Why you should consider FME 2007
Safe Software recently released a new version of Feature Manipulation Engine (FME). This new version resulted from the company having identified a niche where it could add value - addressing raster data. Safe adjusted core architecture, which enabled FME 2007 to manipulate raster data similarly to ways in which the product treats vector data. In addition, Oracle and ESRI's ArcSDE were storing raster data and customers were asking, "How can we get data into the databases?" This new release focused primarily on the need to load raster data into Oracle and ArcSDE.

What's new in FME 2007?

• The ability to do raster reprojection, offset, scale, georeferencing, tile, mosaic and clipping
• True support for curves - "curvefitter" looks at placement of a circular arc and increases the accuracy of data where it finds a mathematical match. Storage size also decreases because multiple points are stored as a single arc.
• Oracle users will find loading raster data simpler and faster with better performance and the support for arcs.
• Microsoft SQL Server users will find support for 190 different spatial data formats directly available to the SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) environment, providing SSIS users with over 270 data transformation options.
• ESRI users will find support for ArcGIS Engine and Server deployments, and the new File Geodatabase format. Other highlights include improved support for high-precision Enterprise Geodatabase and ArcSDE.
• MrSID users can reproject data into GeoTIFF.
• A new GeoRSS reader allows FME users to read GeoRSS-enabled feeds and use them as easily as any other FME data source.
• FME 2007 Autodesk Edition reads and writes AutoCAD 2007 files.

• Safe now works with Informatica PowerCenter; Informatica's enterprise ETL solution now works along with Safe's Spatial ETL.
• FME 2007 ingests spatial information right into Microsoft's Virtual Earth or Google Earth via GeoRSS or KML from FME.