Emerging Trends in Open Source Geographic Information Systems
Edited By
Naveenchandra N. Srivastava
Centre for Energy, Environment, Urban Governance and Infrastructure Development
Administrative Staff College of India, Bella Vista, Hyderabad - 500082
Telangana State, India, E mail: naveen0504@yahoo.com
This book is available at
https://www.igi-global.com/book/emerging-trends-open-sourcegeographic/186194
Publisher:
IGI Global
701 E. Chocolate Avenue
Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033-1240, USA
Tel: 717-533-8845 ext. 113; Fax: 717-533-8661
E-mail: ctychinski@igi-global.com
Website: www.igi-global.com
1
Content
1. Free and Open Source tools for Volunteer Geographic Information and geo-crowdsourcing
Maria Antonia Brovelli
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
2. Development of assessment criteria for various open sources GIS software packages
Shahriar Shams
Institut Teknologi Brunei, Brunei Darussalam
3. Nurturing a Geospatially Empowered Next Generation
Derek Starkenburg
University of Michigan, United States
4. Esri association with Open-Source:
Is it free too?
Farid Cheraghi
University of Tehran, Department of Remote Sensing and GIS, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
5. Spatial Data Mining, Spatial Data Warehousing, and Spatial OLAP
Amira M. Idrees
Faculty of Computers and Information - Fayoum University, Egypt
6. Investigating the impacts of DEM type, resolution and noise on extracted hydro-geomorphologic
parameters of watersheds via GIS
Vahid Nourani
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
7. Keyword Search Mechanisms in Geo-Spatial Databases
Priya M
2
Bharathiyar college of Engineering and Technology, India
8. Role of Free and Open Source GIS in River Rejuvenation
Smart Kundassery
Cochin University of Science and Technology, India
9. Use of Cloud, Multimedia and QR codes to enhance print maps
Harpinder Singh
Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, P.A.U. Campus
Ludhiana, Punjab 141013, India
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Preface
This book aims to showcase new concepts, thoughts, ideas, and methods in the field. It presents
collections of informative and relevant chapters concerning open source GIS which is a continuously
evolving area. The idea is to encourage the use of open source GIS software as a backbone in various
industrial and research projects with the aim of providing better solutions to manifold challenges that
the open source geospatial community is facing today. The ten chapters within this book intend to
summarize recent progress and identify key research issues concerning applications and development
of open source GIS tools. The scope of this book is to illustrate the key issues and challenges
concerning open source GIS.
In Chapter 1, the authors give an overview of geospatial data and operators provided via the net by
means of distributed and shared geo-services. They explore the possibility of active interaction
through geographic information systems and geo-services. Current GIS software provides faster and
easier communication as well as promotes collaborative communities within the realm of GeoWeb
2.0.
In Chapter 2, the author examines assessment criteria enabling developers, researchers, and GIS users
to select suitable OGIS software to meet their requirements for analysis and design of geospatial
applications in multidisciplinary fields. This chapter highlights the importance of assessment criteria,
followed by an explanation of each criteria and their significance with examples from existing OGIS
software.
In Chapter 3, the authors introduce core geospatial concepts along with accessible and affordable data
and tools that support teaching geospatial development and skills. Additionally, using three scenarios,
the chapter explores how the core aspects can be applied to different settings for educational
purposes. Finally, the authors examine the importance of geospatial concepts and skills in professional
development as well as in different communities and in various fields of study.
In Chapter 4, the author adopts a neutral position to discuss the relation of Esri and the open source
community. The chapter covers multiple aspects of Esri and open source software, including R-bridge.
Additionally, the author touches on further topics of open source software, including geoportal
servers and Geopackage, providing descriptions as well as references for further study.
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In Chapter 5, the authors focus on spatial data and spatial data mining, including aspects such as the
different types of data, different methods of analysis, different mining techniques, and other related
topics. The chapter explores various approaches to analyzing spatial data in relation to longitude and
latitude, as well as other attributes involved in the description of objects through different data mining
techniques.
In Chapter 6, the authors study three areas of geographic information systems in water resources
management, including the effect of digital elevation model and resolution on extracted hydrogeomorphologic parameters, the effect of the wavelet-based de-noising method on extracted hydrogeomorphologic parameters, and the determination of the optimal cell size to extract topographic
attributes with agreement to features. The chapter explores the role of semi-distributed modeling in
providing quantity and quality information within water-based systems.
In Chapter 7, the authors review the different hybrid index structures and search mechanisms to
extract spatial objects, the different ranking models they support, and the performance
characteristics. The chapter highlights techniques in spatial database systems and emerging
approaches to using geospatial capabilities to improve textual query.
In Chapter 8, the authors examine the possibilities emerging out of the integration of free and open
source geographic information systems and their role in improving riverine ecosystems. The chapter
highlights the use of geographic information systems in providing comprehensive information of all
water resources through online geo-visual interfaces.
In Chapter 9, the authors review the methods of how the value of printed or hard copy maps can be
enhanced by adding QR codes with multimedia content placed on the cloud attached to it. The chapter
examines the use of QR codes in the creation of inventories, product tracking, and document
management as they can provide a larger storage capacity and faster readability.
I hope that readers will find the chapters of this book interesting. This book should serve as a helpful
reference for the open source GIS community.
Naveenchandra N. Srivastava
(Hyderabad, Telangana State, India)
This book is available at:
https://www.igi-global.com/book/emerging-trends-open-source-geographic/186194
5
Fore word
The Author and I belong to the same community- i.e. GIS. The frequently upgrading itself
science, giving a bird’s eye synoptic view of the entire land.
Analysing data has been rendered easy via Open source Geographic Information Systems
which is prevalent on the servers that provide online services on the Internet.
Free software — open source software — has become the backbone of modern GIS. It runs on
your phone, on your laptop and desktop computers, and is embedded in microcontrollers for
appliances, automobiles, industrial machinery and countless other devices. Thus, renders the
previously complicated and expensive GIS Processing easy and cost effective.
How it is rendered easy and cost effective-is explained by the various contributors/authors of
‘Emerging Trends in Open Source Geographic Information Systems’.
Madhulika Singh (Dr.)
Director
Amity Institute of Geo-Informatics and Remote Sensing (AIGIRS)
Amity University , Sector 125, Noida - 201303 (U.P.),
India
E-mail - msingh14@amity.edu
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Foreword
From five decades of satellite technology to prolific use of smartphones, we are intentionally and
unintentionally amassing geospatial data that continue to influence our lifestyles in more ways than
we recognize. Geographic Information Systems (GIS), that provide the framework to acquire, search,
query, extract, analyze these geospatial data and to extract meaningful relationships, patterns, and
trends for decision making, are constantly improving with enhanced user-defined functionalities.
Whereas the traditional analysis of satellite data in conjunct with field data continues to guide major
decisions related to natural resource exploration an management, real-time analysis of crowd-sourced
data using open-source analytical tools that operate in the cloud are driving our everyday decisions.
What we buy, how we travel, how we plan our day, and even how we react is manipulated by the
current data-driven technology. Therefore, this book on ‘Emerging Trends in Open Source Geographic
Information Systems’ is both timely and exciting.
In a world of global citizenship, embracing an open-source trend is arguably the only logical way
forward. Web-enabled open-source software tools harness the collective wisdom of many individuals,
and in turn make analytical tools globally accessible. New trends in cloud-computing are also changing
ways we approach geospatial data access, management, analysis, and visualization. There is growing
evidence that for a majority of users the new technologies are more affordable, accessible, and usable,
and we will continue to see a rise in their development and use.
Editor Naveenchandra N. Srivastava has a strong academic background in the GIS science. He has firsthand experience in applying the technology in industry setting as well as in teaching the topic in a
university environment. This broad experience reflects well in the topics that he chooses to include in
this book. The chapters present an excellent mix of finding free or low-cost geospatial data; selecting
open-source software to extract and manipulate data; querying large volumes of data; adding value
to archived maps; case studies especially for hydrological applications; as well as resources of training
the next generation of a geospatially savvy workforce.
Whether you are a GIS educator or practitioner, you will find something new to learn from this book.
Anupma Prakash
Professor of Geophysics (Remote Sensing)
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks
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1
Free and Open Source tools for Volunteer Geographic Information and geo-crowdsourcing
Maria Antonia Brovelli
1. Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Blagoj Delipetrev
University Goce Delcev, Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic Of
Giorgio Zamboni
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
ABSTRACT
The availability of new mobile devices (tablets and smartphones) equipped with many sensors is
changing or, better, enriching the way we monitor and sense the world that surrounds us. The Internet
has permeated completely not only our scientific and technological development, but also our life.
Only some years ago, we used geospatial data and GIS software installed within our computers.
Nowadays, data and operators are provided via the net by means of distributed and shared geoservices and a simple and powerless mobile device is enough to connect them. The possibility of
interaction has become not only faster and more user friendly but also active, being individuals and
communities free of adding, deleting and changing contents in real time in the new GeoWeb2.0.
Keywords: Geographic information systems, voluntary geographic information
8
2
Development of assessment criteria for various open sources GIS software packages
Shahriar Shams
Institut Teknologi Brunei, Brunei Darussalam
ABSTRACT
There has been a significant development in the area of free and open source geospatial Software.
Research has flourished over the decades from vendor dependent software to open source software
where researchers are paying increasing attention to maximize the value of their data. It is often a
difficult task to choose particular open source GIS (OGIS) software among a number of emerging OGIS
software. It is important to characterise the projects according to some unified criteria. Each software
has certain advantages and disadvantages and it is always time consuming to identify exactly which
software to be selected for a specific purpose. This chapter focuses on the assessment criteria enabling
developers, researchers and GIS users to select suitable OGIS software to meet their requirements for
analysis and design of geospatial application in multidisciplinary fields. This chapter highlights the
importance of assessment criteria, followed by an explanation of each criteria and their significance
with examples from existing OGIS software.
Keywords: OGIS; Assessment; Criteria; Matrix Analysis; Multi-criteria Analysis; Database; Open source;
WebGIS; Desktop Application; Functionalities; User friendliness;
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3
Nurturing a Geospatially Empowered Next Generation
Derek Starkenburg
University of Michigan, United States
Christime F. Waigl
University of Alaska Fairbanks, United States
Rudiger Gens
University of Alaska Fairbanks, United States
ABSTRACT
For new generations of citizens in all countries, a level of proficiency in geospatial concepts and skills
will be required to realize the potential of professional and developmental opportunities. The teaching
of geospatial skills links into traditional science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)
curriculum objectives, community-wide concerns and initiatives, and global citizenship. Therefore, by
the pre-university and undergraduate level, it is desirable for each student to have acquired such
competencies. Free and open-source tools that are accessible and affordable in most areas of the
world, along with data availability, offer an opportunity to support teaching such a curriculum. Here,
core geospatial concepts are introduced, along with available data and tools. Then, using three
scenarios, it is shown how the core concepts can be applied to different settings for educational
purposes.
Keywords: Accuracy, Event, Field, Granularity, Location, Meaning, Neighbourhood, Network, Object,
Value
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4
Esri association with Open-Source: Is it free too?
Farid Cheraghi
University of Tehran, Department of Remote Sensing and GIS, Iran, Islamic Republic of Iran
ABSTRACT
It is unavoidable that someone be involved in Geospatial Information System, and has not heard about
Esri company. Most people have tried ArcGIS software at least for one time. Esri has been the pioneer
in this industry for a long time; it also defines the future of geospatial trends. In this chapter we have
adopted a neutral position to discuss about the relation of Esri and Open-source community. We have
tried to cover almost every aspect that Esri and open-source co-occur. Even The latest achievement
of Esri, which is R-bridge, is being discussed here. Going into the details of everything is not the goal
of the chapter, however a minimum description is provided for each section. Proper references are
placed for the reader for further study.
Keywords: Geoportal, PostgreSQL, st_geometry, SDI, OGC, Python, JavaScript, Dojo, Linux, R,
Geopackage, OSM
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5
Spatial Data Mining, Spatial Data Warehousing, and Spatial OLAP
Amira M. Idrees
Faculty of Computers and Information - Fayoum University, Egypt
Mostafa Lamlom Ahmed Khaled
Institute of Statistical Studies and Research, Egypt
Amal Hassan Ali Talkhan
Institute of Statistical Studies and Research, Egypt
ABSTRACT
Data mining is one of the current vital fields for all types of data such as spatial data. some of examples
of useful extracted patterns from spatial data is to describe changes in metropolitan poverty rates
based on city distances from major highways. Geospatial is a term that has recently been gaining in
popularity, moreover, many applications on Geospatial has different uses in different fields such as
Geo-tagging, Geospatial Technology and Geo-fencing. Analysing spatial data is considered a complex
task due to its details as it is related to locations with a special representation such as longitude and
latitude, other attributes are involved in the description of objects which can be analysed using
different data mining techniques. In this chapter, a demonstration of the basic information is
performed considering spatial data and spatial data mining including all aspects such as the different
type of data, different methods of analysis, different mining techniques, and other related topics.
Keywords: GIS, Geo-spatial Data, Data Mining Techniques, Spatial Dimensions, Spatial Measures,
Spatial ETL, SOLAP, SOLAP Operators
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6
Investigating the impacts of DEM type, resolution and noise on extracted hydro-geomorphologic
parameters of watersheds via GIS
Vahid Nourani
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
Safa Mokhtarian Asl
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
Maryam Khosravi Sorkhkolaee
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
Aida Hosseini Baghanam
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
Masoud Mehrvand
University of Tabriz, Iran, Islamic Republic Of
ABSTRACT
Water Resources Management is depending on knowledge and understanding of water quantity and
quality information with the latest developments in information technology such as Geographic
Information System (GIS) to develop effective hydrological modelling within the water-based systems.
The efficiency of such hydrological modelling relies on the accuracy of applied data. In this way, the
application of low quality data in developing models for integrated management of water resources
can impose irreparable financial and human resources and environmental costs in the catchment area.
Thus, in regions that shortage of data is the issue, semi-distributed modelling is a useful tool. In this
study three aims are followed: (i) Effect of Digital Elevation Model (DEM) type and resolution on
extracted hydro-geomorphologic parameters, (ii) Effect of wavelet-based de-noising method on
extracted hydro-geomorphologic parameters, (iii) Determination of the optimal cell size to extract
topographic attributes with good agreement to the real features.
Keywords: Geographic Information System (GIS), Digital Elevation Model (DEM), LiDAR, WaveletBased De-Noising, Fractal, Topographic Index
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7
Keyword Search Mechanisms in Geo-Spatial Databases
Priya M
Bharathiyar college of Engineering and Technology, India
Kalpana R
Pondicherry Engineering College, India
ABSTRACT
Nowadays, most of the applications in internet such as web and mobile applications are based on
searching the location based objects called as spatial objects. In spatial database system, searching
such object is a challenging task since it deals with geo-spatial capabilities. Sometimes, the spatial
queries are associated with text information in order to obtain the most relevant answers nearest to
the given location. Such queries are called as spatial textual query. Conventional spatial indexes and
text indexes are not suitable for resolving such queries. Since these indexes use various approaches
to perform searching, they can cause performance degradation. Effective processing of the query
mainly depends on the index structure, searching algorithms and location based ranking. This paper
reviews the different hybrid index structures and search mechanisms to extract the spatial objects,
the different ranking model it supports and the performance characteristics.
Keywords: Spatial-Textual query, R Tree, Hybrid Index, Edit Distance, Gram Model, Bitmap, Inverted
Index, Signature File, MHR Tree, LBAK Tree
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8
Role of Free and Open Source GIS in River Rejuvenation
Smart Kundassery
Cochin University of Science and Technology, India
BABU C A
Cochin University of Science and Technology, India, India
ABSTRACT
Rivers represent one of the sources of freshwater. The existence and survival of humanity is intricately
connected with the availability of freshwater resources. Moments when potable water dip almost to
the level of being scarce, it is valuable to provide comprehensive information of all water resources
through online geo-visual interfaces. Specific web slices can be of details such as the illustration of
headwater sources along with details of streams of various orders and tributaries up to the point of
merging with the sea downstream. Since the local self-government departments, grama panchayat,
can play a crucial role, they too are eager to know the details of the drainage network flowing within
each administration unit. The possibilities emerging out of integration of free and open source GIS is
enormous and can eventually succeed in bringing forth a ray of hope to the forlorn riverine ecosystem.
Keywords: Water, Water Resources, Fresh Water, Water Scarcity, Water Economy, River Literacy,
Geo-visualization, Web-GIS, Restoration, Revival, MapServer, RiverineGiS, Mashup
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9.
Use of Cloud, Multimedia and QR codes to enhance print maps
Harpinder Singh
Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, P.A.U. Campus
Ludhiana, Punjab 141013, India
ABSTRACT
This chapter amply demonstrates the use of Cloud storage, multimedia and QR codes to enhance print
or hardcopy maps. A new technology “Augmented Reality” (AR) can outshine QR codes in the near
future and it is changing the way we view the world. It blurs the line between what's computergenerated what's real by enhancing what we see, feel, smell and hear. But the issue with this
technology is that currently creation of AR content is complex. AR can revolutionize the way we view,
understand and perceive maps.
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