The latest articles on Forem by Serac (@serac). https://forem.com/serac https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3730586%2Fdcf6b4ac-e920-46ff-b359-2b39c69759d0.jpg https://forem.com/serac en Serac Tue, 24 Mar 2026 12:47:55 +0000 https://forem.com/serac/i-built-a-free-privacy-first-coordinate-converter-that-runs-entirely-in-your-browser-3k1g https://forem.com/serac/i-built-a-free-privacy-first-coordinate-converter-that-runs-entirely-in-your-browser-3k1g <p>If you've ever worked with GPS data, GIS pipelines, or geospatial APIs, <br> you know the pain: your data is in UTM, your map expects Decimal Degrees, <br> your colleague sends you MGRS, and your database stores Geohash.</p> <p>Switching between coordinate formats is a small but constant friction <br> point for developers, surveyors, drone operators, and anyone doing field <br> work. Most online tools require sign-ups, ship your data to a server, <br> or support only 2–3 formats.</p> <p>So I built <strong><a href="https://coordconv.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">CoordConv</a></strong> — a fast, <br> browser-based coordinate converter that handles 7 formats in one place.</p> <h2> What It Supports </h2> <div class="table-wrapper-paragraph"><table> <thead> <tr> <th>Format</th> <th>Example</th> <th>Common Use</th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td> <strong>DD</strong> Decimal Degrees</td> <td><code>40.7128, -74.0060</code></td> <td>Google Maps, GPS</td> </tr> <tr> <td> <strong>DMS</strong> Degrees Minutes Seconds</td> <td><code>40°42'46"N 74°00'21"W</code></td> <td>Aviation, nautical</td> </tr> <tr> <td> <strong>DDM</strong> Degrees Decimal Minutes</td> <td><code>40°42.767'N</code></td> <td>Marine, geocaching</td> </tr> <tr> <td><strong>UTM</strong></td> <td><code>18T 583960 4507523</code></td> <td>Surveying, topo maps</td> </tr> <tr> <td><strong>MGRS</strong></td> <td><code>18TWL8395907523</code></td> <td>Military, SAR</td> </tr> <tr> <td><strong>Plus Code</strong></td> <td><code>87G7PX7V+4H</code></td> <td>Delivery, field ops</td> </tr> <tr> <td><strong>Geohash</strong></td> <td><code>dr5regw3pg</code></td> <td>Spatial indexing, dev tools</td> </tr> </tbody> </table></div> <h2> Key Features </h2> <ul> <li>⚡ <strong>Instant conversion</strong> — paste any format, get all 7 outputs at once</li> <li>🗺️ <strong>Interactive map preview</strong> — verify your location visually before copying</li> <li>📋 <strong>One-click copy</strong> for every output format</li> <li>📦 <strong>Batch Converter</strong> — handles CSV files or pasted tables with hundreds of rows</li> <li>🔄 <strong>Lat/Lon and Lon/Lat</strong> order toggle (because GeoJSON vs GPS is a real gotcha)</li> <li>🎯 <strong>6 decimal place precision</strong> (~±0.11 meters accuracy)</li> </ul> <h2> Try It </h2> <p>👉 <a href="https://coordconv.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">coordconv.com</a></p> <p>Specific tools:</p> <ul> <li><a href="https://coordconv.com/utm-to-lat-long/" rel="noopener noreferrer">UTM ↔ Lat/Long</a></li> <li><a href="https://coordconv.com/dms-to-decimal-degrees/" rel="noopener noreferrer">DMS ↔ Decimal Degrees</a></li> <li><a href="https://coordconv.com/batch-coordinate-converter/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Batch Converter</a></li> </ul> <p>Happy to answer questions about how the projection math works under the <br> hood, or how to handle the WGS84 vs NAD83 vs GCJ-02 datum differences <br> in your own projects. Drop them in the comments! 🗺️</p> gis webdev productivity map Serac Sat, 24 Jan 2026 18:53:09 +0000 https://forem.com/serac/i-built-a-satellite-city-guessing-game-using-nextjs-maplibre-116j https://forem.com/serac/i-built-a-satellite-city-guessing-game-using-nextjs-maplibre-116j <p>Hey developers! 👋</p> <p>I've always been a fan of geography games, but I wanted to build something different: a game that tests your <strong>"vertical" intuition</strong>—recognizing cities from high-resolution satellite imagery rather than the typical street view.</p> <p>So I built <strong><a href="https://satpixel.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">SatPixel</a></strong>.</p> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fakzf4t8o3e2ez40u4cki.jpg" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fakzf4t8o3e2ez40u4cki.jpg" alt=" " width="800" height="433"></a></p> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2F436cq1b6vvwkz0q3a2ru.jpg" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2F436cq1b6vvwkz0q3a2ru.jpg" alt=" " width="800" height="495"></a></p> <h3> The Tech Stack 🛠️ </h3> <p>Since this is a side project, I wanted a stack that was fast, free to host, and easy to scale:</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Framework:</strong> <a href="https://nextjs.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Next.js</a> (App Router)</li> <li> <strong>Deployment:</strong> Vercel</li> <li> <strong>Maps Engine:</strong> <a href="https://maplibre.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer">MapLibre GL JS</a> (Open source alternative to Mapbox)</li> <li> <strong>Imagery:</strong> Primarily <strong>ESRI World Imagery</strong> for high-res clarity.</li> </ul> <h3> Try it out </h3> <p>I'd love to get some feedback from the dev community on the UI and game difficulty.</p> <p>👉 <strong>Play it here:</strong> <a href="https://satpixel.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://satpixel.com</a></p> <p>Let me know what you think!</p> webdev gamedev nextjs map