Open Source GIS

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Open Source GIS

• The Ecotrust mission to utilize new innovative
  technology

Aaron Racicot GIS Programmer aaronr_at_ecotrust.org
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Goals

• Utilize Open Source Technology
• Save on cost
• Rapid response to problems
• Be an active participant in a community
• Develop web-based decision support tools
• Gain a greater audience
• Migrate from relying on complex/proprietary
  desktop software for simple GIS tasks
• Create a Salmon Nation data repository
• Automated data mining
• Seamless data sets
• WMS/WFS/OPeNDAP server/client

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Open Source Technology

• Fedora Core 3
• Apache 2.0.52
• PHP 4.3.10
• PostgeSQL 8.0.1
• GEOS 2.2.1
• PostGIS 1.0.0
• GDAL/OGR 1.2.5
• Proj.4 4.4.9
• Mapserver 4.4.2
• Grass 6.0.0

International User Groups
Conferences
Source Code
Email/Web forums
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Key Pieces

• Mapserver Web Based Mapping
• Can be run as CGI or as script
• Utilizes SWIG to create Mapscript environment
• Interfaces to GDAL/OGR for raster and vector
  processing
• Interfaces to PostGIS and SDE
• Faster than ArcIMS
• PostgreSQL/PostGIS
• Dynamic relational database with OGC compliant
  interfaces
• Mainly focused on vector storage, but soon to
  support rasters

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Web-based decision support tools

• Utilize powerful GIS on backend and web based GIS
  on front end.
• GRASS used for vector and raster based
  processing via command line calls from PHP.
• Mapserver used to directly display results from
  online analysis
• A new way of looking at senario based decision
  making
• Allowing users to interact
• Automated file upload and run management
• Web-based polygon capture for senario based
  simulation
• Ocean Planner - Demo

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Salmon Nation data repository

• Ecotrust has a geographic area of interest in the
  area known as Salmon Nation.
• Data stored in common formats (ArcINFO/GRID,
  PostGIS, Shapefiles, GTiff, etc)
• Seamless data where posible
• Automated data mining for easy data refresh
• Web-based interfaces for both intranet and
  internet access
• Seamless data extraction over arbitrary areas by
  chopping files or aggregating multiple files
• Serve our data via WMS/WFS/OPeNDAP
• Use remote data when possible

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Cool projects underway

• Base data compilation
• All TIGER data for USA. Compiled and processed
• 10 Meter DEM automated download
• Keyhole like zooming
• Siuslaw Watershed Demo
• User based interfaces
• Utilizing PHP sessions
• Custom upload/download
• Saved state between sessions
• Applet development