Attendees: Kayla, Adam (Guest), Paul, Rebecca, Julie

Topics:

• Sonar Software Request – Adam Kaeser:
  • Adam Kaeser (Guest): At the Tampa meeting, Dan Buscombe presented on PyHum, a program that processes sonar data and classification substrate types within the sonar imagery. This is a big advancement for this field as the feature classification is currently done by hand. Adam and Dan are inquiring about funding to make this program more user friendly and available. This program will aid in more standardized and repeatable sonar image classification. The status of project: it is developed, but not user friendly. Dan is committed to moving forward with the project and is seeking funding options.
  • Where he wants to take program: Freely available, needs addition funding to develop.
  • Questions for Dan:
    • What level of funding?
    • Possibility of selling the software?
    • Extending to other unit outputs? (besides Hummingbird units)
    • How does Dan want to manage the ownership?
  • Amount of funding needed is an important factor before we could move forward.
  • Dan could get a proposal and amount of money for objectives
  • Other issues to think about:
    • Potential scenario of competition with other companies.
    • Do we want to make money or do we want to provide the service for free.
  • (Julie) FITS wants free. Not make money. As a unit we can take the money from AFS but we assume the risks.
• Tampa Symposium
  • Went well, well attended.
  • Good feedback
  • Relevant to everyone
  • Julie to write a summary of symposium
• GIS workshop – Kayla
  • Good attendance
  • Issues: People using personal computers complicated access to software, especially without internet connection at the venue.
  • Plan to continue next year
• Tampa Symposium and workshop ideas for AFS 2018
  • Data management symposium
  • Chairs/co-chairs? Julie, Paul, and Jeff (?)
  • Focus on a specific topic or new topic

Standardizing across agencies?

Digital data

• Mid-year GB meting travel request – Rebecca
  • Request for travel assistance
  • $500.00
  • Everyone voted yes to support $500.00 to Rebecca to travel to mid-year GB
• Sending folks to partner meetings (MINK, OFWIM)
  • Send people outside Executive committee?
  • Exchange program between a partner org. We pay for one of ours to go to the conference and they pay to go to our symposium/meeting. May not want to do every year (we may not have a symposium every year).
  • Travel program plan will be put together by Rebecca, tentatively for next year’s OFWIM meeting (typically October)
• Applications series of Fisheries
  • Different pieces of fisheries technology
    • Side scan sonar
• FITS Website Update
  • Discussion forum is a new addition – Use it!
  • Provide general feedback on functionality of site to Rebecca for ESAB