[Freegis-list] free gis software, user friendly to novices

[Brent Wood]

--- jay zee <jay34zee at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Hi all

<snip>
> I tried a couple, and found them pretty difficult. Are there any free gis
> programs that are relatively easy to use? If for example, I just wanted to
> make a simple map? In my case, I work with global data, like infant mortality
> rate (IMR), so I would want to make a map of the world, showing countries
> with high IMR and countries with low IRM.

I'd suggest QGIS as a good way to start. I find it's easy as any to use, and
plots most common formats natively. Reprojection isn't that intuitive in QGIS,
and it has limited editing capbility, but I suggest it is the easiest to use &
most compatible overall. 

Others worth a look are OpenJUMP & uDIG (java apps) or perhaps Saga GIS, for
something a bit more desktop GIS as opposed to desktop mapping. FWTools may
also be suitable for your needs. Tyler Mitchell's book on Open Source Web
Mapping covers FWTools & mapserver very well to get you started with these. 

You might also look at mapserver & masybe OpenLayerts for getting your maps
dynamically into a Web page.

> I'd be interested in fairly easy to learn and use programs. I also want to
> list programs on my website that are fairly easy to learn, that can be used
> by people without a ton of training in gis, but who are willing to invest
> some time.

Just my 02c worth, others may suggest something else.

Cheers,

  Brent