[Qgis-user] Atlas generation - help please

[John Norton]

Hi,

 

I was very excited when I saw that automated 'atlas generation' had been
added to the map composer in version 2, but I cannot figure out how it
works. The User Guide documentation is very brief and the terminology is
difficult to comprehend. What is meant by 'geometries' and  why would I want
an atlas of 'geometries'? Can someone give an example of what it might be
used for and how it would be set up? 

 

The reason for asking is because I would like to be able to automate the
process of creating maps showing wildlife distributions. GIS is used widely
in the UK and other countries for storing wildlife data, but until now in
order to produce atlases we have used software such as DMAP and MapMate. To
those not familiar with wildlife mapping the simplest possible dataset would
be a number of records of one or more species, each with an X and Y
coordinate. The data can be saved as a shapefile point data layer. Each
record is therefore a feature. The data can be styled as 'single symbol' so
that records with the same coordinates overlie each other when viewed. To
see the distribution map for a particular species the data needs to be
displayed as 'rule based' and a rule set up to filter the records for each
individual species (e.g. "Species" = 'Quercus robur' filters out records of
Pedunculate Oak). The resulting map can then be output to a jpeg in the
usual way using Print Composer. This process is unworkable, however, because
every time a different species is viewed or output, the filter needs to be
manually changed. The only other option at present is to split the data into
separate layers, one for each species, so these can be turned on or off as
needed. This is workable for small numbers of species but not for 1000+
species as would be required for a flowering plant atlas for example. So is
creating a species distribution atlas possible using the atlas generation
dialog in version 2, or is 'atlas' being used in a completely different
sense here? And if it is not possible, is anyone working on a solution? It
would be of huge benefit in the nature conservation world if so.

 

John Norton, Gosport, UK

 

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