What’s ILWIS?

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ILWIS is short for Integrated Land and Water Management System and is a software program developed to perform tasks related to geographic science, such as mapping, land use planning, and watershed management. This software has a wide range of features and capabilities and can be used to edit, analyze and visualize geographic information about various areas, phenomena and features. ILWIS also allows users to create and manage a database and create their own digital images of objects using a process called digitizing. The software can be used, for example, to analyze natural hazards such as floods and cyclones, study biodiversity in an area, calculate the amount of water needed for irrigation, and model erosion patterns. ILWIS is free software and since 2007 is distributed under the GNU General Public License.

In computer terms, ILWIS is a geographic information system (GIS), which means that it is used to collect and present various types of geographic data. A GIS system such as ILWIS combines the capabilities of creating maps and gathering geographic information with the ability to perform statistical analyzes of the various types of data in the program database. It is also a remote sensing software program, which means it can be used to acquire geographic data without actually being in contact with a physical object or location. This can be done, for example, by importing GPS data or processing aerial photos.

ILWIS also has strong image processing capabilities and can handle both raster graphics and vector graphics. Raster graphics consist of bitmaps or pixels. Vector graphics are graphics that are stored and processed as mathematical formulas, allowing for better resolution than raster graphics. ILWIS has become popular among many users due to its combination of powerful image processing capabilities, user-friendly interface, low cost, good support in the form of user guides and manuals, and a wide range of GIS and remote sensing capabilities.

This software is used by scientists and also for various types of public and commercial land and water management. Examples of its use are urban growth analysis, vegetation cover studies, contaminated soil surveys, global radiation studies, and map analysis to determine appropriate locations for residential neighborhoods or waste facilities. ILWIS was developed in the 1980s by a Dutch company called ITC Enschede for use by researchers and students. User support and software development is now managed by an international network called 52°N, made up of researchers, industry representatives and public administrators.

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