Eric Colburn, PLS

Spring's Peeptoad

I don’t usually write very much in these Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundups, but it’s useful to stop what you’re doing every once and awhile to reflect. The week that was is over, but the chest cold that is, remains.

In my reflections on this past week, I’ve noticed the following three areas of business and professional importance:

1. Going Solo Leaves You No Backup When You’re Not Feeling Well

The first lesson of this week is that while going solo, as a professional land surveyor, is rewarding, being solo, by its very nature, leaves no backup for when you’re not feeling well. What I did learn this week, however, is that short bursts of focused productivity can still get a lot accomplished.

While I was not able to write very much this week, I was able to create some great courses for the Professional Land Surveyor Learning Center and a special Premium Member’s Video series. I’m putting the finishing touches on these today, and they’ll be available early this week.

2. AutoCAD Civil 3D Has A Lot Of Land Surveyors Baffled

Second, this week I had an AutoCAD Civil 3D epiphany on how best to consult with land surveyors switching over to Civil 3D. This (obvious) realization (slapping head, saying DUH) came to me while working with a land surveyor struggling to use AutoCAD Civil 3D in his professional practice. AutoCAD Civil 3D has a lot of land surveyors baffled, and I now know how to best get you using AutoCAD Civil 3D productively. The answer lies in a more holistic learning and setup approach and I’ll be publishing an article later this week (look for link here) with details on my Work With Me page, specifically on the AutoCAD Civil 3D page.

3. Time Waits For No One and Spring Arrives Early

Third, time marches on and waits for no one. Luckily, this Winter was extraordinarily nice and Spring came early his year. After last year’s brutal Winter and miserable Spring, the mild Winter and early Spring temp’s are very welcome. I snapped the picture above of a Peeptoad I found the last week in a wooded upland swamp. I do not remember ever finding, or hearing, Peeptoads this early in the year.

While the last four months have been some of the worst in the Great Recession around these parts, I remain hopeful that business will pick up significantly this year. Hope springs eternal!

Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundups:

Because it’s been a slow week around here, here are a few week’s worth of roundup:

• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup March 11, 2012
• AutoCAD Civil 3D How To Trim Image to a Surface Border Video
• High-Definition Survey (HDS) Laser Scanning on Amtrak Video
• Land Surveying 911: Should I Pay For AutoCAD Civil 3D Training Or Try To Learn It On My Own?
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup March 4, 2012
• What Is The Major Challenge Facing Professional Land Surveyors Today?
• 3 Tools to Get Your Professional Land Surveying Business Paid Faster
• AutoCAD Civil 3D How To Insert Geo-Referenced Images Video
• New Leica Digicat 600i and 650i For Safe and Fast Location of Underground Services
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup February 26, 2012
• Topcon Introduces The PN-A5 GNSS Antenna
• AutoCAD Civil 3D How To Convert A 3D Polyline To A 2D Polyline Video
• Land Surveying 911: Which Land Surveyors Should I Layoff And Which Should I Keep?
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup February 19, 2012
• Hemisphere GPS and Carlson Software Establish Strategic Alliance
• Announcing New Land Surveying 911 Series for Professional and Business Solutions
• Eric D. Colburn, PLS Now Offering Virtual Consultation Services With Easy Online Appointment Scheduling
• Extract AutoCAD Civil 3D Surface Border Video
• Topcon OS Total Station Series Introduces Multiple Technologies
• Description Keys Are Unnecessary
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup February 12, 2012
• Congress Told LightSquared Network Would Cripple GPS Air Traffic Navigation System
• William J. Beitler, PLS Named Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors’ (PSLS) Surveyor of the Year
• Topcon Precision Ag TV Spot Video
• New Rugged Trimble Juno Series Puts GIS Field Work in Your Pocket
• Autodesk Technology Makeover Contest for Small Businesses
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup February 5, 2012
• LightSquared Causes Falcone’s Harbinger Hedge Fund 47% Loss in 2011
• Trimble MX8: Inside Look Video
• Create AutoCAD Civil 3D Parcels From Objects Video
• National Museum of Surveying: A Tour of the Only Museum of Its Kind Video
• Linkedin Poll: In 2012, What Is Your Land Surveying Company’s Employment Outlook?
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup January 29, 2012
• Create Survey Point Groups in AutoCAD Civil 3D Survey Databases Video
• NGS Developing GIS Tools and Datasets for Display and Analysis of Survey Data
• Carlson Software’s New Supervisor+GPS Tablet – aka The SuperG Video
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup January 22, 2012
• AutoCAD Civil 3D Set Survey Databases Working Folder Video
• MicroSurvey Software Acquired by Hexagon
• LizardTech Releases Free GeoViewer Application for iPad
• Premier Conference for Surveyors, Engineers, and Mapping Professionals Returns to San Diego
• Sokkia CX Total Station Series Sets New Standard for Performance and Security
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup January 15, 2012
• LightSquared Lets Loose Lowly Yowl of Government Bias, Collusion, and Conspiracy Theories
• New Century Software Releases Geometric Network Synchronizer
• Paul R. LeBaron, PLS, Promoted to Director of Land Surveying
• Esri ELA Supports Maryland’s Nationally Recognized GIS Program
• Professional Land Surveyor Weekly Roundup January 8, 2012
• UK Police Forces Embrace Leica Geosystems ScanStation C10 3D Laser Scanning
• More Bad News for LightSquared From Sprint and President Obama
• Esri Releases National Geographic World Basemap

Professional Land Surveyor Archive – Last 3 weeks:

• March 18, 2012–March 24, 2012
• March 11, 2012–March 17, 2012
• March 4, 2012–March 10, 2012