GIS platforms, who take advantage?
It is difficult to leave out so many platforms that exist, however for this review we will use the ones that recently Microsoft considers its allies in the compatibility with SQL Server 2008. It is important to mention this opening of Microsoft SQL Server towards new partners, since it allows the handling of spatial data in a native way; this before we could only do with Oracle Spatial… Of course at an annual licensing cost of $ 30,000 for a regular size application. This opportunity consolidates SQL Server so that companies can develop on this cartridge without an intermediate application or the risk of losing perspective between what is algorithmically functional and what is grounded in our reality.
Let's review some of these SQL Server 2008 partners:
ESRI
This is the best known GIS technology company worldwide, its annual sales are over $ 660 million and since the primitive 3x versions it has consolidated to the extent that it is still used at the desktop level and ESRI still provides support for these products. Additionally, ESRI provides services to large companies and local representatives provide support, training and product sales, generally they have one per country or state, although their products are now available not only from official representatives.
The solutions are very robust, although it is somewhat complicated to understand the final costs for development purposes by the variety of applications out of the box and Inside trunk.
- Primitive versions are always available ARCview 3.20 It goes for $ 750 although these are disappearing more every day due to its limited data platform. Few people have the audacity to develop applications, they generally use it more for desktop.
- After the previous ones the most used products are ARCgis desktop, Generally called ARCmap that walks by $ 1,500 for a pc and $ 3,000 in floating license, depending on the need the extensions are bought.
- Then there is ARCeditor Walking for $ 7,000
- ARCinfo $9,000
- Y ARCserver, Which now includes ARCims ($ 12,000), ARCs ($ 9,000) and Mapobjects ($ 7,000), these now in an ARCserver cost about $ 35,000 ... eye, per processor ie if a server has two processors would cost $ 70,000
Apart from that there are a lot of tools, extensions and customized versions almost for every need.
One of the biggest advantages is the ease of finding specialized users or operators because of brand popularity, at least for desktop applications; For development, mobile or web you have to intensify the search although its compatibility towards development languages and DBMS data standards makes things easier. Data services also exist worldwide, although every day the other platforms can be connected to these services.
Computer Aided Development Corporation Limited (Cadcorp)
These products are most used in Europe, was born in England, but are now entering the North American market, especially the United States and Mexico. This is good because it implies support in caliche Hispanic. Cadcorp is quite supportive of the OGC movement, making its products quite compliant with these standards.
Almost all of its developments are in C ++ language, its appearance is quite similar to Windows what makes it friendly and us products are clearly scalable, at least they can be separated into platforms of basic operation:
- Map viewer, Map Manager, Map Editor and Map Modeller. Prices can range from $ 1,500 to $ 4,000 depending on the seller and the buyer; ).
Then there are the development platforms
- CDM Modeller, CDM Manager and CDM Viewer, prices can be $ 7,000 for each and By programmer
At a more advanced level are the Develloper kit in its classic, Enterprise and Web versions.
Manifold.net
It is of recent beginning, but with a strange potential. This company must have been born from a group of gurus of the geospatial planet who thought “How to make a tool do the basics for a “, and have achieved a scalable product.
At first it seems a fraud, to think that a tool for $ 245 so they offer a refund if there is no satisfaction in 30 days. The ways in which they have managed to lower costs or at least what I suppose is that they do not sell a boxed product, but send an activation key, there are no printed but digital manuals, they do not have resellers, it is bought directly and only online. These are aspects that take away your advantage at the local support level, and increase the potential for those who can provide these services (development, implementation and support). The most surprising thing is the way they handle licenses, these people had to first design the licensing system and then the business model hehe. In the end, it is nothing more than selling 5 activations at a low cost, considering that in two years any computer platform will be obsolete, so when the new version comes out, they sell the license renewal for $ 50, but all 5 are activated again licenses ... interesting, especially if we understand that ESRI is very popular in Latin America but most of the licenses are pirated.
Manifold has a practical way of scaling the products, although the most attractive thing is that the same product has the API to be able to develop. These rungs are:
- Staff ($ 245)
- Pro Which includes IMS ($ 350)
- Enterprise ($ 475) with this you can read and write geometries natively in Oracle, SQL Server 2008.
- Universal ($ 650) This is an Enterprise with the extensions geocoding, bussiness and surface tools
- Ultimate ($ 950) with this can be smoked more crazy like creating spatial indexes or customize components as it has the Database Administrator.
A big draw for developers is that licenses runtime Can range from $ 120, this makes an application can be profitable to resell.
The ones mentioned below do not provide multifunctional services like the previous ones, but they are mentioned by Microsoft as compatible with SQL Server 2008.
AWhere, Inc, is a consulting firm in the GIS area, apparently oriented towards Business Intelligence, promoting its product AWare mapping software. It works under a logic similar to Manifold, in that the maps do not exist in raw, but in the database and what it does is a dynamic representation that results in the form of a map. It has compatibility with various formats and with Virtual Earth.
IDV Solutions provides a pipeline called Visual Fusion Server, Which is geared towards web services with GIS approach with which the providers of these services can create extensible products both at the level of consultation, visualization and collaborative networks.
Barrodale Computing Services Ltd. (BCS)
BCS is a technology services company that exists since 1978 and its product GISTXten is very oriented towards the provision of data optimization functions, so that complex search processes, functions or procedures can be simplified for better efficiency.
IntraGIS Systems Pty Ltd
IntraGIS Systems promotes the IntraGIS product, whose orientation towards a concept they call Server Layers seeks to streamline data management that, in OCG standards, recognizes different file formats and data sources, including shapefiles, dwg, tabular and image formats at both the intranet as web. According to its promise, it is a tool for non-GIS users who want to see the data output to make decisions.
IS Consulting
IS Consulting's (ISC) promotes a product called MapDotNet Server, which allows you to build in a practical way web applications for visualization, analysis and creation of spatial data. It has an SDK with which developers can create scalable applications, compatible with Virtual Erth and Silver Light.
Safe Software
They are the creators of FME, which is a service that allows you to easily read and write spatial data, as well as migrate, transform and integrate between more than 190 CAD, GIS and raster formats. They ensure that most things can be done without programming.
SpatialDB Advisor
SpatialDB Advisor offers training and support to SQL Server Spatial clients, mainly in:
- Databases for implementing ROI in Benchmarketing
- Construction and configuration of data sets, both in the systematization and documentation of developments, as conversion, migration, letter, design, T-SQL code, optimization and implementation of Data Warehouses.
- Training and mentoring in dataset construction
- Implementation of ROI infrastructure through the adaptation of existing technological products to business needs.
SpatialPoint helps organizations use spatial information to reduce costs by simplifying processes. His specialty is the Microsoft line including Virtual Earht, MapPoint and of course SQL Server 2008. SpatialPoint's Atlas technology allows the graphical display of the most complex data from the aforementioned platforms. They also offer implementation services to specific needs.
We will be left to the expectation of what happens with other brands that SQL Server still does not mention among its partners compatible with the 2008 version, such as AutoCAD Map3DBentley Geographics, Geomedia and others, that although their primary focus is geoengineering they also do their Earwigs Of the side GIS.Actualizacion:
TatukGIS Also does his thing With Oracle Spatial