.. comment out this Section (by putting '|updatedisclaimer|' on top) if file is not uptodate with release

.. index::
   single:Browse_Maps
.. index::
   single:Import_Maps

.. _`label_qgis_browser`:

************
QGIS Browser
************

The QGIS Browser is a new panel in QGIS that lets you easily navigate in your
database. You can have access to common vector files (e.g. ESRI shapefile or
MapInfo files), databases (e.g.PostGIS or MSSQL Spatial) and WMS/WFS connections.
You can also view your GRASS data (to get the data into QGIS see :ref:`sec_grass`).

.. _figure_browser_standalone_metadata:

.. only:: html

   **Figure browser 1:**

.. figure:: /static/user_manual/qgis_browser/browser_standalone_metadata.png
   :align: center
   :width: 35em

   Qgis browser as a standalone application to view metadata, preview and attributes |nix|

Use QGIS Browser to preview your data. The drag and drop function makes it easy
to get your data into the Map view and the Map legend.

.. here we can mention the possibility to drag&drop data into the db-manager!

#. Activate QGIS Browser: Right-click on the tool bar and click |checkbox|:guilabel:`Browser`.
#. Drag the panel into the legend window.
#. Klick on the :guilabel:`Browser` tab.
#. Browse in your database and choose the shapefile folder from qgis_sample_data.
#. Press the :kbd:`Shift` key and klick on airports.shp and alaska.shp .  
#. Press the left mouse button then drag and drop the files into the map canvas.
#. Right-click on a layer and choose :guilabel:`Set project CRS from layer`.
   For more information see :ref:`label_projections`.
#. Click on |mActionZoomFullExtent| :guilabel:`Zoom Full` to make the layers
   visible.

It's also possible to run QGIS Browser as a standalone application.

**Start qgis browser**

* |nix| Type in "qbrowser" at a command prompt.
* |win| Start QGIS browser using the Start menu or desktop shortcut, or 
  double click on a QGIS project file.
* |osx| QGIS browser is not available yet from your your Applications folder.
  However it can easily be made available. In Finder use
  :menuselection:`Go --> Go to map...` and use it to find the folder
  ``/Applications/QGIS.app/Contents/MacOS/bin``.
  Use the key combination :kbd:`option - command` and drag **qbrowser.app** 
  while holding down the left mouse button to the Applications folder. 
  This will create a link that you can use to start QGIS browser.

In figure_browser_standalone_metadata_ you can see the enhanced functionality
of Qgis browser. The :guilabel:`Param` tab provides the details of your
connection based datasets like PostGIS or MSSQL Spatial. The :guilabel:`Metadata`
tab contains general information about the file (see :ref:`vectormetadatatab`).
With the :guilabel:`Preview` tab you can have a look at your files without
importing them into your QGIS project. It's also possible to preview the 
attributes of your files in the :guilabel:`Attributes` tab.