Chapter 1 focuses on getting started with WebGIS and introduces the basic concepts and workflows. It explains that this system can integrate data and software to allow users to create and share the geographic information. One thing I found interesting is when it explained historically GIS was limited to desktop and could only be accessed by specialists. Now, WebGIS expanded the access to way more people to use through their own mobile devices. While WebGIS seems more accessible, I found it cool that now ArcGIS pro is used by many more people and students today. It also adds further into what we learned last week and explains how collaborative the web version is. It does this by allowing for data sharing in real time and sharing through your organization. By being more accessible and interactive, this is crucial for projects like environmental response, natural disaster response, and urban planning.
Chapter 2 goes through more of the structure and what makes up WebGIS. The tools they described were web maps, services, layers, and portals. The web maps allow users to both visualize and interact with the spatial data provided. Layers are structured to organize different information including roads and weather. And finally, web services are created to deliver data for people to use without using specialized software. This is very similar to the previous desktop GIS, in the sense of how customizable each step is within the system.
One project that could be done using the information in these chapters is creating an Ohio Wesleyan campus safety map. The layers needed for this would include residential and academic buildings, parking lots, sidewalks or paths, and roads that run through campus. The web services would provide real time updates which could include any alert needed, closures, and could be as simple as marking which sidewalks are dangerous during the winter months. To get more in depth, the web services could dive deeper and include weather updates and alerts, reminding students to bring umbrellas or coats to class if needed. From this chapter, this project focuses on the collaboration portion, of allowing the information to be accessible and updated to all students on campus. It also highlights using real time data through the spatial data that is a big portion of WebGIS.