Publicering av geografiska data på webben
(2019) In Examensarbete i geografisk informationsteknik EXTM05 20191Surveying (M.Sc.Eng.)
Dept of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science
- Abstract
- In most projects, there is a need to visualize geographic data in a map and in most cases, this is done in an interactive map on a computer, tablet or mobile phone. To be able to publish geographic data on the web, several components are needed. These components are in many cases purchased with a user license from a company that provides the customer with support and other user instructions. An alternative to commercial software is products that are developed as open source projects which are usually distributed free, or partly free. On the other hand, these products can implicate a greater responsibility for the user in terms of support and development time.
There are many advantages and disadvantages in the use of open source... (More) - In most projects, there is a need to visualize geographic data in a map and in most cases, this is done in an interactive map on a computer, tablet or mobile phone. To be able to publish geographic data on the web, several components are needed. These components are in many cases purchased with a user license from a company that provides the customer with support and other user instructions. An alternative to commercial software is products that are developed as open source projects which are usually distributed free, or partly free. On the other hand, these products can implicate a greater responsibility for the user in terms of support and development time.
There are many advantages and disadvantages in the use of open source software. This report explains the concept of open source code and which types of licenses are important to understand to develop your own GIS systems. This report also aims to evaluate the use of open source software as an alternative to commercial products in relation to the publication of geographical data on the web. There is also a need to evaluate the process from data to the finished web map, as many municipalities and companies handle and produce large amounts of geographical data. Being able to visualize these effectively is an important aspect, where there is a lot of time to save if there is an opportunity for efficiency improvement.
The report consists of three main parts, a theoretical background for the problem area, an interview study for the publishing process and reflections and experiences of the concept of open source for a few selected municipalities and companies. The third part of the case study consists of an implementation where the implemented solution, based on open source code, are compared against the commercial software Carto.
The result of the study shows that an open source solution for publishing geographic data is a good alternative to solutions based on proprietary software. However, there are many significant issues to consider before such a system is built, whole or in part, by open source components. The interview study found that, both working with open source or people working with commercial products, are very positive about the general use of open source software. Differences in the amount of open source software in the organization are primarily related to the general approach to working with open source, for example if there is support or demands from the management or not. Another important aspect is the size of the organization and the employees' competence, since open source development is more time-consuming when starting up than commercial products. Open source systems also tend to become more person-dependent and sensitive to change in staff. One big advantage of open source systems, however, is that they become more flexible in the design and functionality and that the developer has full control of the system.
Overall, all three case studies have shown that opportunities for development with open source software are possible if the right skills, time and effort are available. An interesting aspect is that many commercial programs are based on open source libraries, which means that even commercial companies that develop proprietary software use the benefits of open source software. (Less) - Popular Abstract (Swedish)
- Tid och pengar är två viktiga faktorer i dagens samhälle. Därför är det intressant att utvärdera om gratisprogram motsvarar den funktionalitet och de behov som kommersiella programvaror erbjuder i avseende på publicering av webbkartor.
Väldigt många människor använder dagligen tjänster som Google Maps, Eniro och hitta.se för att skriva ut en karta, få en vägbeskrivning, visa busshållplatser, restauranger, affärer eller liknande. Alla dessa platser som syns i kartan är knutna till ett geografiskt läge. Många datorsystem för att skapa dessa kartor och tjänster är relativt dyra, och kanske inte riktigt motsvarar de behov som ställs. Många system kan också ta tid att lära sig att använda för att skapa enkla kartor.
Ett alternativ till... (More) - Tid och pengar är två viktiga faktorer i dagens samhälle. Därför är det intressant att utvärdera om gratisprogram motsvarar den funktionalitet och de behov som kommersiella programvaror erbjuder i avseende på publicering av webbkartor.
Väldigt många människor använder dagligen tjänster som Google Maps, Eniro och hitta.se för att skriva ut en karta, få en vägbeskrivning, visa busshållplatser, restauranger, affärer eller liknande. Alla dessa platser som syns i kartan är knutna till ett geografiskt läge. Många datorsystem för att skapa dessa kartor och tjänster är relativt dyra, och kanske inte riktigt motsvarar de behov som ställs. Många system kan också ta tid att lära sig att använda för att skapa enkla kartor.
Ett alternativ till kommersiella system och program, som behöver köpas in med en användarlicens, är system och program som utvecklas med så kallad öppen källkod. Öppen källkod innebär att en utvecklare delar med sig av sin källkod eller sin programvara för att sprida produkten och tekniken, denna kod distribueras oftast utan kostnad. Detta kan medföra en möjlighet för fler människor att lära sig tekniken och programvaror utan större kostnad.
Under 2018–2019 genomfördes en studie som utvärderade programvaror med öppen källkod i jämförelse med kommersiella programvaror med avseende på visualisering av geografiska data i webbkartor. Studien visade att en lösning med öppen källkod för publicering av geografiska data är ett bra alternativ till kommersiella programvaror. En sak som måste begrundas innan en organisation väljer att använda komponenter av öppen källkod är att fundera över syftet med användningen. Det måste även begrundas hur mycket pengar verksamheten är villig att betala i utvecklingstid istället för licensavgift. En annan aspekt är att det måste finnas ett intresse för utveckling och öppen källkod samt en hög kompetens bland medarbetarna. Om inte det finns är det ”enklare” att använda ett kommersiellt program.
Resultaten från studien baseras på en litteraturstudie, en intervjustudie och en egen implementation av en webbkarta med hjälp av öppen källkod. Det innebär att rapporten beskriver problemet både ur allmänt perspektiv, några specifika organisationers perspektiv samt utifrån egna erfarenheter av användning av öppen källkod. Resultaten medför även en möjlighet för organisationer att ställa sig relevanta frågor inför programval för publicering av geografiska data på webben. Den ger även en ökad generell förståelse för öppen källkod och vilka möjligheter det finns inom området. Eftersom den egna implementationen gjorts utifrån ett verkligt projekt ger rapporten även en viktig verklighetsanknytning. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/8983904
- author
- Olsson, Gabriella LU and Ingesson, Rickard LU
- supervisor
- organization
- alternative title
- Publishing geographic data on the web
- course
- EXTM05 20191
- year
- 2019
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- open source, geographic data, web map, openlayers, open source license, GNU GPL, BSD, Geographic information systems, GIS, javascript
- publication/series
- Examensarbete i geografisk informationsteknik
- report number
- 27
- language
- Swedish
- additional info
- Extern handledare: Måns Andersson, Tyréns
- id
- 8983904
- date added to LUP
- 2019-06-14 16:51:10
- date last changed
- 2019-06-14 16:51:10
@misc{8983904,
abstract = {{In most projects, there is a need to visualize geographic data in a map and in most cases, this is done in an interactive map on a computer, tablet or mobile phone. To be able to publish geographic data on the web, several components are needed. These components are in many cases purchased with a user license from a company that provides the customer with support and other user instructions. An alternative to commercial software is products that are developed as open source projects which are usually distributed free, or partly free. On the other hand, these products can implicate a greater responsibility for the user in terms of support and development time.
There are many advantages and disadvantages in the use of open source software. This report explains the concept of open source code and which types of licenses are important to understand to develop your own GIS systems. This report also aims to evaluate the use of open source software as an alternative to commercial products in relation to the publication of geographical data on the web. There is also a need to evaluate the process from data to the finished web map, as many municipalities and companies handle and produce large amounts of geographical data. Being able to visualize these effectively is an important aspect, where there is a lot of time to save if there is an opportunity for efficiency improvement.
The report consists of three main parts, a theoretical background for the problem area, an interview study for the publishing process and reflections and experiences of the concept of open source for a few selected municipalities and companies. The third part of the case study consists of an implementation where the implemented solution, based on open source code, are compared against the commercial software Carto.
The result of the study shows that an open source solution for publishing geographic data is a good alternative to solutions based on proprietary software. However, there are many significant issues to consider before such a system is built, whole or in part, by open source components. The interview study found that, both working with open source or people working with commercial products, are very positive about the general use of open source software. Differences in the amount of open source software in the organization are primarily related to the general approach to working with open source, for example if there is support or demands from the management or not. Another important aspect is the size of the organization and the employees' competence, since open source development is more time-consuming when starting up than commercial products. Open source systems also tend to become more person-dependent and sensitive to change in staff. One big advantage of open source systems, however, is that they become more flexible in the design and functionality and that the developer has full control of the system.
Overall, all three case studies have shown that opportunities for development with open source software are possible if the right skills, time and effort are available. An interesting aspect is that many commercial programs are based on open source libraries, which means that even commercial companies that develop proprietary software use the benefits of open source software.}},
author = {{Olsson, Gabriella and Ingesson, Rickard}},
language = {{swe}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
series = {{Examensarbete i geografisk informationsteknik}},
title = {{Publicering av geografiska data på webben}},
year = {{2019}},
}