I completely agree: there is a big middle ground between the simplest SLD and the monstrous one currently uncovered by a tool (neither open source nor proprietary, as far as I know). In a typical GIS scenario we see the GIS operator (as such, not a programmer able to hand-code the SLD) creating important thematic symbolizations for data he/she has built. Every commercial GIS software today can do that (ArcGis, MicroStation, AutoCAD, Geomedia, etc.) but there's no way to export that simbolization in SLD.
We found this: http://arcmap2sld.geoinform.fh-mainz.de/ArcMap2SLDConverter_Eng.htm The interesting idea is that you can use all the power and user-friendlyness of such a rich tool like ArcGis and having its thematism converted in an SLD file; of course that conversion tool is far from complete :-( If I can say, I think it was a pity to have several very basic SLD editors open source (MapBuilder, maybe Geoserver is creating one too), even web based (isn't it a nonsense to create such a complex GUI tool in a web interface?), and not developing a single robust and complete tool, like uDig could became (there are not many fast improvements in this direction, it seems to me). Only my 1 cent. Cheers, Fabio > -----Messaggio originale----- > Da: Andrea Aime [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Inviato: mercoledì 21 febbraio 2007 15.41 > A: Fabio Da Soghe > Cc: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]'; User-friendly > Desktop Internet GIS > Oggetto: Re: [Geoserver-users] R: SLD editor > > Fabio Da Soghe ha scritto: > > Indeed this seems very odd to me: I was sure there would have been > > plenty of open source utility to edit visually an SLD style, but > > there's none today. > > > > In my company we are in great difficult for this reason: > programmers > > are the only capable of editing an SLD document with good > proficiency > > but they are busy developing the application that will use > it, and the > > GIS people has not all the XML and WMS knowledge needed to > create more > > then the simplest style. > > > > Maybe SLD is not so much used today? > > The only systems I know using SLD are those Geotools based, > and DeeGree. > uDig uses SLD under covers, whilst unfortunately Geoserver > does not have an SLD editor. To be fair, uDig covers the most > common cases, and makes you revert to SLD hand coding for the > most complex issues. > > The WMS spec did not force people to use SLD, and given the > complexity of the specification, most just flew away. > > I agree an SLD editor is very much needed, yet: > * basic cases are handled by uDig. The only pity is that it's hard to > build a complex layered style with different "simple" styles for > different scale levels, and hard to apply filters (the CQL module > would allow for quick and intutive filter spec input). > * more complex ones tend to turn into scripts anyways. On the > Sigma demo we do have an SLD that is around 2000 lines, > any graphical > editor allowing to play with such a best would not probably be much > simpler than coding XML directly... > > I guess the middle ground is the interesting territory that's > not covered, that is, scales and filters with relatively > static symbolizers. > uDig could evolve to cover it. > > Cheers > Andrea > > _______________________________________________ User-friendly Desktop Internet GIS (uDig) http://udig.refractions.net http://lists.refractions.net/mailman/listinfo/udig-devel
