ASA: an Open Source WebGIS application for Albania
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2016-06-29

ASA uses a WebGIS application, based on Open Source, to register its activity. It is open for the  public and serves the data through public Web Mapping Services (WMS) to all the stakeholders. It registers all the archaeological survey tracts and the related attributes for each of them such as: is there any archaeological finding and what? This enables getting information about where there is a survey, the area covered and the archaeological results.
The tract data update as frequently as a new development project is planned. Also updates apply when a scientific project or an occasional archaeological finding is reported. The registration of this process actually is done by ASA specialists with all the required digitizing tools offered by WebGIS, including importing tracts from other GIS formats. A brief list of WebGIS functions is as follows:
• Real time surveillance with statuses for each development project until it finishes
• Registration of archaeological tracts and polls and related attributes
• Document/photo attachments for each tract and poll
• Combine all the necessary background information such as orthophoto, topography, satellite images, ownership, protected areas, etc.
• Administration of users and roles and creation of list values
• Easy to use with no deep GIS knowledge
• Enables all the stakeholders to create their tracts with no credentials and save them in local PC
• Forces unified standards for registering the archaeological activity
• Puts the base for creation of the first archaeological map of Albania
ASA intends to continue the development of extending the current WebGIS by enabling stakeholders to register and create data and upload reports directly in the system: ASA will check for the validity and confirm the registration in the final Database.  The development will continue with “Construction of documents archive and integration with WebGIS”, which will create the full central archive of spatially related archaeological documentation.

Rudina Zoto (Albania)