Census 2020 Updates

08 November 2021 Bill-Hughes

In September 2021, the US Census began releasing Census 2020 data as part of the Public Law 94-171 redistricting data update.  This is a partial data release and includes population totals, race, Hispanic ethnicity and some housing data. Detailed population totals by age and sex were not part of this update.

As part of our CDXZipStream October 2021 release we’ve updated the databases where this data could be applied.  This includes the CDXState, CDXCBSA, CDXCounty, and CDXPlace databases. Please note that the Census has not yet released data for the ZCTA zip code geography (Zip Code Tabulation Areas).  So we have not updated our premium Zip Code tables with any census 2020 data. These demographic databases are part of the CDXZipStream Premium and CDXZipStream Premium ACS products

A summary of the specific database changes can be found in the following file. Rather than leave in census 2010 results for the unavailable fields, we’ve added 2019 American Community Survey data instead so that you will have the most recent results.  Other fields were also updated with the latest data such as population estimates, unemployment and other business statistics.

A summary of the US Census future release dates for additional data can be found at https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/about/schedule.html.

 

CDXZipStream Version 5.2 Released with Enhanced HERE Features

25 October 2021 Bill-Hughes
We've just released CDXZipStream Version 5.2 which is now available for download. This version includes upgrades to the CDXRouteHERE and CDXLocateHERE functions. Up to 25 stops can now be included in a single route for optimized distance calculations along with Trip Summary reports. These changes also include the ability to insert HERE routing and location maps directly in Excel.
 
For existing users of CDXZipStream the new HERE features will be available to anyone who has purchased in the last year or anyone with an active data maintenance subscription.  You will need to download and install the latest CDXZipStream version 5.2 and reactivate your software using the "Account" button in the CDXZipStream menu. Information on setting up a free account with HERE can be found at the following link.
 
CDXZipStream customers without an active data maintenance plan will be able to try out the new Here functions but will be limited in the number of requests they can make during a single excel session.  Your online account at cdxtech.com can be used to purchase a maintenance plan and get full access

Determining the County Name for a Zip Code or Address Video

28 September 2021 Bill-Hughes

We've created a new video demonstrating how to use our online and desktop tools to return county name and other variables from your customer data.

A common business problem is to find the county where a customer resides.  This can be required to determine sales tax or to obtain other background information on a location.  County can be determined by either the zip code or the full address.

CDX Technologies offers a variety of tools which allow you to determine county and many other data items for a zip code or address.  Which product you choose depends on the data you need, the technology platform in use and on the number of reports/requests you expect to do.

Getting a Free HERE Technologies API key

24 August 2021 Bill-Hughes

Versions 5 and later of CDXZipStream support two new functions CDXLocateHERE and CDXRouteHERE.  These geocoding and routing functions work with the HERE Technologies API. Here offers a free plan that allows up to 250,000 free requests per month as well as affordable pricing for additional requests ($1 per 1000 requests). No credit card is required to sign up This is a significant benefit when compared to the 125,000 requests per year for Bing Maps and pricing for Bing enterprise keys.

The steps to sign up for HERE and receive an API key are as follows:

1.   Create a HERE account at developer.here.com. Make sure to verify your email address or the API keys you generate will only be temporary

2.   After logging in click on your “Freemium Project”. If you don’t see this click on the circle in the upper right with your initials to bring up the Projects page.

3.   Click on the “REST” section and press “Create API Key”.

4.   Enter the created key in CDXZipStream. In Excel, use the CDXZipStream menu “Settings” function. Enter your key using the “HERE API Settings” button.

More detail on setting up the key can be found at the following link.

 For existing users of CDXZipStream the new HERE features will be available to anyone who has purchased in the last year or anyone with an active data maintenance subscription.  You will need to download and install the latest CDXZipStream version 5 and reactivate your software using the "Account" button in the CDXZipStream menu. If you don't reactivate you will not have access to the new features. This will not affect the number of computers that you can install CDXZipStream on.

CDXZipStream customers without an active data maintenance plan will be able to try out the new Here functions but will be limited in the number of requests they can make during a single excel session.  Your online account at cdxtech.com can be used to purchase a maintenance plan and get full access.

 

CDXZipStream Bing Version renamed to CDXZipStream Router

27 July 2021 Bill-Hughes

To better indicate the enhanced features of this product we are renaming our CDXZipStream Bing version to CDXZipStream Router. This is being done to better indicate the primary product purpose is to calculate driving routes and geocoding addresses. CDXZipStream Router also supports multiple map data sources including Bing, HERE and legacy support of Microsoft Mappoint

Our website has been updated to reflect this change. This does not affect how your current product operates or any formula names. The only change you will see is that.if you register our latest installation and own CDXZipStream Bing your account screens on our website and in Excel CDX Router for the version. Other CDXZipStream product versions remain unchanged. Our latest installation is always available via the download link at:

http://www.cdxtech.com/downloads/CDXZipStream/CDXZipStream.exe

As noted above, this product as well as more advanced versions of CDXZipStream now support the HERE data service. Here offers a "Freemium" Plan that allows up to 250,000 free requests per month as well as affordable pricing for additional requests. For more infomation on the HERE Technologies data service please check out our blog article.