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GDAL

{{short description|Translator library for raster and vector geospatial data formats}}

{{Primary sources|date=May 2009}}

{{Infobox software

| name = GDAL

| logo = GDALLogoColor.svg

| logo size = 150px

| logo alt =

| collapsible =

| author = Frank Warmerdam

| developer = Open Source Geospatial Foundation

| released = {{Start date and age|2000|6|8|df=yes}}

| discontinued =

| latest release version = {{wikidata|property|reference|edit|P348}}

| latest release date = {{Start date and age|df=yes|{{wikidata|qualifier|P348|P577}}}}

| latest preview version =

| latest preview date =

| status =

| programming language = C, C++, Python

| operating system =

| platform = Cross-platform

| size =

| language = English

| language count =

| language footnote =

| genre = Library

| license = X/MIT

| alexa =

| website = {{Official URL}}

| standard =

| AsOf =

}}

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{{cite web|url=http://trac.osgeo.org/gdal/wiki/FAQGeneral#WhatdoesOGRstandfor |title=FAQGeneral – GDAL |publisher=Trac.osgeo.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}), 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.{{cite journal|author=Neteler M., Raghavan V. |title=Advances in Free Software Geographic Information Systems |url=http://ojs.info.gscc.osaka-cu.ac.jp/JI/include/getdoc.php?id=133&article=36&mode=pdf |journal=Journal of Informatics |year=2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110823150539/http://ojs.info.gscc.osaka-cu.ac.jp/JI/include/getdoc.php?id=133&article=36&mode=pdf |archive-date=2011-08-23 }}{{quote| Extensive capabilities of data exchange are essential for the daily GIS work. GRASS profits from an external project, the GDAL/OGR library . 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.}}{{cite book |author=Mark Wilcox|title=Porting to the Symbian Platform: Open Mobile Development in C/C++ | publisher=Wiley |year=2009}}{{quote| 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."}}

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{{cite web |title=ArcGIS 9.2 Desktop Help: Supported raster dataset file formats |url=http://webhelp.esri.com/arcgisdesktop/9.2/body.cfm?tocVisable=1&ID=2458&TopicName=Supported%20raster%20dataset%20file%20formats |publisher=ESRI |date=2007-08-15}}
  • 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.
  • [http://www.geoviewpro.com GeoView Pro] – iOS 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.{{cite web |title=GDAL Raster Formats |url=http://www.gdal.org/formats_list.html |publisher=GDAL - Geospatial Data Abstraction Library |date=2011-06-05}} 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.

class="wikitable sortable" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto"
style="padding:0 10px;"| Raster data format name

! style="padding:0 10px;"| Code

Arc/Info ASCII Grid{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#AAIGrid |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}AAIGrid
ADRG/ARC Digitalized Raster Graphics (.gen/.thf){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ADRG |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}ADRG
Bathymetric Attributed Grid (.bag){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_bag.html |title=BAG - Bathymetry Attributed Grid |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2018-06-16}}BAG
Magellan BLX Topo (.blx, .xlb){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_blx.html |title=BLX - Magellan BLX Topo File Format (available from GDAL 1.6.0) |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}BLX
Microsoft Windows Device Independent Bitmap (.bmp){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_bmp.html |title=BMP - Microsoft Windows Device Independent Bitmap |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}BMP
VTP Binary Terrain Format (.bt){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#BT |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}BT
Military Elevation Data (.dt0, .dt1, .dt2){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_dted.html |title=DTED - Military Elevation Data |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}DTED
ESRI .hdr Labelled{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#EHdr |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}EHdr
NASA ELAS{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_elas.html |title=ELAS - Earth Resources Laboratory Applications Software |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}ELAS
ENVI .hdr Labelled Raster{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ENVI |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}ENVI
ERMapper (.ers)ERS
NOAA .gtx vertical datum shiftGTX
HF2/HFZ heightfield raster{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_hf2.html |title=HF2 - HF2/HFZ heightfield raster |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}HF2
Erdas Imagine (.img){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_hfa.html |title=HFA - Erdas Imagine .img |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}HFA
Image Display and Analysis (WinDisp){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#IDA |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}IDA
ILWIS Raster Map (.mpr,.mpl){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#ILWIS |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}ILWIS
Intergraph Raster{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_intergraphraster.html |title=INGR - Intergraph Raster Format |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-03-23 |access-date=2014-01-20}}INGR
USGS Astrogeology Isis cube (Version 2){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_isis2.html |title=ISIS2 - USGS Astrogeology ISIS Cube (Version 2) |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}ISIS2
KMLSUPEROVERLAYKMLSUPEROVERLAY
In Memory Raster{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_mem.html |title=MEM - In Memory Raster |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}MEM
Vexcel MFF{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#MFF |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}MFF
Vexcel MFF2{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_mff2.html |title=MFF2 - Vexcel MFF2 Image |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}MFF2 (HKV)
NITF{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_nitf.html |title=NITF - National Imagery Transmission Format |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}NITF
NTv2 Datum Grid ShiftNTv2
PCI Geomatica Database File{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_pcidsk.html |title=PCIDSK - PCI Geomatics Database File |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}PCIDSK
Raster Matrix Format (*.rsw, .mtw){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_rmf.html |title=RMF - Raster Matrix Format |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}RMF
Idrisi Raster{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_Idrisi.html |title=RST - Idrisi Raster Format |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}RST
SAGA GIS Binary format{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SAGA |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}SAGA
SGI Image Format{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SGI |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}SGI
SRTM HGT Format{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_various.html#SRTMHGT |title=Various Supported GDAL Raster Formats |publisher=Gdal.org |date=2013-11-18 |access-date=2014-01-20}}SRTMHGT
USGS ASCII DEM / CDED (.dem){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_usgsdem.html |title=Usgsdem - Usgs Ascii Dem (And Cded) |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}USGSDEM
GDAL Virtual (.vrt){{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/gdal_vrttut.html |title=Virtual Format Tutorial |publisher=GDAL |date=2003-07-21 |access-date=2014-01-20}}VRT
ASCII Gridded XYZ{{cite web|url=http://www.gdal.org/frmt_xyz.html |title=XYZ - ASCII Gridded XYZ |publisher=Gdal.org |access-date=2014-01-20}}XYZ

Supported vector data formats

GDAL supports a variety of vector data formats as seen [https://gdal.org/drivers/vector/index.html here]. It is extensible as well.

References

{{reflist|30em}}

;Notes

{{refbegin}}

  • {{cite book |title=Mapping Hacks |author=Schuyler Erle, Rich Gibson and Jo Walsh |year=2005 |publisher=O'Reilly |isbn=0-596-00703-5}}
  • {{cite book |title=Web Mapping Illustrated |author=Tyler Mitchell |year=2005 |publisher=O'Reilly |isbn=0-596-00865-1}}

{{refend}}

External links

{{Portal|Free and open-source software}}

  • {{Official website}}
  • [https://www.osgeo.org/projects/gdal/ OSGeo project homepage]

Category:C++ libraries

Category:Cross-platform software

Category:Data structures libraries and frameworks

Category:Free computer libraries

Category:Free GIS software

Category:GIS file formats

Category:Software using the MIT license