free and open source software for geoinformatics in geosciences operative and academic aspects

Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012

Free and Open Source Software for Geoinformatics in Geosciences

Operative and Academic Aspects

Gabriel AsatoGeological and Mining Survey of Argentina

-2012-Internacional Geological Congress


This Presentation is about....

Why to use FOSS4G?

How to start working with FOSS4G

What I have to know about FOSS4G

What are the advantages and disavantages

Impacts in software development, education and academia


What is FOSS4G?

Is not only about the word free


FOSS4G

What does means Free and Open Source Software?

Freedom 0: The freedom to run the program for any purpose.

Freedom 1: The freedom to study how the program works, and change it to make it do what you wish.

Freedom 2: The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor.

Freedom 3: The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements (and modified versions in general) to the public, so that the whole community benefits.

Free Software Foundation, 2008


The Idea Behind FOSS4G

Not reinvent the wheel again and again

Contruct powerfull collaboration networks

Know how about how to use FOSS4G is much more valuable than the software itself

It's a new economical and constructive vision of software dynamics


Examples of FOSS4G Software Applications (1)

Clients:

GvSIG, Quantum, Jump, UDIG, etc, etc, etc.

Advanced Geographic Data Analysis

Grass, North 58, Grid, Sexante

Geographic Data Server

PostGIS

Web Server

Mapserver, Geoserver, Degree


Examples of FOSS4G Software Applications (2)

Application Development

Terralib

Cartography

Mapnik, TileMill, CartoCSS

UML

Moskitt, Aptana

Programming Languajes

Java, C++, Python, Ruby, PHP, etc

Others

R, GNUPlot, Octave, Gdal, GMT, etc, etc, etc.


Open Software Development(my personal vision)

Fat Clients. Well developed, many options

Web Clients. Well developed, many options

Data Entry. Simple but improving. GvSIG with topology support

Data Analysis. Well developed.

Corporate GDB. Very well developed but only any applications

Middleware, web mapping. Very well developed, many options

On Line Catalog. Well developed but any applications

GPS. Developed

Field Data Survey. Few applications available

Navigation. Not tested

Professional Cartography. Few applications but improving in quality and diversity


Some Private Packages

ESRI, ArcGIS

Oracle

Smallworld

Bentley

AutoDesk

Una curiosidad:

Con la aparición de los estándares abiertos están apareciendo muchas nuevas companías, en especial en el área de servicios.


FOSS4G vs Private


FOSS4G Observed Advantages

Modular, consitent, integration with other packages

Based on Open Standards

FOSS4G is developing quickly

Sometimes FOSS4G is related to technological organizations or universities

Advanced algorithms and techniques can be implemented easily

Not an unique vision for a problem

Variety of programming tools

Not tyed to only one unique solution


FOSS4G Disadvantages

Documentation is not always available

Sometimes there are no official support

Disanvantages?

Sometimes specific expertise in geoinformatics is needed

Advanced algorithms and process are difficult to use or only undestood by the person who created the application


Private Software Advantages

Important tradition in GIS matters

Very well known by people and organizations

Good Know How

Well documented

Sometimes good relationship with academic world.


Private Software Main Disadvantages

Very expensive

Have no good modularization

It is observed that this kind of software is transforming into a giant piece of software that nobody can control.

Sometimes they use private standards ( incompatible )

If a private standard will not success, the company leave people without technical support

Tyed to the marketing vision not to the community necesities.

One vision for the problemOne vision for the problem

Only one or few development tools

No so well integrated with others companies software

No so many options for your information stack


The Main Reasons for Developing Unsuccess

Are conditioned by the behaviour of the market

Private Companies cannot colaborate among them

They cannot they move to very advanced topics without high risk of loss of economic success


Then,What Other Options Give to us FOSS4G?

You always find a solution for your problem. If you cannot any other person will do it for you.

Give the oportunity to create high tech developments before its apparition in the comercial chain.

Organizations, users and developers can manage their projects with freedom and in the way they choosed

The software variety is no problem, you use the system or package you thinks is convinient for you.

The sustainbility of the data is garanteed because FOSS4G use to work with well known standards and formats.


Information Stack

It is about how do you contruct you geospatial/temporal information system

It is a critical concept because without this definition only simple developments or applications can be done

Information Stack is about what is the best arquitecture for your necessities.

Is about relationships bettween diferent information levels like: GDB, clients, storage, standards, practices, programming tools and objetives.

Remember with FOSS4G you can design the best Information Stack

that fit you project!!!!


Criteria Design for Information Stack

Do you need programming tools?

Do you need to experiment with very complex algorithms?

Statistics, geostatistics, mathematics, etc.

Desktop or Corporative?

How many people needs to access your data?

What kind of data you will store?

Local files or distributed geospatial database?

Simple data structure or complex?

Complex digitizing tools (topology) are needed?

Etc, etc.


Standards facilitates the development of Applications like FOSS4G


Education and Academic Impact Universities and researches can use any FOSS4G platform for

developing their applications. They do not need to start from 0.

Your improvements can be added to the software (quickly published)

Your code can be peer reviewed.

Not limited to one option

Your application can be integrated with other by using open standards

Give the opportunity to the student learn about geoinformatics.


Why is so important Open Source Software?

“The United Kingdom Meteorological Office produces (in conjunction with the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit) the downloadable and widely used gridded temperature anomaly data sets known as HadCRUT and CRUTEM3. Yet even such a high-profile data set, developed by an organization with a good standard of software development34, contained errors that would have been more quickly identified and rectified had the underlying code been readily available.......”

The case for open computer programs

Darrel C. Ince, Leslie Hatton & John Graham-Cumming

Nature 482, 485–488 (23 February 2012) doi:10.1038/nature10836

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v482/n7386/box/nature10836_BX1.html


Conclusions

FOSS4G not only means free.

You have more than one unique option

Some concepts are important like information stack, open standards, modularization.

It's a great opportunity for developers and researchers

Programs and results can be peer-reviewed

Students can understant and learn much more about geoinformatics


GraciasThanks

ObrigadoDanke

Domo Arigato….

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