Re: [mapserver-users] MapServer vs ArcGIS server
Ya, MapServer is cgi (or fastcgi). So it doesn't hold data in memory like ArcGIS Server does. Also, each MapServer session (since its cgi) is independent of each other so there is no service to go down. As long as Apache is running, so is MapServer. I find that MapServer scales much better for large numbers of request and multiple maps. ArcGIS Server does well with smaller data sets and less services (due to ram issues). ArcGIS server can be faster to start with, since you are composing your maps graphically, but I find the MapServer mapfile editing much (much) faster for repetitive operations. I can script and copy/paste and (with includes) reuse more styling. With ArcGIS Server, for anything other that setting basic colors, I find it much slower and quite tedious. I find that MapServer works at small or large scale, I run into issues with ArcGIS server at large scales (lots of data and lots of services). Then there is the fact that ArcGIS will change on you over time and the whole architecture can go away and any time. In the time we have been doing MapServer (coming up on 12 years now), ESRI has gone through 6 different (and incompatible) web mapping engines. Our mapserver stuff still works. Something to think about when you are in it for the long haul. Also, when something critical has come up and I need a fix NOW, I have both made my own code changes and requested fixes from the community and had responses within hours (sometimes minutes). That is just not possible with ArcGIS Server. MapServer has a truly impressive community with both enthusiasts and mature business providing development and support (MapGears and Gateway Geomatics are two that I am very familiar with and they are top notch). We are a government agency and MapServer is production code for us, for over a decade. And we serve out a lot of data with it. Mike -- Michael Smith US Army Corps Remote Sensing GIS/Center On 7/3/12 8:50 PM, Wang, Ya ya.w...@vta.org wrote: Hello All, I am wondering if any of you have experience with both MapServer and ArcGIS server. How does MapServer compare with ArcGIS server? Besides the fact that MapServer is more customizable and more extensible and less expensive, what other advantages do MapServer have against ArcGIS server? Thanks in advance! Ya ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users
Re: [mapserver-users] MapServer vs ArcGIS server
Mike: Thank you very much for the sharing. It is really great information. I have another question now. How does MapServer compare with ArcGIS server in terms of providing API or service layers to support the enthusiasm of the online development community? Regards, Ya -Original Message- From: Smith, Michael ERDC-RDE-CRREL-NH [mailto:michael.sm...@erdc.dren.mil] Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2012 5:26 PM To: Wang, Ya; mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org Subject: Re: [mapserver-users] MapServer vs ArcGIS server Ya, MapServer is cgi (or fastcgi). So it doesn't hold data in memory like ArcGIS Server does. Also, each MapServer session (since its cgi) is independent of each other so there is no service to go down. As long as Apache is running, so is MapServer. I find that MapServer scales much better for large numbers of request and multiple maps. ArcGIS Server does well with smaller data sets and less services (due to ram issues). ArcGIS server can be faster to start with, since you are composing your maps graphically, but I find the MapServer mapfile editing much (much) faster for repetitive operations. I can script and copy/paste and (with includes) reuse more styling. With ArcGIS Server, for anything other that setting basic colors, I find it much slower and quite tedious. I find that MapServer works at small or large scale, I run into issues with ArcGIS server at large scales (lots of data and lots of services). Then there is the fact that ArcGIS will change on you over time and the whole architecture can go away and any time. In the time we have been doing MapServer (coming up on 12 years now), ESRI has gone through 6 different (and incompatible) web mapping engines. Our mapserver stuff still works. Something to think about when you are in it for the long haul. Also, when something critical has come up and I need a fix NOW, I have both made my own code changes and requested fixes from the community and had responses within hours (sometimes minutes). That is just not possible with ArcGIS Server. MapServer has a truly impressive community with both enthusiasts and mature business providing development and support (MapGears and Gateway Geomatics are two that I am very familiar with and they are top notch). We are a government agency and MapServer is production code for us, for over a decade. And we serve out a lot of data with it. Mike -- Michael Smith US Army Corps Remote Sensing GIS/Center On 7/3/12 8:50 PM, Wang, Ya ya.w...@vta.org wrote: Hello All, I am wondering if any of you have experience with both MapServer and ArcGIS server. How does MapServer compare with ArcGIS server? Besides the fact that MapServer is more customizable and more extensible and less expensive, what other advantages do MapServer have against ArcGIS server? Thanks in advance! Ya ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users
Re: [mapserver-users] MapServer vs ArcGIS server
On Jul 4, 2012, at 6:03 AM, Wang, Ya wrote: Mike: Thank you very much for the sharing. It is really great information. I have another question now. How does MapServer compare with ArcGIS server in terms of providing API or service layers to support the enthusiasm of the online development community? .. Why don't you summarize for us how and what ArcGIS Server provides in terms of API or service layers and how it supports the enthusiasm of its online development community? That knowledge would benefit several of us, I believe. Also, try asking the same question on the ArcGIS Server email list, if there is one, and then summarize the responses you get there. I would be very curious to read those. Finally, wrt MapServer's programming hooks and APIs, have you visited the docs at http://mapserver.org? Lots of great, entirely community developed information there. Remember, no one owns MapServer -- you and I and others and everyone owns it. -- Puneet Kishor ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users
Re: [mapserver-users] MapServer vs ArcGIS server
Hello Ya I agree on everything Mike said. On the API question I must say that ESRI (finally) has done a great job. All kind of APIs are available free of charge and make it really easy to develop apps, see: http://resources.arcgis.com/content/arcgisserver/web-apis Here an app we created with the JS API (City of Bern): http://map.bern.ch/stadtplan/index_en.htm In addition they have SDKs for creating apps for iOS, Android and Windows Phone ... The city of Zurich has done a pretty good iPhone App, even with routing for bike and pedestrians ... look for zuriplan (only in German I think) ... Mit freundlichem Gruss / Best regards Flavio Hendry TYDAC Inc. - http://www.tydac.ch Web Mapping - http://www.mapserver.ch Swiss Maps - http://www.mapplus.ch Mit freundlichen Gruessen / Kind Regards Flavio Hendry, CEO - mailto:fla...@tydac.ch TYDAC AG - http://www.tydac.ch Geographic Information Solutions Optingenstrasse 27 -- CH-3013 Bern Tel +41 (0)31 368 0180 - Fax +41 (0)31 368 1860 Location: http://www.mapplus.ch/adr/bern/optingenstrasse/27 ___ mapserver-users mailing list mapserver-users@lists.osgeo.org http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/mapserver-users
