CoastGIS’99: geomatics and coastal environment
data holdings and geoprocessing resources on the Web. This will have
a profound effect on the market for geospatial data and services.”
(McKee, 1999).
What are the trends?
As a guide to the future, we should look at the underlying trends in
Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) which effect
those GIS developments which are encouraging wider use of GI in both
enterprise and stand-alone applications.
• Advances in GIS development follow those in ICT hardware, software
and telecommunications development, generally. Current PCs are now as
powerful as graphics workstations were only two or three years ago.
• The Internet has had a profound effect on the way users want to be
able to access data - even if they cannot yet do so - easily - today!
Whether accessing remote data sources via the global Internet or via
an internal intranet, the same software and hardware can be used (at
the user end of thz link), encouraging developers to produce ever more
powerful applications tools. Problems relating to moving large volumes
of data across the Internet due to lack of bandwidth are being addressed
in various ways, from ever-faster modems as standard equipment on PCs
to greater penetration of ISDN links and advances in loss-less data compression technologies.
• The bulk of GI is used today in “enterprise” environments, i.e.
multiple users connected to shared resources (servers, software, data),
typical examples being local government authorities, departments
in national government agencies, utilities companies, travel organizations, and many more m very diverse sectors. These departmental users
today commonly operate in an enterprise Client/Server IT environment.
• Single-user, desktop GI/GIS is growing, especially in very small
businesses, but this still represents a small part of the overall GI/GIS
market place. However, as more and more stand-alone GI users connect
to the Internet as a data source, they are actually becoming “clients”
in a client/server environment, where the Internet is the “server”.
• One of the GI market areas that will see substantial growth in the
next decade is that of direct sales of specific GI to individuals via the
Internet (or a combination of CD-ROM and Internet). There is already
evidence for this in the remote sensing sector of the GI market, where large volumes of raster image data are being macle available on encrypted
and “locked” CD-ROMs, from which the user selects only that piece of GI
of interest - and pays accordingly. Ordnance Survey’s GB already permits
clients to purchase individual “strips” of linear GI from its Superplan
digital data product, e.g. a single roadway, railway line or power line.
Web enabled GIS toolsets
One of the best sources for information on Web-aware GIS tools, such as
Web-enabled GI data servers and client GIS viewing software is available
34
data holdings and geoprocessing resources on the Web. This will have
a profound effect on the market for geospatial data and services.”
(McKee, 1999).
What are the trends?
As a guide to the future, we should look at the underlying trends in
Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) which effect
those GIS developments which are encouraging wider use of GI in both
enterprise and stand-alone applications.
• Advances in GIS development follow those in ICT hardware, software
and telecommunications development, generally. Current PCs are now as
powerful as graphics workstations were only two or three years ago.
• The Internet has had a profound effect on the way users want to be
able to access data - even if they cannot yet do so - easily - today!
Whether accessing remote data sources via the global Internet or via
an internal intranet, the same software and hardware can be used (at
the user end of thz link), encouraging developers to produce ever more
powerful applications tools. Problems relating to moving large volumes
of data across the Internet due to lack of bandwidth are being addressed
in various ways, from ever-faster modems as standard equipment on PCs
to greater penetration of ISDN links and advances in loss-less data compression technologies.
• The bulk of GI is used today in “enterprise” environments, i.e.
multiple users connected to shared resources (servers, software, data),
typical examples being local government authorities, departments
in national government agencies, utilities companies, travel organizations, and many more m very diverse sectors. These departmental users
today commonly operate in an enterprise Client/Server IT environment.
• Single-user, desktop GI/GIS is growing, especially in very small
businesses, but this still represents a small part of the overall GI/GIS
market place. However, as more and more stand-alone GI users connect
to the Internet as a data source, they are actually becoming “clients”
in a client/server environment, where the Internet is the “server”.
• One of the GI market areas that will see substantial growth in the
next decade is that of direct sales of specific GI to individuals via the
Internet (or a combination of CD-ROM and Internet). There is already
evidence for this in the remote sensing sector of the GI market, where large volumes of raster image data are being macle available on encrypted
and “locked” CD-ROMs, from which the user selects only that piece of GI
of interest - and pays accordingly. Ordnance Survey’s GB already permits
clients to purchase individual “strips” of linear GI from its Superplan
digital data product, e.g. a single roadway, railway line or power line.
Web enabled GIS toolsets
One of the best sources for information on Web-aware GIS tools, such as
Web-enabled GI data servers and client GIS viewing software is available
34