This document discusses free and open source software for geoinformatics (FOSS4G). It provides an overview of FOSS4G, describing what it is, the freedoms it provides, and examples of FOSS4G applications. The author argues that FOSS4G offers advantages over private software, including lower costs, integration with other packages, and allowing customization. FOSS4G can also benefit education and research by providing flexible options and allowing code contributions.

1. Free and Open Source Software for
Geoinformatics in Geosciences
Operative and Academic Aspects
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
-2012-
Internacional Geological Congress
Gabriel Asato
Geological and Mining Survey of Argentina

2. 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

3. Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
What is FOSS4G?
Is not only about the word free

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

8. Open Software Development
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
(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

9. 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.

10. Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
FOSS4G vs Private

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

14. 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 ffoorr tthhee pprroobblleemm
 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

15. 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
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
loss of economic success

16. 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.

17. 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!!!!

18. 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

19. Standards facilitates the development of Applications like FOSS4G
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012

20. 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

21. 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.htm
l
Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012

22. 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

23. Gabriel Asato, Argentina, IGC 34, 2012
Gracias
Thanks
Obrigado
Danke
Domo Arigato
….