Mapserver <=> ArcIMS comparison

[Michael Anderson]

Hi Herman,

I have an extension that creates the map files. I am working on getting it 
documented well enough that others can use it. I should have time to finish 
it within the next week or so. Then I will make it available to anyone who 
wants it. It would probably help if a few more people would try it out and 
give me feedback before I make it widely available. If you would like to do 
that, let me know. I could have the bare bones documentation ready by 
Monday.

Mike


>From: Herman Tjesse de Haan <hdhaan at Delft.nl>
>To: 'Michael Anderson' <m_anderson14 at hotmail.com>
>Subject: RE: Mapserver <=> ArcIMS comparison
>Date: Thu, 2 Nov 2000 08:08:03 +0100
>
>Hi Michael,
>
>Interesting to read about ArcIMS <=> Mapserver.
>You mentioned you use ArcView to make mapfiles.
>How do you do this?
>
>Thanks in advance!
>
>Herman de Haan
>Municipality Delft
>The Netherlands
>
>-----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
>Van: Michael Anderson [mailto:m_anderson14 at hotmail.com]
>Verzonden: woensdag 1 november 2000 18:54
>Aan: mapserver-users at lists.gis.umn.edu
>Onderwerp: Re: Mapserver <=> ArcIMS comparison
>
>
>     I have been using both ArcIMS and MapServer for a few months. Before I
>give my opinion on a comparison, I would like to point out that the scope 
>of
>
>what ArcIMS and MapServer attempt to do is different. ArcIMS has several
>components designed to do things that MapServer alone doesn't address. This
>includes html and applet based viewers for the client as well as several
>components on the server. The components on the server include the
>application server, manager components, and the spatial servers. The 
>spatial
>
>server is what renders the images, handles spatial queries, extracts
>features, etc. The manager components allow you to build "Map Services" 
>(map
>
>files), create web sites using the map services, and publish the sites.  
>The
>
>application server allows you to distribute pieces of your application over
>multiple machines and pool several machines to handle increased loads.  It
>also allows you to use COM and Cold Fusion in your application as the
>"connector" between the web server and application server. ArcIMS has two
>additional components that start and stop processes and delete images on a
>schedule.
>	MapServer alone is only analogous to the spatial server, but the
>other
>features can be added using other tools. Other than being able to use fewer
>data formats, MapServer is a better spatial server than ArcIMS's. By using
>an existing web application server you can get the additional functionality
>with a minimal amount of work. I am using Zope, which is Python based, as 
>my
>
>application server. It is also Open Source. It is a much better application
>server than the ArcIMS component. In addition to allowing you to distribute
>your application, and pool machines, it also handles user authentication,
>and gives Unix like permissions to files, URLs, and operations. It also
>handles publishing the sites easily. I haven't gotten around to using it to
>make the map files or the web site though. I use ArcView to make the map
>files and have someone else make the web site. Zope does allow me to share
>single html and JavaScript files across multiple web sites, which makes
>maintenance a lot easier. It is also possible to use Zope as a connector to
>ArcIMS so a single application could use both MapServer and ArcIMS (as well
>as other GIS engines). I am also aware of a Java based application server
>called Enhydra that is also Open Source. I have installed it, but haven't
>had much time to use it, so I can't really say what it can do. There are
>also commercial application servers available like IBM's WebSphere. You
>could probably do a lot with Cold Fusion as well.
>
>That said, here is my 2 cents on the advantages and disadvantages of 
>ArcIMS:
>
>Advantages of ArcIMS
>- distribute applications over multiple machines
>- Native integration with the Geography Network. MapServer can be made to
>work within the geography network.
>- Includes software to handle routine tasks like making the map services
>(map files), designing web sites, etc.
>- Supports more data formats - especially raster
>- Better support for storing spatial data in RDBMS through SDE
>- You don't have to try to sell a relatively unknown product (MapServer) 
>and
>
>philosophy (Open Source)
>
>Disadvantages of ArcIMS
>- speed (even running mapserv as regular cgi it is much faster)
>- resource hog
>- limited OS (no Linux)
>- less stable. My ArcIMS experience is on NT so that may be more a
>reflection of the OS than ArcIMS.
>- poorer support
>- source code unavailable
>- cost
>
>Mike
>
>Michael Anderson
>Spatial Information Technologies, Inc.
>
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