In part 2 you learned the basics of solving problems with spatial queries, and performance tips for getting the most speed out of your spatial queries. But PostGIS is a seductive mistress widely courted by both commercial and open source tools. In part 3 you’ll learn about some of the more common open source server-side tools that are used to complement and enhance PostGIS.
Chapter 16 covers other PostgreSQL extensions commonly used with PostGIS. You’ll learn about the procedural languages PL/R, PL/Python, and PL/V8. These are common favorites in GIS for leveraging the wealth of statistical functions and plotting capabilities of R, the numerous packages for Python, and the brisk elegance of JavaScript in the database. You’ll learn how to write stored functions in these languages and use them in SQL queries. In addition, we’ll cover pgRouting, which is another package of SQL functions used to build routing applications and solve various kinds of traveling-salesperson problems.
In chapter 17, you’ll learn about server-side mapping and client-side mapping frameworks, which are commonly used to display PostGIS data on the web. You’ll learn how to display PostGIS data with third-party mapping layers, such as OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, and Microsoft Bing, using the Leaflet and OpenLayers open source JavaScript mapping APIs. You’ll also learn the basics of setting up GeoServer and MapServer and configuring them as WMS/WFS services.