Open Source Desktop Mapping Applications
Posted in All Things Spatial, Noteworthy Bits on April 13th, 2007 by Claudia EngelMapWindow GIS 4.0 Open Source Software The MapWindow application is a free, extensible, geographic information system (GIS) that can be used in many ways. … It is an extensible geographic information system. This means that you can write plug-ins to add additional functionality. … includes standard GIS data visualization features as well as DBF attribute table editing, shapefile editing, and grid importing and conversion. MapWinGIS ActiveX includes a GIS API for shapefile and grid data with many built in GIS functions. (Windows only)
SAGA GIS :: A System for an Automated Geographical Analysis
SAGA – System for Automated Geoscientific Analyses- is a hybrid GIS software. The first objective of SAGA is to give (geo-)scientists an effective but easy learnable platform for the implementation of geoscientific methods, which is achieved by SAGA’s unique Application Programming Interface (API). The second is to make these methods accessible in a user friendly way. This is mainly done by the Graphical User Interface (GUI). Windows only.
From Ram Kumar Deo (ITC, NL) via the Nepal Foresters list:
The Integrated Land and Water Information System (ILWIS) is a PC-based GIS & Remote Sensing software, developed by ITC. ILWIS comprises a complete package of image processing, spatial analysis and digital mapping. It is easy to learn and use; it has full on-line help, extensive tutorials for direct use in courses and 25 case studies of various disciplines. The GIS Software ILWIS of ITC will be available free of cost from 1 June, 2007. It can be downloaded from the ITC website.
GE-Graph: Graph for GoogleEarth Make graph into GE to illustrate your presentations, papers, etc. Good tool for Geography educators v 2.2.0
Quantum GIS (QGIS) is a user friendly Open Source Geographic Information System (GIS) that runs on Linux, Unix, Mac OSX, and Windows. QGIS supports vector, raster, and database formats. QGIS is licensed under the GNU General Public License. QGIS lets you browse and create map data on your computer. It supports many common spatial data formats (e.g. ESRI ShapeFile, geotiff). QGIS supports plugins to do things like display tracks from your GPS.
- Is a Vector GIS but can read rasters as well (currently as additional plugin to download)
- OpenJUMP is known to work on Windows, Linux and Mac platforms, but should work on any operating system that runs Java 1.4 or later.
- You can edit, save, analyze etc. with JUMP / OpenJUMP. It works, even with medium size datasets, and with professional touch and provides a GIS API with a flexible plugin structure, so that new features are relatively easy to develop around the sound mapping platform.
The User-friendly Desktop Internet GIS (uDig) is both a GeoSpatial application and a platform through which developers can create new, derived applications. uDig is a core element in an internet aware Geographic Information System.
Thuban is an Interactive Geographic Data Viewer with the following features:
- Vector Data Support: Shapefile, PostGIS Layer
- Raster Data Support: GeoTIFF Layer
- Object Identification and Annotation
- Legend Editor and Classification
- Table Queries and Joins
- Projection Support
- Printing and Vector Export
- API for Add-Ons (Extensions)
Thuban is extensible and multi-platform (GNU/Linux, Windows, …). It is Free Software under the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL).
BBN Technologies’ OpenMap TM package is an Open Source JavaBeans TM based programmer’s toolkit. Using OpenMap, you can quickly build applications and applets that access data from legacy databases and applications. OpenMap provides the means to allow users to see and manipulate geospatial information. OpenMap is under constant development - the latest version is OpenMap 4.6.3, released February 1, 2006.
OpenEV is a software library and application for viewing and analysing raster and vector geospatial data. OpenEV is both: an application for displaying and analysing geospatial data and a developer library from creating new applicationsOpenEV is released under the GNU LGPL license Open Source license. It is available for Windows, Linux, Sun Solaris, and SGI Irix operating systems.
SPRING is a state-of-the-art GIS and remote sensing image processing system with an object-oriented data model which provides for the integration of raster and vector data representations in a single environment. SPRING is a product of Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE/DPI (Image Processing Division).
Main features:
- An integrated GIS for environmental, socioeconomic and urban planning applications.
- A multi-platform system, including support for Windows95/98/NT/XP and Linux.
- A widely accessible freeware for the GIS community with a quick learning curve.
Map Maker Gratis - the free GIS for Windows
Map Maker Gratis is a powerful introduction to the world of GIS. Unlike other free viewers, Gratis is a fully functional map production program with GIS functions such as thematic mapping and data interrogation. The program can be used both with vector and raster data and produces high quality, accurately scaled print outs.
The Google Map Creator is a freeware application designed to make thematic mapping using Google Maps simpler. The application takes a shapefile containing geographic areas linked with attributes and automatically generates a working Google Maps website from the data.
GeoVISTA Studio is an open software development environment designed for geospatial data. Studio is a programming-free environment that allows users to quickly build applications for geocomputation and geographic visualization.
Do-It-Yourself Mapping GPS Visualizer is a free, easy-to-use online utility that creates maps and profiles from GPS data (tracks and waypoints), street addresses, or simple coordinates.
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