[mapserver-dev] Documentation,articles,etc

[Frank Warmerdam]

Roberto Urrutia wrote:
> Thank you for answer my question.. Ok I try to do a specific question...
> 
> I would like to do a diagram about the internal operation of mapserver, 
> but i  have some problems for identify some aspects . for example..
> 
> When I write this code in the .map
> 
> CONNECTIONTYPE postgis
> NAME "river"
> CONNECTION "user=db dbname=database host=robert"
> DATA "geom from river"
> 
> What file (maybe files) analyze and link the information provided in the 
> .map (CONNECTIONTYPE, CONNECTION,NAME and DATA) with the data 
> (shp,jpg,etc  or  a database)?

Roberto,

The connectiontype generally ties the layer to a particular source file
implementing that connection type, mappostgis.c in this case (which looks
like it also utilizes mappostgresql.c).  A grep on the MS_CONNECTION_TYPE
value (MS_POSTGIS in this case) can help you isolate the source files
involved in implementing a particular connection type.

Shapefiles and raster files are sort of the exception in that there is no
connection type in the map file.

You might like to read over RFC 3, Layer Plugin Architecture which formalizes
the set of methods a layer is to implement.

   http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/development/rfc/ms-rfc-3/

You might find other RFCs of interest as well, though they don't in and of
themselves make a coherent architectural description.

   http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/development/rfc

Best regards,
-- 
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I set the clouds in motion - turn up   | Frank Warmerdam, warmerdam at pobox.com
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and watch the world go round - Rush    | President OSGeo, http://osgeo.org