[mapguide-users] vector editing

[Paul Spencer]

Shailesh,

I will try to put together a description of the tools and their  
capabilities soon.  In the mean time, to satisfy curiosity, here is a  
quick outline:

The editing tools are being built on top of an application framework  
we are building for MapGuide OS/Enterprise.  This framework is  
tentatively known as Fusion or MapGuide Fusion.  It uses a modified  
version of a weblayout resource to define the commands, toolbars, and  
context menus for an application.  There are some changes to the  
schema of the weblayout that makes it incompatible with the existing  
ajax viewer and with Studio, so currently the weblayout has to be  
created by hand.

MapGuide Fusion uses an HTML page and a single javascript include  
(fusion.js :)) to parse the HTML page and insert functionality based  
on the ID of HTML elements and associated Commands from the  
weblayout.  This allows much more flexibility when designing an  
application (you can put anything anywhere), and separates code from  
presentation quite nicely.  It also compartmentalizes the code into  
separate pieces of functionality that interoperate in a standard way  
to make code easier to write and maintain.

This toolkit is brand new, but builds on the experience DM Solutions  
Group has with building similar toolkits around MapServer.

The toolkit itself will likely be an open source project, hopefully  
merging into the MapGuide OS project and potentially replacing the  
existing weblayout/ajax viewer component (although there is a lot to  
be done and to discuss before this becomes a possibility).

The editing tools are part of something we are tentatively calling a  
Light-Weight Edit capability (LWE).  They would be available as an  
extension to MapGuide Fusion and would include a simple editing  
application plus the actual widgets that would allow inserting  
editing into existing applications built on MapGuide Fusion.

The editing capabilities include both digitizing (creating new  
features) and editing existing features in a web-based environment.   
The tools are seamlessly cross-browser compliant in Internet Explorer  
6/7, Firefox 1.5/2 and Safari 2.  I haven't tested in Opera, but I  
think it will work there too.

The tools generally work by creating shadow copies of feature sources  
to prevent accidents.  There is an undo and automatic recovery  
capability because deletes and edits are stored in the Library  
repository rather than the Session - if you close your browser, you  
have an opportunity to restore when you next connect.

The tools work with the currently selected layer (managed by a layer  
control), and allow you to have multiple edits on multiple layers  
without saving.  For layers that have a single geometric type, the  
tool automatically creates the appropriate type of geometry.  For  
layers that have multiple types, the user is prompted to select from  
the available types.

There is a commit tool that takes existing edits and merges them back  
into the original feature source.

Because we use the Feature Service API, the editing capability is  
independent of the provider used with the feature source ... but it  
does have to be a vector feature source of course!

For editing capabilities, we have the same basic node/segment editing  
capabilities that you would find in most vector editing packages:

* digitize/edit points, lines and polygons
* select a node and drag to move
* select a line segment (two nodes) and drag to move
* shift-select to add nodes to the selection
* delete nodes (del key)
* insert new nodes

and probably a few other features that I've forgotten.

We are also building an attribute editing grid so that you can edit  
the attributes of any selected feature (and newly created ones too).

Availability: well, much of this is actually already done.  But it  
needs a few finishing bits and pieces, and substantial testing.  My  
current plan is to have this ready for the new year.

Um ... seems like I've written a pretty good description ;)

Cheers

Paul


On 28-Oct-06, at 4:24 AM, shailesh wrote:

> I don't think even mapguide Enterprise has any of these capabilites  
> either. Any one at autodesk following up this please confirm.
> Paul can you publish / post the capabilities of the tool/s DM is  
> developing ?
> Eager to understand upto what extent can we go, while proposing  
> architecture to our clients using mapguide applications and have  
> very few requirements in terms of editing maps.
>
>
>
> -Regards
> Shailesh
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Paul Spencer <pspencer at dmsolutions.ca>
> To: <users at mapguide.osgeo.org>
> Cc:
> Date: Saturday, October 28 2006 12:10 AM
> Subject: Re: [mapguide-users] vector editing
> Chris,
>
> it is possible, but there are currently no tools in the open source
> package that allow you access to this functionality.
>
> MapGuide Enterprise may contain some of this functionality, but I'm
> not sure.
>
> DM Solutions Group is working on building some of these types of
> tools as a commercial capability on top of MapGuide OS/Enterprise.
> Contact me directly if you are interested in this.
>
> Cheers
>
> Paul
>
> On 27-Oct-06, at 11:46 AM, Chris Stewart wrote:
>
> > Hello
> >
> > Could someone tell me if it is currently possible to create a web
> > application that enables a client to remotely edit vector data for
> > their
> > own purposes - as opposed to just being able to view data, zoom  
> in and
> > out and create buffers - using MapGuide Open Source, together with
> > either MapGuide Web Studio or Autodesk MapGuide Studio.
> >
> > Many thanks
> >
> > Chris
> >
> >
> >  
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|Paul Spencer                          pspencer at dmsolutions.ca    |
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|Chief Technology Officer                                         |
|DM Solutions Group Inc                http://www.dmsolutions.ca/ |
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