An Overview on Current Free and Open Source Desktop Gis Developments
Over the last few years the world of free and open source geospatial software has experienced some major changes. For instance, the website FreeGIS.org currently lists 330 GIS related projects. Besides the advent of new software projects and the growth of established projects, a new organisation known as the OSGeo Foundation has been established to offer a point of contact. This paper will give an overview on existing free and open source desktop GIS projects. To further the understanding of the open source software development we give a brief explanation of associated terms and introduce the two most established software license types: the General Public License (GPL) and the Lesser General Public License (LGPL).
After laying out the organisational structures, we describe the different desktop GIS software projects in terms of their main characteristics. Two main tables summarise information on the projects and functionality of the currently available software versions. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of open source software, with an emphasis on research and teaching, are discussed. 1 Introduction
The development of free and open source software has experienced a boost over the last few years. The variety of Free and Open Source Software (short: FOSS) that can be found on desktop computers ranges from word processors (e.g. OpenOffice.org), web browsers (e.g.
Mozilla Firefox) to drawing (e.g. Inkscape) and scientific applications (e.g. R Project). In the
GIS domain, the widespread use of FOSS is apparent as well. This rise in popularity of free
GIS tools can be measured using four indicators. The first indicator is the number of projects started in the last couple of years. For instance, in last two years 20 entries have been added to the list of software projects on the website FreeGIS.org (containing now 330 entries). As a second indicator, we see the increasing financial support by governmental
After laying out the organisational structures, we describe the different desktop GIS software projects in terms of their main characteristics. Two main tables summarise information on the projects and functionality of the currently available software versions. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of open source software, with an emphasis on research and teaching, are discussed. 1 Introduction
The development of free and open source software has experienced a boost over the last few years. The variety of Free and Open Source Software (short: FOSS) that can be found on desktop computers ranges from word processors (e.g. OpenOffice.org), web browsers (e.g.
Mozilla Firefox) to drawing (e.g. Inkscape) and scientific applications (e.g. R Project). In the
GIS domain, the widespread use of FOSS is apparent as well. This rise in popularity of free
GIS tools can be measured using four indicators. The first indicator is the number of projects started in the last couple of years. For instance, in last two years 20 entries have been added to the list of software projects on the website FreeGIS.org (containing now 330 entries). As a second indicator, we see the increasing financial support by governmental