Linear Algebra, Geodesy, and GPS
Gilbert Strang and Kai Borre
Wellesley-Cambridge Press
email: gs@math.mit.edu

Book Review: Surveying and Land Information Systems

This book has many strengths. The first is the variety of points
of view it offers. If you have not liked linear algebra and least
squares before, try this book. It is complete, helpful, and you may
find an explanation that appeals to you. If you do like these subjects,
you should also try this book. You may learn something new or gain some
deeper insight.

Another strength is that the reader sees a lot of material treated with
consistent notation and in a fairly consistent style. A third strength
is the sheer wealth of material this book includes. Even though the GPS
material comes at the end of a long book, it contains most of the material
found in other books. Some topics, such as the effect of the uncertainty
of the fixed control and the LAMBDA method for estimating GPS observations,
appear in textbook form for the first time.

This book is suitable both for classroom use, where it could easily support
a three-semester sequence, and as a personal reference. At $66 for 640 pages,
it is well worth the price.

Charles R. Schwarz
National Geodetic Survey