Download Dependencies Setup

GISToolkit Editor

License Information
    The GISToolkit uses the LGPL license .

The GISToolkit can be downloaded from Source Forge.

What Does it Do:
    There are some simple things it can do, like displaying data.  Here is a display of the States layer.  The data for this layer is privided by the USGS (United States Geological Service) in a Shape file format. Several data sources are available in the GISToolkit, and more can be added.

Current data sources are:
    DB2 Spatial Extender (Registered Trademark of IBM)
    ESRI SDE (Trademark of Environmental Systems Research Institute)
    Terraserver (Trademark of Microsoft)
    1.0.0 OGC Web Map Services
    ESRI Shapefiles
    POSTGIS database.

This data is provided in a shape file in WGS84 Latitude Longitude projection, and it is presented here non projected..

    Projections can be a problem, and there are currently only three available in the GISToolkit.  They are

   UTM, in all the zones,
   Albers Equal Area,
   and Lambert Connic Conformal.

   These three projections are the ones that are commonly used for State Plane layers, and for presentation.  Additional Projections can be added to the GISToolkit with little problem.  They must be able to project forward, and backward.  Here is the same map projected to UTM Zone 14.

Pretty radical difference.  The projections can be accessed from the Options menu, and the parameters can be entered there.  I will not show you the Lambert Conic Conformal Projection, it looks similar.

Multiple Layers can be displayed with different fills, lines, and shades.  This is a close up of Colorado with it's counties, still projected to UTM Zone 14.  This is not the correct zone for this state, but it illustrates how projections can affect things. Some simple labeling is available as well.

Shading is available on a shape file basis, or based on the contents of a column in the attribute data.  Additional shaders can be easilly added.  The architecture of the GISToolkit puts a heavy emphasis on expandability.  Additional Labelers can be added as well.  The current labeler only labels at the center of the Minimum Bounding Rectangle (MBR).

If it is desired to drill down even more than this, there is the ability to view only Jackson county.  Here the cities have been displayed and labeled.

Zooming in a little more to the Columbine area, we are starting to get into the range where Imagery is feasable to display.  Here is an example.

The imagery in this example is alpha blended with the map.  Any layers can be displayed above the imagery, including roads, rivers, and cities.  Alpha blending is optional.  The resolutions of imagery are those available from Terraserver, and are a subset of 64,32,16,8,4,2 and 1 meter.  Displayed here is four meter imagery.  One can get themselves in trouble with imagery rather quickly.  You can select the resolution you wish to view, and the GISToolkit will project that imagery to your projection of choice, or you can let the GISToolkit take a rather primative guess at what would look good and project that.  Terraserver data is projected in UTM Zones, so these are the projections that look the best.  The image above is unprojected, this is the same data projected to UTM Zone 14, and it can also be projected to Lambert Conic Conformal.

That is a quick tour of the functionality of the GISToolkit, there are many more details under the covers, and much more opportunity for expansion and refinement.
 

This is an interesting shot of the Average temperature of the US in Albers Equal Area.  This data is provided by the US National Drought Mitigation Center, many thanks.