NEWSFLASH: update on Jan 7th, 12th, 19th, and Feb 7th (see end of article)
Today I got an email from a LAStools user at NOAA pointing out a new entry in the ArcGIS 10.2 documentation of ESRI that mentions a *.zlas format for the first time. This may have been an oversight at ESRI since there was no press release, blog post, etc preceding this documentation update (that happened 11 days ago). A screenshot of the entry can be found below.
I have heard about LAS compression by ESRI since Gene mentioned it in a blog entry after ESRI’s 3D Mapping and LiDAR Forum. Back then I throught they were talking about LAZ and that our 1.5 years of talking about including support for LASzip-compressed LiDAR into ArcGIS were finally getting somewhere. But turns out they have been doing their own thing. Here some rumors I have heard about ESRI’s new *.zlas format:
- similar compression rates as LAZ
- includes spatial indexing
- (maybe) re-orders points during compression
- performance is like laszip.exe or better
- will be available in ArcGIS 10.2.1
- can be used without the LAS Dataset
- “free” Windows executable will be available soon
- development libraries with API will follow
- ESRI has been giving data providers heads up that clients may soon demand this format
My first thought was that this might be a reengineered version of the LizardTech LiDAR CompressorTM but it is not. This seems to be ESRI’s own development. Does anyone have more details on this?
What was their motivation? Is LAZ too slow for them? I would have happily adressed whatever LASzip was lacking as (compatible) extensions to the LAZ format – which has become de-facto standard for LiDAR compression and is open source. But instead they invested serious money and man-power into creating an entirely new format. Anyone want to speculate why …?
screenshot of the ArcGIS 10.2 documentation mentioning *.zlas
UPDATE (January 7th): It is official now. Apparently, Gene who has mentioned our rumors on his blog just received heads up from Clayton Crawford at ESRI that the LAS Optimizer is available for download here. The EzLAS.zip file contains a PDF with interesting details. Below a snapshot of the GUI and what the website says:
- The standalone executable does not require an ArcGIS install or license.
- The same executable is used for both compression and decompression.
- The download zip file contains more information and help in an included pdf document.”
GUI of the LAS Optimizer
Apparently, ArcGIS 10.2.1 is available for general release on January 7th and will support direct read of optimized LAS (*.zlas) via the LAS dataset. Now it’s your turn to try out what ESRI has cooked up and comment … (-:
UPDATE (January 9th): I was told that ESRI will be releasing an “official statement” soon explaining why they have developed their own LiDAR compression format. And they really should do so. I have received (and continue to receive) a fair number of “off-the-record” emails from people across the industry expressing feelings that range between “disappointment”, “anger”, and “disgust” over what is seen as an attempt to sabotage our multi-year effort of creating an open, free, and efficient compressed LiDAR exchange format … time for some xkcd humor.
UPDATE (January 12th): This might just be that “official statement“. Seems someone is really trying hard to avoid using the word LASzip … (-;
UPDATE (January 19th): The story has been picked up by a number of blogs like Paul Ramsey’s “LiDAR format wars“, James Fee’s “LAS, LAZ, LASzip, zLAS and You“, and Randal Hale’s “LiDAR and your software“.
UPDATE (February 7th): The front-lines harden as an unlikely coalition of open source knights, laser guardians, imperial agencies, and competing thugs forms a rebel movement against the approaching Desri Star who threatens the free world announcing that the dArcG is going to spawn “parallelized LAZ clones“. Encrypted instructions to Jedis spread like “Point Clouds on the Horizon” “Towards an Open Future” as the insurgency prepares a better future for compression, free of proprietary oppression. The clone wars might be starting soon. Will the FOSS be with LAZ? (-;
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