Basic overview of Django and Geo-Django for a regional GIS group MRAC September 2012. This is not really meant for Django wizards.

1. Django – GeoDjango- Python
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2. What is Django?
Yes this is Django. Django Reinhardt.
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3. But What is Django?
Django is a high-level Python Web framework that encourages rapid
development and clean, pragmatic design.
Developed by a fast-moving online-news operation, Django was designed to handle
two challenges: the intensive deadlines of a newsroom and the stringent
requirements of the experienced Web developers who wrote it. It lets you build highperforming, elegant Web applications quickly.
Django focuses on automating as much as possible and adhering to the DRY
principle. – Do Not repeat Yourself. (http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?DontRepeatYourself)
Please note that this was all plagiarized from Django website
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4. But What is Django again?
Django is really a MVC web framework. Model – View – Controller.
In Django they kind -of mix this up and call it MTV Model Template View.
Its really the same
The M odel is the data
The V iew is the logic
The T emplate is the presentation
Each part is loosely coupled and abstracted or each part can kind-of exist without
the other.
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5. But What is Django again?
Everything is abstracted
Why is this good?
Scenario the decision is made to migrate all data to SQL Server. This includes all the
data that existed in MySQL and PostGresSQL database. You have a few Web
Applications written in Django that used these databases on the backed.
The change in Django would take about 30 seconds.
Edit the Model enter the new connection information and done. The data is
abstracted from the source no other code changes are necessary you never use SQL or
data vendor specific calls. You use python code which is not tied to the data source
type.
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6. And GeoDjango?
GeoDjango is an extension or add-on to Django that spatial enables the
framework.
It uses spatial data in variety of sources including my favorite SDE.
Yeah right really no SDE here, just real data sources such as PostGIS, SQLite,
MySQL, and Oracle. And MSQLServer
It also uses the typical GDAL, GEOS, and proj.4 FOSS projects that ESRI, PostGIS,
and just about every GIS modern technologies use.
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7. Who uses Django
Not just for news agencies.
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8. Who uses Geo-Django
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9. What works with Django
Anything that python supports!
Which is just about every piece of technology python is cross platform
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10. Thumbs Up
Extreme Flexibility!
No Complications, no thrills, works the same on any Operating System Mac’s, Linux, and
Windows. There is a binding to just about anything you can imagine. And there are
millions of examples to do just about anything you can imagine. And yes it even works
with ESRI products.
Python continues to show me that it is the simplest, easiest, and most diverse code base
available.
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11. Example
Budget Department Online Citizen Budget Application – “Quick Application”
Citizens would create a City Budget by adjusting the allocated money to different initiatives.
The application needed to be interactive and supply feed back as they entered the data.
The budget office wanted to administer the data and information without interacting with IT.
(data driven)
The budget office wanted to record and report on how people budgeted…
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12. Example 1
So in my tool bag was Dot Net - The dot Net solution from experience would take at least two
– three weeks to get to a prototype. I had a week
I had already been investigating new web frameworks. And Django/GeoDjango kept coming
up. I had done a tutorial and thought this might be a good easy fit to test in the real world
I jumped in started and had a proto-type in three days. This is with very little meaning no
Django experience.
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13. Example 1
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14. Example 2
Start Testing possible mapAsheville replacements
I investigated open block – in two days had something similar to the Crime mapper and
Development mapper running and fully functional.
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15. Example 3
Asheville – OpenTreeMapper
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16. The End
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