The fifth Where 2.0 Call For Participation will be closing tomorrow (December 2nd). This year we’re going to focus on location-aware technologies and their implications. The iPhone and Android have paved the way for a new breed of app and Where 2.0 will be focused on it. We won’t be leaving mapping or geodata behind — instead we’ll look at how new mobile platforms are building on top of them.
If you want to join us on stage submit your talk tomorrow.
Where 2.0 will be held in San Jose, CA from May 19-21, 2009. You can watch all of Where 2.0 2008 online — for free.
Some of the topics on the radar for Where 2.0 are:
Location-Aware: We will be exploring the implications of our new location-enabled lives, particularly around mobile phones and transponders. What feature is worth sharing your location?
Reality Mining: With the increase in location data come more macro views of our lives. If you want to know where to go in San Francisco, for example, City Sense will show you which parts of the city are hopping. What does this type of information mean for consumers and the enterprise?
Augmented Reality: The location-enabled phone will become a viewfinder for our world. Your phone will be able to tell you what you are looking at. It will also let you leave notes for the next person. What are other cool projects in the works?
Immersive and 3D Imagery: There’s an imagery battle happening and consumers are winning. Our world is being documented to an unprecedented degree. While two device manufacturers acquired the mapping data companies, the internet giants have invested in cameras, planes, and satellites. Where will this take the location industry?
Mapping Tables: It’s difficult to collaborate in person with an online slippy map; a paper spread out on a table or tacked to a wall is still better. Digital mapping tables are attempting to beat back paper once and for all. By providing everyone the same view and editing capabilities plus the ability to turn on and off layers, will they be able to do it?
Government 2.0: Governments are treasure troves of data. Increasingly they are releasing it online for free. ESRI‘s release of ArcGIS has also aided the battle by providing municipalities with this ability. This data is aiding both the citizen and Government agencies. How is this critical information being put to use?
Crowdsourcing: Pioneered by OSM, the rest of the mapping industry is catching up. Let’s examine where they are taking it.
Disease Awareness: Our increasingly connected world allows diseases to spread in record time. These same networks alert us to outbreaks. We’re going to examine new geocentric approaches to epidemiology.
Cartography: Each map has a distinctive look and feel. What are the trends in design and user experience?
Workshops
Back by popular demand, Where 2.0 will have a full day of workshops where participants can dig deep into a range of issues and leave the conference armed with new tools and skills. Workshops are one hour and fifteen minutes in length and will be held on Tuesday, May 19. Topics we’d like to explore include, but are not exclusive to:
Geo Support in Web Application Frameworks: As people design their own mapping applications, there has been a need for built-in geo support. We’re looking for workshops that teach about Mapstraction, Modest Maps, Open Layers, GeoDjango, GeoRuby, MapCruncher, and other tools.
Mapping APIs: The location space would not have gotten as far as it has today without all of the innovation in the mapping API space. How can you test the limits of these free resources?
GeoTargeting: Knowing users’ locations has never been more important. Identifying it accurately can be difficult and expensive. What are the best methods?
Privacy Implications: As you are collecting user data, keeping track of your users, or collecting geodata, are you aware of the relevant laws? What would you teach others?
GeoBrowsers: Google Earth and NASA WorldWind are both amazing geobrowsers. How can you get the most out of them?
Data Management: Geo applications work with massive amounts of data. What are the tools, tips, and tricks that can be used to manage it?
Protocols and Formats: GeoRSS, GML, KML, EXIF, Microformats, Geo OpenSearch. Which formats are on the way in and which ones are on the way out?
These are just some of the technologies and transformations we’ve noticed and represent just the starting point for the program. While we’d like you to tap into the theme as your inspiration in writing your proposal, feel free to wander. What are you working on that will change the world, or at least the world you’re in? What project is bringing you pleasure, or teasing your brain? Surprise and delight us; shake us out of our assumptions. We’re angling for shorter talks with longer breaks so you’ll have more time for one-on-one interactions.