Introduction to GIS

What is GIS?
What are GIS Components?
Geographic Information Systems

• Definition:
– A computer-based system to aid in the
collection, maintenance, storage, analysis,
output, and distribution of spatial data and
information (Bolstad 2002)
– Key to this definition:
• Absolute and relative location of features
• Properties and attributes of features
El Capitan Climbing routes

El Capitan Rock types

 Hurricane Katrina

From Deidre Sullivan

Other Applications

• Risk assessment
– Natural disasters, disease infection, etc.
• Transportation systems
– Highways and interstates, subway and bus
routes
• Infrastructure
– Power grids, sewage, water and gas lines
• Natural resource management
Geographic Information System

• Resolution can vary:

– Detailed:
• Location of buildings in a city
• Individual trees in a forest
– Coarse
• Population of the Eastern seaboard
• Depths of the Atlantic ocean
Who does GIS?

GIS
Scientist:
writes algorithms

Increasing Skill Level

GIS Specialist/
GIS Analyst: designs projects

GIS Technician:
works under the direction of a GIS Specialist

Ancillary GIS Duties: Police and Fire Depts., NGOs,

City Planning, Resource Management, Marketing/Business

General Public: GIS in cars, UPS, Elections in Florida

From Deidre Sullivan

GIS Jobs

• GIS Analyst I
Who uses GIS?

• Public organizations
– Police and fire dispatch and routes
• NYFD
– Utilities (gas, cable, and water lines)
– Tax assessment and property records
– Land management
GIS Applications

•Scientists
–Endangered species
–Animal tracking and
migration
–Fisheries
management

•NOAA live maps

•Try a GIS Map
NOAA Mako shark track
GIS functions

• Capture
• Store
• Query
• Analyze
• Display
• Output
GIS Components

• Five key components of GIS:

– Hardware
– Software
– Data
– People
– Method
Hardware
Software

• Environmental Systems Research

Institute (ESRI)
• Intergraph Corporation
• Autodesk
• Caliper: GIS Software, Mapping
Software
Supporting Technologies and Disciplines

• Geography
• Cartography-art of map making
• Remote Sensing
• Photogrammetry
• Surveying
• Geodesy
• Statistics
• Computer Science
• Math From Deidre Sullivan
ESRI

• ESRI is the world leader in GIS

software
– Homepage
– Training
• ArcGIS Desktop
– ArcView (Basic)
– ArcEditor (Standard)
– ArcInfo (Advanced)
– …….and desktop extensions (i.e.: spatial
analyst)
 A history of products

Arc/Info ArcGIS

Arc ArcGIS Desktop

ArcMap
ArcPlot
ArcView 3x ArcCatalog
ArcEdit

Info/Tables ArcToolbox

GRID
ArcInfo Workstation

Coverages Shapefiles Geodatabases

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H.
Price 1-17
ArcGIS Desktop
 ArcGIS Desktop

ArcCatalog

ArcMap

ArcToolbox

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H.

Price 1-19
 ArcGIS functionality

Same interface and

programs
More tools in the
$Basic toolbox

$$Standard

$$$Advanced

Three levels of functionality and cost

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H.
Price 1-20
 ArcGIS Extensions
• Spatial Analyst
• 3D Analyst •Extensions are additional
• Publisher/ArcReader tools and commands that
• Network Analyst
can be added to the core
• Maplex
• Geostatistical Analyst
ArcGIS interface
• Appear as new toolbars
and toolsets in ArcCatalog

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H.

1-21 Price
 Licensing

• Floating point licenses

– ArcInfo only
– Central server checks out licenses
– Requires a dongle and a license file
• Standalone licenses
– Uses a registration file/ register online
– No dongle needed
– Available for ArcView and ArcEditor only

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H.

Price 1-22