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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
What is FOSS4G?
Is not only about the word free
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
FOSS4G vs Private
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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!!!!
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
Standards facilitates the development of Applications like FOSS4G
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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.
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
GraciasThanks
ObrigadoDanke
Domo Arigato….