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Archive for the 'GIS' Category

GIS On A Stick

Published at July 1, 2008 in GIS. 1 Comment

Jo Cook of Oxford Archaeology has created a portable suite of Windows’ GIS applications that can be run from a thumb drive on any Windows XP/Vista system, or from your local hard drive, with no installation required. Applications include:

  • GRASS, a powerful but complicated GIS
  • Quantum GIS (version 10), a simpler GIS viewer/editor that incorporates some GRASS functionality
  • gvSIG, a full-blown GIS viewer/editor
  • GeoServer, a open-source map server
  • PostGreSQL with the PostGIS extensions, a relational database server (and Xampp, a portable version of the Apache server, to run it on)
  • FWTools, a full suite of command-line utilities for manipulating raster and vector data, along with the OpenEV raster image application  (note: I’ve been unable to get this one to work, but Jo thinks this may be a DLL conflict with an already-installed version of FWTools)

Download the Portable GIS zipped file here (warning: close to 500 MB even in zipped format). A few notes:

- You can run this from your hard drive as well as from a thumb drive, but you need to unzip it to a root hard drive directory, e.g. C:; unzip it to a subdirectory and it will have problems finding files.

- If you’re going to put it on a thumb drive, I’d recommend unzipping it first to a hard drive, then copying the files to the root directory of the thumb drive. Regardless, with about 20K files, it will take several hours to copy them over.

- In the current version (1.2), Portable GIS will only fit on a 2 GB or larger thumb drive in its default configuration. But with a bit of work, you can get it to fit onto a 1 GB thumb drive, and even have 250 MB of free space:

  • Right-click on the thumb drive’s icon, choose “Format”, and select the NTFS file system and Quick Format.
  • Once formatting is complete, close the Format window, right-click on the drive icon, and choose “Properties”
  • Check the box marked “Compress this drive to save disk space”, then click OK.
  • Unzip the Portable GIS files to your hard drive
  • Copy the files and directories over to the thumb drive, but in groups, not all at once; if you try it all at once, you’ll get a message saying there’s not enough room.

You’ll wind up with all the files you need to use Portable GIS, as well as extra space.

- For the thumb drive, double-click on the thumb drive icon; you’ll get a tray icon that clicking on will pop-up menu items for program configuration and running. If you’re running it from a hard drive, run the “PortableGISMenu.exe” app to create the tray icon.

- Before running GRASS, FWTools, or the Apache server using Xampp, run the appropriate setup program for each app to set system variables.

- Use the tray icon menu items to start up all the programs; use the same menu to shut down the GeoServer, Xampp and PostGreSQL applications (just closing the program windows may not work). GRASS, gvSIG and Quantum GIS can be shutdown normally.



The Big List Of Free Metadata Software II

Published at June 3, 2008 in GIS, data and software. 0 Comments

Continuing on from the first post in the series …

MetaCat: “Metacat is a flexible metadata database. It utilizes XML as a common syntax for representing the large number of metadata content standards that are relevant to ecology. Thus, Metacat is a generic XML database that allows storage, query, and retrieval of arbitrary XML documents without prior knowledge of the XML schema.”

ht to Matt Perry.

MetaLite: “MetaLite is a simple tool for collecting and validating Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) compliant metadata. It allows a user to quickly document geospatial data while still adhering to FGDC Metadata Content Standards.” Features include:

  • Multiple Document Interface
  • Multi-Lingual
    • Spanish
    • French
    • Portuguese
    • English
  • Contact Information Templates
  • Platforms
    • Windows 95
    • Windows NT
  • Generate FGDC Clearinghouse-ready files
    • FAQ, HTML, Text, or XML!
  • Helper windows
    • Coordinate Converter
    • Calendar
    • Error Window
    • Contact Editor
    • Multilingual Keyword Lookup
  • Online Help
  • Duplicate Existing metadata entries
  • Validate data with MP (Metadata Parser)

Metascribe: “The NOAA Coastal Services Center’s MetaScribe tool is designed to reduce significantly the labor required to produce metadata compliant with the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (CSDGM). This software tool takes advantage of the fact that, within a collection of records for a given data type, the records are generally very similar in content, with only a few fields or phrases changing from one record to the next. MetaScribe delivers the greatest savings when used to create a collection of similar records. In fact, this tool is not appropriate for the creation of multiple metadata records with little redundant content.”

Metavist: “Metavist 2005, a software tool for the metadata archivist, is used to create metadata compliant with two of the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata standards—“FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata” (FGDC 1998) and “FGDC Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata” (FGDC 1999).” Can be ordered on CD, or downloaded directly here.

Morpho: “Morpho allows ecologists to create metadata, (i.e. describe their data in a standardized format), and create a catalog of data & metadata upon which to query, edit and view data collections. In addition, It also provides the means to access network servers, in order to query, view and retrieve all relevant, public ecological data.”

NPS Metadata Tools And Editor: “The NPS Metadata Tools & Editor (MTE) is a custom software application for authoring, editing, and managing National Park Service (NPS) metadata. The MTE operates either as an extension to ArcCatalog versions 8.3/ 9.x or as a standalone desktop application. The MTE is intended to be the primary editor for metadata that will be uploaded to the NPS Data Store and produces XML metadata based on the NPS Metadata Profile. Metadata editing is accomplished with editing stylesheets that transform an XML metadata file into an editable record.”

SHAME: “SHAME is a library that leverages editors, presentations and query interfaces for resource centric RDF metadata. The central idea of SHAME is to work with Annotation Profiles which encompasses:

  • how the metadata in RDF should be read and modified.
  • what input is allowed, e.g. multiplicity and vocabularies to use.
  • presentational aspects like order, grouping, labels etc.

These annotation profiles are then used to generate user interfaces for either editing, presentation or querying purposes. The user interface may be realized in a web setting (both a jsp and velocity version exists) or in a stand alone application (a java/swing version exists). ”

Three Tab Metadata Editor For ArcCatalog 8.* and 9.*: “The Three Tab Editor is a user interface for entering Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) and ISO Metadata for ArcCatalog.

  • It is composed of only four simple data entry pages, so there is less hunting and pecking for the required metadata fields.
  • It writes the metadata to the ESRI metadata file found in any data set supported by ArcInfo 9.x (e.g. Coverages, Shape Files, Geo Databases, SDE Databases…)
  • It allows the user to input the contact information once, and then it populates all three contact information sections with this contact data (e.g.. metadata creator, data creator, and data request contact).
  • Pick lists are provided for most of the data entry fields. These pick list provide either a sample of the potential value, or a list of the potential domains that can be used in that field. These pick list can also be edited via the metadata.mdb file found in “C:\Program Files\ThreeTabEditor” directory
  • The theme keyword pick list used by this editor is compatible with those required by the ArcIMS Metadata Server.
  • Completion of the fields found in this editor will allow the user to meet the minimal ISO metadata standard.
  • The editor is designed to allow users who complete all fields to pass through the metadata parser (mp) with minimal errors.
  • The editor is linked to a Microsoft Access database that can be used to store your contact information and pull down lists. This database can be found in the tools installation directory (e.g. c:\Program Files\ThreeTabEditor).
  • On-line linkage exists to the Image Map of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (CSDGM) from the tools interface. This provides user with a quick reference of how to complete the fields. “

USGS Formal Metadata: A suite of metadata tools, including mp, cns, xtme, Tkme, mq, and DBFmeta. The last is a tool “designed to facilitate the documentation of data contained in DBF files”

GeoNetwork opensource: “GeoNetwork opensource is a standards based, Free and Open Source catalog application to manage spatially referenced resources through the web. It provides powerful metadata editing and search functions as well as an embedded interactive web map viewer. This website contains information related to the use of the software.”

ht to Grant McKenzie.



The Big List Of Free Metadata Software I

Published at May 29, 2008 in GIS and data. 4 Comments

The new stable release of MapWindow, with its built-in metadata editor and viewer, reminded me that I had a folder full of bookmarks to other metadata-related software. I may get around to longer posts on each of these at some point, but for now, I’ll just put up links and descriptions from the websites.

CatMDEdit: “CatMDEdit is a metadata editor tool that facilitates the documentation of resources, with special focus on the description of geographic information resources.” Note: Multiplatform, written in Java.

Computerized Process and Quality Assurance (CPQA): “CPQA is being developed as an automated QA/QC process for spatial data collection. It will assist the contract monitor and the contractor with this process and provide the Corps with the most efficient and cost effective means of evaluating a surveying and mapping project. The current version (CPQA Beta) is a Windows-based software package that assists the user in the production of a Scope of Work for surveys such as topographic, hydrographic, boundary, control, photogrammetric, etc. Based on user input and guidance from USACE Engineering Manuals and Engineering Circulars, the software provides suggestions as to the accuracy, scale, measurement density, etc., needed to complete specified projects. Later modules will assist in evaluating the quality of a survey and perform error checking on the survey information submitted by the contractor.”

Datalogr: “DataLogr is a free software package that helps people input and format metadata for geographic data. DataLogr (pronounced ‘data logger’) was developed and copyrighted by IMAGIN, a consortium of organizations in Michigan.”

Enraemed: “The Enraemed software is a freeware client/server or stand-alone metadata software collection tool. Enraemed will allow you to develop, archive and distribute your metadata according to metadata standards such as ISO, FGDC, Dublin Core and GILS. The backend database is Microsoft SQL.”

EPA Metadata Editor (EME): “The EPA Metadata Editor (EME) was developed to simplify and standardize geospatial metadata development across the Agency. It allows users to create and edit geospatial metadata records that meet the EPA Geospatial Metadata Technical Specification and Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (CSDGM) requirements.” Addendum: Requires ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 1 or higher

ImseVimse: “ImseVimse is a full-fledged graphical IMS metadata editor written in Java. It is a spin-off from the Conzilla project.”

Metadata Authoring Tool (MATT): “MATT runs from within a web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape or Mozilla and has been written using a combination of XHTML and client-side JavaScript. Therefore it can be used either over the internet, across a network or directly from your hard-drive (offline).”

Metadata Enterprise Resource Management Aid (MERMAid): “NCDDC provides coastal data resources (organizations and individuals) with a web-based tool to develop, validate, manage and publish metadata records via secure internet access. The Metadata Enterprise Resource Management Aid (MERMAid) allows users/data providers to establish unlimited metadata databases to organize their metadata records any way they see fit (i.e. by program, project, data type, personnel).”

More in the next post …



New Stable Release Of MapWindow GIS

Published at May 28, 2008 in GIS and MapWindow. 0 Comments

The open source GIS MapWindow (Windows only) has just put out its latest Stable Release (SR), version 4.5. This is the first SR in about 8 months. New features include:

Continue reading ‘New Stable Release Of MapWindow GIS’



Using The Demo Version Of Global Mapper As A Raster/Vector Data Viewer

Published at May 6, 2008 in GIS and coordinate conversion. 1 Comment

Global Mapper is a first-rate program for viewing and converting GIS data, raster (image and elevation) and vector. It opens over 100 different raster/vector formats, with on-the-fly support/display conversion of virtually every coordinate system / projection / datum you can think of, and some you might not (the Moon, Mars, the moons of Jupiter). It comes in a demo version with the following limitations (from the help file):

  • You will be unable to export data to any format.
  • You will be limited to loading a maximum of 4 data files at a time. With the full version, you can load any number of data files simultaneously.
  • No 3D capabilities (full version supports 3D views, viewsheds, line of sight, cut-and-fill volumen
  • You will be unable to load workspaces.
  • You will be unable to work with map catalogs.
  • You will be unable to download data from WMS map servers.
  • You will be unable to save rectified imagery to fully rectified files.
  • You will not be able to print to a specific scale (i.e. 1:1000).
  • You will have to endure a nagging registration dialog every time that you run the program.
  • You will not be eligible for free email support.

There’s one more, which is you don’t have the option of printing/exporting the screen display as an image file (though you can still print to a printer what’s visible on screen; zoom in to get a higher-resolution printout). Global Mapper’s display options for vector objects are also more limited than a standard GIS data viewer (e.g. no coloring by attribute for shapefiles). For those two reason, the TatukGIS viewer may be a better choice, since it lets you export the data view, raster or vector, as a high-resolution georeferenced raster image. But TatukGIS Viewer only supports about 30-odd raster and vector file formats, and doesn’t do on-the-fly re-projection. For examining the occasional odd data format you run across, in unusual projections/coordinate systems, and making a quick print, Global Mapper is good to have in your toolbox.

As a bonus, it also has a great line/area measurement function, which lets you modify the measurement units from metric to English and back on the fly, and copy them into the clipboard:

gmmeasure

The TatukGIS Viewer has a measure function, but it gives area only in the data’s native projection, less than useful if it’s in the geographic coordinate system (e.g. square degrees for area).

Finally, if you’re looking for an all-purpose data format converter with batch conversion capabilities, don’t need the considerable power (or expense) of FME, and don’t want to deal with the GDAL command-line utilities, you could do far worse than the $299 fully-registered version of Global Mapper.



Quantum GIS (qGIS) Version 0.10 Released

Published at May 2, 2008 in GIS. 0 Comments

Slashgeo posts on the release of the latest version of the open source GIS, Quantum GIS; this is version 0.10, code-named “Io”. There’s a press release describing the new features, with screenshots. The vector editing capabilities in particular seem to have gotten a major boost in functionality, but there are other improvements as well (default style layers, better raster control, in-application browsing/installation of Python plugins). I look forward to giving it a spin.



Calculate New Coordinate Position From Current Position, Bearing And Distance

Published at April 24, 2008 in GIS and cartography. 0 Comments

If you regularly work with bearing and distance from a coordinate position, you might find Forward/Inverse a useful tool. Just enter the starting position (latitude/longitude), the bearing and distance to the destination, click Calculate, and get the coordinates of the destination:

forwardinverse

In this example, the distance is in kilometers, and the bearing in degrees, but you can customize those units: degrees or grads for angle, and a full range of English and metric units for distance. You have the choice of 26 different ellipsoids, and a selectable lat/long format (decimal degrees, DM, DMS).

You can also capture the results in a text file, useful if you have a list of them to calculate. The Cycle option is especially useful in such a case, as it puts the destination coordinates (2nd Station) automatically into the origin coordinates (1st Station). So, you can continually input azimuths and distances, calculate the next destination, make that the new “1st Station” with the Cycle button, and capture all the data for all points in a text file. Finally, if you choose “Inverse” under the Direction menu, you can calculate the azimuth and distance from the 1st station to the second one.



Online Raster Map Georeferencing/Registration With Map Rectifier

Published at April 21, 2008 in GIS. 0 Comments

This has been around for a while, but I’ve just gotten to it. Metacarta Labs’ Map Rectifier lets you georeference/register an uploaded image file to geographic coordinates/WGS84 using data from a variety of sources. Default data layers, selected by clicking on the “+” sign in the right map window, include:

  • OpenLayers WMS
  • OpenStreetMap
  • Satellite
  • TIGER
  • Google Maps (roads)
  • Google Maps (satellite)

But you can add layers from any WMS server. The process is incredibly straightforward. Upload your map image to Map Rectifier, and it will appear in its own window:

Source Map, Map Rectifier

Add control points as markers on one side by double-clicking, then add them to the corresponding point in the data layer on the other side:

4-19-2008-4.46.31 PM

Double-click on an existing marker to move it to your desired point; the table on the left keeps track of the Ground Control Points and the estimated error. Select your warping method (Best Fit, Linear, Quadratic, Cubic, Thin Spline), then click the “Warp” button. You can display the warped map on top of the reference image as a semi-transparent overlay. Download a GeoTiff or JPEG2000 file of the registered image in geographic/WGS84 projection, or get a URL for a WMS. Uploaded images are publicly available, so don’t upload anything you wouldn’t want someone else to see. Final accuracy will depend on the accuracy of the registered image, which can vary. Still, very slick. There’s supposedly a more advanced version under development.



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