Building Mapping Applications with QGIS

Create your own sophisticated applications to analyze and display geospatial information using QGIS and Python

About This Book

• Make use of the geospatial capabilities of QGIS within your Python programs
• Build complete standalone mapping applications based on QGIS and Python
• Use QGIS as a Python geospatial development environment

Who This Book Is For

If you are an experienced Python developer who wants to create your own geospatial applications with minimum fuss, this is the book for you. While some familiarity with mapping applications would be an advantage, no prior knowledge of geospatial concepts is required. Even if you’ve never used QGIS before, this book will quickly get you up to speed.

In Detail

QGIS is one of the premiere open source Geographical Information Systems. While developing Python geospatial applications can be challenging, QGIS simplifies the process by combining the necessary geoprocessing libraries with a sophisticated user interface, all of which can be directly controlled using Python code.

Starting with an introduction to QGIS and how to use the built-in QGIS Python Console, we will teach you how to write Python code that makes use of the geospatial capabilities of QGIS. Building on this, you will ultimately learn how to create your own sophisticated standalone mapping applications built on top of QGIS. You will learn how to use the Python Console as a window into the QGIS programming environment, and then use that environment to create your own Python scripts and plugins to customize QGIS. As your knowledge of the PyQGIS library grows, you will use it to perform a variety of real-world geospatial programming tasks, culminating in the creation of your own complex standalone applications to load, analyze, and display geospatial data.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Getting Started with QGIS
Chapter 2: The QGIS Python Console
Chapter 3: Learning the QGIS Python API
Chapter 4: Creating QGIS Plugins
Chapter 5: Using QGIS in an External Application
Chapter 6: Mastering the QGIS Python API
Chapter 7: Selecting and Editing Features in a PyQGIS Application
Chapter 8: Building a Complete Mapping Application using Python and QGIS
Chapter 9: Completing the ForestTrails Application