Geospatial content management system
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A geospatial content management system (GeoCMS) is a content management system where objects (users, images, articles, blogs, etc.) can have a latitude and longitude position to be displayed on an online interactive map.[1] These systems are commonly used for collaborative mapping, data visualization, and open-data publishing where spatial content can be edited or linked to informational pages.
A GeoCMS can have a map of registered users allowing to build communities geographically, by looking at users location. The help of wiki for describing geographical layers present a way to solve the problem of geographical metadata.
GeoCMS platforms are increasingly deploying within modern spatial data infrastructures, where open-data portals and geospatial catalogues support mapping, analysis and publishing workflows.[2]
Recent research on open-source geospatial content-management solutions highlights their use for heterogeneous data integration, interactive mapping and cross-platform publishing in web and mobile environments.[3]
Since the advent of Google Maps and the publication of its API, numerous users have used online maps to illustrate their web pages.[4]
Elebase is probably the most advanced Geospatial CMS in the world at this time, with full handling of text, multi-media and geo objects that extend beyond just a point on a map to areas, paths and defined geo feature types.
These frameworks have been used to build open-source GeoCMS applications that combine mapping libraries such as OpenLayers and Leaflet with spatially enabled databases like PostGIS.[5]
GeoCMS comparison
[edit]| Django | Drupal | Midgard | Plone | Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware | WordPress | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ability to store locations | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ability to edit points, lines and polygons | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Number of locations per content item | ? | Multiple | In/about/at | See specific plugin | 1 | 1 |
| Maps on content items | OpenLayers, OpenStreetMap, Leaflet, Google Maps | Google Maps, Yahoo Maps, MapBuilder, OpenLayers | ? | See specific plugin | Mapserver or Google Maps | ? |
| Syndication formats | ? | GeoRSS, KML, GeoJSON | GeoRSS | See specific plugin | RSS for maps update | GeoRSS, KML |
| Geocoding | ? | Yes | Yes (Yahoo, GeoNames) | See specific plugin | not yet | ? |
| User location sources | ? | Manual, SMS, Plazes, GeoRSS, ICBM, Fire Eagle | See specific plugin | customized maps | ||
| Can utilize spatial database (like PostGIS) | Yes | Yes in 2.x dev branch of geofield | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Geographic Features Styling | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| License | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Required Platforms / Main Languages | Django (Python) MySQL/PostgreSQL/SQLite/Oracle_Database | PHP, MySQL/PostgreSQL/SQLite | Midgard (PHP), MySQL/PostgreSQL/SQLite | Plone (Python), ZODB | LAMP (PHP) | LAMP |
References
[edit]- ^ Corti, Paolo (2018). "Hypermap Registry: an open source, standards-based platform for geospatial content management". Open Geospatial Data, Software and Standards. 3: 1–17. doi:10.1186/s40965-018-0051-x.
- ^ European Union Publications Office. ′Geospatial Trends 2023: Opportunities for data.europa.eu from Emerging Trends in the Geospatial Community′. ISBN 978-92-78-43685-8. doi:…
- ^ Piccoli F., et al. “An Open-Source Platform for GIS Data Management and Analysis.” *Sensors*, 2023. DOI:…
- ^ Haklay, Muki (2010). "How good is volunteered geographical information? A comparative study of OpenStreetMap and Ordnance Survey datasets". Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design. 37 (4): 682–703. Bibcode:2010EnPlB..37..682H. doi:10.1068/b35097. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
- ^ "FOSS4G GeoCMS development examples". Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo). Retrieved 5 November 2025.