Open Source

Location-based data and analysis are considered so critical to the understanding of a business’ operations that business analytics software companies routinely and prominently boast maps as part of their dashboard visualization toolkits. But Gartner, the market research company, gives scant mention of the importance of location intelligence. Editor in Chief Joe Francica looks at what’s missing from its most recent “Magic Quadrant” report. 

GIS users, even those who don’t consider themselves programmers, may have heard of a mysterious location on the Web called GitHub. What is it and what do GIS users need to know about it?

The Sunlight Foundation chimed in on an Ohio Supreme Cout decision covered at

FedGeoDay, held in Washington, D.C. this past week, can best be described as an advocacy forum for open source geospatial technology and data. Some of the leading organizations, government agencies and companies invested in open source tech sponsored the conference.  Editor in Chief Joe Francica attended this first-time event, which drew over 250 people.

In late 2007 Palantir launched Gotham, a new geospatial and comprehensive analytics platform designed to meet the challenges of their vast array of customers. This article provides more information on Gotham that enables data integration, search and discovery, knowledge management, secure collaboration, and algorithmic analysis across a wide variety of data sources.

It’s been seven years since the Open Source Geospatial Software Foundation came on the scene. This week LocationTech stepped up alongside. Is LocationTech what the open source geospatial community needs to take it to the next level?

GDAL and OGR are key open source libraries that allow for translation between data formats. GDAL supports raster formats; OGR vector formats. What if you could put the power of the libraries into ArcGIS Desktop? You can, via an open source GDAL/OGR plug-in for ArcGIS. Bill Dollins took the plug-in for a spin and offers this review.

As we move into 2013, Directions Magazine will deliver many more options for readers who want choices in how they get their news. See what's coming!

Directions Magazine’s Editor in Chief Joe Francica and Executive Editor Adena Schutzberg evaluate their predictions for 2012 and look ahead. Can they keep up the pace for 2013 and do their bold predictions offer insights into the trends that will shape the geospatial marketplace next year?

If you’ve been following election news, you’re likely aware of the controversy surrounding Pennsylvania’s strict Voter ID law. The new law requires that citizens show valid photo ID (restricted to a few types) when they cast a ballot. Tamara Manik-Perlman of Azavea analyzes the law's impact.