TimeMap Open Source Consortium

TimeMap Open Source Community

Aims of the Community

The aim of the TimeMap Open Source Community is to support the use and development of the TimeMap Java client and server software. The source code should be available under the GNU GPL and LGPL licenses on SourceForge in the first half of 2007 (we have just expanded our staff to try and get this long-delayed project completed).

In moving TimeMap to Open Source we wanted to ensure that it maintained coherence and provideed a shared infrastructure, rather than fragmenting into many incompatible implementations through code-mining or poorly coordinated development. By not rushing into general release we aimed to ensure the direction and stability of the system.

Please help us improve TimeMap by joining the TimeMap Open Source Community.

Background

The TimeMap project aims to develop methodologies for handling distributed spatio-temporal information, targeted particularly at cultural information and novel functionality not available in existing products (such as database-driven timelines and map animation, structural metadata, and efficient client-server delivery). Major products of our research include the ECAI Clearinghouse, TMWin and TMJava map viewer, TMJava map and animation server and TimeMap structural metadata system.

The project team is currently working improving WMS and map animation support, and a design for an advanced data-driven timeline component.

TimeMap was first conceived and developed as a spin-off from a number of small projects with minimal funding, and then benefited – from 2000 to 2002 – from a substantial Australian Research Council Industry Linkage (SPIRT) grant, as well as funding from the Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative (Berkeley) and Macquarie Library P/L (Sydney). This core funding supported the development of the TMWin toolkit, TMJava applet and server, and the clearinghouse structure used by ECAI, MacquarieNet and other client-server applications of TimeMap.

Since 2002 we have – with some difficulty in the absence of significant core funding – maintained, supported and further developed TimeMap through a combination of small grants, licensing and consultancies. In 2003 we committed to move TimeMap to Open Source over a period of time, dependant on available resources. Once we move the product to Open Source we will be offering support and maintenance contracts similar to the current licenses.