Software:GDAL

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Short description: Translator library for raster and vector geospatial data formats
GDAL
GDALLogoColor.svg
Original author(s)Frank Warmerdam
Developer(s)Open Source Geospatial Foundation
Initial release8 June 2000; 24 years ago (2000-06-08)
Written inC, C++, Python
PlatformCross-platform
Available inEnglish
TypeLibrary
LicenseX/MIT
Website{{{1}}}

The Geospatial Data Abstraction Library (GDAL) is a computer software library for reading and writing raster and vector geospatial data formats (e.g. shapefile), and is released under the permissive X/MIT style free software license by the Open Source Geospatial Foundation. As a library, it presents a single abstract data model to the calling application for all supported formats. It may also be built with a variety of useful command line interface utilities for data translation and processing. Projections and transformations are supported by the PROJ library.

The related OGR library (OGR Simple Features Library[1]), which is part of the GDAL source tree, provides a similar ability for simple features vector graphics data.

GDAL was developed mainly by Frank Warmerdam until the release of version 1.3.2, when maintenance was officially transferred to the GDAL/OGR Project Management Committee under the Open Source Geospatial Foundation.

GDAL/OGR is considered a major free software project for its "extensive capabilities of data exchange" and also in the commercial GIS community due to its widespread use and comprehensive set of functionalities.[2][3]

Software using GDAL/OGR

Several software programs use the GDAL/OGR libraries to allow them to read and write multiple GIS formats. Such programs include:

  • ArcGIS – Uses GDAL for custom raster formats[4]
  • Avenza MAPublisher - GIS and mapping tools for Adobe Illustrator. Uses GDAL for coordinate system transformation, format reading & writing, geometry operations, & unit conversion.
  • Avenza Geographic Imager - Spatial imaging tools for Adobe Photoshop. Uses GDAL for coordinate system transformation, format reading & writing, & unit conversion.
  • Avenza Maps - iOS & Android mobile mapping application. Uses GDAL to read metadata information for geospatial maps / data to transform them to WGS84 for offline navigation.
  • Biosphere3D – Open source landscape scenery globe
  • Biotop Invent
  • Cadwork
  • ENVI – Remote Sensing software
  • ERDAS APOLLO - Image Server and remote sensing geo-services
  • ERDAS GeoCompressor - Image compression to ECW and JP2 formats
  • Geoconcept integrated GDAL in its 7.1 release
  • FWTools – A cross-platform open source GIS software bundle compiled by Frank Warmerdam
  • gdaltokmz – A Python module translating from GDAL-supported raster graphics formats to the Google Earth KMZ format
  • GeoDjango – Django's support for GIS-enabled databases
  • GeoDMS - A framework for building spatial calculation models.
  • GeoView ProiOS mobile mapping application
  • Google Earth – A virtual globe and world imaging program
  • GRASS GIS
  • gvSIG
  • JMap
  • MangoMap
  • MapServer
  • MS4W - MapServer for Windows, a widely popular installer for the MapServer community, using GDAL for data access.
  • MapWindow GIS - Open Source C++ based geographic information system, ActiveX Control, and application programmer interface
  • Merkaartor
  • NASA Ames Stereo Pipeline, an open-source software package for photogrammetry
  • World Wind Java – NASA's open source virtual globe and world imaging technology
  • Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSSIM) – Libraries and applications used to process imagery, maps, terrain, and vector data
  • OpenEV – Geospatial toolkit and a frontend to that toolkit; to display georeferenced images and elevation data
  • Orfeo toolbox – A satellite image processing library
  • QGIS
  • R – An open source statistical software with extensions for spatial data analysis.
  • SAGA GIS – A cross-platform open source GIS software
  • TopoQuest – Internet topographic map viewer
  • Rolta Geomatica software

Supported raster data formats

As of version 2.2.3, GDAL/OGR provides at least partial support for 154 raster and 93 vector geospatial data formats.[5] A subset of data formats is supported to ensure the ability to directly create files and georeferencing them with the default GDAL compiling options.

Here follows the list of data formats whose support is, by default, compiled to allow creation and georeferencing.

Raster data format name Code
Arc/Info ASCII Grid[6] AAIGrid
ADRG/ARC Digitalized Raster Graphics (.gen/.thf)[7] ADRG
Bathymetric Attributed Grid (.bag)[8] BAG
Magellan BLX Topo (.blx, .xlb)[9] BLX
Microsoft Windows Device Independent Bitmap (.bmp)[10] BMP
VTP Binary Terrain Format (.bt)[11] BT
Military Elevation Data (.dt0, .dt1, .dt2)[12] DTED
ESRI .hdr Labelled[13] EHdr
NASA ELAS[14] ELAS
ENVI .hdr Labelled Raster[15] ENVI
ERMapper (.ers)[15] ERS
NOAA .gtx vertical datum shift GTX
HF2/HFZ heightfield raster[16] HF2
Erdas Imagine (.img)[17] HFA
Image Display and Analysis (WinDisp)[18] IDA
ILWIS Raster Map (.mpr,.mpl)[19] ILWIS
Intergraph Raster[20] INGR
USGS Astrogeology Isis cube (Version 2)[21] ISIS2
KMLSUPEROVERLAY KMLSUPEROVERLAY
In Memory Raster[22] MEM
Vexcel MFF[23] MFF
Vexcel MFF2[24] MFF2 (HKV)
NITF[25] NITF
NTv2 Datum Grid Shift NTv2
PCI Geomatica Database File[26] PCIDSK
Raster Matrix Format (*.rsw, .mtw)[27] RMF
Idrisi Raster[28] RST
SAGA GIS Binary format[29] SAGA
SGI Image Format[30] SGI
SRTM HGT Format[31] SRTMHGT
USGS ASCII DEM / CDED (.dem)[32] USGSDEM
GDAL Virtual (.vrt)[33] VRT
ASCII Gridded XYZ[34] XYZ

Supported vector data formats

GDAL supports a variety of vector data formats as seen here. It is extensible as well.

References

  1. "FAQGeneral – GDAL". Trac.osgeo.org. http://trac.osgeo.org/gdal/wiki/FAQGeneral#WhatdoesOGRstandfor. 
  2. Neteler M., Raghavan V. (2006). "Advances in Free Software Geographic Information Systems". Journal of Informatics. http://ojs.info.gscc.osaka-cu.ac.jp/JI/include/getdoc.php?id=133&article=36&mode=pdf. 
    Extensive capabilities of data exchange are essential for the daily GIS work. GRASS profits from an external project, the GDAL/OGR library <http://www.gdal.org>. This FOSS library is also used even by global data vendors as well as in some proprietary GIS applications. Many of the raster and vector formats supported for reading can be also be generated.
  3. Mark Wilcox (2009). Porting to the Symbian Platform: Open Mobile Development in C/C++. Wiley. 
    In the words of Howard Butler, a director of the Open Source Geospatial Foundation, "I see GDAL as the glibc/glibc++ of the geospatial software world. It's open, it provides core functionality, I can't understand how anybody gets anything done without it."
  4. "ArcGIS 9.2 Desktop Help: Supported raster dataset file formats". ESRI. 2007-08-15. http://webhelp.esri.com/arcgisdesktop/9.2/body.cfm?tocVisable=1&ID=2458&TopicName=Supported%20raster%20dataset%20file%20formats. 
  5. "GDAL Raster Formats". GDAL - Geospatial Data Abstraction Library. 2011-06-05. http://www.gdal.org/formats_list.html. 
  6. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#AAIGrid. 
  7. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ADRG. 
  8. "BAG - Bathymetry Attributed Grid". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_bag.html. 
  9. "BLX - Magellan BLX Topo File Format (available from GDAL 1.6.0)". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_blx.html. 
  10. "BMP - Microsoft Windows Device Independent Bitmap". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_bmp.html. 
  11. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#BT. 
  12. "DTED - Military Elevation Data". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_dted.html. 
  13. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#EHdr. 
  14. "ELAS - Earth Resources Laboratory Applications Software". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_elas.html. 
  15. 15.0 15.1 "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ENVI. 
  16. "HF2 - HF2/HFZ heightfield raster". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_hf2.html. 
  17. "HFA - Erdas Imagine .img". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_hfa.html. 
  18. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#IDA. 
  19. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ILWIS. 
  20. "INGR - Intergraph Raster Format". Gdal.org. 2013-03-23. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_intergraphraster.html. 
  21. "ISIS2 - USGS Astrogeology ISIS Cube (Version 2)". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_isis2.html. 
  22. "MEM - In Memory Raster". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_mem.html. 
  23. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#MFF. 
  24. "MFF2 - Vexcel MFF2 Image". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_mff2.html. 
  25. "NITF - National Imagery Transmission Format". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_nitf.html. 
  26. "PCIDSK - PCI Geomatics Database File". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_pcidsk.html. 
  27. "RMF - Raster Matrix Format". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_rmf.html. 
  28. "RST - Idrisi Raster Format". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_Idrisi.html. 
  29. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SAGA. 
  30. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SGI. 
  31. "Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats". Gdal.org. 2013-11-18. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SRTMHGT. 
  32. "Usgsdem - Usgs Ascii Dem (And Cded)". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_usgsdem.html. 
  33. "Virtual Format Tutorial". GDAL. 2003-07-21. http://www.gdal.org/gdal_vrttut.html. 
  34. "XYZ - ASCII Gridded XYZ". Gdal.org. http://www.gdal.org/frmt_xyz.html. 
Notes
  • Schuyler Erle, Rich Gibson and Jo Walsh (2005). Mapping Hacks. O'Reilly. ISBN 0-596-00703-5. 
  • Tyler Mitchell (2005). Web Mapping Illustrated. O'Reilly. ISBN 0-596-00865-1. 

External links