Computer Foundation has won MapStudio's tender, valued at just under R1 million, to position the company as the leading supplier of dynamic digital maps in the new millennium.

By mid-2000, MapStudio will begin to deliver a new range of products that will enable users to obtain up-to-the-minute maps of their immediate surroundings direct to their cellphone, PDA, laptop or any other device.

Computer Foundation will, over the next six months, upgrade MapStudio's database, the core of the new system, from the Clarke 1880 ellipsoid standard to the new GPS-compliant (global positioning systems) WGS84 Ellipsoid standard. MapStudio has also purchased the full suite of Computer Foundation's Autodesk software.

Wilhelm Herbst, Managing Director: Computer Foundation, explains: "GPS and cellphones has added another dimension to digital mapping systems. Basically, any device that has positioning functionality, such as a cellphone, can tell the mapping system where it is. The system is then able to send detailed maps back to the device. It is that simple."

Cliff Linton-Walls, Technical Director of MapStudio said, "The applications that Computer Foundation's Autodesk bring within reach are almost impossible to comprehend. We feel confident in predicting that users will be delighted with the new product range."

Another initial service will offer 'best route' planning, based on departure and destination information. Within the next 18 months, dynamic digital maps will become a standard feature with vehicle manufacturers.

Linton-Walls said, "I used the system on my laptop in Durban recently and it really was fantastic - I would never have spotted the off-ramp I wanted without the system showing me that it was hidden around a sharp bend."

Linton-Walls comments on MapStudio's close relationship with Computer Foundation. "We have worked together for many years. We awarded the contrat to Computer Foundation not only because the price was right but also because we respect their professionalism and expertise."

Government departments such as Roads and Transport and Nature Conservation, who are using similar systems, are already supplying MapStudio with information such as planned roadworks so that MapStudio will be able to update the digital maps daily. It is anticipated that Durban will be the first South African city on the dynamically digital map, with Pretoria and Johannesburg next in line.

Maps and other information can be viewed on MapStudio's website at www.mapstudio.co.za and you can e-mail technical corrections to www.research@mapstudio.co.za

Computer Foundation

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