Creating Static Maps using MapServer and Quantum GIS

Data

Suitable data for this tutorial can be found online from several locations which provide open geospatial data. Sample elevation data can be found in the GeoGratis Database. This is preferred because there are no restrictions and no cost on data accessed from GeoGratis. The required data for this tutorial must be a delimited text file consisting of X,Y coordinates with a Z height in meters for an extent and location of the participant's choosing. Additional vector data can be used in this tutorial to overlay on the raster surface.

It is important to place all of the data files in one project folder on the hard drive. Keep the folder path name simple and as short as possible, this path name will be used by MapServer to access data to display a map.

    Ex.  “C:\user\mapdemo”

Setup

MS4W and QGIS software must be installed on the participant's computer in order to begin this tutorial. The following is a brief installation guide.

Installing MS4W

Map Server for Windows (MS4W) is a base package for installing Map Server on Microsoft Windows platforms. The package was used in this tutorial because if provides a preconfigured package with all of the bits and pieces needed to run Map Server on a local Windows machine, such as Apache. The installation process is intuitive for novice users; visit the MapServer website for further tutorials and documentation.

Installing QGIS

The latest standalone version of QGIS for Windows is sufficient for this tutorial. If the computer you are using does not have QGIS installed, please download QGIS for Windows and direct the installation into your program files.

== Installation: ==