based on the OpenStreetMap data and using
the leaflet.js framework. There is no day/night terminator yet and no
maidenhead grid overlay. The big issue is that wrapping across the
international date line doesn't work well (really, doesn't work at all).

I'm fearful that I now have to move to OpenLayers 4 to get the wrapping
to work right.

Philip

[Philip]

It turned out that the first attempt (based on Leaflet) didn't handle the international date line well.

There is now a very alpha version of code based on openlayers running at https://dev.pskreporter.info/pskmap

The night shade is missing, the pink blob is missing, time markers are missing.

For some weird reason the sensitive region for each marker is off (always veritically). Sometimes this can be fixed by changing the zoom of the browser to (say 110% and then back to 100%). I have *no idea* why this is happening.

Please contact me with any issues (other than the above -- unless you know how to fix the pixel offset). Please include details about your browser, OS etc. A screenshot of the page is also helpful. If you can open up the developer console and send any messages from there, that would be helpful too.

Normally, I'd spend more time trying to improve stuff before exposing it like this, but time is short (and I'm recovering from a bout of Lyme disease).

Thanks

Philip

[Philip]

The pink blob is now present... The mouse is now at the right position relative to the markers.

I'm going to switch over tomorrow (Sunday) and continue to work on it. Please check out https://dev.pskreporter.info/pskmap -- the first set of people did experience a bunch of problems which I've now fixed. 

Philip

[G8CYK UK]

Looks a lot sleeker  - although I miss the sig level option - it makes it easier to work out if it is worth a speculative call to someone who has recently spotted you.

A salutary lesson in allowing google to effectively corner markets. Free wraps/fixes followed by a stick up. Typical.

[Philip Gladstone]

On 15/07/2018 18:32, G8CYK UK wrote:
>
> A salutary lesson in allowing google to effectively corner markets.
> Free wraps/fixes followed by a stick up. Typical.

Yes indeed. On the plus side, it ran for over 10 years without needing
much maintenance. On the other plus side, I'm now free of the Google
lock in (I hope). I'm sure that other stuff will sneak up and bite me
over the next week or so.

My other big website is in much worse state
(weather.gladstonefamily.net). That one must be getting on for 20 years....

[neil...@gmail.com]

Question being asked on Facebook, will the balloon with the time heard signal report eventually reappear?

Thanks,

Neil, KN3ILZ

On Sunday, July 15, 2018 at 6:37:00 PM UTC-4, Philip wrote:

On 15/07/2018 18:32, G8CYK UK wrote:
>
> A salutary lesson in allowing google to effectively corner markets.
> Free wraps/fixes followed by a stick up. Typical.
Yes indeed. On the plus side, it ran for over 10 years without needing
much maintenance. On the other plus side, I'm now free of the Google
lock in (I hope). I'm sure that other stuff will sneak up and bite me

over the next week or so. l

[Richard I]

Hi Philip

sorry to hear about the problems your having, I hope you can get the program back to a condition that you are happy with soon.

just one quick question, is there a way to have only English spellings of the country names my Japanese Russian etc is not so good ..

all the best 73 de Richard G7KHV    

[G8CYK UK]

Sorry to hear of the Lyme issue - this part of the world is a mild risk, and I believe I had it mildly a while back but it was not diagnosed as such at the time, and I was given antibiotics anyway for an undefined insect bite "that went septic".

We've been stuffed by moving goalposts a lot recently in the wake of GDPR mania.  

But it is remarkable how many sites there still are dating back to the dawn of the web that still work  - mostly because they didn't rely on anything fancier than html and a simple text editor and Cella or Mosaic were limited in ambition. We have a few sites laying around like http://infohighway.co.uk/ - which I really ought to tidy up for historic interest.

I have come back to ham hobby in 2016 after a 35 year wife/mortgage/kids hiatus - mainly spent in marketing high tech. So it's interesting to see what's changed - basically the UK and US appear to  have lost the ability to interest and engage with kids, who have been forced to invent the "maker movement" - but just think what the ham hobby could do if we could harness all that talent. The availability of parts, tools test gear and modules is now stellar - I wish I was 14 again (when I got licensed) 

I nearly gave up again because of the havoc wreaked by clusters - but ft8 saved the day.

I noticed that modern HF DXing is fishing by another name (see www.g8cyk.uk) - and ft8 is both fly fishing - watch them rise on PSK reporter - and could also be sold to kids as "Pokemon Global" There is still very little imagination used when marketing the hobby - the RSGB still gets carried away with worthy but boring things like the ISS contacts,  which has very little that is enduring to take away for a kid that is new to radio.

If you could enable call holders to create their own Pokemon avatars for the map (free for a basic one, $10 for a fancy one) then who knows? It must also be possible to sell a PSKR sub for $20 a year to the entire ft8 mob, but I appreciate that will hang the commercial millstone of obligations round your neck. But I can certainly get the Pokemon idea out into the media; and that version of the site could be an advertiser's dream ... if you are up for it?

It would be helpful to have a training wheels a version for those without radio to get a preview - but when the only way to get the higher levels of the game was to get a foundation licence (free with cornflakes these days) then I think it could work. A single band 10W 30m FT8 box with an interactive packet mode or two for $50 ought to be doable. Fabulous coverage even at the bottom of the sunspot cycle: maybe the WSPR guys are looking for a new angle as FT8 must have blown WSPR away by now.

It might even help revive VHF/UHF. WE need to do something before the hobby become extinct.

Regards

73 de Bill - G8CYK

Chelmsford UK: the city where Marconi 

began the business of broadcasting in 1922

Do you suffer from local noise? See www.g8cyk.uk 

Youtube Channel http://www.g8cyk.uk/yt

whatsapp (+44 796 885 4452)

g8cyk.cq @ skype 

https://www.facebook.com/g8cyk

https://www.qrz.com/db/G8CYK

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[Thomas Miller]

I liked it just the way it was.  Especially the option to click to Google Earth.  I would gladly pay a subscription fee to reinstate this option and to fund continuing maintenance and improvements.

Cheers and 73.

N0UE, Tom @EN34 (Minnesota USA)

[Philip Gladstone]

Yes it will. It turns out to be remarkably difficult.

Philip

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[Philip Gladstone]

Hmm... This is an interesting problem. I'll dig into this some more.

Does anybody know of a good source of basemap data that I could use? I only use down to zoom level 8.

Philip

[Philip Gladstone]

I can tell that you are in the hi-tech marketing arena. I have no such skills! I really like the idea of being able to brand your marker. I'm going to put this on the back burner while the current crisis gets worked out, but I'll be back!

philip

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[Philip Gladstone]

There are a number of people hitting problems which, I think, could be
fixed by pressing shift-reload in the browser. These should clear
themselves up within 24 hours as the cached data expires. I didn't think
to reduce the cache time in advance so that new versions would be picked
up rapidly.

Philip

[Tim Keats GM4CCN]

I've just seen the new map for the first time. First impression is that I prefer it. Everything appears to be working OK.

Thanks Philip for maintaining PSKreporter. I don't know how we ever managed without it :)

73 Tim GM4CCN

[Curt Breneman]

Is this why Pskreporter has stopped working today? (KC2EBP).  I was looking at my "sent" data on the map this morning, and suddenly it doesn't show anything sent or received by anyone...  It does still show the map though...

On Thursday, May 3, 2018 at 12:04:30 AM UTC-4, Philip wrote:

[Philip Gladstone]

Try doing a force-reload on the page. If it still doesn't work, then please open the javascript developer console and then send me a screenshot of what you see there.

Thanks

[Brenec Gmail]

Hi Philip,

Thanks for your work on this!  It’s a great tool.  I’ve tried accessing it on my iPad Mini and two of my Macs (Chrome and Safari browsers).  All used to work fine with pskreporter.  I’m not sure how to access the developer console - I’ve done a “reload” of the page, but I’m not sure what a force-reload might be.  I did note that the “display options” page doesn’t have the options that it once had - such as showing SNR.  Some of these markers indicate stations that had received my signals this morning, but others are not.

[Brenec Gmail]

Dear Philip,

I found out how to display the Developer Console.  What sub-page would help?  The console itself doesn’t have anything in it.

Cheers,

Curt Breneman (KC2EBP)

On Jul 16, 2018, at 11:21 AM, Brenec Gmail <bre...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Philip,

Thanks for your work on this!  It’s a great tool.  I’ve tried accessing it on my iPad Mini and two of my Macs (Chrome and Safari browsers).  All used to work fine with pskreporter.  I’m not sure how to access the developer console - I’ve done a “reload” of the page, but I’m not sure what a force-reload might be.  I did note that the “display options” page doesn’t have the options that it once had - such as showing SNR.  Some of these markers indicate stations that had received my signals this morning, but others are not.

<Screen Shot 2018-07-16 at 11.19.37 AM.png>

[Brenec Gmail]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Breneman, Curt" <bre...@rpi.edu>

Subject: Re: [PSK Reporter] Re: Google Maps pricing changes -- please read

Date: July 16, 2018 at 2:26:57 PM EDT

To: psk-re...@googlegroups.com

Hi Philip!

Have you been able to reproduce the problem that I described?

Cheers,

Curt B. (KC2EBP)

Curt M. Breneman, Ph.D.
Dean, School of Science
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
110 8th St
Troy, NY 12180-3590
Tel: (518) 276-6305
Fax (518) 276-2825
Email: bre...@rpi.edu

[Brian]

Having the exact Same Issue. Have cleared and uncached everything but still; getting only a blank map.

[G8CYK UK]

Everyone needs to SHIFT-RELOAD every time they visit the page. 

New wonders will unfold... top work PG. :-)

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[Bernard Nicoll]

Hello, Is there a fee when using Google Maps via Google's Fusion Tables ?