Ski Club 2.0 Home
Snow Reports
FAQFAQ

Mail for help.Help!!

Log in to snowHeads to make it MUCH better! Registration's totally free, of course, and makes snowHeads easier to use and to understand, gives better searching, filtering etc. as well as access to 'members only' forums, discounts and deals that U don't even know exist as a 'guest' user. (btw. 50,000+ snowHeads already know all this, making snowHeads the biggest, most active community of snow-heads in the UK, so you'll be in good company)..... When you register, you get our free weekly(-ish) snow report by email. It's rather good and not made up by tourist offices (or people that love the tourist office and want to marry it either)... We don't share your email address with anyone and we never send out any of those cheesy 'message from our partners' emails either. Anyway, snowHeads really is MUCH better when you're logged in - not least because you get to post your own messages complaining about things that annoy you like perhaps this banner which, incidentally, disappears when you log in :-)
Username:-
 Password:
Remember me:
👁 durr, I forgot...
Or: Register
(to be a proper snow-head, all official-like!)

openpistemap

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
A friend told me about openpisteplan's project to map pistes so I thought I'dmention it here. If you're interested look at

www.openpiste.org
latest report
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
No such domain.
ski holidays
 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
hyweljenkins, I made the mistake of thinking and typing simultaneously. I should've written

www.openpistemap.org
snow report
 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
rich.ll, I get this message using IE7 !¬
Quote:

There are currently problems with Internet Explorer - please use a less broken browser. If you are able, please submit a patch to fix the problems. See the Wiki talk page for more information.

This data is not guaranteed to be correct - use at your own risk.


I went no further Skullie
snow report
 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
I use firefox and that worked ok.
latest report
 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
Looks interesting. Great idea.
ski holidays
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Boredsurfing wrote:
rich.ll, I get this message using IE7 !¬
Quote:

There are currently problems with Internet Explorer - please use a less broken browser. If you are able, please submit a patch to fix the problems. See the Wiki talk page for more information.

This data is not guaranteed to be correct - use at your own risk.


I went no further Skullie

you should have gone to http://www.getfirefox.net/
snow conditions
 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Use Firefox once and you'll never go back to microsoft's ghastly internet explorer.
snow report
 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
xyzpaul, why do you say that? I'm using Firefox (I changed during the latest 'IE7 is vulnerable to the end of the world as we know it virus' scare), and it's fine, but I can't see much difference between it an IE7. I've had to download something so that I get my home page when I open a new browser page, and I don't find downloads particularly clever with Firefox. Do you mean that it's better in the way that it actually works, resources and so on?
latest report
 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
xyzpaul wrote:
Use Firefox once and you'll never go back to microsoft's ghastly internet explorer.


What a ridiculously snobbish thing to suggest.

Once you have installed a few plug ins, firefox has decent functionality, and I certainly use it regularly.

But I also regularly use Opera, Avant, Orca, Google Browser, and IE7.

And while I know most people won't want to use half a dozen different browsers, I am equally sure that very few people who aren't already pissed off with Microsoft will never want to go back to IE7 after one use of firefox.
ski holidays
 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
What sort of a moron would create a website that can't be used by IE?
ski holidays
 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
telford_mike, generally one with a bee in his bonnet about Microsoft...
snow report
 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Quote:
There are currently problems with Internet Explorer - please use a less broken browser.
I don't like people being sarcy about my choice of software. Confused

Can someone who isn't as silly as me tell me what exactly the aim of the website? If it's what I think it is then I don't understand. I've yet to find a resort I can't easily locate a good piste map of. Again, I don't know the website's purpose, so my last comment may be completely off subject and pointless.
latest report
 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
skisimon, the piste map that resorts supply is like the London Underground map: schematic. The OpenPisteMaps are more like OS maps.
latest report
 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Hoppo, okay, thanks. So it is offering something different. As a navigator by (previous) trade, I may have to bite my lip, swallow my pride and take a look at it in Firefox...
snow conditions
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
skisimon, It seems to be down at the moment anyhow.

But when I looked yesterday, it was fine in Opera if you have that available.

What it basically does is to take the "terrain" map as shown in Google Earth (or other mapping sites) and overlay the lifts and pistes onto that.
snow report
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Works fine on my IE...

Good idea, had an overlay of Les Deux Alpes for Google Earth that I used last year. Was looking for something similar for La Plagne this year but no luck yet.
latest report
 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
2000overdrive, here is one I found earlier...

http://www.luyens.be/images/stories/gps/ski-la-plagne.kmz

Found here
ski holidays
 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
Works fine in IE 8, doest work in Firefox 3 (no scale bar or scroll indicator)

Now if only we could get those details as overlays for Memory map
ski holidays
 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
So, in the interests of research I loaded this up in Safari 3.2.1, and it loads okay........but so what? A map of a piste from this angle is not exactly exciting stuff - or is there some significant and major point that I'm missing here. Puzzled
ski holidays
 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
alex_heney wrote:
xyzpaul wrote:
Use Firefox once and you'll never go back to microsoft's ghastly internet explorer.


What a ridiculously snobbish thing to suggest.

Very few people who aren't already pissed off with Microsoft will never want to go back to IE7 after one use of firefox.


What a ridiculously snobbish thing to suggest.
snow conditions
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
paulio wrote:
alex_heney wrote:
xyzpaul wrote:
Use Firefox once and you'll never go back to microsoft's ghastly internet explorer.


What a ridiculously snobbish thing to suggest.

Very few people who aren't already pissed off with Microsoft will never want to go back to IE7 after one use of firefox.


What a ridiculously snobbish thing to suggest.


Is it possible you could actually think of a way in which that statement could conceivably be the slightest, tiniest shred "snobbish"?
snow report
 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
AdrianV, you're not a geeky map obsessive? Toofy Grin
latest report
 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
I run the OpenPisteMap project and I noticed a lot of traffic get referred to OpenPisteMap from here so I thought I'd join the forum and try to answer a few questions...

skisimon wrote:
Can someone who isn't as silly as me tell me what exactly the aim of the website?


The aim of the website is to render the piste mapping data being gathered by the OpenStreetMap project, to both provide useful piste maps and also to give people motivation to join the project and help. Quite a few people involved in the project also feel that the traditional 3D piste maps are quite poor if you are able to read a proper map (how many times have you decided to ski down a piste on the map, only to get there and find it goes up? Smile. The project is in its early stages (the OpenPisteMap website is a bit over a year old now), so the data on it certainly isn't definitive, but the more people who are involved the better it will get.

The Idea behind the OpenStreetMap project is to collect mapping data in a "Wiki-like" way (mainly from people's GPS tracks), which can then be used at no cost by anyone for any purpose, under the Creative Commons licences. This is very different from commercial maps, such as Google in 2 very important ways:
1. The licence allows anyone to use the data for free.
2. The data is available in it's raw form as well as a graphical map, which allows it to be used in much more interesting ways, such as routing applications and custom map renderings.

Also, since the data is editable by anyone, mistakes can easily be corrected and the map can be kept very up to date. It essentially does for maps what Wikipedia did for encyclopaedias.

madmole wrote:
doest work in Firefox 3 (no scale bar or scroll indicator)


I use FireFox 3.0.5 and it works ok for me. If you are able to provide any more information then that would be helpful.

madmole wrote:
Now if only we could get those details as overlays for Memory map


One of the main points about the project is that the raw data is available, so in theory it could be imported into things like MemoryMap. I'm afraid I don't know the specifics of MemoryMap, but there are some tools available to import OpenStreetMap data into Garmin devices, etc. Unfortunately at the moment the tools tend to be quite technical to use, but I'm sure they will become more user friendly with time.

telford_mike wrote:
What sort of a moron would create a website that can't be used by IE?


The site is not specifically designed to not work in IE - it meets the "W3C XHTML 1.0 Strict" standard, which is one of the standards used to ensure that websites interoperate with web browsers, and has been tested with a number of the more popular cross-platform browsers. The problem is that Microsoft tend to completely ignore those standards (which is particularly silly since they happen to be members of the W3C, who create and ratify the standards). I don't have access to any computers running Windows, meaning that I can't test and work around the problem myself - it is important to remember that I do this project in my spare time, I don't get paid for it and the time and money I would spend making it work in IE would be better spent making other improvements to the project. I have no particular "bee in my bonnet" about Microsoft - the notice on the website does ask for someone to send me a fix. That notice has been on the website for over a year and no one has sent me a patch yet, so I can only assume people don't consider it a big problem.

skisimon wrote:
I don't like people being sarcy about my choice of software.


But I'm not sure you should expect people to spend their spare time working around the bugs in the software you choose to use when there are plenty of alternatives available that work. Smile
snow report
 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Works fine on Safari too. What a natty idea...
latest report
 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
FireFury, welcome to snowHeads snowHead

You'll be pleased to know that openpistemap.org renders fine in IE8 RC1 wink

I've got a bunch of GPS tracks from ski resorts, I'm off to read the instructions...
ski holidays
 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Hoppo wrote:
You'll be pleased to know that openpistemap.org renders fine in IE8 RC1 wink


Good to know. Smile
I've now adjusted the page so the warning about IE should only display to people using an IE version older than 8.

Hoppo wrote:
I've got a bunch of GPS tracks from ski resorts, I'm off to read the instructions...


Cool! The more, the merrier Smile
snow report
 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
mmm - bit too techie for one weeks skiing per year i fear
piste maps are not ideal but they are easy to put in your pocket and generalyl dont cause too many major issues (although i perfected my walking uphill with skis on techniques this year in ADH due to a couple of badly positioned lifts !!)

horse for courses i think - i am sure some folk will like this stuff but I havent got the time or inclincation!!! soggy paper piste map for me !!

good luck !
snow report
 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
FireFury, I don't think I said that it should be changed to meet my needs - I commented on the sarcastic comment regarding my internet browser (which I have now changed, partly due to this). A simple "Your internet browser is not supported" would have been better received that "please use a less broken browser"...
backhojo wrote:
horse for courses i think - i am sure some folk will like this stuff but I havent got the time or inclincation!!!
As some may have gathered, my original academic interest (and indeed job) was navigation - you would think I should be interested. I've got thousands of pounds worth of GPS equipment (which is a bit daft given my dislike of the system...) But I too like a soggy piece of paper and don't like to mix business and pleasure... Laughing

Good luck with the project though FireFury.
ski holidays
 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
madmole wrote:
Works fine in IE 8, doest work in Firefox 3 (no scale bar or scroll indicator)


Hello Madmole

It works fine on my Firefox 3. You must be missing a plugin.
ski holidays
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
FireFury wrote:
I run the OpenPisteMap project and I noticed a lot of traffic get referred to OpenPisteMap from here so I thought I'd join the forum and try to answer a few questions...


It's an excellent idea. I've always hated the piste maps in resort and always wanted a "top down" map.

I'm just looking at the 3 Valleys Area now:

http://openpistemap.org/?lat=45.2824&lon=6.5842&zoom=13&layers=0B00

What is the best way to print this? Grab a screenshot and print that?

Cheers
snow report
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
FireFury, how can someone get involved then? It looks like fun to me.
latest report
 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Bikeandsnow wrote:
I'm just looking at the 3 Valleys Area now:

http://openpistemap.org/?lat=45.2824&lon=6.5842&zoom=13&layers=0B00

What is the best way to print this? Grab a screenshot and print that?


An export option is on the todo list, but for now your best bet is to take screen shots. Or if you're brave, you can get the individual map tiles and glue them together with some graphics software. e.g.:
http://openpistemap.org/tiles/nocontours/14/8491/5868.png
http://openpistemap.org/tiles/nocontours/14/8492/5868.png
etc.
ski holidays
 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
MarjMJ wrote:
how can someone get involved then? It looks like fun to me.


There is a pretty good Beginner's Guide on the OpenStreetMap Wiki which is worth a read. Basically, you collect data on a GPS and then use it to add "ways" (linear features, such as roads, pistes, etc.) to the map. You add some textual tags to each feature to describe what it is - for example, you might tag a road as "highway=road", or a cafe as "amenity=cafe". The tags specifically relevant to piste maps are described here: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/index.php/Proposed_features/Piste_Maps
ski holidays
 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
MarjMJ, I'm playing with this at the moment. If you've got the Java Open Street Map editor (JOSM) then these two menu items are useful for labelling ski features:

Presets->Aerial Way->
Presets->Sport->Skiing allows you to enter piste names

More news as it happens...
latest report
 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
A few people have asked, "what's the point " or words to that effect.

My motivaition for mapping Mt Tremblant was to have the maps available on my mobile phone. Together with a bluetooth GPS this gives me a tool that can show me where I am on the mountain + display the runs around that area. Easier than wrestiling with a piste map on a windy lift, but of course you don't want to drop your phone Wink

With a little more work I ought to be able to do things like txt current position to a friend using the same software etc.

You can find my series 60 mapping software here: https://launchpad.net/johnjohn -- note I need to upload a newer version that is in line with the code in the source repository.

The other thing I find handy is being able to extract track data after a day's skiing and create plots as per this:

http://bytesnbikes.blogspot.com/2009/01/gps-and-skiing.html

What I'd really like is to be able to convert the data into a summary of pistes skied, lifts taken, speeds etc -- though that is going to require a fair bit more work + some better GPS fixes than I've been getting lately.

If nothing else, the plots are handy to see which lifts are quicker etc.

As to getting started with openstreetmap work. I only just started doing this myself, I found josm a bit opaque at first, but a few questions on the #osm irc channel and I'm finding it fairly quick to convert traces of my skiing trips to new maps.

John

PS Firefury: any chances of getting the contours rendered for Mt Tremblant and Vorlage (co-ordinates are in the wiki page: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/WikiProject_Piste_Maps#Quebec
snow conditions
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
swfiua wrote:
PS Firefury: any chances of getting the contours rendered for Mt Tremblant and Vorlage (co-ordinates are in the wiki page: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/WikiProject_Piste_Maps#Quebec


Done - I emailed you about 15 minutes ago. Smile
latest report
 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Interesting concept!
snow conditions
 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
swfiua, welcome to snowHeads snowHead
swfiua wrote:

What I'd really like is to be able to convert the data into a summary of pistes skied, lifts taken, speeds etc -- though that is going to require a fair bit more work + some better GPS fixes than I've been getting lately.


fishslice has done something along those lines - see here. I've got some Matlab code that does bits of it, but it's a bit rough.
snow report
 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
OK that's a bit freaky, just clicked onto the site and it brought up Verbier straightaway, which is where I spend most of the winter. Is FireFury monitoring me??? Is there something about this we should know???
snow conditions



Terms and conditions  Privacy Policy