We now have a new database for CDXZipStream that provides an extensive variety of demographic data for 2010 census tracts. CDXZipStream is our Excel-based zip code software that performs address, zip code, and geographic analysis, including route optimization, geocoding, zip code radius calculations, address verification, and demographics import.

Demographics based on census tract offers significant advantages over zip code data. Since census tracts are about half the population of zip code areas, the smaller size provides a more accurate demographic snapshot.  Also, zip code census data is actually based on ZCTA's, or Zip Code Tabulation Areas, which the Census Bureau use to approximate zip codes. Census tracts, which are precisely defined by the Census Bureau, do not include the possible error associated with using ZCTA's.

The CDXTract feed provides a variety of data from the 2010 Census and the on-going American Community Survey.  Topics are:

- Age

- Individual Earnings

- Educational Attainment

- Household Size

- Household Income

- Housing Value and Rent

- Marital Status

- Population

- Race

- School Enrollment

- Land, Water Area

For a complete listing and description of each demographic variable, you can download an Excel file which describes each CDXZipStream data feed in detail, including CDXTract.

To access the data, census tract codes (also referred to as FIPS codes), must be provided as input in an Excel worksheet. CDX Technologies now offers a free Excel template that can identify census tract codes for an address list – please see our blog posting Get Census Tract FIPS Codes in an Excel Template.  You can also view a short Youtube tutorial on how to use the template: Get Census Tract FIPS Codes in Microsoft Excel.

Once you have the list of FIPS codes for each location, use your cursor to select the first code in your list, then click on the CDXZipStream icon on the main toolbar. You’ll see a dialog like this:

We’ve selected the CDXTract data feed (under the Select Data Feed option), and have also added the data fields we need to the list on the right, in this case covering median age data and earnings levels.

Click "Get Data", and the selected data will now be automatically returned to the worksheet (only part of the returned data is shown here):

For a short tutorial on how to use the CDXTract data feed, please see the YouTube video Census Tract Demographics for an Address List.

Between the recent 2010 Census and the ongoing American Community Survey, there is now an unprecedented level of extensive, up-to-date demographics data available for the U.S. market.  Please note that census tract data is an additional purchase, and is compatible with all demographic versions of CDXZipStream.  For pricing information and access to the CDXTract database, please contact us at 1-877-CDX-TEC1 (1-877-239-8321) or support@CDXTech.com.

 

 

We will soon be introducing new functionality to CDXZipStream that takes advantage of a unique code assigned to all geographic areas by the U.S. Census Bureau, called the FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standard) code.  CDXZipStream is our Microsoft Excel add-in that performs location analysis for address lists, such as route optimization, zip code radius calculation, and demographics retrieval. 

FIPS codes can be used to accurately identify very small geographies, such as census tract and block areas, and subsequently allow us to retrieve a wealth of demographic, economic, and cultural data from Census Bureau surveys, such as the ten year 2010 Census and American Community surveys.  A major advantage is that both census tracts and blocks are smaller than zip code areas; zip codes on average cover a population of over 9,000, while census tracts are about half that size and census blocks only cover a population of about 100.  As a result, the demographic data for these smaller geographies can provide a much more accurate picture of the population. 

Also, census tracts and blocks are assigned by the Census Bureau, and census data for these areas are fairly precise.   Zip codes are assigned by the U.S. Postal Service, are modified frequently, and must be approximated when applying census data by using ZCTA’s (Zip Code Tabulation Areas).  ZCTA’s are the Census Bureau’s approximate definition of a zip code area that is obtained by aggregating data of census blocks that cover a similar area.  This approximation can introduce additional error in the resulting data.

So what does a FIPS code look like?  For the smallest block geography, it is a 15-digit code that progressively builds upon FIPS codes for state, county, and census tract.  Here’s an example of a block FIPS code for the address 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington DC :

 

 

The FIPS code for the census tract for this address is the first 11-digits (minus the block number), or 11001006202.  Note that when the census tract number is used alone, it will often contain a decimal point, such as 0062.02.  The decimal point is always excluded from the FIPS code.

With the recent 2010 Census and the ongoing American Community Survey, there is now an unprecedented source of extensive, up-to-date demographics data available from the U.S. Census Bureau.   FIPS codes are a very useful key to access this data down to the address level. 

For more information about Census geography, please refer to the following posts:

Census Geography - It's Not Quite What You Learned in School

What's a ZCTA?

 

CDXZipStream, our Excel add-in for zip code and location-based analysis, is an intentionally non-subscription, pay-as-you-go software so our clients can decide for themselves how often to purchase new data.  The need for data updates certainly varies depending on what data is used and how it is applied, and ultimately we feel this decision is best left up to our clients.

CDXZipStream updates are available as a one-time purchase and as a one-year subscription, where twelve updates are provided monthly.  Updates apply to CDXZipStream Basic and Premium versions, and to a separate Canadian database of postal codes.  Please see the last portion of our price list for pricing for all update versions.

Our basic and premium data feeds for zip codes are updated with new data every month.  Since zip codes are frequently retired or added by the U.S. Postal Service, this data is most subject to change. Out of about 42,000 zip codes in the U.S., an average of 0.9% of records change per month, and 11.2% of records change per year.  Unemployment data (provided in county, state, and Core Based Statistical Area data feeds) are also added and updated monthly.

All our other data feeds, which are primarily based on U.S. Census Data, are updated less frequently.  Data from the American Community Survey (ACS), which will soon be replacing much of the data from the ten-year census, is updated annually, usually in the last quarter of the following year.  We will be using our newsletter to announce updates to these data feeds as they occur.

When you need to update your database, click on the "License Information and Software Updates" icon on the CDXZipStream toolbar, and select "Data Updates" to login to your account and purchase an update. If you've forgotten your user name or password, please contact us at support@cdxtech.com.  For our clients who have purchased support plans, we send an email notification when monthly updates are available.  For more information please call 1-877-239-8321 or contact us at sales@cdxtech.com.

Once a new update has been purchased, or to obtain a monthly update as part of a subscription plan, you can select the “Product Management” under the My Account area of our website (on the left-side menu), and click on “Download Data Files” to download and install the new database.  Alternatively, you can also click on “Buy Data Updates” here to purchase updates.

So, how often should you get updates?  First, consider how critical accuracy is for your application.  If you’re using CDXZipStream to verify addresses in a direct marketing campaign, and even a small percentage of non-valid addresses can make or break the return on investment, consider getting a year’s subscription so you get new data every month.  For non-critical applications, we generally recommend updates at least every six months.  In fact, you’ll see a reminder when you open CDXZipstream if your data is more than six months old.  (You can disable this feature by clicking on the “License Information and Software Updates” icon on the CDXZipStream Toolbar, and unselecting the “Warn if Zip Code Data Out of Date” checkbox.)

Please note that CDXZipStream functions related to driving and mapping use information from Microsoft MapPoint, and are only as good as the MapPoint version installed on your computer. MapPoint is updated every one or two years and the newest 2011 version does contain updated maps with new geographic data.  If you wish to purchase MapPoint North America 2011 we recommend buying at the reputable reseller MP2KMag.com.

 

In a previous post,  Zip Code Demographics from the 2010 Census, we talked about how there are now new several updated fields in CDXZipStream that incorporate data from the last census. These fields cover basic areas such as population counts, median age, household size, and race.  We’ve also now just introduced a more extensive, dedicated data feed that covers 115 fields from the 2010 Census.  This feed is listed as “CDXCensus2010” under the “Select Data Feed” dropdown list, available in the Premium and Premium ACS version 11 of CDXZipStream.  You can review a listing of all CDXZipstream data feeds and their fields, including CDXCensus 2010, from the file CDXZipStream Data Fields and Definitions, or refer to the list at the bottom of this post.

If you already own CDXZipStream Premium or Premium ACS, click on the "License Information and Software Updates" button on the main CDXZipStream toolbar (third button from the left) and select "Date Updates" to purchase the new feed through your account. Data updates for premium versions are $29.95.   If you own a version of CDXZipStream that does not include this feed and would like to upgrade, please see our pricing list for more information; you can then upgrade if desired through your online account.  (Please contact support@cdxtech.com if you need your account user name or password information.)  Of course, if you are buying CDXZipStream for the first time, please see our "Buy Now" webpage to purchase CDXZipStream Premium or Premium ACS.   New purchases already include this feed.

CDXCensus2010 fields:

1. ZipCode
2. Age median
3. Age median male
4. Age median female
5. Age under 5
6. Age male under 5
7. Age female under 5
8. Age 5 - 9
9. Age male 5 - 9
10. Age female 5 - 9
11. Age 10 - 14
12. Age male 10 - 14
13. Age female 10 - 14
14. Age 15 - 19
15. Age male 15 - 19
16. Age female 15 - 19
17. Age 20 - 24
18. Age male 20 - 24
19. Age female 20 - 24
20. Age 25 - 29
21. Age male 25 - 29
22. Age female 25 - 29
23. Age 30 - 34
24. Age male 30 - 34
25. Age female 30 - 34
26. Age 35 - 39
27. Age male 35 - 39
28. Age female 35 - 39
29. Age 40 - 44
30. Age male 40 - 44
31. Age female 40 - 44
32. Age 45 - 49
33. Age male 45 - 49
34. Age female 45 - 49
35. Age 50 - 54
36. Age male 50 - 54
37. Age female 50 - 54
38. Age 55 - 59
39. Age male 55 - 59
40. Age female 55 - 59
41. Age 60 - 64
42. Age male 60 - 64
43. Age female 60 - 64
44. Age 65 - 69
45. Age male 65 - 69
46. Age female 65 - 69
47. Age 70 - 74
48. Age male 70 - 74
49. Age female 70 - 74
50. Age 75 - 79
51. Age male 75 - 79
52. Age female 75 - 79
53. Age 80 - 84
54. Age male 80 - 84
55. Age female 80 - 84
56. Age 85 - 89
57. Age male 85 - 89
58. Age female 85 - 89
59. Age 90+
60. Age male 90+
61. Age female 90+
62. Households total
63. Households family
64. Households nonfamily
65. Households average size
66. Households 1-person
67. Households 2-person
68. Households 3-person
69. Households 4-person
70. Households 5-person
71. Households 6-person
72. Households 7+ person
73. Housing units
74. Housing units owned with mortage
75. House units owned free and clear
76. Housing units renter-occupied
77. Housing units owner-occupied
78. Housing units owner-occupied 1-person
79. Housing units owner-occupied 2-person
80. Housing units owner-occupied 3-person
81. Housing units owner-occupied 4-person
82. Housing units owner-occupied 5-person
83. Housing units owner-occupied 6-person
84. Housing units owner-occupied 7+ person
85. Housing units renter-occupied 1-person
86. Housing units renter-occupied 2-person
87. Housing units renter-occupied 3-person
88. Housing units renter-occupied 4-person
89. Housing units renter-occupied 5-person
90. Housing units renter-occupied 6-person
91. Housing units renter-occupied 7+ person
92. Housing units owner-occupied 15 - 24 years
93. Housing units owner-occupied 25 - 34 years
94. Housing units owner-occupied 35 - 44 years
95. Housing units owner-occupied 45 - 54 years
96. Housing units owner-occupied 55 - 64 years
97. Housing units owner-occupied 65+ years
98. Housing units renter-occupied 15 - 24 years
99. Housing units renter-occupied 25 - 34 years
100. Housing units renter-occupied 35 - 44 years
101. Housing units renter-occupied 45 - 54 years
102. Housing units renter-occupied 55 - 64 years
103. Housing units renter-occupied 65+ years
104. Population
105. Population male
106. Population female
107. Population Hispanic
108. Population not Hispanic
109. Race White
110. Race Black or African American
111. Race American Indian and Alaska Native
112. Race Asian
113. Race Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander
114. Race some other race
115. Race two or more races

CDXZipStream offers hundreds of demographic variables based on zip code, city, state, and other geographic entities.  It’s also a very easy software to use since it works entirely within Microsoft Excel, and is a very economical alternative to much more expensive data sources. To help our clients decide which version of CDXZipStream can best meet their demographic needs, we’d like to review all of its data feeds that provide the most useful economic indicators (such as household income and housing value) that our clients typically ask for.

There are three versions of CDXZipStream that include demographic data feeds from the ten-year census, American Community Survey, Economic Census, and other sources.  These are best described in terms of the data feed types that are included in each version: 

CDXZipStream Demographic:  Data Feed Type1

CDXZipStream Premium:  Data Feeds Type 1, 2, and 3

CDXZipStream ACS Premium:  Data Feeds Type 1, 2, 3, and 4

The economic-related data fields included in each feed are as follows:  (Keep in mind that other non-economic demographic data are also available from these feeds, please download the complete list of all fields.)

Data Feed Type 1 (CDXZipCode Premium):  Average house value, income per household from Census 2000.  Data are provided by zip code.

Data Feed Type 2 (CDXCity, CDXCounty, CDXState, CDXAreaCode, CDXCBSA):  Average house value, income per household from Census 2000.  Data are provided by city, county, state, area code and Core-Based Statistical Area.

Data Feed Type 3 (CDXCensus):  Detailed individual earnings, household income, housing value and rent from Census 2000.  Data are provided by zip code.  

The specific data fields for CDXCensus are:

Data Feed Type 4 (CDXACSPlace, CDXACSCounty, CDXACSState, CDXACSCBSA):  Detailed individual earnings, household income, housing value and rent averaged over the last five years of data from the American Community Survey, administered by the U.S. Census Bureau.  Data are provided by city (also called “place” by the Census ), county, state, and Core-Based Statistical Area.  The specific data fields are:

We will soon be introducing in December 2011 additional zip code data feeds with economic indicators from the most recent American Community Survey.   Stay tuned! 

If you've ever hesitated with indecision when the dessert cart comes around, we know how you feel.  Choice is a good thing when it comes to the sweet things in life, but sometimes a little help is needed to make the right decision.  We especially believe that having a choice is a good thing when it comes to software, and so we've always offered CDXZipStream in several versions to provide our clients with the functionality that best suits their needs.  Now with eight different versions and a wide (and growing) range of capabilities, we thought it would be a good idea to review in detail the functionality of the most popular versions, as an aid to current and future clients as they purchase and upgrade their software. (Note:  Pricing information for both new purchases and upgrades is available here, with discounts available for multiple licenses.  And remember, all versions of CDXZipStream come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so don't worry, you can send back that cherry tart after taking a bite ...)

CDXZipStream Lite 

- Provides basic demographic data by zip code

  (Data feed is CDXZipCode (Basic). See here for specific data fields for this feed.)

- Creates zip code lists by state, county, and city

- Performs reverse zip code lookup (finds the city and state for a zip code)

- Calculates the straight-line (as the crow flies) distance between zip codes

- Lists all zip codes within a radius area

- Finds the closest zip code to a target zip

CDXZipStream Basic 

Does everything the Lite version does, and contains additional functionality provided by Microsoft MapPoint.

- Provides basic demographic data by zip code

  (Data feed is CDXZipCode (Basic).  See here for specific data fields for this feed.)

- Creates zip code lists by state, county, and city

- Performs reverse zip code lookup (finds the city and state for a zip code)

- Calculates the straight-line (as the crow flies) distance between zip codes

- Lists all zip codes within a radius area

- Finds the closest zip code to a target zip

When used in conjunction with Microsoft MapPoint, CDXZipStream Basic:

- Calculates driving distance, driving time, and driving cost between addresses

- Verifies the accuracy of address information

- Optimizes the order of stops on a driving route (route optimization)

- Finds the latitude and longitude of an address

- Finds the closest address for a given latitude and longitude

- Calculates the straight-line distance between points of latitude and longitude

- Creates radius, route, and location maps

CDXZipStream Premium

Does everything the Basic version does, and contains extensive demographic data.

- Provides basic demographic data by zip code, city, county, area code, CBSA, and state

  (Data feeds are CDXZipCode (Premium), CDXCity, CDXCounty, CDXAreaCode, CDXCBSA, CDXState, CDXCensus, and CDXCensus2.   See here for specific data fields for    these feeds.)

- Creates zip code lists by state, county, and city

- Performs reverse zip code lookup (finds the city and state for a zip code)

- Calculates the straight-line (as the crow flies) distance between zip codes

- Lists all zip codes within a radius area

- Finds the closest zip code to a target zip

When used in conjunction with Microsoft MapPoint, CDXZipStream Premium:

- Calculates driving distance, driving time, and driving cost between addresses

- Verifies the accuracy of address information

- Optimizes the order of stops on a driving route (route optimization)

- Finds the latitude and longitude of an address

- Finds the closest address for a given latitude and longitude

- Calculates the straight-line distance between points of latitude and longitude

- Creates radius, route, and location maps

CDXZipStream Premium ACS

Does everything the Premium version does, and contains demographic data from the latest American Community Survey.

- Provides extensive demographic data by zip code, city, county, area code, CBSA, and state, from the American Community Survey, 2000 Census, latest Business Census,    and other sources.  (Data feeds are CDXZipCode (Premium), CDXCity, CDXCounty, CDXAreaCode, CDXCBSA,  CDXState, CDXCensus, CDXCensus2, CDXACSCBSA,    CDXACSCounty, CDXACSPlace, and CDXACSState   See here for specific data fields for these feeds.)

- Creates zip code lists by state, county, and city

- Performs reverse zip code lookup (finds the city and state for a zip code)

- Calculates the straight-line (as the crow flies) distance between zip codes

- Lists all zip codes within a radius area

- Finds the closest zip code to a target zip

When used in conjunction with Microsoft MapPoint, CDXZipStream Premium ACS:

- Calculates driving distance, driving time, and driving cost between addresses

- Verifies the accuracy of address information

- Optimizes the order of stops on a driving route (route optimization)

- Finds the latitude and longitude of an address

- Finds the closest address for a given latitude and longitude

- Calculates the straight-line distance between points of latitude and longitude

- Creates radius, route, and location maps

 

The 2010 decennial census results are slowly being released by the Census Bureau, and you may have seen news reports since last December about redistricting and demographic data, provided on a state-by-state basis.  However, one of the more important releases of interest to business and other organizations looking for demographic data, will occur over the summer months of 2011, from June to August, of what's referred to as Summary File 1 or SF-1.

SF-1 is also issued state-by-state, but will include data all the way down to the smallest geographies of block and census tract.  (For a review of Census Bureau geography types, please see our blog article Census Geography - It's not Quite What You Learned in School.)  What data will SF-1 include?  Since the 2010 Census did not include a long-form version and covered only ten questions, the results are somewhat limited, to the following areas:

- Population counts for 63 race categories and Hispanic or Latino

- Population counts for many detailed race and Hispanic or Latino categories, and American Indian and Alaska Native tribes

- Selected population and housing characteristics, such as household and family information by age, size, and type

Attached for your reference is an Excel file listing all the data fields of SF-1: Census 2010 Summary File 1 Fields.xls (946.00 kb)

Other socioeconomic data, covering areas such as income, educational attainment, school enrollment, and occupation, are now collected with the American Community Survey, or ACS.  The ACS is performed annually by the US Census Bureau and results can be combined over a several year period to obtain statistically significant data for smaller census geographies.  The CDXZipStream ACS Premium version currently provides ACS data for states, counties, cities, and Core Based Statistical Areas for the years 2005-2009.  Zip code data, for both the 2010 decennial census and the ACS, will not be available until 2012-2013.

Assuming SF-1 is released by August, we expect to have portions of this data available in CDXZipStream by our regularly scheduled data update at the end of September 2011.  The following fields will be covered by CDXZipStream, and we are now soliciting input from our clients to determine if there are any other fields of interests we should add, either to the standard product or a customized version:

Please contact us at support@CDXTech.com if you would like to provide input to the CDXZipStream data feed for Census 2010 data.  If you are interested in your own customized database of Census 2010 data, you can contact customsolutions@CDXTech.com for a free quote.

 

We like to think of CDXZipStream as a Swiss-army knife for working with location-based data, be it zip codes, addresses, or latitude/longitude (geocode) points. Since it performs so many functions, ranging from retrieving the most up-to-date demographic data to optimizing driving routes, we've put together in our CDXZipStream links page a virtual supermarket of resources that helps our clients get the most out of the software.   Here's a quick review of some of our links:

"One-Click" CDXZipStream Templates

These are free, downloadable, pre-formatted Excel files that perform CDXZipStream functions with a single click of the mouse.  Just enter your address, zip code, or other data of interest, and click a command button to start the calculations.  We currently have templates designed for route optimization, geocoding and reverse geocoding, and for driving calculations such as driving distance, time, cost, and total trip duration.  These templates can also be used with the trial version of CDXZipstream, so they're especially well-suited for doing a quick and easy evaluation of whether CDXZipStream is right for you.  Client feedback has been extremely positive, and we will be adding new templates to cover all CDXZipStream functionality.

YouTube Videos

These are short, informative videos that show you how you can use CDXZipStream in a Microsoft Excel worksheet.  We've found that video instruction is extremely effective in helping our clients understand what CDXZipStream can do, and is a great way to get the word out when new functionality is added.  Consider subscribing to our YouTube channel if you would like to be notified when new videos are released.

Technical Articles

These include Microsoft Excel files showing concrete examples of how CDXZipStream can be used, our on-line help file, a video quick-start guide to CDXZipStream,  and a spreadsheet of all available demographic data fields and their descriptions.

Close-Up Articles

These are an informational series of articles highlighting how you can get and use address, zip code, and geocode data to help grow your business.  These provide a good introduction on how to leverage location-based information into improved efficiencies, more targeted marketing and identification of your customer base, and direct cost savings, using CDXZipStream.  Four areas are covered: customer demographics, route optimization, driving (such as driving distance, time, and cost) calculations, and geocoding.  

We also include links to our newletters, articles on Ezinearticles.com, PC Magazine, and Squidoo.com, as well as links to the many awards won by CDXZipStream.  So please feel free to check back frequently, as we continually update and add to this page as CDXZipStream grows.

 

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau is an indispensible source of demographic information that helps businesses, non-profits, and even the smallest mom-and-pop store plan, market, and ultimately reach their target audience.  But there are limitations to the data, particularly for smaller geographies, that should be considered before making any critical demographics-related decisions.

Since participation rates for census surveys are never 100%, there will always be some error associated with demographics estimates.  For example, the American Community Survey samples about 2% of American households every year, and the accuracy of the estimates can vary significantly, especially for geographic areas where populations are small and sampling error can be large.  Here are some results from the latest 5-year data set from the ACS covering the years 2005-2009:

The error results for the American Community Survey are all for 90% margin of error, meaning that there is 90% confidence that the true result lies within the margin of error around the estimate.  For instance, for Albany County, there is 90% confidence that the median income is $55,350 plus or minus $1,061; this means the actual 90% confidence range is $54,289 - $56,411.  Even with this level of error, however, the median income estimates for Albany County, Albany city, and Census Tract 2 are significantly different from a statistical point of view, since there is no overlap when including the margin of error for each estimate. 

In the case below, involving all small census tract geographies, the picture is not so clear:

Since the margin of error is so large for Census Tract 4.01, we cannot be confident that the true median income is statistically different from Census Tract 1.  The estimate ranges, including the margin of error, overlap for Census Tracts 1 and 4.01, even though the estimate values ($37,619 versus $62,039) are quite different. We can say with confidence, however, that the median income for Census Tract 2 is statistically different from Census Tract 4.01 since the estimate ranges do not overlap.  It certainly helps in this case that the margin of error for Census tract 2 is relatively small for this geography.

It's easy to cherry-pick data like this to show how the margin of error effects how we interpret the results, but the fact remains that survey error can be an important part of data interpretation particularly for cases where the error is large.  When important decisions need to be made based on demographics, margin of error should always be part of the analysis.

We'd like to take the opportunity to talk about the CDX Technologies free on-line tool for getting demographic data by zip code.  Just input a zip code and specify the report you need – general data about the location, demographics, population gender, or race – and a clear and concise report is returned to the web page.  You can also export the data to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet or presentation-quality PDF file, which is easy to send as an email attachment or include as part of a larger report.

This tool is currently a work-in-progress; we'll soon be updating it with the latest census information as it becomes available, and would also like to solicit opinions from our clients and readers here for suggestions on how we can make it even better.  Drop us a line at support@CDXTech.com and let us know what you think!

We also enthusiastically recommend a web tool called American FactFinder, provided courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau.  Not only does it draw on a huge stockpile of demographic data (such as the ten-year census, American Community Survey, and latest Economic Census), it's a pretty quick and reliable source of information when you need data for a small number of geographies.  It's especially well-suited for getting very detailed, esoteric data which are not generally available from other free online tools.  We don't recommend using it when you need data for many locations (in that case try our Excel add-in CDXZipStream), but for limited data it's a good place to start looking.

Note:  Coming in January of 2011, American FactFinder will get a new look and some new functionality, including new table and mapping features.  Hopefully the tables will be easier on the eyes and little less crowded with information.

So, with a nod to an old joke – "In God we trust, all others bring data" – consider getting your demographic data (free!) from the great online tools mentioned here.