JMap Kathmandu

JMap 7 Kathmandu

Just before the 2021 winter holidays, K2 Geospatial released a new and major version of JMap, called JMap 7 Kathmandu. In this article, I will tell you about the key new features of this version.

Performance

We integrated several major optimizations into JMap 7 Kathmandu. These lead to better overall performance. More specifically, the time JMap Server takes to start has been reduced for some uses. We are talking about a reduction of up to 75% in start-up time. We have also greatly improved the performance of vector data extraction via the JMap Server REST API. This has a direct influence on performance when using JMap NG and Survey with dynamic layers. Lastly, JMap Server now requires significantly less RAM.

Support for ESRI Enterprise Geodatabase 10

It is now possible to connect to the ESRI spatial data stored in Enterprise Geodatabase 10 and subsequent versions. This new feature allows you to use this data in JMap applications, to view or even modify it.

OGC API – Features

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) is working on a series of new standards for the interoperability of geospatial systems. The implementations of these standards are more modern and designed as REST APIs. OGC API - Features is one of these new standards for access to vector data.

With JMap 7 Kathmandu, you can connect to sources that are compatible with OGC API - Features and create data layers from these systems.

Connecting to jaaz

You may have noticed a jaaz section in the JMap Admin settings page. Developed by K2 Geospatial, jaaz is a cloud-based geospatial platform for application developers. It provides simple but powerful web APIs that allow these professionals to integrate cloud-based mapping functionality into their applications.

The jaaz platform is still under development. More information will be coming soon.

JMap NG

The release of JMap 7 Kathmandu also was an opportunity for us to make several enhancements to JMap NG. Here are a few.

Subforms are now available in JMap NG during data entry.

JMap NG now supports the display of complex elements and text annotations..

A widget allows users to reach specific coordinates or a specific scale.

For thematics, JMap NG now offers dynamic legends and allows you to filter data according to a thematic’s classes.

Lastly, information reports are now available in JMap NG.

Log4j

As you may know, the world was shaken last year in mid-December when a major security flaw was discovered in Log4J, a library that almost all Java developers integrate into their software. Created by the Apache foundation, the Log4J library makes it possible for users to write and manage log files, however, the security flaw opened the door to malicious users remotely taking control of other computers.

To correct this very important security issue, K2 Geospatial quickly released HF1 and HF2, two patches for JMap 7 Kathmandu with a corrected version of Log4J. Why two patches? Another security flaw was discovered in Log4J the same day we released the first patch.

Keep in mind that it is strongly advised to use the most recent JMap patches to benefit from all the optimizations and security fixes.

In this article, we have quickly reviewed the new features of JMap 7 Kathmandu. As you can see, this version has several major improvements. I hope you will be able to benefit from this new version very soon.

On behalf of K2 Geospatial, happy new year and all the best to you in 2022!

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