Developments in geo-technology move almost faster than a ray of light and as a consequence the daily work of a surveyor has been changing dramatically over recent years. Digitalisation of data collection, data processing and data storing have had a particularly major impact on the work of people both in the field and office. And developments will inevitably continue into the near future and beyond. Such developments place certain demands on each surveyor at every level of every company or institution: they have to be willing to learn to work with new techniques and procedures On the other hand, for every professional it is important to want to develop themselves in their profession. That’s what makes them professionals in the first place.

Ongoing development is important not only in surveying and geomatics. In publishing, too, it is important to keep in touch with the most recent ideas concerning all aspects of magazine making, both from the editorial and the layout point of view. At GIM International we try to keep you up to date with newsworthy features. We try to cover all aspects of the above developments so that you, as a professional, can rest assured that by reading this journal you are kept aware of the status of state-of-the-art techniques, their pros, cons and opinions on them. If the market requires a description of three major new products, we can easily put these into one edition of GIM. But layout is another thing altogether. Layout is inherently rigid, because it is important to maintain one, recognisable style. Layout editors, therefore, are strict in guarding the basic rules for each, specific magazine under their control. And so too those for GIM International. But still we felt the time was ripe for some small alterations: no big changes, but little adjustments to keep the layout up to date. So what you find in your hands today is a fresh and modern-looking GIM International with - and this goes without saying - the same quality content.

New people, new ideas, old principles. I myself am new to GITC bv and to GIM International. This is my first editorial for the magazine that I have come to know a little over the last few weeks. In this short learning curve I have found myself surprised by the importance of geospatial data to the daily lives of citizens all over the world, most of whom have no clue of such. I am also stunned at the techniques used and the pace of their development. Coming from a publishing background, I am convinced there is nothing more intriguing than making a leading magazine for a group of professionals all over the world and thus supporting them, offering possibilities for growth and enhancing their professionalism in performing their jobs. I hope you too will be surprised, each edition anew, by state-of-the-art articles and a fresh and modern layout. Because that’s what you may expect from your own professional magazine: GIM International!

Let me end my first editorial for GIM International by wishing you a very good and healthy 2005!