web2py team & Geo/GIS project created at Launchpad

[Timmie]

Hello,
yesterday I created a web2py team at launchpad.
https://launchpad.net/~web2py

Please feel free to add yourself to the team.
It doesn't mean something special so far. But maybe this can
facilitate common development at later stage!

Also, I started a project for Geo stuff:
web2py Geo & GIS Extensions - https://launchpad.net/web2py-geo

My idea is to develop demo & example applications that are using
spatial information.
Maybe we could grant all team members commit rights to the repository.

I will try to develop some blueprints for the above mentioned example
applications.

I also asked the Launchpad administrators for a project group:
https://answers.launchpad.net/launchpad/+question/66678

This could provide a umbrella for us to link all individual projects
using web2py together.

I hope you appreciate these actions!

Regards,
Timmie

[mdipierro]

Thank you.

On Apr 7, 10:52 am, Timmie <timmichel...@gmx-topmail.de> wrote:
> Hello,

> yesterday I created a web2py team at launchpad.https://launchpad.net/~web2py

>
> Please feel free to add yourself to the team.
> It doesn't mean something special so far. But maybe this can
> facilitate common development at later stage!
>
> Also, I started a project for Geo stuff:

> web2py Geo & GIS Extensions -https://launchpad.net/web2py-geo

[dbb]

Tim: I have applied for membership.

On Apr 7, 11:52 am, Timmie <timmichel...@gmx-topmail.de> wrote:
> Hello,

> yesterday I created a web2py team at launchpad.https://launchpad.net/~web2py

>
> Please feel free to add yourself to the team.
> It doesn't mean something special so far. But maybe this can
> facilitate common development at later stage!
>
> Also, I started a project for Geo stuff:

> web2py Geo & GIS Extensions -https://launchpad.net/web2py-geo

[dbb]

Tim:

The URL posted by individuals may have other functions which are not
related to mapping. What we need is to filter out
the Model,controller, and view of the mapping aspect and work on that.
Since this area by itself is big and has many usage in data
communication world- wired and wireless ( including sensors in the
home and outside of home (GPS)).
What I am requesting the people who had URL posted related to the
topics in question, to post a URL that related to mapping only.
As far as my request for mentor is concerned, it is related only to
launchpad.

Best Regards:
dbb

> > Timmie- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[AchipA]

The big question is how web2py will evolve with regard to plugin/
appliance architecture, because that would determine how to go about
adding geo stuff in a systematic manner. I'm not sure I'd like
it as a t2-style addon, but then again adding it to the core would
mean way too many dependencies and try/catching.

A quick glance how I could imagine geo func in web2py (this is just me
thinking out loud, I'm aware of sahana and other projects and do not
mean to impose these ideas on them):

MODEL - the DAL would need to be extended with geometry types (I know
Massimo is not too keen on this one :), which would allow for some
operator magic web2py is known for. So you could do something like

db(GEOM_POINT(5,5) in db.table.polygon_column).select()
db(db.table.polygon.length > 100).select
(orderby=~db.table.polygon.area)

also, some geo-specific velidators could be useful (IS_CONTAINED,
IS_IN_RANGE, etc).

VIEW - It would be nice to have a generic helper which we could
interface to popular web mapping tools. Think
layer1=LAYER(backend='googlemaps', name.., params....)
MAP([layer1, layer2], _width=320, _height=200)

[Timmie]

> The big question is how web2py will evolve with regard to plugin/
> appliance architecture, because that would determine how to go about
> adding geo stuff in a systematic manner. I'm        not sure I'd like
> it as a t2-style addon, but then again adding it to the core would
> mean way too many dependencies and try/catching.

That's an interesting point. Very cruicial actually.
I must admit not having read the manual, yet.
But I hope that there is a way to add functionality on top of the base
system without
a) modifying the core
b) needing to add the files to each application again.

Maybe Massimo can highlight here.

For instance:
I would start with a OpenLayers map widget that could be inserted in
any site (page, wiki) and administered through the wiki.

As far as I know, turbogears do solve this by distributing every
appliance as a package.
This introduced a culture of small applications with many dependecies
(something Massimo apparetly wanted to avoid).

Sofar, I do not have an idea.
I think there should be a generic plugin functionality to add new
features to core without modifying it and regardless of the inidvidual
appliance.

Kind regards,
Timmie

[dbb]

I may be missing something here, when we talked about polygon we mean
the borders on a map;
a map can be territory of a nation or a simple building with rooms or
a piece of land.
When we use google map, what we actually using is a map that was drawn
using polygon and in turn
each polygon is identifed by a zipcode and address.when you say for
example map(zipcode='20090')
we mean a polygon identified by zipode '20090',assuming the function
map is there that takes zipcode and return other attributes.

It is simple to port google map into web2py as far as territory of a
nation is concerned. But, this is only for a country
that already has the polygon drawn on the geo political map identified
by address and zipcode or by one of them. For countries with no
digital map in place, we should think having a tool that takes ploygon
as an attribute and
togther with other attributes, like address or zipcode etc.--- the
reason I am saying is,the polygon can be identified by GPS for a map
outside of a building, and by a tool that traces manually a map and
identify the x,y coordinate of lines (sides)of a ploygon where GPS
does not work.
Call it longitude and latitude in a computer it is always x,y with
distance scaling.
One can draw the polgon outside and port points of a ploygon to
web2py, e.g, points for polyon on a map are 2,3;4,5;6,7; and closed
ploygon. -- web2py will be able to draw the polygon on a console.
db.define_table('myCountryMapy',
db.field('polygon', 'points'),
db.field('zipCode'),
db.field('address'),
db.field('city'),
db.field('state'),
db.field('country'))
All fields are required.

for building :
db.define_table('myBuilding',
db.field('polygon', 'points'),
db.field('BuildingName'),
db.field('RoomName'),
db.field('Floor'))
All fields are required.

The former is for geo political map, and later is for building for
home automation and location identification of equipment with sensors
attached to them.

If possible web2py can incorporate reading of points from GPS, and
from tools used to identify points of a ploygon by tracing a map.

Regards:
dbb

> > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -

[AchipA]

The GIS topic is pretty complex - you have to decide early on whether
you want a simple spatial interface which is basically a pretty
picture viewer with some associated features OR do you want a real GIS
level approach which encompasses a spatial operations and relations on
data, projection, compilation of layers and maps based on on the input
data, rendering/presenting them, etc, etc. Embedding google maps does
not suffice to call something a GIS framework or module :)

[dbb]

I am on the process of creating how to create a map from scratch
using
web2py.

On Apr 9, 11:43 am, AchipA <attila.cs...@gmail.com> wrote:
> TheGIStopic is pretty complex - you have to decide early on whether

> you want a simple spatial interface which is basically a pretty
> picture viewer with some associated features OR do you want a realGIS
> level approach which encompasses a spatial operations and relations on
> data, projection, compilation of layers and maps based on on the input
> data, rendering/presenting them, etc, etc. Embedding google maps does

> not suffice to call something aGISframework or module :)

> > > > > > web2py Geo &GISExtensions -https://launchpad.net/web2py-geo

[Tim Michelsen]

> The GIS topic is pretty complex - you have to decide early on whether
> you want a simple spatial interface which is basically a pretty
> picture viewer with some associated features OR do you want a real GIS
> level approach which encompasses a spatial operations and relations on
> data, projection, compilation of layers and maps based on on the input
> data, rendering/presenting them, etc, etc. Embedding google maps does
> not suffice to call something a GIS framework or module :)

No, but would you call arcexplorer or uDig a GIS?
web2py can do frontend and presentation stuff as well as pass parameters
and inquires to backends. There are a number:
* openlayers & mapfish
* pythongis (shapely et. al.)
* GRASS for heavy progessing

So I am at the moment interested in integration stuff. Make geo analysis
or information more accessible.

[AchipA]

Well, there *is* a definition. A geographic information system (GIS),
or geographical information system, captures, stores, analyzes,
manages, and presents data that is linked to location. In the context
of web2py, it sure can make for a darn good interface to other GIS
related tools, but has no GIS functionality on it's own. As an example
of where the framework itself *is* part of a GIS, see Geodjango. In
the first approach, you're pretty much limited by what your underlying
apps can do. With the second, you can implement spatial oriented
functionality yourself - and that's a significant difference.

[Tim Michelsen]

> Well, there *is* a definition. A geographic information system (GIS),
> or geographical information system, captures, stores, analyzes,
> manages, and presents data that is linked to location. In the context
> of web2py, it sure can make for a darn good interface to other GIS
> related tools, but has no GIS functionality on it's own.

Yes. got that definition.
I think the integration stuff is more what I would like.
Or at least what I see as a good starter.
I would never do terrain analysis with a webgis system.

> As an example
> of where the framework itself *is* part of a GIS, see Geodjango. In
> the first approach, you're pretty much limited by what your underlying
> apps can do. With the second, you can implement spatial oriented
> functionality yourself - and that's a significant difference.

Do you have an example for such a geojango site?

[AchipA]

Let's say

http://watch.tampabay.com/homes/pinellas/neighborhood/allendale/

and

http://houstoncrimemaps.com/neighborhood/university-place/

as examples. The key aspect here is that you extract attribute data
with *spatial* operations (like operation on values belonging to a
point within a polygon). This is far more cumbersome to do if you
don't have access to the spatial operations on the DAL level (=lack of
spatial indexes, more complex application code, etc).

If you just want to show fairly statis maps and do no operations on
the content itself except for maybe a 'show more' or a tooltip here
and there on points, you don't need this. However if you want to
interact with feature *data* based on map input, it's pretty much a
must.

On Apr 23, 11:22 pm, Tim Michelsen <timmichel...@gmx-topmail.de>
wrote: