Why Web Design
Firms can Eat Your
Lunch
Dave Bouwman / Data Transfer Solutions / http://blog.davebouwman.net

of

are
geo-geeks

we
know
spatial
data

analyze
data

create
impressive
maps

and all was good…
until…

your
manager
sent a memo…

Era of
“WebGIS”

stuff
“GIS”
in a
browser

Cram desktop into
A browser

a lot
tolearn

new
Web Manager applications

customization
meant…

WebGIS Lesson Plan
Same tools Programming
1. Object Oriented
2. VB.NET / C# / Java
Same workflows
3. Intro to HTML and CSS
4. ESRI WebADF
Same terminology
5. Webservices 101
Worse performance

before
long…

.NET
XHTML
CSS
Javascript
Visual Studio

Screen shot of CDOT

about
your
lunch…

what if we were web developers

how
would
we see
“WebGIS”?

most
“WebGIS”
sites
are…

“Data”

“Tools”

interface

“Tasks”

“Analysis”

market
analysis

Complex
Cost
Usability
Value

budgets: high
expectations: low

Complexity
Cost
Usability
Value

“WebGIS”
means
opportunity

and right about this time…

your
manager
sends another
memo…

GeoWeb

GIS meets…
two dot oh

address
spatial
business
problems
in a
browser

publish
&consume
services

more
to learn

Todays Lesson Plan
Same tools Javascript
1. Object Oriented
2. Ajax: GETting and POSTing
Same workflows
3. Intro to JQuery and Dojo
4. Designing RESTful services
Same terminology
5. JSON and JSONP
6. CSS and browser tweaks
Worse performanceweb
7. Designing for social the social

more
tools

FireBug
& Aptana

how
do we
tackle
this?

protect
your
lunch?

we
must
accept…

we
must
understand…

usability
trumps
features

we
must
master…

Atom
WFS
.NETXHTML
CSS
TDD Ajax
Javascript
RSS JSON
REST XML
GeoRSS
WMS

users
love…

users
want…

Project Overview
Same Bird Flu Database
•Global
tools
Same ModuleModel
•Spatial workflows
•Complex Data
in a CMS
Same terminology
• 2000 Tables
• >10,000 Stored Procedures
WorseEarth + Dojo Toolkit UI
•Virtual performance

Example 2

Project Overview
Same tools Management
•Roadway Project
•Workflow Application
SameBack-end
workflows
•SAP
SameToolkit+UI
•Dojo terminology
•OpenLayers WMS
Worse performance

real
performance

Get Extent
Get Points
Cluster
Return to Browser

>50,000
As Points As X,Y’s in a Table
ArcSDE + AGS: > 5 seconds Tabular Query: 0.3 seconds
SQL2008: ~ 2 seconds *Supports complex queries

JSON: = fast
custom
{
\"ClusteredPointLocationIds\":[34480,34355,34354],
\"PointLocationId\":34480,
\"IsClustered\":true,
Location\":{\"Lat\":-2.15,\"Lon\":-80.53}
}

geo-geeks

push
pins?

perceived
performance

activity
indicators

SAP Get Project List

what’s
should
I do?

handle
the
“null-case”

Focused Tools

I only want to see
the data for Calidris
alpina, in Turkey,
between 1998 and
2008

generic
tool
could
work…

automatic
validation

pre-validate
whenever
possible

validate
as soon as
possible

SAP Ref Selection

map
the
workflow

debug
on
paper

stop
scope-creep

release
early

release
often

iterative
development
Iteration
2 Weeks
Project Iteration
Product
Backlog Backlog

receive
feedback

Zen of Usability
Same tools
•Faster = Better
Sameon the wire
•Lean workflows
•Use what works
Samesmall bites
•Take terminology
•Provide Feedback
WorseSuccess
•Pit of performance
•Design & Validate Usability

Summary:

kung-fu: needed

performance is critical

focus on usability

nobody can touch your
lunch

Questions?
Dave Bouwman
Data Transfer Solutions
dbouwman@edats.com
http://blog.davebouwman.net