[Cartoweb-users] Prototype Cartoweb based Complaint System

Sun Aug 19 07:57:32 EDT 2007

Hello Paul!

I find it a good thing you are investigating the opportunities of
Cartoweb in real business! I am glad to help as I am currently a good
deal ahead in the development of a business critical application using
Cartoweb. I hope my knowledge may be of any use to you. I have put some
answers and ideas in your text below:
Paul Shapley schreef:
> Hi All Users,
>
> I have been given an opportunity to use Cartoweb as the main mapping
> component within a complaint system in Planning Development Control
> here in a UK Authority. i want to create a functional prototype using
> 'postgreSQL' and 'Postgis'. I think it would be a marvelous
> opportunity to promote Cartoweb (and Open Source Mapping Tools).
>
> The Authority currently use Oracle/ArcIMS technologies to deliver
> mapping through IE, which provide a very poor user experience.
>
>
> The requirements are basically,
>
> 1.   The complainant would need to Search an address and zoom to it on a map.
> 2.   The complainant then creates a polygon which retrieves
> constraints and generates a form to  be completed and returned it to
> the server.
> 3.   The map which includes the polygon is returned 'attached' to the
> form as a pdf.
> 4.   A receipt is automatically returned to the complainant.
>   
First of all; I am wondering if you would need Cartoweb for this.
Beneath Cartoweb lies the very stable Mapserver engine from the
University of Maine (http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/)
If the main thing would be that you need a form with a pdf, you don't
seem to need the graphical interface from CartoWeb. Correct me if I am
wrong. I will however answer your questions below.

> My questions are:-
>
> 1.   What Cartoweb components are required on the Server (i assume
> Wamp5, and the    Cartoweb 3 folder) but is there any other?.
>   
Wamp is an option, but not the most stable one. Cartoweb is pure PHP
with Mapserver as the graphical component and thus requires the same
environment that Apache with Mapserver needs to run on. This can be:
- Linux with Apache, php, postGres, PostGIS and Mapserver
- Windows with Apache, php, postGres, PostGIS and Mapserver

With Wamp you also get MySQL as a database engine which isn't needed for
Cartoweb.
A good alternative to WAMP is MS4W available at
http://www.maptools.org/ms4w/ which is more fit to run web GIS and also
more scalable.
As opposed to ms4w for Windows, you can also investigate FGS
http://www.maptools.org/fgs/ for Linux. It is all a matter of choice.

> 2.  Instead of Cartoweb generating a 'label' when a polygon is drawn
> how can it be modified to point to the url of the form which would be
> attached to the map?.
>   
This all has to be programmed in php. Basically you program the
map-click event to do whatever you want it to do.
> 3.   Can the creation of a Polygon return any underlying spatial objects?
>   
Of course! It is all a matter of spatial queries. But again, this has to
be programmed the flow would be something like this: User draws a
polygon, when drawing is ready; the polygon is sent to postGIS in a
query requesting objects from spatial_table where geometry within
your_polygon. You then program a way to show the results and have them
converted to a GIS image or pdf or xml or whatever.
> Has anyone undertaken a similar project?
>   
Most definitly, but it is always a matter of minor differences in
approach. I have seen a sample of the community of Terneuzen in the
Netherlands that lets you draw a selection box in a cartoweb mapwindow
and then pops-up a list of downloadable pdf's with government plans for
the selection area. I don't no of any other samples related to pdf, but
I am sure there are more out there. There is a good pdf-export in
Cartoweb, so I am sure someone is using it somewhere!

>
> Paul J. Shapley
> _______________________________________________
> Cartoweb-users mailing list
> Cartoweb-users at lists.maptools.org
> http://lists.maptools.org/mailman/listinfo/cartoweb-users
>
>   

-- 

Milo van der Linden
skype: milovanderlinden <skype:milovanderlinden?add>
mlinden at zeelandnet.nl <mailto:mlinden at zeelandnet.nl>
milovanderlinden at gmail.com <mailto:milovanderlinden at gmail.com>
milo at 3dsite.nl <mailto:milo at 3dsite.nl>
http://www.3dsite.nl

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