This time last year, Atanas Entchev’s GeoHipster site was just getting started. I participated in the 2014 “predictions” round-up, but I was somewhat skeptical of the idea. For reasons entirely my own, I was primarily turned off by the title of the site. I am not one to wear labels easily and I have a bit of natural suspicion for those who do. But a funny thing happened on the way to the artisanal map store: GeoHipster hit its stride.
I have come to see the name “GeoHipster” for the deft piece of commentary that it is. But additionally, the form that the site has taken, with Q&A style interviews of people working in the geospatial field, has filled a gap that I’m not sure I knew existed. Its minimalist style, devoid of multiple ads and banners, has let the content and the subjects take the lead.
The past decade has seen a lot of change in the geospatial field and that change continues. What Atanas has quietly done is to begin documenting the state of our industry as seen through the eyes of the people in it. There is something deceptively important going on over at GeoHipster. Pay attention to it.
