Recovery Photos

[ArtMan]

A recent post in the Benchmark forum brings up the question of photos, using DE5174 as an example of a datasheet that has links to online photographs of the mark.

 

I wonder if one of our favorite NGSocrats can give us a status report.

 

My recollection is that there were efforts (or at least plans) underway to enable uploading of photos at the same time one makes an online recovery report. Any progress to report?

 

Are photos that are being mailed in (e-mail or on CD) to Deb actually being posted online and linked with datasheets yet? I think a lot of us are sitting on a lot of photos that will require reformatting — the recommended image size is larger than Geocaching will accept — or renaming before submitting. Frankly, this is a very low priority project for me until I know that the photos are actually being posted.

 

Have there been any recent changes in the document ("REQUIREMENTS FOR DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF SURVEY CONTROL," ver. 12, 2003) that describes photo requirements? Are any planned? For example, the requirement that the photo include a "temporary sign" at the mark in photos other than closeups: can this be satisfied by other indication of the position of the mark (digitally-added arrow or box, or digitally-added caption) ... and I question whether such a sign is needed at all when the location of the mark is unambiguous, especially in the eye-level shot (p.5) that is supposed to show an area of only a meter or so. Or are the "requirements" really only recommendations?

 

Also, the file name (p.7) is to include the designation, but the file name is to be a maximum of 30 characters. The document should indicate the procedure to be used when a long designation plus other required info won't fit within that limit.

 

Are photos accepted/wanted for reference and azimuth marks, or just the 'main' station marker?

 

I don't believe that the document addresses intersection stations. Do you want photos of them?

 

Your fellow -crat,

-ArtMan-

Edited October 15, 2005 by ArtMan

[joegeodesist]

Thank you for your patience.

 

efforts (or at least plans) underway to enable uploading of photos at the same time one makes an online recovery report. Any progress to report?

Some slow progress; NGS is still deciding how to effectively harvest and archive these images. DRAFT harvesting websites are being tested internally.

 

Are photos that are being mailed in (e-mail or on CD) to Deb actually being posted online and linked with datasheets yet?

There is a large backlog; if you can hold off until the website arrives it will be less painful for everyone.

 

Have there been any recent changes in the document ("REQUIREMENTS FOR DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF SURVEY CONTROL," ver. 12, 2003) that describes photo requirements? Are any planned? . . . a "temporary sign" . . . can this be satisfied by . . . digitally-added arrow or box . . . are the "requirements" really only recommendations?

The latest version is 13B from 27 July 2005, not yet available on the web, not substantially improved from earlier versions. The document says "REQUIREMENTS" because it is written for contracted surveys. Many of the formatting hassles required by the document will be handled automatically by the website version.

 

Are photos accepted/wanted for reference and azimuth marks, or just the 'main' station marker? . . .  intersection stations?

Any station deserves a photo, but we want to concentrate on those valuable to surveyors (high accuracy or accessibility) so those old, hidden marks that geocachers prefer would fall to the bottom of our list. Use your judgement.

[+m&h]

We would draw the attention of those interested to AI3602, MAGNUSON, a datasheet with a photographs link. Comparing the photo with the datasheet shows that the stamping is not what the sheet says it is. The pictured disk, stamped MAGNUSON 1989 1990, is described in PID AI3604, MAGNUSON ECC. By the way, a couple of loggers on this site have posted clearer photos of the same disk.

 

It seems unlikely that both of these disks exist. NGS's INVERSE program puts the distance between the two sets of adjusted coordinates at 8.3 millimeters.

 

There are other problems with the datasheets for these two marks and a third, AI3603, and we're working up a memo for Cheryl Malone about them.