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| Google Earth In The Geospatial Context
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Gone are the days when "doing GIS" meant simply being proficient with this or that vendor's software product-line. Open standards, open APIs, and open source software have created a heady mix of possibilities for delivering rich, informative, visual experiences to a rapidly expanding audience. Below we describe why and how Google Earth can help you derive more value from your existing geospatial assets. | |
| It's The Interface | Capitalize On Open Source | ||
The recent mushrooming of interest in all things mapping means not only an increase in demand for spatial content but also expectations
of a user-friendly, highly interactive web experience. Increasing the audience for the content your shop already produces, especially at
the decision-making level, enhances the value of your geospatial expertise among those who set the budgets and sign the paychecks. |
Turbo-charge Google Earth by linking it to quality open-source software. This site, for instance, integrates the PostGIS open-source database to enable buffering, clipping, and intersecting. For raster imagery, large libraries can efficiently be piped into Google Earth via programs such as MapServer. In short, there are options for serving large, diverse audiences over the web without taking a painful annual licensing fee hit. | ||
| Convert ESRI/MapInfo Files | Analytical Needs/Audience Needs | ||
There are a number of KML converters out there to create standalone files in Google Earth. We can
take your files though and load them into a private online spatial database so everyone in your organization
or project team can both creatively visualize the content and do on-the-fly ad hoc analysis. This option
is especially cost-effective in the context of multi-stakeholder projects or limited-run proof-of-concept
undertakings.
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Google Earth does not supplant GIS software with advanced analytical and modeling capabilities. However the needs of those who create and modify spatial data are very different from those of end-users who need only visualize and query spatial data. It is the latter group that is uniquely well served by the Google Earth interface well integrated with your company's existing geospatial infrastructure. | ||
| Direct Connect to Spatial Databases | Get in touch | ||
We harness the capabilities of your commercial spatial database
(e.g. ArcSDE, Oracle, IBM DB2, etc.) by hooking it to Google Earth directly via
our own connectivity tools that require no additional licensing burden. |
The Timoney Group | ||