GIST604B Open Source GIS

Course starts: October 12, 2023

Course ends: December 6, 2023

WELCOME!

Greetings from GIST 604B, Open Source GIS! I'm Aaryn Olsson, the instructor for this course.

About Me

I am a software engineer at Planet Labs where I support the computational workflow components that deliver daily global imagery to all of Planet's customers. Besides teaching this course, I moonlight with the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum in the regional fight against buffelgrass. Formerly, I spent 3+ years with Boundless Spatial, a company that specialized in development and consulting around open source geospatial software (seems relevant). Going back in time: I've worked at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, Northern Arizona University, and spent many years at the University of Arizona where I received my PhD. in Arid Lands Resource Sciences. I have four kids, love to run trails and swim, watch competitive swimming, and travel with my family. I recently renovated a 1972 Airstream and have been traveling throughout the states with my family.

This course is a brief introduction to a number of open source GIS software applications and tools as well as an introduction to the philosophy of open source. Students entering this class already have a strong foundation in the principles of GIS but their experiences may be limited to a small number of commercial GIS software providers. The aim of this class is to expose students to alternative technologies and methodologies for practicing GIS and give them the experience to objectively evaluate open source alternatives for both geospatial and non-geospatial applications as they pursue their careers.

COVD-19 Update

Visit https://covid19.arizona.edu/updates for more updates.

A note on D2L and GitHub

To be compatible with existing U of A infrastructure and protocols I will handle grades and some limited communication through D2L but the majority of the online interaction in this class will involve GitHub and Piazza. As a complement to in-class discussion, we use Piazza to post class-wide questions and discussions. You can always email me (aaryn@email.arizona.edu) as well.

Class requirements

All students:

• Willingness to work with command line (Unix shell or Powershell)
• Ability to think critically and figure things out when instructions are not clear

Remote students: The following are required in order to complete this class remotely:

• Computer with following specs:

  • = 16 GB RAM

  • = 100 GB Disk space

Software that will be installed over the course of the semester (Remote)

• GitHub Desktop
• QGIS Desktop

Accounts that you will make over the course of the semester

• GitHub
• Docker Hub

Getting Started

You may wonder how to get started. If you login to D2L you will find things a bit bare (The Syllabus is linked there but its home is https://github.com/ua-gist604b-f22/syllabus). You have two initial setup steps to get configured to use the class:

1. Create a GitHub.com account if you do not already have one with this link. For the sake of class management, please try to pick a username that is close to your NetID or includes your name.

2. Review this GitHub repository:

• https://github.com/ua-gist604b-s23/syllabus You will see that it contains three files:
  • this document: README.md
  • the syllabus: syllabus.md
  • the class schedule: schedule.md

3. Login to the Piazza workspace:

• https://piazza.com/class/lf30l5i7eb755w

4. Review the syllabus

5. Review the schedule

6. Accept your first assignment.

• In the schedule.md, see the link for Accept. This will take you to a GitHub Classroom website where you can Accept this assignment. When you accept the assignment, a new GitHub repository containing your first assignment will be created under your GitHub account. Feedback on your assignment will be provided through the assignment GitHub repository. However, when you turn in your assignment, your grade will be posted to D2L.