I don’t think it will be long before machine control is like most other tech driven uses. The machines are already coming from the factories with the connections but they are still dedicated a select GNSS manufacturer according to some agreement they have. At some point those connections will start to become more agnostic and opensource software will start hitting the market. Pretty much the way that Python and Raspberry Pi are hitting the drone and robotics markets now. Really the only things that are stopping this even now are the manufacturer’s CAN-BUS codes to unlock a specific brand of GNSS… Those can be easily hacked so at the end of the day it comes to how do you get support and replacement parts. I am a certified Topcon tech and can get some parts, but it’s just not worth it with a fleet of machines.
Yes mapping software will be my next issue. My last few maps I drew by hand and the last one was very tedious because I always like to do them legal size to fit in the file with the legal description. I did try a couple of simple programs but usually was frustrated by those and wound up doing them by hand. But never again. I looked many years for a simple user friendly software to draw a property boundary over a USGS topo and never found what I was looking for. I never understood why that was so hard to find.
It isn’t “simple” to learn but have you tried QGIS? Great price, FREE, and can do amazing things with it.
I know of it but not much about it. I like the idea of it just not sure how useful it would be for someone like me (needs to be very user friendly) although some type of GIS is really what I need. If anyone ever draws a property boundary map with it I would be interested. Thanks for suggesting that and I may try to take a hard look at it. I really don’t need much more than the ability to put various symbols at certain coordinates on a background topo and draw certain line types (including a fence line —x--- between them) with bearings and distances along the line. A north arrow and a title and lots of notes and labels. Of course a curve occasionally. All on an area wide digital map. Thanks again. James
I have found simple answers to anything I have done with it by doing a Google search.
I haven’t “drawn” anything but I am sure it could be done.
I use it a lot to convert data to use in different software. I use it for LIDAR data to thin and export as a .shp
What format is your background topo? If it is geo referenced, I think this would be the ticket for you.
I’ll second this! Everything you create can be imported into CAD as well. There are plenty of us in here that can help.
James, Carlson Survey with the Intellicad engine is your best bet for surveying software and cad use. We started out in the late 70’s and early 80’s with C&G software when it worked in a DOS environment. We also got our first copy of AutoCAD about 1982 (R3). We’ve used both and in the early 90’s C&G could run inside AutoCAD. Carlson bought out C&G in about 2010. The C&G routines are still available as well as Carlson and runs in Intellicad.
It’s great software and easy to learn even for novices. They have great support… I’ve even called on a Sunday when an update crashed. They got me up and running in about 1 hour. The Intellicad engine was built by the AutoCAD consortium and is just as good as a full blown seat of AutoCAD. The cost for a seat of Carlson Survey is pretty cheap at $1900.00. You can also install on another computer as backup.
You can import images pretty easy as long as there is the accompanying geo files. I do it almost every day. We also have Global Mapper and is great GIS software. We have the basic version with the LIDAR module. I think we paid $1900.00 for both modules. We had our county flown in 2008 with Photogrammetry and LIDAR. I use the data on about every project in Global Mapper and usually export the 2 foot contours and imagery into Carlson. Using the LIDAR, I really impress my clients and civil engineers by using this. All the data is referenced to the NSRS (National Spatial Reference) as well as all our surveys. The LIDAR data usually matches ground elevations <0.5’. I’ve even sold some of our data for preliminary site plans.
Get Carlson and Global Mapper, you won’t regret it.
Good stuff and couldn’t agree more if you want to spend a little money. I’ve been using Carlson products since 1999 including Survey and most recently Precision 3D Topo for editing point clouds but our mainstay is Carlson Civil. Kind of a cross between Survey and Autodesk Civil3D.
I tested global mapper with a 30-day free trial. Nice software more than I need.
QGIS and what I have from Trimble gets me by fine thank you. Again I’m not truly doing survey work.
By the way Jim please I’ve never been that formal
Thanks Jp. I was just thinking of the USGS topo quadrangles but there must be something better maybe with better resolution and scale. Or photos may be an option. I don’t know much about it but would like to learn. I’m happy to hear all your suggestions.
Thanks Michael. I appreciate your suggestions and help.
Well, one thing would be a drone map. 
Especially if you are doing large parcels.
Bryan thanks. I know I should have been using and learning Autocad, Carlson and others a long time ago but they always seemed like more than I needed. I know you are giving me the best advice and I will take a closer look at those. I’m not in too much hurry because I am mostly retired but have a few projects I would like to get done. Glad to know you guys are here.
Michael right now I don’t think it would be feasible for me to get into drone mapping although I can dream about it and hope to learn. Thank you.
For sure it’s not for everyone but it sounds like a pretty easy boost for what you are doing. Definitely not as hard or expensive as people think for those types of use cases, especially since you already have the GNSS gear. We’re here whenever you’re ready!
I can most definitely recommend QGIS. It’s not too hard to learn although generally, without prior GIS experience, there is a lot of basics to cover before someone can become proficient. But to illustrate, provided one had the data already, making a map/plan of what you described would take a good user somewhere around 30 minutes.
If you want one on one help, I’d be glad to give some of my time over zoom/teams/whatever if it helps promote open software.
Thanks Gabriel for the kind offer. That’s encouraging but I am not that far along yet. I will be taking a good look at QGIS and may contact you at some point.
Thanks Michael!
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