Volume 26 • No 10 • 2003
ISSN 0742-468X • Since 1978
On-line Since 2000
Internet GIS
a book review
You don’t have to be a Super Tech to know that the Internet is driving the IT industry. This includes GIS – web enabled applications are no longer a nice to have feature. They are required. So how are you going to take your GIS applications to the web?
GIS on the Internet is somewhat of a departure for GIS technicians. In the past, the GIS development team was often isolated from the IT team. But when it comes to the Internet, there are too many disciplines that must be coordinated for an isolationist policy. On the other hand, the internal Web development team will find that GIS on the Internet is quite a bit more complex than the average HTML page.
To begin to understand the process, you might want to check out a newly released book by Zhong-Ren Peng and Ming-Hsiang Tsou, entitled “Internet GIS: Distributed Geographic Information Services for the Internet and Wireless Networks“ It is available from Amazon.com. Prices range from $70.00 to $90.00
About the authors
GIS on its own is a complicated subject. But when you want to serve it to the world, the complexity just increase. Peng and Tsou do an excellent job of breaking down the components of the Internet, and of GIS. The authors know their stuff from the ground up. Zhong-Ren Peng, Ph.D. is the director of the Center for Advanced Spatial Information Research (CASIR) and an associate professor of Urban Planning at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Preferring a more moderate climate, Ming-Hsiang Tsou, Ph.D., works in San Diego as an assistant professor in the Geography Department at San Diego State University.
Learning about Internet GSI
 “Internet GIS” is published by Wiley ( www.wiley.com), a respected publisher of IT books, including an excellent selection of GIS books. In this book, the emerging new technologies for GIS are examined.
The authors start from the ground up. They begin by asking a simple question: “Why do we need distributed GIS?” The answer is provided in a clearly word chapter with diagrams and examples. Jolting me back to my military days when the instructor would stomp his foot when making a point that would be on an exam, the authors highlight the key concepts. This is carried out throughout the book, making it a great reference tool.
The authors mix theory, documentation, graphics and practical applications to provide a clear understanding of the concepts. Make no mistake, this book is not just about GIS, but about GIS and the inner secrets of serving your map on the Web.
Too often, academicians shun the real world. Not so with Peng and Tsou. They provide 33 case studies, extensive product reviews and each chapter comes with additional web resources and references.
You could just call up your local GIS supplier and ask for a briefing on Web enabled GIS. Chances are excellent that you will be treated to a particularly biased view of the subject. On the other hand, you could go to Chapter Eight of Internet GIS and read an excellent description of ArcIMS from ESRI, Intergraph’s GeoMedia WebMap Pro, MapXtreme from MapInfo, and MapGuide from Autodesk
Recommendation
GIS is complicated enough. Serving it up on the Web presents as many opportunities as it does problems. Thinking that you are a GIS expert with a can do attitude is all you need to set up a GIS web site is not the right approach
To understand the Web and GIS, start by getting your hands on a copy of “Internet and GIS” by Peng and Tsou. Use it to build your understanding of the challenges that lay ahead, the resources you will need, and to get a head start on your competition.
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