Education and Where to Go for More Information Take these valuable land surveying and geospatial related links to work with you.

SURVEYING SCHOOLS, COLLEGES AND TRAINING

http://www.cinstate.cc.oh.us
Cincinnati State Technical & Community College - Engineering Technologies

http://www.etsu.edu/scitech/gggs
East Tennessee State University - Surveying and Mapping Science Program

http://www.tech.mtu.edu/
Michigan Technology University - Surveying Program

http://www-ec.njit.edu/surveying/surveying.html
New Jersey Institute of Technology - Surveying Engineering and Technology Program

http://www-ceg.eng.ohio-state.edu
The Ohio State University - Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Geodetic Science

http://www.oit.edu/eit/sur
Oregon Institute of Technology - Surveying Program

http://surveying.wb.psu.edu
Penn State Wilkes-Barre - College of Engineering and Surveying Program

http://www.purdue.edu/odos/srbank/sreng.htm
Purdue University - School of Civil Engineering

http://rangerschool.esf.edu
Suny - ESF Ranger School

http://www.sci.tamucc.edu/gis
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi - Dept. of Computers & Mathematics

http://ses.uwyo.edu/occc/degree.html
University of Wyoming - Civil and Architectural Engineering

http://www.sur.ufl.edu/gsa

SURVEYING EDUCATION SCHOOLS

• Alfred State College

• ASCE Distance Learning

• Asheville-Buncombe Technical College

• Auburn University Distance Learning

• Austin Community College

• Bates Technical College

• Bellingham Technical College

• California State Polytechnic University

• California State University - Fresno

• Central Piedmont Community College

• Cincinnati State Technical College

• College of the Canyons

• Columbus State Community College

• Community College of Baltimore County

• East Tennessee State University

• Essex County College

• Evergreen Valley College

• Ferris State University

• FIG Surveying Education Database

• Flathead Valley Community College

• Glenville State College

• Louisiana State University

• Macomb Community College

• Metropolitan State College of Denver

• MSCD Distance Learning

• Michigan Technological University

• Michigan Tech. Distance Learning

• Montgomery College

• Murray State University

• New Hampshire Community Technical College

• New Jersey Institute of Technology

• New Mexico State University

• Nicolet Area Technical College

• Ohio State University

• Oklahoma State University - Oklahoma City

• Old Dominion University

• Oregon Institute of Technology

• Oregon State University

• Palomar College

• Paul Smith's College

• Peninsula College

• Penn State University - Wilkes-Barre

• Pennsylvania College of Technology

• Phoenix College

• Purdue University

• Red Vector

• Renton Technical College

• Sacramento City College

• San Antonio College

• Sandhills Community College

• San Jacinto College

• Santa Rosa Junior College

• Santiago Canyon College

• Southern Illinois University

• Southern Polytechnic State University

• Southwest Missouri State University

• Stark State College

• Texas A&M - Corpus Christi

• Texas State Technical College (Waco)

• Thomas Edison State College

• Towson University

• Troy State University

• Tyler Junior College

• University of Alaska - Anchorage

• University of Arkansas - Little Rock

• University of Arkansas - Fayetteville

• University of Arkansas - Monticello

• University of California - Riverside

• University of Florida

• University of Houston

• University of Maine

• University of Texas at Tyler

• University of Wisconsin- Madison

• University of Wyoming Outreach

• Vincennes University

• Wake Technical Community College

• Westwood College of Technology

EDUCATION IN LAND SURVEYING

Education in Surveying: Why Go to College?
In the formal surveying area, it is important to have core mathematical skills such as algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus.
This article appeared in the November 2004 issue of Professional Surveyor.

Land Surveying Scholarships Available 

Colleges and Universities Offering Land Surveying Programs 

ABET Accredited Surveying/Geomatics Programs

ONLINE SCHOOLS FOR CERTIFICATION

Auburn University

• 2007 National Readjustment of the North American Datum 1983 
• ALTA/ACSM Land Title Survey (V06E hrs changed 04-01-07)
• Colonial Land System and the Building of America
• Construction Surveying
• Geodesy for Engineers and Surveyors
• History of Surveying Instruments: Impact and Accuracy
• History of the Government Land Office 
• Improving Surveying Field Procedures using the Total Station
• Improving Surveying Field Procedures using the Total Station
• Land Surveying Ethics - Mississippi
• Professional Ethics for the Kentucky Land Surveyor
• Professional Ethics for the Land Surveyor
• Rectangular Land System: Subdivision of Public Lands
• Role of Engineers and Surveyors in Geographic Information Systems 
• Soils for Pavements 
• Standards of Practice for Surveying in Alabama
• State Plane Coordinates
• Surveying with GPS (V05D hrs changed 05-01-07)
• Understanding Boundary Law - Case Law and Principles of Surveying Law
• Vertical Datums and Leveling

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

http://www.cinstate.cc.oh.us
Cincinnati State Technical & Community College - Engineering Technologies

http://www.etsu.edu/scitech/gggs
East Tennessee State University - Surveying and Mapping Science Program

http://www.tech.mtu.edu/
Michigan Technology University - Surveying Program

http://www-ec.njit.edu/surveying/surveying.html
New Jersey Institute of Technology - Surveying Engineering and Technology Program

http://www-ceg.eng.ohio-state.edu
The Ohio State University - Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Geodetic Science

http://www.oit.edu/eit/sur
Oregon Institute of Technology - Surveying Program

http://surveying.wb.psu.edu
Penn State Wilkes-Barre - College of Engineering and Surveying Program

http://www.purdue.edu/odos/srbank/sreng.htm
Purdue University - School of Civil Engineering

http://rangerschool.esf.edu
Suny - ESF Ranger School

http://www.sci.tamucc.edu/gis
Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi - Dept. of Computers & Mathematics

http://ses.uwyo.edu/occc/degree.html
University of Wyoming - Civil and Architectural Engineering

http://www.sur.ufl.edu/gsa
University of Folorida - Geomatica Student Association

LAND SURVEYING HISTORY

LEGAL RESEARCH

Vermont Statutes
http://www.leg.state.us/statutes/statutes2.html

VT Supreme Court Opinions
http://www.dol.state.vt.us/www_root/000000/html/supct.html(VT Reports 161-169)

US Supreme Court Opinions
http://www.supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/index.html(1990 to Present)

Cornell Law Library
http://www.law.cornell.edu

Self Help Law
http://www.nolo.com

Self Help Law
http://www.lectlaw.com

VT Bar Association
http://www.vtbar.org

VT Law School
http://www.vermontlaw.edu

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

Padding are passed to p, h1 and h3.

• Occupational Outlook Surveyors, Technicians — Surveyors, Cartographers, Photogrammetrists, and Surveying Technicians
• World's Most Popular GPS Information Resource— Mostly for consumer grade gps users
• Surveying Units and Terms — list of units of measure, surveying terms, surveyors' slang and abbreviations
• CIA World Factbook — provides national-level information on countries, territories, and dependencies, but not subnational administrative units within a country.
• Global Positioning System (GPS) Resources — GPS Resources
• Make your own Graph Paper
• FEMA Elevation Certificate and Instructions (pdf format) — Download the revised FEMA Elevation Certificate - mandatory January 01, 2007
• FEMA Elevation Certificate (doc format) — Download the revised FEMA Elevation Certificate - mandatory January 01, 2007
• NGS Datasheet Page — Datasheets, ShapeFiles, Tidal Benchmarks, Recovery Sheets… The Source
• Partial Index to Articles Authored or Co-Authored by Knud E. Hermansen — Aticles by Knud hermansen covering a variety of subjects, all of value to the practicing Land Surveyor
• Set Up a Wireless Network in a Small Office — Microsoft's excellent tutorial on Wireless Network Setup
• NGS Manual- State Plane Coordinate System 1983 — The Official NGS Document in pdf format
• BLM 1973 Surveying Manual — If you don't have a hard copy of this manual, read or download a pdf copy here
• Restoration of Lost or Obliterated Corners and Subdivision of Sections — A retyped copy of the original document in pdf format.. see disclaimer
• Virtual Museum of Surveying — consists of exhibits which cover a variety of topics related to surveying history.
• Museum of Surveying — The Museum of Surveying is the only museum in North America dedicated solely to the surveying and mapping profession.
• Land Surveyor Rules & Regulations — Compiled by Land Surveyors Reference Page - very good reference
• MIT Free Online Courses — Free Surveying, Engineering, Math and Science Classes by MIT
• POB - rpls.com — The first and the best online forum for Professional Land Surveyors
• Surveying and Mediation: New Opportunities in an Old Role — Jerry D. Taylor, P.S., J.D.
• A collection of geodesy and related resources— Michael R. Craymer, Ph.D., Geodetic Survey Division, Geomatics Canada

UNITS OF MEASURE

• Acre - The (English) acre is a unit of area equal to 43,560 square feet, or 10 square chains, or 160 square poles. It derives from a plowing area that is 4 poles wide and a furlong (40 poles) long. A square mile is 640 acres. The Scottish acre is 1.27 English acres. The Irish acre is 1.6 English acres.
• Arpent - Unit of length and area used in France, Louisiana, and Canada. As a unit of length, approximately 191.8 feet (180 old French 'pied', or foot). The (square) arpent is a unit of area, approximately .845 acres, or 36,802 square feet.
• Chain - Unit of length usually understood to be Gunter's chain, but possibly variant by locale. See also Rathbone's chain. The name comes from the heavy metal chain of 100 links that was used by surveyors to measure property bounds.
• Colpa - Old Irish measure of land equal to that which can support a horse or cow for a year. Approximately an Irish acre of good land.
• Compass - One toise.
• Engineer's Chain - A 100 foot chaincontaining 100 links of one foot apiece.
• Furlong - Unit of length equal to 40 poles (220 yards). Its name derives from "furrow long", the length of a furrow that oxen can plow before they are rested and turned. See Gunter's chain.
• Ground - A unit of area equal to 2400 sq. ft., or 220 sq. meters, used in India.
• Gunter's Chain - Unit of length equal to 66 feet, or 4 poles. Developed by English polymath Edmund Gunter early in the 1600's, the standard measuring chain revolutionized surveying. Gunter's chain was 22 yards long, one tenth of a furlong, a common unit of length in the old days. An area one chain wide by ten chains long was exactly an acre. In 1595 Queen Elizabeth I had the mile redefined from the old Roman value of 5000 feet to 5280 feet in order for it to be an even number of furlongs. A mile is 80 chains.
• Hectare - Metric unit of area equal to 10,000 square meters, or 2.471 acres, or 107,639 square feet.
• Hide - A very old English unit of area, a hide was of variable size depending on locale and the quality of the land. It was the amount of land to support a family, and ranged from 60 to 180 acres. After the Norman conquest in 1066 it became standardized at around 120 acres.
• Hundred - An adminstrative area larger than a village and smaller than a county. In England it was 100 hides in size, and the term was used for early settlements in Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware.
• Labor - The labor is a unit of area used in Mexico and Texas. In Texas it equals 177.14 acres (or 1 million square varas).
• League (legua) - Unit of area used in the southwest U.S., equal to 25 labors, or 4428 acres (Texas), or 4439 acres (California). Also, a unit of length-- approximately three miles.
• Link - Unit of length equal to 1/100 chain (7.92 inches).
• Morgen - Unit of area equal to about .6309 acres. It was used in Germany, Holland and South Africa, and was derived from the German word Morgen ("morning"). It represented the amount of land that could be plowed in a morning.
• Out - An 'out' was ten chains. When counting out long lines, the chain carriers would put a stake at the end of a chain, move the chain and put a stake at the end, and so on until they ran "out" of ten stakes.
• Perch - See pole .
• Point - A point of the compass. There are four cardinal points (North, South, East, West), and 28 others yielding 32 points of 11.25 degrees each. A survey line's direction could be described as a compass point, as in "NNE" (north northeast). To improve precision, the points would be further subdivided into halves or quarters as necessary, for example, "NE by North, one quarter point North". In some areas, "and by" meant one half point, as in "NE and by North".
• Pole - Unit of length and area. Also known as a perch or rod. As a unit of length, equal to 16.5 feet. A mile is 320 poles. As a unit of area, equal to a square with sides one pole long. An acre is 160 square poles. It was common to see an area referred to as "87 acres, 112 poles", meaning 87 and 112/160 acres.
• Pueblo - A Spanish grant of less than 1000 acres.
• Rancho - A Spanish grant of more than 1000 acres.
• Rathbone's Chain - A measuring chain two poles, or 33 feet, in length.
• Rod - See pole
• Rood - Unit of area usually equal to 1/4 acre.
• Toise - Traditional French unit of length equal to 6 old French 'pieds' or feet, or 6.4 English feet.
• Vara - Unit of length (the "Spanish yard") used in the U.S. southwest. The vara is used throughout the Spanish speaking world and has values around 33 inches, depending on locale. The legal value in Texas was set to 33 1/3 inches early in the 1900's.
• Virgate - An old English unit of area, equal to one quarter of a hide. The amount of land needed to support a person.

SURVEYORS' SLANG

• Balls - Slang for numeric .00, as in 4-balls (4.00)
• Beep - Verb. To use a magnetic detector to look for iron pipe, etc.
• Boot - To raise the levels rod some number of inches so as to be visible to the instrument man, e.g. "Boot 6!" means "raise it 6 inches."
• Blue topping - In road or grading work the surveyor sets stakes and paints their tops blue to represent the required elevation. Graders then work to just cover the blue tops of the stakes.
• Bug - To use a magnetic locator to search for an iron pipe.
• Bullseye - Zero degrees of inclination.
• Burn - See shoot
• Burn one - Measure from the one foot mark on the tape rather than from the end of the tape in order to increase the accuracy of the measurement.
• Cut line - To clear vegetation for a line of sight between two survey control points.
• Double nickel - Slang for .

Now Add Subject Tags with Click of a Mouse

This week, Justin made it even easier to add subject tags to your videos when you upload them or embed them from Youtube.  The next time you share a video on Land Surveyors United, you will see a dropdown feature under the tags field.  Simply select one of the pre-installed tags from the drop-down list and it will be added automagically to your video and thus making the video more optimized for searches from other surveyors on the network.  More tags will be added over time for your convenience.  This new way to easily add tags to your video content on the network should be really helpful when submitting your evidence in Land Surveyors University in the upcoming week.

Further Reading on Tagging:

Surveyors' Guide to Content Tagging

Surveyor-Centric Shopping

Cyber Monday is all about savings online and getting those holiday gifts early.  On the new Land Surveyors United Quick Shop you will find some amazing deals on just about anything a land surveyor might want in his/her life. Shop for anything from insect repellent to laptops and web-cams on this custom affiliate store filled with hand-picked items from all categories.  All items on the store have been selected specifically with surveyors in mind. You'll discover both new and used items for sale through the Amazon cart and enjoy 1-Click checkout.  

A Few Items That Caught Our Eye

Electronics- Gadgets built for surveyors on the go

Knives and Axes- Must haves for clearing the rough

Surveyor Stuff- Random items for surveyors who appreciate humor and love their job

Webcams- Go live and broadcast to the industry with these handy gadgets

Work Truck- Stuff for the surveyor's work truck

Take advantage of these terrific deals on items you'll be purchasing for the holidays anyway and help out the network at the same time!  All proceeds from the store will go right back into developement and maintenance costs on Land Surveyors United Network.  If you'd rather make a donation to the network and help with the costs of running the greatest surveyors network in the world, we'd be much appreciative of that as well.

Using Chat Feature on Mobile Devices

While Justin finishes putting the final touches on the Android App for the network, I wanted to share a discovery that I made yesterday.  You can easily stay connected with your fellow land surveyors on the network chat and Surveyor Sky lounge on ANY mobile device simply by signing into the network on your phone and going to this page on the network:

http://landsurveyorsunited.com/chat

When you're in the field, connection to your fellow surveyors could be vital to sharing solutions to common problems. I'd advise logging in from your mobile device and choosing it to remember your password for quick access.  Bookmark the network chat page and stay connected all day from anywhere.  You never know when someone on the network might need your advise as well.

Related Notes:

LSU Mobile App for iPhone Ready for Download

Now Search LSU Network With Your Voice

Updates To LSU Status Bar 

The new status update feature on the Land Surveyors United home page (and top of your profile) is a huge improvement to the flow of the network.  This feature allows you to leave your status (of course), simultaneously send an update to twitter and facebook and watch your participation happen in real time!

Here are a couple of other things you can do with the new status update feature:

Comment Inline- When one of your fellow members makes a remark or starts a discussion forum, simply click on "Comment" or "favorite" right inside the status update module.  If you click comment, you'll be able to leave your reply right there without having to leave the page.

Share links- If you have a link you'd like to share with the network, simply paste the URL into the update field..it will then ask you if you'd like to shorted the url.  If you click yes, it will shorten the URL so that you have all the room you need to continue explaining what that link is about.

Facebook/Twitter Sync- Who wants to waste time visiting all of the social media sites just to get the words out?  Not me!  I  sync my twitter account and facebook account with my status update so it goes everywhere at the same time.

Next week when the highly anticipated Android and Iphone versions of the network are released, this will make your life in the field as a surveyor a lot more fun and most importantly, you will be able to both find support and help other surveyors in real-time, from ANYWHERE!

Update!

You can now upload your surveying photos, videos, add events, start discussions and even submit articles right  through the status update interface on the home page.

You may not know this, but in addition to the jobs feeds pages and our dedicated surveying jobs board, there is another helpful resource for finding available jobs in land surveying- namely, the Surveying Jobs page on Facebook!

If you are currently in search of work, the first guy you need to talk to is the Surveying Jobber, your fellow member on Land Surveyors United.  He runs the Surveying Jobs page on facebook.  Drop a comment on his wall and tell him where you are searching and keep an eye on his page for streaming jobs from the areas you are searching in.  Good Luck Surveyors!

Surveying State Boards for United States Quick Links

New Google Chrome Theme for Land Surveyors University

Back in February of 2011, I created some customized Google Chrome Themes to enhance your browser, but have become dissatisfied and bored with way they look. I imagine many of you have as well, so I made newer, cleaner looking theme for you to switch out if you like. You can get the theme for free here on the official Chrome App Store.

Download, Install and Preview Land Surveyors University Theme Here

or simply skip the preview and install the newer, cleaner theme here:

How to Add this Theme to Your Chrome Browser

Themes change the skin of Google Chrome, to give the browser more style and flair.  More third-party themes are available in the Chrome Web Store. Once you find a theme you like, install it to try it out.

Note:Currently, the Chrome Web Store is available to people using the latest version of Chrome or Chrome OS in the U.S

Its free!  Enjoy!   Be sure to tell your other land surveying buddies to give it a whirl...i may create a few more color combinations in the future and when I do, ill post them in the comments below for more options

A few months back, we added an EXPLORE page to the network to make it easier to find what you are looking for on Land Surveyors United. Today, Justin has rolled out a new improvement to site-wide search, allowing you to now search with your voice!

Search Land Surveyors United Network with Your Voice!

Anywhere you see a search box (for example on Base Page or Explore Page) which looks like this, you can simply search with Speech Input.  In other words, this is an alternate form of input where you can just simply click the microphone icon, speak into the microphone attached to your computer or phone instead of typing.  Pretty Cool huh!

Use this in the field!  We are one step closer to having the entire network accessible from anywhere, on any device.

Coming Soon!

Soon you will be able to comment on discussions, blogs, photos and videos using your voice.  Stay tuned for this update!

NOTE: Currently, only Google Chrome supports the HTML speech input API and thus, the microphone icon will only be visible to users who are accessing your site through Chrome. If they are using a different browser, they’ll see the standard search box.

Group forums are for in depth discussions about a particular surveying topic, type of equipment or geographical location. Search for and join group forums based on your location and topics which interest you and get quick feedback from your fellow members who share the same interests when you start a new discussion. Our general interest network forum can be found here.

USA Forums and Hubs

Quickly Find a Surveying Support Group Based On Your Interests

Below you will find a quick way to navigate between Land Surveyors United Support Groups based on Location, Equipment Manufacturer or by Theme and/or Topic:

For a more in depth look at what we are hoping to accomplish with Groups, take a look at this page which explains the idea behind using groups for category focus in our community.

The new Land Surveyors United app for iPhone is finally ready for download for free on the iTunes App Store. Enjoy mobile support for land surveying from anywhere using the new and improved interface, connecting you with groups, forums, latest activity, photos and videos. Download Now
NOTE: We will soon be releasing the Android version of LSU Mobile within the next few weeks.  We will continue to always support the original Land Surveyors United Mobile in the meantime.

Update for all of our hard working surveyors out there who might use Kindle devices in their spare time.  Justin has now enabled an all new Kindle version or the network blogs and forums, which can be downloaded from the following pages on Amazon.

Subscribe to the Forum on your Kindle Here

Subscribe to the Network Blog on your Kindle Here

If you are looking to buy a Kindle, you can pick one up in our Quick Shop

Take a Surveying Support Page With you To The Field!

If you look in the right sidebar of any page on Land Surveyors United, you will see a QR (Quick Response) bar code which can be scanned with any smartphone and taken with you into the field.  To give it a try, take out your phone and scan the following code with your camera.

How To Use QR Codes for Support

If you find a discussion or tutorial to be especially helpful, simply scan your mobile phone camera over the QR Code in the sidebar and the URL of that exact webpage will automatically be made portable for you and transfer to your phone.  Not only that, it will automatically translate the page into your native language (if other than English).

Download QR Code Readers

As well, there are many sources for free QR Code Readers for your smart phone.

• http://www.i-nigma.com/Downloadi-nigmaReader.html
• http://reader.kaywa.com/
• http://get.neoreader.com
• http://nds1.nokia.com//NOKIA_COM_1/Microsites/BetaLabs/applications...
• http://www.beetagg.com/supportedphones/
• http://code.google.com/p/zxing/wiki/GetTheReader

How To Scan a QR Code

More Reading on QR Codes:

QR Codes: Paper-Based Hyperlinks May Change Surveying One Day Soon

The art of land surveying

there once was a surveyor with nothing to say
he thought that his methods were the only way
and then one day he clapped and the industry collapsed
then he realized that surveying was not here to stay

then another surveyor came along and sang him a song
he recognized that his methods and practices were all wrong
if only he'd met other professionals and compared notes
he might not be out of a job for so long

both of these guys had the same exact job
but the second guy saw the first guy's work to be slob
"we can help each other" he said "or we'll all end up dead"
there's no use in remaining a bump on a log

How to Easily Edit Your Content on LSU

This is a quick tip for editing your existing content shared on Land Surveyors United.  Let's say for example that you have a video that you uploaded or embedded from youtube, but you forgot to add tags or a geolocation.  After publishing the item it has been given a URL something like this:

http://landsurveyorsunited.com/video/promark-3-initial-setup-by-ashtech

Now if you simply attach  /edit to the end of this URL you will be taken to the page where you can edit all of the information including description, title, geolocation,subject tags, etc.  The URL would look like this:

http://landsurveyorsunited.com/video/promark-3-initial-setup-by-ashtech/edit

Remember that you can only edit the content that you add yourself to the network and that subject tags are very important!   This quick tip can be used on ANY TYPE of content you add to Land Surveyors United, including photos, forum posts, blog posts, etc.  So let's all do our best to make our content that we share both helpful and findable by our fellow surveyors on the network, by editing our content to be very descriptive and topic oriented.

A Few Related Tips:

Update: Search Surveying Articles by Tag

Surveying Video Tagging Made Easy

Surveying How-to and Tutorial Quick Links

Changing the Game and How You Can Play

Land Surveyors United is a HUGE repository of information and discussion and at times it may be hard to see ourselves within this ocean of information.  But I'm here to tell you that without you, there would be no waves.  I'm gonna show you how to surf this network. What I am about to tell you will change the ways you communicate online, as a professional land surveyor.

Here is What I've Discovered

This is my network as much as it is yours and other who share our mind frame and skillsets.  As far as I can tell, this website will not be going away anytime in my lifetime.  It is here to stay and build upon. Your Land Surveyors United profile is a gateway to both a more pleasurable workday both online and in the field -but more importantly it serves as a living resume for your career as a professional land surveyor.  I'm starting to see all of the different ways that a surveyor can use their profile to document past/present experiences, learn new techniques while teaching others and pretty much become an all around better surveyor.  I want to point out a few things that I've discovered about my profile that you might have overlooked or may just haven't fully realized yet.Briefly, you can do the following:

• Share documents with other surveyors or between the field and the office
• Showcase your projects and document progress
• Handle ALL of your social media networking simultaneously from one single place
• Carry on meaningful relationships with other surveyors with your exact same interests
• Demonstrate and even promote what those interests are using groups
• Add your own personal style to your professional career as a land surveyor..

the list goes on..

Status Updates Make the World Turn

On facebook and twitter, you might see your status update as just a fun (or stupid) way to inform your friends about your latest "ureka" but on LSU, status updates mean business, literally.  Updating your status from LSU home page or right from inside your profile is easy.  You get 140 characters to express exactly what you want (I hear that in near future this limit will be lifted).  What you want to do here is  say something short and sweet like "Just got finished cutting 3 miles of line for shopping mall a project in Tulsa Oklahoma"  or " calibrating my old Topcon GPT-3000 and preparing for a hard days work in Florida swamp."  By checking the boxes for twitter and/or facebook, you can update all three at the same time.....but here's the real value: You're saying something meaningful about yourself as a surveyor and about your company.  Twitter and Facebook are real time, guys!  This means if you are trying to promote your services as a surveyor and get more business, mentioning your company and location will a) instantly (as with Google real time search) put you at the top of search engines in real-time search and b) over time help you or your company rise to the top of search engines in your area.  If you're not interested in promoting yourself that's ok too!  Let the network know the types of work you do and/or the types of equipment you use...there are other surveyors in our GLOBAL network who may just need a little advice from you.  Chances are, you may need advice in the future and when you run a search, you'll be glad that your fellow surveyor updated his status with your keywords, once upon a time.

Customize Your Profile...Don't be Afraid.

Many of you in the past may have customized your profile using the old clunky editor on LSU.  That was before my time on the network.  However, Justin recently (like yesterday) rolled out the whole new design editor for your profile which allows infinite customizations and an easy to use, slick interface.  You can make your profile match your branding if you own a surveying company or you can simply use your favorite colors and a photo from the field.

Do you have a Blog or Website Which Features Updated Content?

If you have a blog and public calender or say, a newsletter which is updated regularly, chances are it can be or is syndicated using RSS.  Now, on the left hand side of your profile there is a module for you to import your latest updates, simply by placing the RSS feed URL into that field.  Simply go to your site, rightclick on the RSS feed icon, "copy link url" and paste it in there.  Set it and forget it!  From that point forward, updating your website will also update your latest news on your LSU profile.  It won't delete anything from your site, of course, it is simply free traffic for you.  Updating your status regularly helps with getting traffic to your profile so that visitors can see your feed and check out your website.  Many online directories charge upwards of $40-95 dollars per month for this....but thanks to Land Surveyors United, this is a free service for land surveyors.  Take advantage of it.

Wanna learn more about RSS, join the group i started!

Groups Might Have Once Seemed Stupid, But Now They're Changing EVERYTHING

I have to admit it, I once thought the whole support groups idea was somewhat pointless until just yesterday. And I have to hand it to LSU Justin...there has always been a method to his madness and what I'm about to tell you may change your mind too. 

So, we've all joined a group or two (or twenty) on LSU and we know that starting a discussion in that group will provide a more focused set of responses, but did you know that you can now also create whole pages related to that group? At first you might think to yourself "Big Deal" but I'm here to tell you that it is in fact a big deal!  Imagine this: You're a land surveyor with a whole bunch of tutorial type videos documenting your expertise with Sokkia total stations, which you have uploaded or still have on your harddrive but have no idea what to do with them.  Well, why not add a page to the Sokkia Support Group or Surveying How-to Group and group those videos together into a "Everything you need to know when working with a Sokkia Total Station" and make that THE authority page on your subject, like someone has done here.  Or, say you are part of the Oklahoma Land Surveyors group and you have some advise and tips for students who plan to take the licensing exam in OK.  Simply make a new page in that group and discuss it at length.  You can use pages for just about anything, provided they are somehow relevant to the group you post them in. 

And speaking of relevance....

Tagging Makes You Relevant

When you upload a photo or video (or embed a video) to the network, put special attention in the "tags" that you use to describe that media content.  Why?  because now there is something else very impressive happening with groups, tagged media on the network automatically becomes imported into the related group, provided it is tagged correctly.  Take for example the Sokkia group again.  Now when you look on the group page you will see that all of the videos from our library which have the tag "sokkia" will automatically show up in the middle portion of that group.  For members who are seeking help or looking to offer advise on a Sokkia related subject, this is a HUGE help, because in the event that they are looking for something not discussed in that group's forum, they have the option of watching a video or tutorial on the subject.  Although all of the groups have yet to be converted i've been told that by the end of next week all groups on LSU will have native Land Surveyors United media running through them. When I say native, I mean you, no matter where you are.  Add your photos and videos and TAG,TAG,TAG!  With a little practice you'll be able to upload one video and tag is with such relevance that it shows up in a whole bunch of groups! Basically, keep this in mind:

• Every tag you add to anything on LSU creates a RSS feed for that tag (even if you misspell it!)
• A feed for a given tag can be syndicated anywhere, both internally and outside of LSU
• Tagging your content that you add carefully insures that your content will be correctly grouped and categorized with other similar content, thus making it easier to find.
• Clicking on any tag will take you to a new page with all of the content tagged with same word or phrase
• Groups have been built in order for the conceptual aspects of land surveying to have a place to be discussed at length in a categorical and hierarchical fashion

Thanks for taking the time to read this note.  I am excited for all of the new features and i'm hoping that the surveying community at large will see the value in these gifts which have been given to us to use.  We truly can become a more United and cohesive group of professionals if we learn to use these tools together and make our voices heard.  Feel free to reach out and tell me about yourself and ask me any questions which you have.  I'm just like you....learning how to get by and Land Surveyors United has certainly breathed new life into the surveyor that I once was...

Into the future we go...