Open Source GIS engine suitable for Service Based Applications

Question

In our enterprise we always used ArgGis. Now we are required to move from heavy apps to thin WPF-Prism clients. As I understand, with the coming deprecation of ArgGis Objects, the ArcGis desktop will be the only way to create new content.

Our application requires to create new content (such layers) from Client's side and in a Service-Based fashion.

After analysis we found any ArgGis-Objects-Server-Desktop combination (client and server side) unacceptably expensive.

So, we have decided to move to an Open Source Solution.

I would like to know if you could recommend me some options for an OpenSource (or paid) GIS engine consumable by custom mashups and that exposes full content creation via web services (not like that ArcDesktop stuff).

Thank you very much!

Answer 1

Both Geoserver and MapServer are geospatial servers that can export data in one of the many formats consumable by mashups like OpenLayers. They can be backed by data in shapefiles or spatial databases like PostGIS. They also both support the WFS-T protocol which allows you to update the data on the server from a desktop client. As far as I am aware, ESRI software doesn't support WFS-T, but there are several open source and commercial products that do. Here is a a list: https://gis.stackexchange.com/questions/347/how-many-wfs-t-clients-exist

You may also want to repost your question on gis.stackexchange.com where there is a wider pool of GIS experts.

Answer 2

Geonode with cartoview is a perfect open source solution both of them supports Linux and Windows based systems, they are based on Geoserver and OpenLayers. Geonode provides Spatial Data Infrastructure and Cartoview provides Apps using spatial data. Using QGIS as GIS desktop tool is a complementary for the solution.