The RTK Cooperative Network

Announcements

Owned by members, managed by Western Data Systems

04/08/11 - New Network

The rumors and talk of the new network are true. The software and hardware has been purchased and installed. Two new servers are online and running.

The new network software is called VRS3Net. It will offer a number of user-level features, including:

• The ability to see the live state of the network at any time via a public website.

• Download of cors station data from the same website (no more FTP), with on-the-fly conversion to any format you choose.

• Download of virtual station data (just enter your coordinates!)

• DGPS service from all reference stations, not just a select few.

• Automated email reminders when a subscription is due for renewal.

• Customized usage reports on demand.

• The ability to directly look-up your network logins/passwords.

• A significantly shortened mountpoint list; single base users will no longer have to figure out which station is closest – the network will determine this for you!

• Support for CMRx.

To allow for all this, network logins & passwords will now be organized in a different way. EVERY network member company will need to create at least one account on the new above-mentioned website, at the RTK logins and passwords will be connected to these accounts. Here’s how it will work, using the fictional company, XYZ Surveying:

• A representative of XYZ will connect to the new website, and set-up a personal account. This will register both him and his company.

• This representative will be required to enter an email address. This email address will become his website login name. He may choose his password.

• Once registered and approved, I will add any existing or requested RTK network logins & passwords to his website login account. Thus, he will be able to see them whenever he chooses – along with whether they are currently activated and their activation and expiration dates.

• Additional users for XYZ Surveying may register and request network logins & passwords. They will have access to the logins & passwords under their user account, though XYZ may request that any or all of their website users be designated as company admins, giving them access to the data associated with ALL of their user accounts. This also assures that XYZ will not lose access to any of their data due to staff changes.

Note that this new method of password organization IS NOT OPTIONAL, but is a hard requirement of the new software. Thus, EVERY NETWORK MEMBER COMPANY MUST REGISTER WITH THE NEW WEBSITE, otherwise, they will no longer be able to log on to the new RTK network once it goes live.

The current plan is to “throw the switch” sometime in June of this year. For this to go smoothly and expeditiously, it will be necessary that everyone begin creating accounts in advance.
Please go the temporary website, http://coop.txrtk.com, and click the “Register” link at left. A few notes about the process:

• “District” means STATE.

• Disregard the “GSM phone Number for TNC” field. This is for overseas users.

• Fill in ALL other fields, though your HOME number is optional.

• Fill in the “Organization” field with your complete company name. For example, we at WDS would spell out, “Western Data Systems.”

• Your user name MUST be your email address, no exceptions. Accounts created with anything else will be edited to correct for this.

• The Captcha security code at the end of registration is case-sensitive.

• The database will not allow for duplicate user names.

• Whether registered/logged-in or not, anyone may log into the website and click “Sensor Map” to see a snapshot of the current network state (i.e. which stations are up, and their coordinates). Note that it does NOT auto-refresh.

The website is currently in the process of being updated, so you’ll see some minor changes across logins. Also, you may note that some coordinates are different from current published values. This is because I will be doing a major network adjustment with the new network to account for drift/movement over the past couple of years. Note that the values you see aren’t necessarily final, so please disregard them for now.

Thanks everybody! Any questions, please ask.

John Wardlow
RTK / IT Manager
Western Data Systems

14722 Regnal St.
Houston, TX  77039
o: 281-987-1815
c: 281-914-7289

11/15/10 - Renewal fees for 2011

As discussed in our 2009 and again in the 2010 Network User Group meeting, Trimble introduced a new network software package. In 2009 we stated the cost to the network was too high for the benefits you would be receiving and were deferring the upgrade. At the recent 2010 meeting, we said the software has improved substantially over the last year and we now need to upgrade to remain a technically advanced network. The only obstacle was what Trimble would be charging for this upgrade. After several months of negotiations, we were able to reduce the asking price by over $100,000 to a reasonable level. With this, we have now ordered the new software and will be installing the new software during the coming holiday season. We will keep you informed of any downtime prior to this occurring. With this price set, we have been able to complete next year’s budget as well as next year’s renewal fees. We are happy to report that even with the cost of upgrading your software, for members that have been in the network 3 years, we are able to duplicate last year’s fee of $100 per membership. We will be sending renewal billings on December 1, 2010. We hope you agree that this truly a bargain, not only in absolute terms, but also compared to all other networks fee structure. We thank you for your participation and support, we continue to strive to keep your network the best in the world.

Michael Hefer

Western Data Systems

9/29/10 - The RTK Network News Release

This is to remind you that on Thursday, October 14, we will have our Annual User Group meeting in conjunction with the TSPS conference. The meeting will be held in the Westin Galleria Hotel in Houston, same hotel as the conference. We will start at 5:00 with an open bar social and start the business meeting at 6:00 and should be finished by 7:00.

Please plan to attend, there are a number of things we will be presenting, that you as an owner, should know about. We encourage you to invite other non-users to join you so they can see what they are missing.  

If you have any questions, please call our local WDS salesperson or feel free to contact me, Michael Hefer.

6/10/10 - The RTK Network News Release

Now that we are almost half through the year, we wanted to give the members a short update on The RTK Network.

1. The geographical expansion has slowed due to the economy and the fact that some of our outside borders are reaching areas that do not yet have internet or cell coverage to allow us to expand in that direction. We have several reference stations that presently do not have a location to put them. Please help us find locations for these units, either for expansion or for densification. If you know of someone in a location that would benefit the network, please let us know and we will work to establish a reference station there. Our most pressing need at this moment is to put a reference station in the area SW of San Antonio.

2. Because of the economic downturn, we projected losing a significant number of members in December when we were billing 2010 renewals. I am happy to report that the number of members who dropped memberships (11) was much smaller than anticipated. This year we have added 31 new members, giving the network a total of 597 active members. The network is continuing to grow.

3. Financially the network is in good shape, we have enough cash to cover our budget and a few improvements in the next 6 months.

4. As you know, over the last 2 years, we were able to hold renewal fees down to $100 per memberships for those members who have been in the network for over 3 years. We now expect that we will be able to again hold these levels going into 2011.

We at Western Data Systems want to again thank you, the members, for your participation and your support. We will continue to make your network the best in the world combined with the lowest cost.

Michael Hefer
Western Data Systems
281 987-1815