Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[David E. Smith]

Martha Huizenga wrote:
> You can do a look up using http://www.batchgeocode.com/ which is free. I 
> thought last year this gave me census tracts, but I must be wrong 
> because this year, it only gives me lat and long. I wonder if these can 
> then be translated into census tracts?

Yes, but not easily.

You can get from the Census Bureau a big giant database detailing the 
borders of every census tract. Thing is, census tracts are all 
funny-shaped. Each "tract" is a list of points, describing the edges of 
the tract. If a tract were perfectly square, you'd only need four points 
(each of its four corners), and you then simply connect-the-dots to see 
the edges of the tract. Unfortunately, many of these tracts have ten or 
more points describing their edges.

You can put all these points into a big database, and with a bit of 
fancy math identify the tract that any given point belongs to. (Sounds 
like this is basically what Matt Larsen did.)

If you're only doing this for, say, FCC 477 requirements, and only have 
a few hundred points to map, it's probably easier and cheaper to just 
outsource the project than to write/buy the software you'd need to do it 
yourself.

Once you do it (regardless of how it gets done), save the results. That 
way, the next time you have to send in FCC 477, you'll only have to 
worry about your new subscribers, anyone who moved, and removing anyone 
who's left your service. That's probably a small fraction of the work 
involved in doing it all from scratch. (Sometime in late 2010, or 2011, 
after the 2010 Census, they'll re-draw all the tracts and we'll have to 
do it all over again, but then we'll be all set for ten years.)

David Smith
MVN.net



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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Brian Webster]

Martha,
How much is your time worth? I've been doing batch processing for 
WISP's for $100.

Thank You,
Brian Webster



Martha Huizenga wrote:
> You can do a look up using http://www.batchgeocode.com/ which is free. I 
> thought last year this gave me census tracts, but I must be wrong 
> because this year, it only gives me lat and long. I wonder if these can 
> then be translated into census tracts?
>
> Martha Huizenga
> DC Access, LLC
> 202-546-5898
> */Friendly, Local, Affordable, Internet!/**/
> Connecting the Capitol Hill Community
> Join us on Facebook 
> or
>  
> follow us on Twitter 
> /*
>
>
>
> Matt Larsen - Lists wrote:
>   
>> Had something to do with downloading the shape files from the census 
>> site, then using a positioning gadget in Postgres, or something like 
>> that, to determine which tract the point was in.
>>
>> Matt Larsen
>> vistabeam.com
>>
>> Jon Auer wrote:
>>   
>> 
>>> Do you know what he is using to do the census tract lookup?
>>>
>>> On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:03 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists 
>>> wrote:
>>>   
>>> 
>>>   
 Martha Huizenga wrote:
 
   
 
> Hi,
>
> I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web
> site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone
> suggest a free site?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Martha
>
>   
> 
>   
 I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some
 out there will do a few at a time.

 My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS
 coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will
 actually get our 477 filed this time.

 Matt Larsen
 vistabeam.com



 
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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Martha Huizenga]

You can do a look up using http://www.batchgeocode.com/ which is free. I 
thought last year this gave me census tracts, but I must be wrong 
because this year, it only gives me lat and long. I wonder if these can 
then be translated into census tracts?

Martha Huizenga
DC Access, LLC
202-546-5898
*/Friendly, Local, Affordable, Internet!/**/
Connecting the Capitol Hill Community
Join us on Facebook 
or
 
follow us on Twitter 
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Matt Larsen - Lists wrote:
> Had something to do with downloading the shape files from the census 
> site, then using a positioning gadget in Postgres, or something like 
> that, to determine which tract the point was in.
>
> Matt Larsen
> vistabeam.com
>
> Jon Auer wrote:
>   
>> Do you know what he is using to do the census tract lookup?
>>
>> On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:03 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists 
>> wrote:
>>   
>> 
>>> Martha Huizenga wrote:
>>> 
>>>   
 Hi,

 I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web
 site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone
 suggest a free site?

 Thanks!

 Martha

   
 
>>> I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some
>>> out there will do a few at a time.
>>>
>>> My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS
>>> coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will
>>> actually get our 477 filed this time.
>>>
>>> Matt Larsen
>>> vistabeam.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> 
>>> WISPA Wants You! Join today!
>>> http://signup.wispa.org/
>>> 
>>>
>>> WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org
>>>
>>> Subscribe/Unsubscribe:
>>> http://lists.wispa.org/mailman/listinfo/wireless
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>>> Archives: http://lists.wispa.org/pipermail/wireless/
>>>
>>> 
>>>   
>> 
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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Jon Auer]

That makes sense.
Thank you.

On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:51 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists wrote:
> Had something to do with downloading the shape files from the census
> site, then using a positioning gadget in Postgres, or something like
> that, to determine which tract the point was in.
>
> Matt Larsen
> vistabeam.com
>
> Jon Auer wrote:
>> Do you know what he is using to do the census tract lookup?
>>
>> On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:03 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Martha Huizenga wrote:
>>>
 Hi,

 I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web
 site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone
 suggest a free site?

 Thanks!

 Martha


>>> I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some
>>> out there will do a few at a time.
>>>
>>> My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS
>>> coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will
>>> actually get our 477 filed this time.
>>>
>>> Matt Larsen
>>> vistabeam.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> 
>>> WISPA Wants You! Join today!
>>> http://signup.wispa.org/
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>>>
>>> WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org
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>>> Subscribe/Unsubscribe:
>>> http://lists.wispa.org/mailman/listinfo/wireless
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>>> Archives: http://lists.wispa.org/pipermail/wireless/
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>>>
>>
>>
>> 
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>
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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Matt Larsen - Lists]

Had something to do with downloading the shape files from the census 
site, then using a positioning gadget in Postgres, or something like 
that, to determine which tract the point was in.

Matt Larsen
vistabeam.com

Jon Auer wrote:
> Do you know what he is using to do the census tract lookup?
>
> On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:03 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists 
> wrote:
>   
>> Martha Huizenga wrote:
>> 
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web
>>> site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone
>>> suggest a free site?
>>>
>>> Thanks!
>>>
>>> Martha
>>>
>>>   
>> I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some
>> out there will do a few at a time.
>>
>> My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS
>> coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will
>> actually get our 477 filed this time.
>>
>> Matt Larsen
>> vistabeam.com
>>
>>
>>
>> 
>> WISPA Wants You! Join today!
>> http://signup.wispa.org/
>> 
>>
>> WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org
>>
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>> 
>
>
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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Jon Auer]

Do you know what he is using to do the census tract lookup?

On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 2:03 PM, Matt Larsen - Lists wrote:
> Martha Huizenga wrote:
>> Hi,
>>
>> I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web
>> site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone
>> suggest a free site?
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Martha
>>
> I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some
> out there will do a few at a time.
>
> My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS
> coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will
> actually get our 477 filed this time.
>
> Matt Larsen
> vistabeam.com
>
>
>
> 
> WISPA Wants You! Join today!
> http://signup.wispa.org/
> 
>
> WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org
>
> Subscribe/Unsubscribe:
> http://lists.wispa.org/mailman/listinfo/wireless
>
> Archives: http://lists.wispa.org/pipermail/wireless/
>



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Re: [WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Matt Larsen - Lists]

Martha Huizenga wrote:
> Hi,
>  
> I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web 
> site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone 
> suggest a free site?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Martha
>   
I don't know of any free sites that will do a batch of addresses, some 
out there will do a few at a time.

My lead tech wrote a program that takes a batch of customer/GPS 
coordinates and returns the census tract information for each.   We will 
actually get our 477 filed this time.

Matt Larsen
vistabeam.com




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[WISPA] Way to get Census Tract info for address in batch

[Martha Huizenga]

Hi,
 
I thought there was a way to get Census Tract info in batch, but the web 
site I thought I used last time gives me Lat and Long. Can anyone 
suggest a free site?

Thanks!

Martha
-- 

Martha Huizenga
DC Access, LLC
202-546-5898
*/Friendly, Local, Affordable, Internet!/**/
Connecting the Capitol Hill Community
Join us on Facebook 
or
 
follow us on Twitter 
/*




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