Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix project load failure (i.e. blank canvas) for project containing font marker symbols

Full Changelog: v3.0.3...v3.0.4

We’re so excited and proud of this latest QField version that we’ve opted for a major 3.0 version update.

Shipped with many new features and built with the latest generation of Qt’s cross-platform framework, this new chapter marks an important milestone for the most powerful open-source field GIS solution.

Main highlights

Upon launching this new version of QField, users will be greeted by a revamped recent projects list featuring shiny map canvas thumbnails. While this is one of the most obvious UI improvements, countless interface tweaks and harmonization have occurred. From the refreshed dark theme to the further polishing of countless widgets, QField has never looked and felt better.

The top search bar has a new functionality that allows users to look for features within the currently active vector layer by matching any of its attributes against a given search term. Users can also refine their searches by specifying a specific attribute. The new functionality can be triggered by typing the ‘f’ prefix in the search bar followed by a string or number to retrieve a list of matching features. When expanding it, a new list of functionalities appears to help users discover all of the tools available within the search bar.

QField’s tracking has also received some love. A new erroneous distance safeguard setting has been added, which, when enabled, will dictate the tracker not to add a new vertex if the distance between it and the previously added vertex is greater than a user-specified value. This aims at preventing “spikes” of poor position readings during a tracking session. QField is now also capable of resuming a tracking session after being stopped. When resuming, tracking will reuse the last feature used when first starting, allowing sessions interrupted by battery loss or momentary pause to be continued on a single line or polygon geometry.  

On the feature form front, QField has gained support for feature form text widgets, a new read-only type introduced in QGIS 3.30, which allows users to create expression-based text labels within complex feature form configurations. In addition, relationship-related form widgets now allow for zooming to children/parent features within the form itself.

To enhance digitizing work in the field, QField now makes it possible to turn snapping on and off through a new snapping button on top of the map canvas when in digitizing mode. When a project has enabled advanced snapping, the dashboard’s legend item now showcases snapping badges, allowing users to toggle snapping for individual vector layers. 

In addition, digitising lines and polygons by using the volume up/down hardware keys on devices such as smartphones is now possible. This can come in handy when digitizing data in harsh conditions where gloves can make it harder to use a touch screen. 

While we had to play favourites in describing some of the new functionalities in QField, we’ve barely touched the surface of this feature-packed release. Other major additions include support for Near-Field Communication (NFC) text tag reading and a new geometry editor’s eraser tool to delete part of lines and polygons as you would with a pencil sketch using an eraser.

Thanks to Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Groupements forestiers Québec, Amsa, and Kanton Luzern for sponsoring these enhancements. 

Quality of life improvements

Starting with this new version, the scale bar overlay will now respect projects’ distance measurement units, allowing for scale bars in imperial and nautical units.

QField now offers a rendering quality setting which, at the cost of a slightly reduced visual quality, results in faster rendering speeds and lower memory usage. This can be a lifesaver for older devices having difficulty handling large projects and helps save battery life.

Vector tile layer support has been improved with the automated download of missing fonts and the possibility of toggling label visibility. This pair of changes makes this resolution-independent layer type much more appealing.

On iOS, layouts are now printed by QField as PDF documents instead of images. While this was the case for other platforms, it only became possible on iOS recently after work done by one of our ninjas in QGIS itself.

Many thanks to DB Fahrwgdienste for sponsoring stabilization efforts and fixes during this development cycle.

Qt 6, the latest generation of the cross-platform framework powering QField

Last but not least, QField 3.0 is now built against Qt 6. This is a significant technological milestone for the project as this means we can fully leverage the latest technological innovations into this cross-platform framework that has been powering QField since day one.

On top of the new possibilities, QField benefited from years of fixes and improvements, including better integration with Android and iOS platforms. In addition, the positioning framework in Qt 6 has been improved with awareness of the newer GNSS constellations that have emerged over the last decade.

Forest-themed release names

Forests are critical in climate regulation, biodiversity preservation, and economic sustainability. Beginning with QField 3.0 “Amazonia” and throughout the 3.X’s life cycle, we will choose forest names to underscore the importance of and advocate for global forest conservation. 

As always, we hope you enjoy this new release. Happy field mapping!

Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix crash with QML, HTML, and Text editor widget
• Fix resumption of tracks erase the last vertex of the previous session
• Fix fill ring geometry editor tool
• Fix QFieldCloud wrong password feedback mistaken for an expired session

Full Changelog: v3.0.2...v3.0.3

Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix mouse clicks on map canvas blocked when feature {form,list} panel is visible
• Fix wrong screen DPI assigned to the map canvas (leading to tiny markers and fonts)
• Fix handling of hyperlinks in the feature form's text widget
• Fix oauth2 authentication not forgotten on app restart

Full Changelog: v3.0.0...v3.0.1

Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix iOS release #4640
• Avoid feature form crashes when the configuration contains QML, HTML, or Text widgets #4639
• Fix relation child deletion button #4644
• Fix a glitch whereas feature form tabs overlap each other #4647

Full Changelog: v3.0.1...v3.0.2

What’s new in a nutshell The GRASS GIS 8.3.0 release provides more than 360 changes compared to the 8.2 branch. This new minor release brings in many fixes and improvements in GRASS GIS modules and the graphical user interface (GUI) which now has the single window layout by default. Some of the most relevant changes […]

The post GRASS GIS 8.3.0 released appeared first on Markus Neteler Consulting.

We have been continuing our work with the Flagship sponsor of QGIS – Felt to develop their QGIS Plugin – Add to Felt  that makes it even easier to share your maps and data on the web.

What is the ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin?

The ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin is a powerful tool that empowers users to export their QGIS projects and layers directly to a Felt web map. This update introduces two fantastic features:

1. Single Layer Sharing: You can now share a single layer from your QGIS project to a Felt map. This means you have greater control over which specific data layers to share, allowing you to tailor your map precisely to your audience’s needs.
2. Map Selection: With the updated plugin, you can choose which map on Felt to add your layer to – a new map, or an ongoing project. This flexibility simplifies your workflow and ensures that your data ends up in the right place.

Businesses that rely on QGIS love how these new features provide a seamless way to view and share results, ultimately allowing them to move more quickly and stay in sync:

“Felt helps us keep each other updated on what we’ve done, what we’ve modeled, how things are progressing.” – ICON Engineering

Why is this Update Important?

Web maps are invaluable tools for sharing data with a wider audience, be it colleagues, clients, or the public. They provide creators with the ability to control data visibility, display options, and audience access, all within an easily shareable digital format. However, creating web maps can be an arduous and complex task.

Here’s where the ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin update comes to the rescue:

1. Streamlining the Process: Creating web maps traditionally involves website development, data hosting, and map application development—tasks that require a diverse skill set. This complexity can be a significant barrier, especially for smaller operations with limited resources or budget constraints.

2. Felt Simplifies Web Mapping: Felt makes it effortless to create web maps, and share them as easily as you would a Google Doc or Sheet. Simply drag and drop your data, customize the symbology to your liking, and share the map with a link or by inviting collaborators. No need to send large data files or answer questions about the map’s data sources.

3. Integration with QGIS: Now, the ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin bridges the gap between QGIS and Felt. It seamlessly imports your QGIS data into Felt, eliminating the need for manual data transfers and reducing the complexity of web map creation.

In essence, the ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin update simplifies the process of sharing and collaborating on web maps. It empowers users to harness the full potential of web-based mapping, making it accessible to everyone, regardless of their technical expertise. The update makes it even easier to share progress updates or model re-run outputs without creating a new map, or sharing a new map link.

So, if you’re a QGIS user looking to enhance your map-sharing capabilities and streamline your workflow, make sure to take advantage of this fantastic update. Say goodbye to the complexities of web map creation and hello to effortless, data-rich web maps with Felt and the ‘Add to Felt’ QGIS Plugin.

How to install and upgrade

• Open QGIS on your computer. You must have version 3.22 or later installed.
• In the plugins tab, select Manage and Install Plugins.
• Search for the ‘Add to Felt’ plugin, select and click Install Plugin.
• Close the Plugins dialog. The Felt plugin toolbar will appear in your toolbar for use.
• Sign into Felt and begin sharing your maps to the web.

If you want more features in this plugin, let us know or you’re interested in exploring how a QGIS plugin can make your service easily accessible to the millions of daily QGIS users, contact us to discuss how we can help!

Changes

🚀 Features

General features:

• Near-Field Communication (NFC) text tag reading support
• The welcome screen’s recent projects list is now equipped with a map canvas preview
• New active layer feature search functionality in the top search bar
• New map canvas rendering quality setting to unlocked faster rendering speeds and lower memory usage at the cost of a slightly rendering quality reduction
• A list of feature(s) under which a long press has occurred is now appended to the map canvas menu with action shortcuts
• Relationship-related editor widgets now allows for zooming onto the child/parent within the feature form
• Layer credits are now displayed within the layer properties panel when available in opened projects
• Imperial and nautical scale bar support
• Feature form text widget support

Tracking features:

• New erroneous position safeguard defined as a maximum distance threshold
• Resumption of tracking across sessions

Digitizing features:

• New snapping button which allows users to toggle snapping on/off while digitizing
• New legend snapping badges when project is set up to advanced snapping mode
• Digitizing of geometry vertices through volume keys
• Brand new geometry editor’s eraser tool allowing users to remove parts of a geometry by drawing areas of deletion

✨ Improvements

QField built against Qt6:

• Dramatically improved Material theme used to style UI elements such as combo boxes
• Improved dark theme color scheme
• Improved internal positioning handling of satellite information
• Years worth of fixes and improves when compared to the previously used version

Quality of life improvements:

• The value relation editor widget has received several fixes and UX improvements
• When duplicating features, users are now asked to move the duplicated feature immediately
• Duplication of features will now copy any children of any existing relationships set to composition strength
• Missing project fonts are now downloaded in the background and automatically added into QField
• Labels visibility on vector tile layers can now be toggle on/off
• QField now exports layouts as PDFs on iOS
• Improvements in the handling of altitude with external GNSS receivers
• Countless optimizations have made QField’s UI smoother than ever

Changes

🚀 Features

• Allow for tracking session to be resumed (inc. across QField restarts) (#4590)
• Implement digitizing through volume keys on Android devices (#4594)
• Brand new geometry editor' erase tool functionality (#4584)
• Brand new tracker functionality: maximum distance tolerance (#4589)
• Brand new search bar active layer feature matching functionality + UI/UX improvements (#4546)
• Implement near-field tag/target reading capability (#4539)

Background

Our web site (https://qgis.org) dates back to 2013, it is time for a revision!

As well as modernizing the look and feel of the site, we want the content to be updated to represent changes in the maturity of the project.

We want to appeal to new audiences, especially business and NGO decision makers (in particular the experience for the front pages), whilst still maintaining appeal to grass roots users (especially the lower level pages which contain many technical details and community collaboration notes).

We want to enhance our fund raising efforts through a site that encourages people to contribute to, as well as take from, the project.

Existing effort

First some key links:

• Current web site: https://github.com/qgis/QGIS-Website
• Design for new web site landing page: https://qgis.github.io/QGIS-Hugo/
• Design for new web site (figma): https://www.figma.com/file/1jFYgq9R5nwHChf4HhhHpW/QGIS-(Copy)?type=design&node-id=301-299&mode=design&t=rvdeAl4RSuzKJftu-0 
• Code for new web site (what we have built so far): https://github.com/qgis/QGIS-Hugo
• Plugins web site: https://plugins.qgis.org
• QGIS Documentation Site: https://www.qgis.org/en/docs/index.html 
• QGIS User Manual: https://docs.qgis.org/3.28/en/docs/user_manual/
• QGIS Server Manual: https://docs.qgis.org/3.28/en/docs/server_manual/
• Gentle Introduction to GIS: https://docs.qgis.org/3.28/en/docs/gentle_gis_introduction/
• QGIS Python Cookbook: https://docs.qgis.org/3.28/en/docs/pyqgis_developer_cookbook/
• QGIS C++  API Documentation: https://api.qgis.org/api/3.28/
• QGIS Python API Documentation: https://qgis.org/pyqgis/3.28/
• QGIS Certification and Changelog: https://changelog.qgis.org/en/

The above websites were created with a mix of technologies:

• Sphinx (rst)
• Doxygen
• Custom Django Apps

It will not be possible to unify the technology used for all of the above sites, but we want all of the web sites to have a cohesive appearance and the navigation flow between them to be seamless. For the main website at https://qgis.org and its child pages, we want to re-implement the site to provide a new experience – according to the design we have laid out in our figma board. Note that we want to follow this design. Some small tweaks will be fine but we are not looking for a ‘from scratch’ re-implementation of our design.

This will be our website for the next 10 years – you need to hand it over to us in a way that we can continue working on it and maintaining it without your intervention.

We are calling for proposals to help us with this migration as per the phases described below.

Phase 1⃣: Project planning

• Timeline
• Proposed site structure
  • What content will be kept
  • What will be removed
  • What is new to be added
• Keep front page as starting point
  • Suggest tweaks if needed
• Establish a clear vocabulary of page types
  • Second and third level page design
  • Special pages such as
    • Download
    • Release countdown
    • Donation / sustaining members
    • Gallery
    • and any other you identify as non-standard second/third level
• Guidance and standards for producing visuals like screenshots etc. For example, how we present QGIS screenshots in a flattering way.
• Establish a plan for auxiliary sites:
  • Plugins.qgis.org
  • Api.qgis.org
  • Docs.qgis.org
  • etc. (see intro for more exhaustive list)
• Iterative review and feedback from the QGIS web team should be incorporated from biweekly check in calls.

Outcome: We have a clear roadmap and design guide for migrating all of our websites to a consistent unified experience.

Phase 2⃣: Content migration of the main site

During this phase the contractor will focus on migrating the content of the main site to the new platform.

There will be an iterative review and feedback from the QGIS web team should be incorporated from biweekly check-in calls.

Outcome: https://qgis.org new site goes live! (Target date end of February 2024)

Phase 3⃣: Auxiliary sites migrations

This is out of scope of the current call for proposals but should be part of the overall planning process:

This would be a collaborative process involving a QGIS funded web developer and the consultant. 

Iterative review and feedback from the QGIS web team should be incorporated from biweekly check in calls.

Outcome: Auxiliary sites goes live with a cohesive look and feel to match the main site.

What we will provide

• Maps and screenshots, videos, animations (with inputs from design team)
• Inputs in terms of content review

Qualification criteria

Payment milestones

10 % Kick off

40 % Phase 1 Completion

50 % Phase 2 Completion

Indicative budget

We would like to point you to the QGIS Annual Budget so that you have a sense of our broad financial means (i.e. we will not be able to afford proposals in excess of €25,000 for phase 1+2).

https://www.qgis.org/en/site/getinvolved/governance/annual_reports/index.html

Technology choices and IP:

• Must be wholly based on Open Source tooling (e.g. javascript, css, web frameworks)
• Needs to be ideally implemented in Hugo (or Sphinx)
• Must produce a static web site (except for existing django based sites)
• Publication and development workflow will follow standard pull request / review process via our GitHub repositories
• Mobile friendly
• Site will be english only – any auto-translation tooling that can be added so that users can trivially see an auto-translated version of the site will be considered favourably.

Proposal submission

Your proposal should consist of no more than 5 pages (include links to relevant annexes if needed) covering the following:

• Overview of yourself / your organization
• Delivery timeline
• Team composition
• Budget for each phase
• Examples of prior work
• Bonus things to mention if relevant: GIS experience & working with Open Source projects

Please send your proposal to [email protected] by October 29nd 2023 midnight, anywhere on earth.

Thanks to our generous donors and sustaining members, we are in the wonderful position to be able to further extend our 2023 Grant Programme and to fund two additional projects that came in very close 5th and 6th in the voting results:

• QEP#261 Cachable provider metadata API — or how to the QGIS loading times
• QEP#236 Unification of all geometric and topological verification methods

On behalf of the QGIS.ORG project, I would like to thank everyone who helped with the fund raising and everyone who stepped up and joined our donor and sustaining membership programme.

This summer, I had the honor to — once again — speak at the OpenGeoHub Summer School. This time, I wanted to challenge the students and myself by not just doing MovingPandas but by introducing both MovingPandas and DVC for Mobility Data Science.

I’ve previously written about DVC and how it may be used to track geoprocessing workflows with QGIS & DVC. In my summer school session, we go into details on how to use DVC to keep track of MovingPandas movement data analytics workflow.

Here is the recording of the session live stream and you can find the materials at https://github.com/movingpandas/movingpandas-examples/blob/opengeohub2023/README.md

This post is part of a series. Read more about movement data in GIS.

Who are we?

For those unfamiliar with Oslandia, OpenGIS.ch, or even QGIS, let’s refresh your memory:

Oslandia is a French company specializing in open-source Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Since our establishment in 2009, we have been providing consulting, development, and training services in GIS, with reknown expertise. Oslandia is a dedicated open-source player and the largest contributor to the QGIS solution in France.

As for OPENGIS.ch, they are a Swiss company specializing in the development of open-source GIS software. Founded in 2011, OPENGIS.ch is the largest Swiss contributor to QGIS. OPENGIS.ch is the creator of QField, the most widely used open-source mobile GIS solution for geomatics professionals.

OPENGIS.ch also offers QFieldCloud as a SaaS or on-premise solution for collaborative field project management.

Some may still be unfamiliar with #QGIS ?

It is a free and open-source Geographic Information System that allows creating, editing, visualizing, analyzing, and publicating geospatial data. QGIS is a cross-platform software that can be used on desktops, servers, as a web application, or as a development library.

QGIS is open-source software developed by multiple contributors worldwide. It is an official project of the OpenSource Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo) and is supported by the QGIS.org association. See https://qgis.org

A Partnership?

Today, we are delighted to announce our strategic partnership aimed at strengthening and promoting QField, the mobile application companion of QGIS Desktop.

This partnership between Oslandia and OPENGIS.ch is a significant step for QField and open-source mobile GIS solutions. It will consolidate the platform, providing users worldwide with simplified access to effective tools for collecting, managing, and analyzing geospatial data in the field.

QField, developed by OPENGIS.ch, is an advanced open-source mobile application that enables GIS professionals to work efficiently in the field, using interactive maps, collecting real-time data, and managing complex geospatial projects on Android, iOS, or Windows mobile devices.

QField is cross-platform, based on the QGIS engine, facilitating seamless project sharing between desktop, mobile, and web applications.

QFieldCloud (https://qfield.cloud), the collaborative web platform for QField project management, will also benefit from this partnership and will be enhanced to complement the range of tools within the QGIS platform.

Reactions

At Oslandia, we are thrilled to collaborate with OPENGIS.ch on QGIS technologies. Oslandia shares with OPENGIS.ch a common vision of open-source software development: a strong involvement in development communities, work in respect with the ecosystem, an highly skilled expertise, and a commitment to industrial-quality, robust, and sustainable software development.

With this partnership, we aim to offer our clients the highest expertise across all software components of the QGIS platform, from data capture to dissemination.

On the OpenGIS.ch side, Marco Bernasocchi adds:

The partnership with Oslandia represents a crucial step in our mission to provide leading mobile GIS tools with a genuine OpenSource credo. The complementarity of our skills will accelerate the development of QField and QFieldCloud and meet the growing needs of our users.

Commitment to open source

Both companies are committed to continue supporting and improving QField and QFieldCloud as open-source projects, ensuring universal access to this high-quality mobile GIS solution without vendor dependencies.

Ready for field mapping ?

And now, are you ready for the field?

So, download QField (https://qfield.org/get), create projects in QGIS, and share them on QFieldCloud!

If you need training, support, maintenance, deployment, or specific feature development on these platforms, don’t hesitate to contact us. You will have access to the best experts available: [email protected].

A while back, one of our ninjas added a new algorithm in QGIS’ processing toolbox named ST-DBSCAN Clustering, short for spatio temporal density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise. The algorithm regroups features falling within a user-defined maximum distance and time duration values.

This post will walk you through one practical use for the algorithm: large-scale fire event analysis and visualization through remote-sensed fire detection. More specifically, we will be looking into one of the larger fire events which occurred in Canada’s Quebec province in June 2023.

Fetching and preparing FIRMS data

NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) offers a fantastic worldwide archive of all fire detected through three spaceborne sources: MODIS C6.1 with a resolution of roughly 1 kilometer as well as VIIRS S-NPP and VIIRS NOAA-20 with a resolution of 375 meters. Each detected fire is represented by a point that sits at the center of the source’s resolution grid.

Each source will cover the whole world several times per day. Since detection is impacted by atmospheric conditions, a given pass by one source might not be able to register an ongoing fire event. It’s therefore advisable to rely on more than one source.

To look into our fire event, we have chosen the two fire detection sources with higher resolution – VIIRS S-NPP and VIIRS NOAA-20 – covering the whole month of June 2023. The datasets were downloaded from FIRMS’ archive download page.

After downloading the two separate datasets, we combined them into one merged geopackage dataset using QGIS processing toolbox’s Merge Vector Layers algorithm. The merged dataset will be used to conduct the clustering analysis.

In addition, we will use QGIS’s field calculator to create a new Date & Time field named ACQ_DATE_TIME using the following expression:

to_datetime("ACQ_DATE" || "ACQ_TIME", 'yyyy-MM-ddhhmm')

This will allow us to calculate precise time differences between two dates.

Modeling and running the analysis

The large-scale fire event analysis requires running two distinct algorithms:

• a spatiotemporal clustering of points to regroup fires into a series of events confined in space and time; and
• an aggregation of the points within the identified clusters to provide additional information such as the beginning and end date of regrouped events.

This can be achieved through QGIS’ modeler to sequentially execute the ST-DBSCAN Clustering algorithm as well as the Aggregate algorithm against the output of the first algorithm.

The above-pictured model outputs two datasets. The first dataset contains single-part points of detected fires with attributes from the original VIIRS products as well as a pair of new attributes: the CLUSTER_ID provides a unique cluster identifier for each point, and the CLUSTER_SIZE represents the sum of points forming each unique cluster. The second dataset contains multi-part points clusters representing fire events with four attributes: CLUSTER_ID and CLUSTER_SIZE which were discussed above as well as DATE_START and DATE_END to identify the beginning and end time of a fire event.

In our specific example, we will run the model using the merged dataset we created above as the “fire points layer” and select ACQ_DATE_TIME as the “date field”. The outputs will be saved as separate layers within a geopackage file.

Note that the maximum distance (0.025 degrees) and duration (72 hours) settings to form clusters have been set in the model itself. This can be tweaked by editing the model.

Visualizing a specific fire event progression on a map

Once the model has provided its outputs, we are ready to start visualizing a fire event on a map. In this practical example, we will focus on detected fires around latitude 53.0960 and longitude -75.3395.

Using the multi-part points dataset, we can identify two clustered events (CLUSTER_ID 109 and 1285) within the month of June 2023. To help map canvas refresh responsiveness, we can filter both of our output layers to only show features with those two cluster identifiers using the following SQL syntax: CLUSTER_ID IN (109, 1285).

To show the progression of the fire event over time, we can use a data-defined property to graduate the marker fill of the single-part points dataset along a color ramp. To do so, open the layer’s styling panel, select the simple marker symbol layer, click on the data-defined property button next to the fill color and pick the Assistant menu item.

In the assistant panel, set the source expression to the following: day(age(to_date('2023-07-01'),”ACQ_DATE_TIME”)). This will give us the number of days between a given point and an arbitrary reference date (2023-07-01 here). Set the values range from 0 to 30 and pick a color ramp of your choice.

When applying this style, the resulting map will provide a visual representation of the spread of the fire event over time.

Analyzing a fire event through histogram

Through QGIS’ DataPlotly plugin, it is possible to create an histogram of fire events. After installing the plugin, we can open the DataPlotly panel and configure our histogram.

Set the plot type to histogram and pick the model’s single-part points dataset as the layer to gather data from. Make sure that the layer has been filtered to only show a single fire event. Then, set the X field to the following layer attribute: “ACQ_DATE”.

You can then hit the Create Plot button, go grab a coffee, and enjoy the resulting histogram which will appear after a minute or so.

While not perfect, an histogram can quickly provide a good sense of a fire event’s “peak” over a period of time.

In August 13 new plugins that have been published in the QGIS plugin repository.

Here’s the quick overview in reverse chronological order. If any of the names or short descriptions piques your interest, you can find the direct link to the plugin page in the table below the screenshot.

Today, I want to point out a blog post over at

https://geocompx.org/post/2023/ogh23/

written together with my fellow “Geocomputation with Python” co-authors Robin Lovelace, Michael Dorman, and Jakub Nowosad.

In this blog post, we talk about our experience teaching R and Python for geocomputation. The context of this blog post is the OpenGeoHub Summer School 2023 which has courses on R, Python and Julia. The focus of the blog post is on geographic vector data, meaning points, lines, polygons (and their ‘multi’ variants) and the attributes associated with them. We plan to cover raster data in a future post.

New version of MapTiler QGIS Plugin 3.0 with detailed global terrain, contour lines, hillshading, and maps using these terrain data for outdoor activities.

Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix occasional crash with geometry rubber bands

Note: on Windows, while the installer filename contains 2.8.5, the actual version is 2.8.2

Growing up, I would spend hours lost in National Geographic maps. The feeling of discovering new regions and new ways to view the world was addictive! It’s this same feeling of discovery and exploration which has made me super excited about Soar’s Digital Atlas. Soar is the brainchild of Australian, Amir Farhand, and is fuelled by the talents of staff located across the globe to build a comprehensive digital atlas of the world’s maps and images. Soar has been designed to be an easy to use, expansive collection of diverse maps from all over the Earth. A great aspect of Soar is that it has implemented Strong Community Guidelines and moderation to ensure the maps are fit for purpose.

Recently, North Road collaborated with Soar to help facilitate their digital atlas goals by creating a QGIS plugin for Soar. The Soar plugin allows QGIS users to directly:

• Export their QGIS maps and images straight to Soar
• Browse and load maps from the entire Soar public catalogue into their QGIS projects

There’s lots of extra tweaks we’ve added to help make the plugin user friendly, whilst offering tons of functionality that power users want. For instance, users can:

• Filter Soar maps by their current project extent and/or by category
• Export raw or rendered raster data directly to Soar via a Processing tool
• Batch upload multiple maps to Soar
• Incorporate Soar map publishing into a Processing model or Python based workflow

Soar will be presenting their new plugin at the QGIS Open Day in August so check out the details here and tune in at 2300 AEST or 1300 HR UTC. You can follow along via either YouTube or Jitsi.

Browsing Soar maps from QGIS

One of the main goals of the Soar QGIS plugin was to make it very easy to find new datasets and add them to your QGIS projects. There’s two ways users can explore the Soar catalog from QGIS:

You can open the Soar Browser Panel via the Soar toolbar button  . This opens a floating catalog browser panel which allows you to interactively search Soar’s content while working on your map.

Alternatively, you can also access the Soar catalog and maps from the standard QGIS Data Source Manager dialog. Just open the “Soar” tab and search away!

When you’ve found an interesting map, hit the “Add to Map” button and the map will be added as a new layer into your current project. After the layer is loaded you can freely modify the layer’s style (such as the opacity, colorization, contrast etc) just like any other raster dataset using the standard QGIS Layer Style controls.

Sharing your maps

Before you can share your maps on Soar, you’ll need to first sign up for a free Soar account.

We’ve designed the Soar plugin with two specific use cases in mind for sharing maps. The first use case is when you want to share an entire map (i.e. QGIS project) to Soar. This will publish all the visible content from your map onto Soar, including all the custom styling, labeling, decorations and other content you’ve carefully designed. To do this, just select the Project menu, Import/Export -> Export map to Soar option.

You’ll have a chance to enter all the metadata and descriptive text explaining your map, and then the map will be rendered and uploaded directly to Soar.

All content on the Soar atlas is moderated, so your shared maps get added to the moderation queue ready for review by the Soar team. (You’ll be notified as soon as the review is complete and your map is publicly available).

Alternatively, you might have a specific raster layer which you want to publish on Soar. For instance, you’ve completed some flood modelling or vegetation analysis and want to share the outcome widely. To do this, you can use the “Publish dataset to Soar” tool available from the QGIS Processing toolbox:

Just pick the raster layer you want to upload, enter the metadata information, and let the plugin do the rest! Since this tool is made available through QGIS’ Processing framework, it also allows you to run it as a batch process (eg uploading a whole folder of raster data to Soar), or as a step in your QGIS Graphical Models!

Some helpful hints

All maps uploaded to Soar require the following information:

• Map Title
• Description
• Tags
• Categories
• Permission to publish

This helps other users to find your maps with ease, and also gives the Soar moderation team the information required for their review process.

We’ve a few other tips to keep in mind to successfully share your maps on Soar:

• The Soar catalog currently works with raster image formats including GeoTIFF / ECW / JP2 / JPEG / PNG
• All data uploaded to Soar must be in the WGS84 Pseudo-Mercator (EPSG: 3857) projection
• Check the size of your data before sharing it, as a large size dataset may take a long time to upload

So there you have it! So simple to start building up your contribution to Soar’s Digital Atlas. Those who might find this useful to upload maps include:

• Community groups
• Hobbyists
• Building a cartographic/geospatial portfolio
• Education/research
• Contributing to world events (some of the biggest news agencies already use this service i.e. BBC)

You can find out more about the QGIS Soar plugin at the QGIS Open Day on August 23rd, 2023 at 2300 HR AEST or 1300 HR UTC. Check here for more information or to watch back after.

If you’re interested in exploring how a QGIS plugin can make your service easily accessible to the millions of daily QGIS users, contact us to discuss how we can help!

Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

• Fix altitude value for Happy's IMU measurements
• Fix detection of IMU measurements for Happy Mönch II devices

Note: on Windows, while the installer filename contains 2.8.5, the actual version is 2.8.2