2019 FOSS4G Bucharest Talks speaker: Marco Bernasocchi

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Talks

Custom workflows in QGIS thanks to Python - a non technical introduction

This talk introduces the integration and possibilities of Python within and around QGIS in its latest version. Being an introductory talk it is not aimed at developers but much more at [future] QGIS users that would like to know what possibility exists for customizing your workflows thanks to PyQGIS.

The presentation will brush the following topics:

  • Integration of Python in the latest version of QGIS
  • what can be done with Python in QGIS - chances and limits
  • Python console and scripts in QGIS
  • Plugins with Python
  • Macros with Python
  • Python in forms
  • Custom python expressions
  • Geoprocessing with Python within QGIS
PyQGIS the comfortable way - tricks to efficiently work with Python and QGIS

With PyQGIS you can write scripts and plugins to implement new features and perform automated tasks within QGIS, let's see how we can do that more efficiently thanks to some nifty tricks.

Thanks to tricks like using decorators and the qgis.utils module one can improve readability and performance by simplifying a lot of code

QGIS is dead, long live QGIS! - the very best new features of QGIS 3.x

QGIS 2.18 has been discontinued - the king is dead.
QGIS 3.4 is the new long term release - long live the king!
QGIS 3.10 is being developed - The princess is growing

In this talk, I'll try to highlight the very best features available in the QGIS 3.x series like:

  • User profiles
  • Multiple map views
  • Native 3D viewer with support for vector features and mesh data
  • Mesh data support
  • Autocompleting search
  • Unified Data Source Manager
  • GeoPackage as the default format
  • Select features by value tool
  • Lots of new processing tools
  • Project DB/Auxillary storage and easy custom labelling
  • Editing in place
  • New renderers
  • Lots of improvements to Print composer
  • Valid CRS Extents Preview
It's open source, how could that possibly go wrong!?

Migrating to opensource is a No-Go, some say... No support, No warranties, No sales reps, No help, just a bunch of Garage companies...
or is it, migrating to opensource is a no brainer… No licenses, No costs?

When evaluating a migration to opensource we should definitely consider all the points above, and while all the negative views are often used to spread FUD[1] by proprietary software vendors, seeing the absence of licensing costs as the main advantage of such a migration can and probably will lead to uninformed decisions and unexpected results.

While it is true that an opensource solution has a generally much lower TCO[2], to effectively use opensource tools in an enterprise environment, other aspects like product ownership, responsibilities and [re-]training need to be considered to ensure a painless move to the world of No lock-in, agile projects and technological advantage.

[1] Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt
[2] Total Cost of Ownership