IMS: a web-based map server for spatial decision support

Summarization: WebGIS is becoming prominent in spatial decision support applications, as it allows researchers and stakeholders to benefit from sharing, analyzing and visualizing large, up-to- date geospatial data sets with minimal effort and cost. This paper addresses the integration of open-source, open-standards software packages and state-of-the-art web technology to develop an interactive web mapping portal for spatial analysis. It demonstrates that, open- source software offers a level of flexibility, availability and lowered cost that is typically unavailable with commercial software, while an architecture and design based on open standards ensures system interoperability and data reusability. The resulting system aims at enhancing collaboration and decision making among researchers and stakeholders in environmental decision-making, being highly accessible, and requiring minimal computing expertise. Where standard functionality is insufficient, the system can be extended via scripting to adapt to emerging needs.Presented on