For those who want to experiment with Linux-based GIS, or you have older hardware that just can’t handle Windows XP, Matt Perry has a nice post on his blog on adding applications to a basic Ubuntu 7.10 Linux installation to turn it into a decent open source GIS workstation. Step-by-step directions are included for installing:
Quantum GIS
GRASS
MapServer
GPSBabel
GMT (Generic Mapping Tools)
PostGIS
… and more
You’ll find the apps installed in the /usr/bin directory.
A few more Linux-compatible software packages to consider adding to this set (require Java to be installed on the system):
uDig extracts into a folder that contains the Java program launcher. To install a *.bin file in Ubuntu Linux (like gvSIG), open the Terminal application, change the directory to the location of the *.bin file, and type:
sudo sh *.bin
Where *.bin is the full name of the .bin file.
If you want to augment these application, there’s a fair number of Windows geographic tools (e.g. MicroDEM) that will run under the WINE emulator.
Taking this as another opportunity to give Ubuntu Linux a spin, I will say that Ubuntu 7.10 (”Gutsy Gibbon”) is another step forward for desktop Linux, but I still have major ease-of-use issues with it. I find myself pounding my head against a wall far more often with Linux than with either Windows XP or Macintosh (but don’t get me started on Vista).
Here’s a few additional color applications that might prove a useful complement to the application Kuler (from yesterday’s post) in designing map color schemes.
An online color application: Name That Color. Select a color from the color wheel, and Name That Color will … name that color. Also gives you the RGB and hex numbers for it.
Open source; Javascript and php code available at the website.
KML Color Converter: Mix and match R, G, B and black, set transparency, and get back the KML color code; gives other color codes as well (like RGB, CMY, CMYK, HSL). Also has a color picker to select colors from anywhere on-screen.
Color Palette Generator, Color Hunter: Online apps that create a color palette based on those found in a graphic or image file. You enter the URL of the image, and get back a palette with the colors in that image.
Popfly, Microsoft’s web mashup maker, has moved out of invitation-only alpha phase to beta, open to everyone. When it was still in alpha, CNet compared Popfly to its two main competitors, Yahoo! Pipes and Google’s Mashup Editor, and found it the easiest to use. Requires Silverlight, so it only runs in Windows now (but will run in Firefox).
A while back, I posted about ColorBrewer, an online map-oriented tool for experimenting with different map coloring schemes. It’s a great tool, but with a limited number of color palettes to choose from, and no capability to modify them or create your own. Kuler is an online color palette creator from Adobe (Flash, multi-platform; free registration required) that lets you create and view your own color palette, or browse and modify palettes created by others. There’s a ranking system that lets you give a rating (1-5 stars) for palettes, and you can browse by popular (most downloads) or highest star ratings.
If your graphics application supports Adobe Swatch Exchange files (*.ase), you can download a swatch file from the application. If not, you’ll have to write down the color specs down (HSV, CMYK, RGB, LAB or HEX) from the settings in the Create window for your new palette. For an existing palette, click on the “Make changes …” button at middle right:
If you want to enter ColorBrewer palettes into Kuler for experimentation and modification, you can download an Excel file with RGB values from the ColorBrewer updates page.
One of the first posts on this blog was about the 5.1.1 stable version of DNRGarmin. Long story short, if you work with GIS and you use Garmin units for your data acquisition, this program is a must-have. It can upload/download data in text, DBF and shapefile formats to/from Garmin GPS units, and also comes with an extension for direct interfacing with ArcGIS software. Version 5.1.1 had some utility for non-Garmin GPS units and applications, but version 5.2, currently in beta, has some new features that make it a worthwhile installation for anyone with a GPS.
DNRGarmin has actually been in beta for a while, and I’d been waiting to see if it would come out of beta; the date on the last release is 5/18/07. The webpage indicates in big bold letters that in the beta, “THE ERROR RELATED TO USB CONNECTIVITY AND LOGIN RIGHTS HAS NOT YET BEEN RESOLVED“. But I’ve installed it successfully on 3 different computers without encountering this problem, so there’s a decent chance it should work on yours as well.
Load data in KML and GPX (in addition to the previous options of text, DBF and shapefile formats)
Load data directly from the “My Place” pane in Google Earth
Save data in KML and GPX (along with the previous options of projected/unprojected shapefiles, text and DBF)
Convert between the different formats
Collects waypoint time data from supported units
Note: The new version’s ArcGIS extension no longer works with ArcGIS 8.x, only 9.x. If that’s important to you, you should stick with version 8.1.1, still available on the web page. But the new version works fine in stand-alone mode.
The latest update to Microsoft’s digital globe, Virtual Earth, now has limited support for KML; lots more information at OgleEarth and the Google Earth Blog. My reaction? Ehhh. Virtual Earth has some cool features (like Birds-Eye view), but I find the browser-based interface less than ideal, and it doesn’t even work in 3D mode on my laptop. The stand-alone Google Earth client is faster (actually works on my laptop), has more features, is easier to use, data creation is straightforward, etc.. And while it isn’t relevant to me, there are many who appreciate that you can run GE on Macintosh and Linux, while Virtual Earth isn’t supported on those platforms. I’ve seen a few interesting apps being developed using Virtual Earth as the platform, but until Microsoft fixes the usability and data creation issues, and preferably creates a stand-alone client, I’m not going to spend a lot of time with it. In fact, I’d put it at number three in the digital globe world, behind stand-alone digital globes like Google Earth and WorldWind; even ArcGIS Explorer could give Virtual Earth a run for its money in some applications.
The Maps Of War site has animated embeddable Flash maps illustrating historical trends, like this one showing the history of the Middle East over the past 5000 years:
And the Library page has a growing collection of links to other animated history maps from across the web.
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Determining the accuracy, reliability, validity, or appropriateness of any of the software or data written about in this blog for any uses is the sole responsibility of the reader, not the authors of the blog posts. The blog authors have no liability for any uses of the software or data described here.
