Nice ship. Be a real shame if something happened to it.

08 May 2009

If terrorists can use Google Earth to bring down Western civilization, I’m sure pirates can find something useful to do with this.

Update: Title Reference

Magnum Opus

07 May 2009

I recently (well, two months ago) and wrote down a great deal of thoughts about the architecture for web mapping we are pushing at OpenGeo, and it’s up on the website now.

http://opengeo.org/publications/opengeo-architecture/

Architecture of Evil

07 May 2009

Update: I think the magnitude of the evil can only be appreciated if you see the JSP (yep, that’s all of it, that’s my “middleware”):

<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsp/jstl/sql" prefix="sql" %>
<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsp/jstl/core" prefix="c" %>
<%@ page contentType="text/x-json" %>

<sql:query var="rs" dataSource="jdbc/postgisdb">
${param.sql}
</sql:query>

{"type":"FeatureCollection",
 "features":[
<c:forEach var="row" items="${rs.rows}">
 {"type":"Feature",
  "geometry":<c:out value="${row.st_asgeojson}" escapeXml="false" />,
  "properties":{
  <c:forEach var="column" items="${row}">
   <c:if test="${column.key != 'st_asgeojson'}">
    "<c:out value="${column.key}" escapeXml="false" />":
    "<c:out value="${column.value}" escapeXml="false" />",
   </c:if>
  </c:forEach>
}},
</c:forEach>
]}

Update 2: Yes, I am being a bit sarcastic. Being able to compress the layer between the Javascript and the database into something this narrow is diabolical, and only possible because there is so much smarts in OpenLayers. I, for one, welcome our new hipster Javascript overlords.

Update 3: The “evil” is passing SQL unmediated from your browser directly into your database. It’s fun in a workshop (which is what I wrote this abomination for) but it’s not to be let out of the lab, lest global pandemic ensue.

OSGeo @ Where 2.0

30 Apr 2009

OSGeo (your Open Source Geospatial Foundation) will be on the exhibition floor at Where 2.0 this year. I volunteered to be the “event manager” for OSGeo at Where 2.0 this year, but all the heavy lifting was done by Alex Mandel preparing for the American Geographical Society conference earlier this year. So thanks to Alex’s hard work, we’ll have some posters and brochures and handouts for the exhibit hall.

Most importantly, we’ll have ourselves. Not booth bunnies, per se, but we have beautiful minds. Arnulf Christl, the OSGeo President, is coming in from Germany to attend, so there will be lots of good conversation to be had. Come ask us any question about open source, and we’ll be sure to give you an answer!

I’m also giving a workshop on spatial databases and web mapping. In fact, I’m preparing the material right now. Oh, how I hate preparing material – the being done is so much better than the doing.

FOSS4G 2009

29 Apr 2009

The best conference of the year just got better! They’ve chosen me as a keynote speaker! (My turnoffs include soggy popcorn, rainy days and false modesty.) See you in Sydney, mates! Throw another shrimp on the barbie! That’s not a keynote address, this is a keynote address.

Postscript: I just realized I learned everything I know about Australia before 1985.