Abstract Following the release of the MAP IT feld data-collection software, a new open-source and multiplatform software has been developed in order to conduct feldwork in an easier and more intuitive way. This software, BeeGIS, has been designed to work with a Tablet PC, GPS, and digital camera, using a pen on the tablet screen to draw annotations and sketches on the digital map and to connect notes, pictures, and any other fles. A lightweight solution, GeoPaparazzi, has also been developed by exploiting the functionalities of the new Android mobile phones. This software can be easily synched with BeeGIS to import into a GIS or also in Google Earth the captured data (notes, pictures) with attributes (GPS position and orientation). Introduction BeeGIS is a new open-source GIS software for feld mapping conceived for pen computer working with any common operating system (Windows XP and Vista, Mac OS, Linux). This software was designed to create an effcient and user friendly tool for professionals (mainly geologists and engineers) who may have a limited knowledge of GIS and who want to minimize the learning time for new technologies (Brown and Sprinkel, 2008). After an unsatisfactory previous experience with design and release of MAP IT (De Donatis and others, 2005; De Donatis and Bruciatelli, 2006), which was developed in collaboration with a commercial software house, our lab (LINEE - Laboratory of Information Technology for Earth and Environmental Sciences) decided to focus our research on open-source software products. From the collaboration between LINEE and HydroloGIS, an environmental engineer- ing company with extensive experience in Java-based GIS development, a new open-source system for geological mapping was developed. During the last year, ARPA Piemonte (a regional Agency for Environmental Protection) supported this project. Developed in Java (Eclipse platform) BeeGIS has its roots in the Udig framework (open source). In this system, several new tools were designed ad hoc for integrated feld work; these tools are for: • data acquisition from any NMEA-compliant GPS receiver for capturing points, lines, and polygons in both automatic and manual mode; • drawing and writing annotations directly on the map with a stylus, owing to the digital-ink technology that allows you to draw and paint; • Geonotes: a tool conceived to draw sketches, write text notes, and attach any kind of fle, with the ease of drag-and-drop. Digital pictures, once embedded, can be enriched with on-image annotations; • Fieldbook: the organizer of Geonotes. Like a real feld book, it can store, manage, and search all the informa- tion captured. BeeGIS: A New Open-Source and Multiplatform Mobile GIS By Mauro De Donatis, 1 Andrea Antonello, 1, 2 Luca Lanteri, 3 Sara Susini, 1 and Marco Foi 1 1 University of Urbino “Carlo Bo” LINEE – Laboratory of Information-Technology for Earth and Environmental Sciences Campus Scientifco, 61033 Urbino, Italy Telephone and Fax: int.+39.0722.304295 email: mauro.dedonatis@uniurb.it 2 HydroloGIS s.r.l. – Bolzano - Italy 3 ARPA Piemonte – Torino - Italy From “Digital Mapping Techniques ‘09—Workshop Proceedings” U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2010–1335 http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2010/1335/