[mapserver-commits] r8679 - trunk/docs/tutorial

svn at osgeo.org svn at osgeo.org
Sun Mar 8 16:49:13 EDT 2009


Author: jmckenna
Date: 2009-03-08 16:49:13 -0400 (Sun, 08 Mar 2009)
New Revision: 8679

Added:
   trunk/docs/tutorial/background.txt
   trunk/docs/tutorial/index.txt
Log:
add beginnings of tutorial rst files

Added: trunk/docs/tutorial/background.txt
===================================================================
--- trunk/docs/tutorial/background.txt	                        (rev 0)
+++ trunk/docs/tutorial/background.txt	2009-03-08 20:49:13 UTC (rev 8679)
@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+.. _background:
+
+Tutorial Timeframe
+==================
+
+While some users can go through this tutorial in one day, those who work on each 
+example in detail can probably expect to finish in one week.
+<top>
+
+Tutorial Data
+The dataset used in this tutorial was taken from the U.S. Department of the 
+Interior's National Atlas of the United States. You can visit their web site 
+at http://www.nationalatlas.gov. The dataset was clipped to the upper great 
+lakes region (Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin) to reduce storage size. 
+Additional raster images were added courtesy of the TerraSIP project at the 
+University of Minnesota. When using this tutorial, you are encouraged to use 
+your own dataset.
+
+Like MapServer itself, this tutorial is open and customizable to anyone. 
+This was done in the hope that someone (or some folks) will help design and 
+develop it further.
+
+Before Using the Tutorial
+=========================
+
+There are some prerequisites to using this tutorial:
+
+1. Users will need to have a web server installed and running on your computer. 
+   This web server has to have support for common gateway interface (CGI) programs.
+
+2. Users should have a basic understanding of web servers and internet security. 
+   A poorly configured web server can easily be attacked by malicious people. 
+   At the very least your software installation will be corrupted and you'll 
+   lose hours of productivity, at worst your computer can be used to attack 
+   other computers on the internet.
+
+3. It is recommended that users of this tutorial read the 
+   :ref:`Introduction to MapServer <introduction>` before proceeding with this 
+   tutorial.
+
+4. To use this tutorial, users will need to have a web server and a MapServer 
+   CGI program (mapserv or mapserv.exe) installed in their systems. MapServer 
+   source code is available for download :ref:`here <download>`. Documentation 
+   exists on how to compile and install MapServer:
+   
+   * for UNIX users, please read the :ref:`MapServer UNIX Compilation and Installation HOWTO <unix>`. 
+   * Windows users should read the :ref:`MapServer Win32 Compilation and Installation HOWTO <win32>` 
+   
+   In addition, Windows users can also download precompiled binaries from
+   :ref:`here <download>`.
+
+Windows, UNIX/Linux Issues
+==========================
+
+Paths
+-----
+
+This tutorial was created in Linux/UNIX but should work with minimal changes on 
+Windows platform. The main differences are the paths in the map files. Windows 
+users need to specify the drive letter of the hard disk where their tutorial 
+files reside. Here's an example:
+
+A UNIX map file might include a parameter like this:
+
+  .. code-block:: mapfile
+
+     SHAPEPATH "/data/projects/tutorial/data"
+     
+In Windows, the same parameters might look like this:
+
+  .. code-block:: mapfile
+
+     SHAPEPATH "C:/data/projects/tutorial/data"
+     
+or:
+
+  .. code-block:: mapfile
+   
+     SHAPEPATH "C:\data\projects\tutorial\data".
+
+Notice that either slash or backslash works in Windows. The usual backslash may 
+work well for you if you want to make a distinction between virtual (as in URLs 
+or web addresses) and local paths in your map file. However, if you plan to move 
+your application to UNIX at some point, you'll have the tedious task of switching 
+all backslashes to slashes.
+
+While we're on the subject of paths, keep in mind that paths in mapfiles are 
+typically relative to the system's root directory: the slash ("/") in UNIX or 
+some drive letter ("C:") in Windows. This is true except when specifically asked 
+to enter a URL or when referencing a URL. When working with HTML template files, 
+paths are relative to the web server's root directory.  i.e., "/projects/tutorial35/" 
+is relative to "http://terrasip.gis.umn.edu/". Please read 
+http://www.alistapart.com/stories/slashforward/ for a few insights on URLs.
+
+Executable
+----------
+
+Another issue is that UNIX executable files don't require a .EXE or .COM extensions, but 
+they do in Windows. If you are using Windows, append .exe to all instances of 
+"/cgi-bin/mapserv" or "/cgi-bin/mapserv50" to make it "/cgi-bin/mapserv.exe" or 
+"/cgi-bin/mapserv50.exe".
+
+Other Resources
+===============
+
+Other documentation exist to give you better understanding of the many customizations 
+MapServer offer. Please visit the MapServer documentation page at 
+http://www.mapserver.org. There you will find several HOWTO documents, from getting 
+started to using MapScript, a scripting interface for MapServer.
\ No newline at end of file

Added: trunk/docs/tutorial/index.txt
===================================================================
--- trunk/docs/tutorial/index.txt	                        (rev 0)
+++ trunk/docs/tutorial/index.txt	2009-03-08 20:49:13 UTC (rev 8679)
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+.. _tutorial:
+
+*****************************************************************************
+ MapServer Tutorial
+*****************************************************************************
+
+:Author: Pericles S. Nacionales 
+:Contact: pnaciona at gmail.com
+:Author: Jeff McKenna
+:Contact: jmckenna at gatewaygeomatics.com
+:Revision: $Revision: 8577 $
+:Date: $Date: 2009-02-18 11:38:50 -0500 (Wed, 18 Feb 2009) $
+
+This tutorial was designed to give new users a quick (relatively speaking) 
+introduction to the concepts behind MapServer. It is arranged into four sections 
+with each section having one or more examples and increasing in complexity. 
+Users can jump to any section at any time although it is recommended that 
+absolute beginners work on the first three sections sequentially.
+
+Section one focuses on basic MapServer configuration concepts such as layer 
+and class ordering, using vector and raster data, projections and labeling. 
+Section two provides examples on how to use HTML templates to create a simple 
+interface for an interactive web mapping application. Section three introduces 
+the use of HTML templates to provide a "query" interface. Finally, section four 
+introduces some advanced user interface concepts.
+
+.. toctree::
+   :maxdepth: 1
+
+   background
\ No newline at end of file



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