[Mapserver-west] Crytozoology non-profit seeking advise

[Nelson Guda]

Hi all,

I agree that the google api + postgre is the best way to go.  You  
could use mysql, but if in the future you might  want to use  
mapserver or the gis functions in postgis, then you should start with  
postgre.

The Google api can effectively handle a little over 200 points on one  
screen.  More than that and you need to start complicated methods for  
clustering or adding removing points as you move the map.  Another  
way that I've dealt with many points is to overlay a mapserver map on  
top of the google map.  Then you use a small javascript/php query to  
retrieve information about the points.  It is quite effective.  Here  
is an example that we are putting together now for malaria vectors.   
It still has relatively few data points, but the idea is that it will  
grow quite large ( http://www.roadlessland.org/malaria ).

I also have an example that overlays vector shapes on a google map  
and plots google markers for each area.  that is here ( http:// 
www.roadlessland.org ).

best
nelson


On Oct 11, 2006, at 11:30 AM, Paul Ramsey wrote:

> I tend to lean with Mark, particularly if the number of  
> observations is relatively sparse at this point: use a mapping API  
> like google maps to start with, and do something  more custom only  
> if you need to... the architecture would be something like:
>
> - Data form for collection which feeds into a
> - PostGIS database which has a
> - PHP/Whatever script to pull out points and return an XML document
> - GoogleMaps API / javascript / dom to parse the XML and turn it  
> into placemarks
>
> See: <http://www.refractions.net/white_papers/mashups/> for an  
> example of simple code for doing some of these things.
>
> P
>
> On 11-Oct-06, at 7:36 AM, Tyler Mitchell wrote:
>
>>
>> On 10-Oct-06, at 9:06 PM, Fred wrote:
>>> BACKGROUND: We have a bunch of volunteer investigators who input  
>>> sighting information into our web based database, we get about 50  
>>> reports/month. The info includes gps coordinates and date/time of  
>>> each sighting. We want to plot that data colorcoded based on the  
>>> date/time onto a map of the pacific northwest in order to reveal  
>>> migration patterns (if they exist at all). Of course we have  
>>> already done the analysis on existing data, but would like to  
>>> automate the process for all of the forthcoming data. We would  
>>> like to present the results via the web in the form of a map.
>>> ...
>>> QUESTIONS:
>>>
>>> Is it possible to implement this using all open source software?
>>
>> Hi Fred, sounds interesting for sure.
>> This is definitely possible.
>>
>>> What software would you use?
>>
>> I would base the system on MapServer and the PostGIS extension to  
>> PostgreSQL database.  To keep it as simple as possible (maybe too  
>> simple) - you can create a web-based form for capturing the  
>> coordinate and date and save it into PostGIS....
>>
>>> Is an expert required to generate the data maps or can they be  
>>> generated on the fly by the server?
>>
>> ... then MapServer can re-request data on-the-fly from the table  
>> in PostGIS.  Once you have a basic install of MapServer up and  
>> running, you can create a simple web map using some background map  
>> layers accessible over the web (or do you have your own map data  
>> you want to use?).
>>
>> To simplify this approach further you can use almost any database  
>> you are comfortable with, even something that is non-spatial, like  
>> SQLite (easy to maintain) or a text file.  As long as you have a  
>> web interface to add data to the format, you can likely get  
>> MapServer (or any other web map server, including MapGuide) to  
>> read from it without a lot of work.
>>
>> Hope this helps, fire off more questions as you have them.  I'm  
>> still wondering if Sasquatch makes his home in Lillooet BC :)
>>
>> Tyler
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>
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