OpenEV was developed using Python and uses the GDAL library to display georeferenced images and elevation data.

The original version of OpenEV was developed by Atlantis Scientific (renamed Vexcel) as a prototype viewer for the Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure.

[1] Its development was supported by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing GeoConnections program and J-2 Geomatics (Canadian Department of National Defense).

The goal was to create a free, downloadable, advanced satellite imagery viewer that allowed users to work interactively with CGDI data.

Vexcel, Inc. was acquired in May, 2006 by Microsoft and left the software to Mario Beauchamp and a team of developers.