Welcome to the first Prestologic blog, where I will be posting blogs about implicit modelling and its applications in the mining industry.  The focus will be to explain the context in which implicit modelling was developed for exploration and mining use.

Who is this blog for?

You may be reading this blog because:

• you are a Leapfrog user and want to know more about the software
• you may be a geologist who is curious about Leapfrog – you've heard the name, but have never used it
• you may be a mining executive geologist who wants to improve business outcomes for your mining or exploration company.

You've come to the right place! In this blog, you can read about why Leapfrog was invented and what problems it was intended to solve. Knowing this information is essential if you want to generate a good geological model, and apply that model in your daily mining and exploration activities.

I won't focus too much on the mechanics of how to use Leapfrog in this blog, as this is dealt with elsewhere on the Prestologic website.

I'll write the blog posts informally, as though I'm having a conversation with you. That said, the content itself is serious, with far-reaching implications for the resource industry. (If you want serious and formal writing – some say boring! – then go to the case studies area.)

Is this blog just about Leapfrog?

No. In this blog, I intend discussing any topics that are relevant to good 3D geological modelling and interpretation.

While this is not purely a Leapfrog blog, Leapfrog happens to be the software that I founded and use every day. In my opinion, Leapfrog software is the best in the world for 3D geological modelling (* see disclosure below) – as a result, many of the blog posts will be about Leapfrog software.

As far as Leapfrog is concerned, I will use this blog to give you an insight as to why and how Leapfrog was developed and where it is heading now.

However, while Leapfrog can help you generate a good geological model and help you interpret the patterns seen in nature, you still need an additional, crucial tool for good geological interpretation. The tool that you really need to use for a good interpretation is...

wait for it...

 

 

drum roll please....

 

 

it is your own brain!

 

I bet you thought that I was going to suggest some fancy new software that's going to solve all your problems, right?  Wrong!

Leapfrog was born out of thinking about a solution to a specific problem. A structural geologist (me) first recognised there was a geological problem, then went about trying to solve it. Part of the solution was getting together a bunch of mathematicians and computer engineers from ARANZ to build a tailor-made tool to solve the problem.

Some of you don't know what this problem is, but you already have a solution in your hands (Leapfrog); you might even be very competent at using it. You may have no idea what Leapfrog is about and why it was built in the first place. Somewhere along the line, everyone has forgotten what the actual problem was!

Well, all will be revealed in the Prestologic blog. To really understand why Leapfrog was developed, I'll use this blog to discuss the context in which Leapfrog was formed and how it has evolved over the last ten years. That geological context is the real focus of this blog, not the Leapfrog software.

* Disclosure of income and interests

I'd like to fully disclose how my company receives income so that there is absolutely no misunderstanding concerning my views and recommendations.

Prestologic, my company, receives sales commissions from Leapfrog software sold in the region that Prestologic operates (Australia, Asia, and parts of Africa and Mexico), and from Leapfrog software sold within SRK Consulting internationally. These commissions are paid by both ARANZ and SRK Consulting Australia to Prestologic. Independent to this, on behalf of Prestologic I also run classroom training courses and tutorials all around the world for Leapfrog users, and conduct geological consulting. For these training and consulting activities, Prestologic receives income directly from mining and exploration companies. Most of these clients are also Leapfrog licence holders and active Leapfrog users.

In these blog posts I may recommend software and service providers other than my own. I will introduce some Leapfrog users from around the world and discuss what they do with Leapfrog. From time to time, I may have guests who may contribute to this blog in the form of comments and articles, and in these cases I will completely disclose which people and companies I have blackmailed to say the right things that do not contradict my views.  ;-)

As a service provider in the mining sector, I know that my business reputation depends on successful outcomes that I formulate for my clients.

If I feel that I can help, then I will provide a proposal to assist you.

I will not sell you my services or products if they won't solve the issues that you are facing in your business.

I will not charge you hours of my consulting time, just because I can, then not resolve or answer the questions you are asking me to resolve.

I will not recommend Leapfrog software to you when other products will do a better job to solve your issues. In the past, I have recommended software other than Leapfrog –  I always offer to view your data first, free of charge, so that I can make an informed decision about whether I can recommend a solution. 

The opinions expressed in these blogs are of Prestologic, and do not reflect the opinions, views, or sentiments of other people or companies; this includes the makers of Leapfrog (ARANZ Geo), and the former development partner of Leapfrog (SRK Consulting Australia).

This blog – and this business – is about YOU!

Now that I have completely disclosed my interests, I have to emphasise the greatest interest that I have. It is:

Improving your mining or exploration business.

 

I hope to make this blog a way to connect with geologists and executive geologists in the resource industry.

If you have any questions about geological interpretation, Leapfrog software, or any other issues raised in the blog, please email me.

If your question is specific to operating Leapfrog, then I may summarise my response in the case studies area, but for other questions, I hope to provide answers in this blog so that we can all learn from each others' experience, and, most importantly, improve your business outcomes. 

 

Jun Cowan, PhD
Director, Prestologic
jcowan@prestologic.com