Another amazing month with team Mapsimise, and yet more research done. Will Cadell’s post popped up in my reading and it was very timely too - thanks to Will for this one:
I could not agree more that larger organisations have either had to invest large amounts in proprietary server-based systems, while some make do with a lack of functionality that might be required. My belief is that geospatial software is beginning to break through from the niche it once belonged to, to everyday commercial use with more and more organisations beginning to use the services offered by cloud vendors like Google, Amazon and Microsoft, along with what was once the industry brand names.
Here at Mapsimise we have decided to setup camp with Google for our geospatial and mapping services and camp our servers over at Microsoft Azure for now. After spending 21 years in the technology industry helping customer setup business applications, I truly believe that we are once again seeing a change in the way business people do business, and the way technology is used.
I’ve dubbed this the era of consumption mostly for a bit of fun, and I might be wrong, but we are seeing continued evidence that the days of buying or owning software even in the cloud as a service are beginning to change. I believe with the growth of social media and online tools; the next generation are expecting such tools to be free or have minimal cost, giving the ability to use many different applications that connect to different sources. You only need to look at the success of Slack to see that a well-connected offering gains real user adoption and loyalty.
The approach to hording or owning all your own data seems to be also something that is changing rapidly, and data owners are beginning to deliver data interfaces also known as (API’s) that can be used to connect data services together. You only need to see how the world has changed as the internet, web and all the cloud services and applications have delivered new ways to create data for use.
Mapsimise grasped this concept early on, and although we are providing a place to store uploaded data, we are also making a play for full connectivity from business systems, cloud-based data services and cloud-based databases.
One thing I have discussed with the team is that we will not be talking in gobbledygook, acronyms or industry standard jargon. Mapsimise will be designed to help solve the needs of our customers around the globe.
We know that the Mapsimise road trip (road map) is going to have some twists and turns, but the delivery of tools will bring a newer level of geospatial functionality that is very easy to use, so that business users can do their job and not have to face software and data challenges.
Bio – Alistair Dickinson CEO Mapsimise

After 21 years helping organisations with technology, I’ve seen and worked on many projects. As CEO of Mapsimise I’m still very hands on working with all team members and not sat in an office making spreadsheets and crunching numbers. I’m happy to work on the support desk, take calls and discuss how our tools and technology can help businesses like yours. You can find me on Linkedin, Twitter or email me directly. I’m very jeans and t-shirts and still wear Nike Air trainers to the office which I’m told is cool…