ABSTRACT
This chapter summarizes the present state of development of geographical information systems (GIS) in Germany, reports on recent efforts to improve data integration within the federal system and points to current problems. It presents a survey of GIS diffusion in German cities following the methodology developed at the University of Sheffield. The survey confirmed the delay in GIS diffusion in local governments in Germany. The presentation of the GIS scene in local governments in Germany shows the special situation in a country in which the diffusion of GIS is influenced by the federal organization of government and, within local governments, by surveying and cadastral departments. It remains to be seen whether the German example of carefully planned adoption of the new technology is worth the delay in adoption, or whether the speed of technological advance in the GIS field will render all planning efforts futile.
