Open Source Web GIS Development

This course is mainly designed for the peoples who are highly interested in the web–mapping/web–GIS development. In this course, I mainly focused on the leaflet, JavaScript and GeoServer. Since it is a practical–based course, I directly started to write the code rather than making slides. Inside the course, you will find simple, effective, and alternative ways to do the tasks. At the end of this course, you will build a very nice geospatial data visualization portal.

Leaflet: Leaflet is the leading open–source JavaScript library for mobile–friendly interactive maps. Weighing just about 39 KB of JS, it has all the mapping features most developers ever need. Leaflet allows developers without a GIS background to very easily display tiled web maps hosted on a public server, with optional tiled overlays. It can load feature data from GeoJSON files, style it and create interactive layers, such as markers with popups when clicked.

GeoServer: GeoServer implements industry–standard OGC protocols such as Web Feature Service (WFS), Web Map Service (WMS), and Web Coverage Service (WCS). Additional formats and publication options are available as extensions including Web Processing Service (WPS), and Web Map Tile Service (WMTS). GeoServer aims to operate as a node within a free and open Spatial Data Infrastructure. Just as the Apache HTTP Server has offered a free and open webserver to publish HTML, GeoServer aims to do the same for geospatial data.