JOSS docs - #48
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JBorrow
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Aug 12, 2026
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| The primary design decisions center on minimizing data transfers. `TileMaker` serves tiles over a network connection via HTTP protocol such that users can run `TileMaker` wherever the FITS files are stored, including on a remote HPC server, while viewing the maps in a local browser. Files therefore need not be transferred between environments solely for the purpose of inspection. Second, production versions can make use of `memcached` to reduce server loads. Finally, the `TileMaker` server in conjunction with the `TileViewer` only sends layer data on-demand to further reduce server loads. Since full layer data is only sent if and when a user requests the layer in the layer menu, a large number of FITS files can be registered with the server without adversely affecting application performance. | ||
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| `TileViewer` is a single-page application built with TypeScript + React. React is mature, well documented, and remains a popular library for single-page applications. As such, using React ensures that there is a large community of developers capable of contributing to and maintaining the UI. TypeScript further improves the UI's maintainability by clearly defining expected types for server responses, React components, and data structures. In choosing between available map libraries, the two main contenders were OpenLayers and LeafletJS. Both are lightweight, versatile, open source, and widely used. Ultimately, OpenLayers was selected because it seamlessly handles arbitrary tile size differences between layers. Leaflet provides built-in support for varying tile sizes, but expects differences to be powers of two (e.g. 256 vs. 512 pixels); tile sizes in SO maps do not conform to this constraint, making OpenLayers the more suitable choice. `TileMaker` is built with Python + FastAPI and its [PyPI package](https://pypi.org/project/tilemaker/) includes the static, bundled `TileViewer` to make it a standalone, out-of-the-box web application. FastAPI was chosen for its ease of use, speed, and documentation. |
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Another reason we chose openlayers was the client-side reprojection of external tilesets. So we can use all tilesets even though they may use a separate projection and overlay it on our data.
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