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Are we going back to Command Line GIS ?

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Are we going back to Command Line GIS ?
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In the early ages of Computer Science, there was only Command Line Interface (CLI). No mouse, no windows. But computers was already able to do more than just calculus. First of this kind -- in the early eighties ! -- GRASS GIS was able to manipulate, analyze and visualize geospatial data. All in CLI. But it was frightening for most users. CLI is terrifying. Then graphical interfaces arrived with windows and mouses. Computers started to be cheaper and more affordable. Almost everyone now can own and use a computer. With a graphical interface. Less scary, more accessible. And GIS followed the trend. ESRI created ArcMap, QGIS was born. Even GRASS GIS got a Graphical User Interface at some point. But isn't CLI making a come back ? Quietly ? Even in our small geospatial heaven ? Let's have a look at behind the curtain and see what CLI can offer nowadays with the Python and R datascience stacks. Let's look at CLI GIS, right in the eye ! By the end of the talk audience members will : * not be afraid of CLI anymore (let's hope) * might want to learn a scripting language and explore console mode * want to combine best of both worlds
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Transcript: English(auto-generated)
Okay, let's begin the second talk, which will be mine, to keep in track with the time.
Okay, nice to meet you. I'm Nicolas Roland. I'm from France. I work at IFTTT. It's a French research institute on transportation, spatial planning, and networks. And I'm wondering, are we going back to command line JS?
So, like I said, I work at IFTTT, I'm a JS engineer, I'm also an OSU charter member, OSU live production committee, okay, that's not cool, yeah, good. And I'm also part of the French chapter, local chapter board.
So, that's about me. And one day I was on Twitter, and I found that tweet. This was, okay, I need to wait a little bit. Okay, it's not online. It's currently on the computer, but okay.
Takes some time to render. We should be accustomed to it. Okay, I met this tweet, and this guy was saying, oh, command line JS gives me a flashback to learning Arc info in the 80s.
Okay, in the 80s, I was in the kindergarten, so it doesn't give me a flashback, but it drives me to tell what is the thinking. And there was this person responding to him, and we're seeing, oh, my colleagues came
from command lines, now they are all using UIs, and they don't want to go back to command lines, they want to click on buttons. So, it's in their cycles, and that's when my mind was, oh, cycles.
And I go, it raised a lot of questions in my mind, which are what is command line JS? So what are we talking about? What was that at the time? I don't know Arc info, so I had to dig up a little bit.
What is command line today? And are we going to die? I should have removed that, I forgot. So what is command line? So you type code, this is just R, but you can make Python or anything, and you get
something in the result. You can use bash, you can use PowerShell if you are on Windows, and this is command line. There is all kind of sort of command line. For me, a script is command line. It's just command line you store in file.
Even up here is command line. But what was command line back in the day? So if we would like to be working, maybe not, yeah. Standarding, yeah, okay.
Let's keep it. You saw some pictures from Marcus, and Marcus knows better. I believe the grass command line, but it was the 80s, so it was like in the movies we saw again with black and green screens and line displaying like that.
So it was not very attractive, but it doesn't change that much. So we still use command line. The Python stack.
Python stack is quite huge. We have Python by itself, but you have the old geospatial libraries upon. You have PyQG, you can create processing in QGs. The PyWPS, PyWCS, PyEverything almost is command line.
The air stack, I'm more used to the air stack, actually. So you can do command line. You can do R script, but you can also use a console to get processing done. Speaking of processing, you have processing scripts from major software in our community.
You can have processing script in Glass. You can have processing script in Saga. Or with OTB. So you can also do command line with pauses and SQL commands.
Now the movies has a node. Let's go if I can show you that.
Which stores, analyzes, and displays different types of mapped information. Grass supports installation managers in carrying out their mission with higher elevation, streams, or to any combination of layers. To relate maps of different scales on paper can be difficult.
On a new fort hood, one weapon. For years, the army has searched for tools and methodologies. Additional layers can also be added later. Remember, you may not have to collect and enter as many layers as you first think, because some can be created or derived from others.
For example, slope and aspect layers can be derived automatically from elevation data. On the other hand, the more specific the questions you want to ask, the more detailed the map layers must be, and usually the higher the cost to collect and enter the necessary data. Besides the data you already have at your installation, other types are available.
Remote sensing can include traditional techniques such as aerial photography, as well as the use of data collected by sensors and satellites or aircraft. Aerial photography usually has to be interpreted, and then transferred into the installation base map before it can be entered into grass. Data collected by satellite, on the other hand, comes in computer-ready form on digital tapes.
The new Landsat thematic mapper data have resolution down to 30 meters on an edge, suitable for many installation applications. Though it must be scanned to get into computer form, high altitude false color images are inexpensive, and will even resolve individual trees and corners.
Topographic data for your installation can also be acquired in computer-ready digital form. Data which are not already in digital form need to be digitized. The GRASS software also includes utilities to construct this kind of computer data. Of course, your system is more than just software and data.
It also includes the third component, the computer equipment or hardware. GRASS has been established on the MassComp and Sun mini computers. It is possible to run it on any computer which uses the UNIX operating system. The UNIX operating environment ensures that GRASS code can be ported to new computers,
such as the AT&T 3B2 or other microcomputers. Besides the computer itself, a monitor and color display terminal, a printer, and plotter are usually necessary.
Hardware costs are currently in the range of $50,000 for the entire configuration. In time, this will drop as computer costs go down and as GRASS is ported from the mini to the microcomputer level. The fourth and very important component is the operating staff.
Do you and your staff have to be computer specialists? No. GRASS is very user-friendly and interactive. A professional with minimal previous computer exposure will be able to obtain useful GRASS analyses after some initial training. However, maintenance requires a trained technical assistant on their staff,
knowledgeable in regular computer system support, and largely dedicated to GRASS support. GRASS can help you whenever you need to access information on your installation quickly, to determine aerial planometric amounts, to combine, overlay, or analyze the information to answer specific questions,
to compare alternatives, or to predict the effects of certain events. If you're not satisfied with hand-drawn, out-of-date maps, using GRASS can help improve your effectiveness as an installation manager and make better use of limited manpower and smaller budgets.
GRASS can help you take better care of the resources for which you are responsible. They are getting so much UX that they are losing all the important stuff
and people that are doing stuff that is accurate and that they want to fit and cross some algorithms are used to go to dig into it and then just to use it. And the open source community is one of the greatest and best examples because you mix just one million of different tools.
So, yeah, just that comment. This is, I think, the main problem why GUI is dying in means of the production workflows. Thanks for adding that comment. Please, if you have comment to do, don't hesitate.
Yeah, too much GUI kills the GUI. So, first time I'm late, JS guy, I started JS maybe four years ago. And first time I opened QJS, I said, oh, that's not a button. So, if you don't get education on the tool, it might be frightening.
I still want to use GRASS one day and understand it fully. I'm not, I'm easily frightened by the GUIs. I'm afraid of that.
So, yeah, it's a nice comment. Thank you for that. So, maybe command line for people who are not afraid of it might be a good approach. Any more comments on this subject? Thank you. Thank you again.
There will be a talk in...