Hello everyone, and welcome to What's Up Wednesday.
New FME Release
I noticed that last week we released FME 2022.1.2 (build 22627). According to my information, the updates include:
- Snowflake Writer: multiple fixes and improvements, including Bulk writing support
- Transformer fixes: SQLCreator/SQLExecutor, DuplicateFilter, FeatureWriter, DatabaseJoiner, 2DGridAccumulator
- Format fixes: Revit, 12dXML, SpatiaLite, Cesium 3D, GTI Viewer
- ListSearcher: add a case-insensitive option
I don't think there is anything major in there, so before rushing to update - especially at the enterprise level - I suggest you check the change logs to see if there are specific items that affect you.
Incidentally, the FME Hub has already been updated to support this new build.
Knowledge Article Updates
I've started to get a handy automated message each week (thanks, Liz) that tells me which knowledge base articles have been updated. This week it is:
- FME Server Troubleshooting: Automations
- FME Server Troubleshooting: Resources
- Making Database and Web Connections Public
- Use PyCharm as FMEObjects Python IDE
- Useful commands for FME Server and Kubernetes
For example, the article about PyCharm (a Python IDE that can be used with FME Objects) was updated to remove all references to Python v2.7. It also appears to have used a newer version of PyCharm for the screenshots. The content now also covers how to set up your Python script itself to import the required modules, which is important when PyCharm is being used only as a test environment and the script will actually be run elsewhere.
I can't guarantee that every article update will be as comprehensive, but I'll pass them on anyway and you can check into them if the subjects are of interest.
Customer Stories
We've also got two new customer stories in the online gallery.
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service consists of 83 fire stations and 1,800 employees. Collecting and collating information on the ambulance system is vital in saving lives, but the previous system relied on cutting and pasting content into an Excel spreadsheet!
With FME Server, information can be automatically extracted and integrated into a region-wide report.
This project is a great example of how automation can reduce manual data entry - and the errors it introduces - and break down data silos to make data more available and transparent.
The Eglinton Crosstown West Extension is an engineering project that extends light rail in the Toronto area. The engineers, Arup, used FME to automate the process of taking CAD data and copying it to their internal GIS systems. It's an example of how FME has a great return on investment ($60,000, they estimate) but also ensures data quality through automated tests.
Partner News
The fire service project above was implemented in partnership with one of Safe's official partners, 1Spatial. In other news for them, I notice an update to their 1Integrate platform.
1Integrate appears to be a rule-based engine for automated data validation and cleaning. I don't know to what extent, but it certainly makes use of FME in some ways, as the linked article above mentions:
"Building upon 1Spatial’s close partnership with SAFE software, users can now combine the unique capabilities of 1Spatial’s rules engine with the extensive range of FME transformations and supported formats."
So for that reason alone, you might be interested in checking out that link.
In other partner news, Red Geographics "Transformer Friday" covered the GeometryValidator:
It's not listed yet, but I've got a joint webinar lined up with Hans from Red Geographics. We'll be talking about cartography and FME. So watch out for that, sometime in late November.
Finally, Avineon-Tensing is looking for an FME Specialist to join their team in the UK (the description says part of the London technology team, but hybrid-remote). Oliver Morris is the person who asked me to highlight this, so might have more information.
Other News
Conference keynote Susan Walsh has just published an article about her time in Vancouver.
Susan not only covers her talk on dirty data, but also her interview with Solutions Review. So click the link above and don't forget to hit the Subscribe button!
And if you haven't got time to watch all of the Solutions Review interviews, here's everyone's advice about FME in a single, short video.
Meanwhile, at Safe, we're very happy to have been recognized for the third consecutive year by Gartner on their Magic Quadrant for Data Integration Tools.
Three years! But you can guarantee that we won't be getting complacent and are working hard to keep up our high standard for FME.
Finally, if you're in the Winnipeg area, my colleague Dean and I will attend the Manitoba GIS User Group (MGUG) annual conference in October. Dean's going to be presenting on emerging tools for disaster management.
We hope to see you there.
Don't forget...
...to visit fme.ly/CommunityCafe - it's where you can find the community badge leaderboard, community feedback tools, and the FME City Guesser game.
I'm about 80% of the way towards making the City Guesser a fully automated, weekly game, with community badges for the winners and a new "longest streak" category.
So, you can't play it yet, but you can check out the scoreboard to see its new style and who would have won a longest streak contest at the UC.
If you can think of anything else to add to either the City Guesser or the Community Cafe, then please do let me know.