Mapserver The PSU Experience

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Mapserver The PSU Experience

• David Percy
• Geospatial Data Manager, Geology Department
• William Garrick
• Manager of Academic and Research Computing
• Portland State University

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2005 the year of OS GIS

• Books
• Mapping Hacks
• Web Mapping Illustrated
• MapServer Essentials
• Google Earth
• AutoDesk

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Background of Presenters

• Percy
• Over 20 years of scientific databases including
  medical research
• Hired by Geology department in 1998 as data
  manager. GIS became an obvious need.
• Began teaching in 1999, since then adding Field
  GIS, GIS Programming and this year Web Mapping
• Will
• Manager of Academic and Research Computing
• Staff at PSU for 8 years
• 12 Student Programmers

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Previous Web Mapping at PSU

• Windows servers in offices running ESRI
  1998-2004
• Geology, and Urban Planning
• Map Objects, then ArcIMS Oregon Geologic Map and
  reference
• First Mapserver foray in 2002, project abandoned
  not due to mapserver
• Coastal data, database of Glacier Change, all
  science goes to the web now.
• ASP pages transitioned to Apache, MySQL, PHP in
  2003 in preparation for move to Open Source

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Academic and Research Computing to the rescue!

• Managed servers with Linux
• Ugly install of ArcIMS
• Began discussion of Mapserver/PostGIS
• Other projects requesting webmaps from ARC
• Strong investment in Apache, PHP, MySQL already.
• Leverage existing strengths
• Cost of Oracle/SQL Server prohibitive at PSU
• Institutional support for Open Source solutions

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Components of Open Source Web MappingThe new
LAMP

• L Linux
• A Apache
• M MySQL
• P PHP

• L Linux
• A Apache
• M MapServer
• P PostGIS

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Open Source Components

• GDAL Raster Library
• OGR Vector Library
• GD Graphics Creation
• Proj.4 Coordinate Systems
• FreeType Nice fonts!
• GEOS Geometry Engine
• Shapelib Shapefile library

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Setting up a MapServer Site

• Installation
• Build from source code
• Install a package
• Get data on server
• Create mapfile
• (analogous to AXL)
• Choose or write a front end
• (similar to choice between HTML and JAVA)
• Stateless!
• (No JAVA Servlets!)

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A closer look at the stack

• Front end
• PHP/Mapscript with Javascript
• PHP/Mapscript
• Pure CGI with template substitution
• Data in
• PostGIS or Shapefiles for vector
• Geotiff, ECW or JPEG2000 for raster
• Referenced and styled by MAPFILE
• Mapserver CGI built with all the right includes
• Webserver Apache
• Operating system - Linux

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The Big ChoiceWhat front end?

• Percy facilitates open source sessions
• Ka-Map
• Chameleon
• MapBender, MapLab, FIST
• Grad Students revolt!
• Requirements defined
• Pan, Zoom, Query, some AJAX
• In a single weekend prototype developed
• Currently used in three production systems,
  fourth almost ready
• Demos!

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Web Interfaces

• Ka-map
• Chameleon
• Maplab
• MapBlender
• FIST
• CGI
• Build your own

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Conclusions

• Web Mapping is reliable and proven
• GeoDatabases, combined with WFS and WMS services
  are reliable and promising
• Be careful what Open Source project you align
  with
• Many projects are brilliant, but orphaned
• OSCDL will continue support and development, both
  for map interfaces and backend datastreams.

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Data Streams

• End of Monolithic Web Apps
• Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC)
• WMS
• WFS
• Query for capabilities
• High Quality data streams from many sources,
  possibly aggregated through Google Earth

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Data Management Partnerships

• Similar to co-location of servers
• Harness the expertise of PSU
• percyd_at_pdx.edu
• will_at_pdx.edu

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GeoDatabases

• PostgreSQL
• From Berkely, Ingress
• Transactions, rollback and other modern database
  features
• Object Relational DB
• PostGIS
• Extensions for GIS functionality to PGSQL

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