Review: ESRI MapObjects - Java Edition 2
by Drew Falkman
Summary
ESRI (Environmental Systems Research Institute colloquially
referred to as "ez-ree") is one
of the foremost, if not the top software developers of Geographic
Information Systems (GIS) software. GIS software allows for the
integration with database information and mapping services. The
result has a number of powerful implications. ESRI's ArcGIS
software is the flagship standard used by government, non-profit
and for-profit organizations worldwide. ESRI has now released
this set of Java tools that will enable Java developers to
create mapping/GIS applications and integrate them with their
enterprise and Internet applications. More
Information
Introduction
First off, MapObjects - Java Edition is a set of pure Java
components that can be used for creating GIS-enabled
applications. There are two core groups of components: client-
side components that can be used for developing GIS and mapping
user interfaces and applications and server-side constructs to
enable integration with Internet and enterprise applications.
The latter is new to this version of MapObjects - Java Edition,
and what makes it all the more compelling.
One thing to keep in mind is that ESRI products represent the
industry-standard for GIS software. This means that the software
is sufficiently complex--in fact it may be too complex for many
applications. Other tools, such as Corda OptiMap may be better
for more basic mapping needs. On the other hand, it is exactly
this depth that makes ESRI's tools powerful. That and the fact
that many governmental and non-governmental organizations are
using ArcGIS tools and the ArcIMS Internet server. For these
organizations, MapObjects - Java Edition is a natural solution.
What MapObjects - Java Edition Can Do
What Java developers can do with MapObjects - Java Edition is
limited more by imagination then by technology. For starters,
because version 2 includes J2EE support, developers can create
components as EJBs, develop servlets and JSPs that utilize the
core MapObjects. Desktop applications can be deployed over the
Web (as applets or using Java Web Start) and a significant
amount of tools are available for both functional requirements
and UI development. Some of the core features available through
MapObjects are:
- Displaying maps with dynamic, real-time geographic data.
- Allowing users to navigate and zoom through map layers.
- Performing queries on spatial information.
- Performing geometric operations.
- Labelling and customizing map interfaces.
In addition, MapObjects for Java allows for access to multiple
data sources, from CAD data to standard image data to complex
GIS data types. Furthermore all of these data sources can be combined in
one application, allowing for complex presentation of disparate
geographical information.
Developing Client/Desktop Applications
The client-side is what MapObjects - Java Standard Edition (a
subset of the entire MapObjects - Java Edition package) is
about and the tutorial that comes with it includes a couple of
client-side applications highlighting features and how to use
them(see figure 1). MapObjects essentially consists of a number
of JAR files containing UI JavaBeans (extensions to Java Swing)
and an API of mapping components.
Figure 1(Click to Enlarge)
From the client, developers have the choice to either call on
remote services, or contain the functionality locally. In other
words, you can create standalone GIS applications or a rich
client interface for distributed mapping and GIS logic and data.
All of the data will integrate with Borland JBuilder and Sun
Forte, allowing many developers to utilize their preferred
development environment. ESRI used MapObjects to develop their
own ArcExplorer, a lightweight free GIS viewer,
a sort of GIS version of Adobe's Acrobat Reader.
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