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Open Source GIS Software Options for Forestry Education in Papua New Guinea
Department of Forestry, PNG University of Technology, PMB, Lae, Papua New Guinea
- 1 Department of Forestry, PNG University of Technology, PMB, Lae, Papua New Guinea
Open Journal of Ecology·Volume 04 (2014)·Pages 234–243·Published 27 March 2014·DOI10.4236/oje.2014.44022
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Abstract
Although open source softwares (OSS) for GIS and Remote Sensing are rapidly expanding and improving in the global context, there has been uncertainty at higher education institutions in developing countries, such as the department of forestry (Dfo) at Unitech, Papua New Guinea (PNG), regarding appropriate GIS softwares and hardware to acquire and use for teaching and research purposes. The paper briefly describes the characteristics of some mature OSS and discusses their main capabilities, advantages and disadvantages. Their adoption in the Dfo curricula may be advantageous in the long term, considering issues of learning curve steepness, versatility, affordability, effectiveness, and documentation available on them.
KeywordsOpen Source SoftwareGIS SoftwareForestry Education
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