Synopses & Reviews
Getting to Know ArcGIS Desktop introduces principles of GIS as it teaches the mechanics of using ESRI’s leading technology. Key concepts are combined with detailed illustrations and step-by-step exercises to acquaint readers with the building blocks of ArcGIS Desktop including ArcMap, for displaying and querying maps, ArcCatalog, for organizing geographic data, and ModelBuilder, for diagramming and processing solutions to complex spatial analysis problems. Its broad scope, simple style, and practical orientation make this book an ideal classroom text and an excellent resource for those learning GIS on their own. A data CD for working through the exercises and a fully functioning 180-day trial DVD ArcGIS Desktop 10 software is included.
Synopsis
The GIS 20 is a no-nonsense workbook that demonstrates how to perform twenty essential GIS skills as indicated by 500 GIS practitioners. Written for professionals with no time for classroom training, this book can be treated as a weekly self-assignment or an as-needed reference. Each chapter offers a handy checklist of basic functions and steps covered in the text, as well as executive level summaries of how the functions are commonly applied for different types of analysis. If you are a GIS beginner, The GIS 20: Essential Skills is your best friend.
Synopsis
GIS is your tool, not your career. How can you quickly begin applying GIS in your work?
The GIS 20: Essential Skills, third edition, presents step-by-step instructions, illustrations, and practical tips on how to perform the top 20 skills needed to successfully use a geographic information system (GIS). These skills include finding and editing data, querying GIS maps, creating reports, and sharing and publishing maps.
Note: This e-book requires ArcGIS software. You can download the ArcGIS Trial at http: //www.esri.com/arcgis/trial, contact your school or business Esri Site License Administrator, or purchase a student or individual license through the Esri Store.
About the Author
Tim Ormsby, Eileen Napoleon, Robert Burke, Carolyn Groessl, and Laura Feaster are all technical writers at ESRI Press and authors of "Getting to Know ArcView GIS" and "Extending ArcView GIS," They live in Redlands, California.
After receiving her master's degree in geography, Eileen J. Napoleon went to work as a geographer, first for the U.S. Forest Service, and later for ESRI, where she has worked in GIS education for the last 15 years.Burke is an ESRI instructors.Carolyn Groessl was a technical writer for ESRI Press.Laura Bowden is co-author of Community Geography: GIS in Action.
Table of Contents
Getting started Setting up the Desktop
The Help Menu
Language
Incredibly useful tips The Basics Chapter 1: Creating a reference map (working with layers, symbology, labels, layouts, saving) Chapter 2: Creating good layouts (color, font, page flow, legends, sources) Chapter 3: Projections Working with data Chapter 4: Preparing data for ArcMap (preparing Excel® files, working with Census data)
Chapter 5: Attribute tables (adding/deleting columns, editing values, calculations, statistics, summarizing)
Chapter 6: Joining data and maps Showing data on a map Chapter 7: Creating a thematic map (thematic mapping, constructing a legend, color shading)
Chapter 8: Creating a categorical map (categorical mapping of polygons and points) Displaying points on a map Chapter 9: GPS point mapping (GPS points, gps devices)
Chapter 10: Address mapping Editing Chapter 11: Editing Boundaries (changing physical boundaries, merging multiple geographies in to one, merging multiple shapefiles in to one, clipping, custom selections)
Chapter 12: Joining Boundaries (spatial joining) Aerial photography and digitizing Chapter 13: Aerial Photography
Chapter 14: Digitizing a Paper Map (making a digital image, drawing polygon and line boundaries by hand) Analysis Chapter 15: Attribute Queries Chapter 16: Location Queries Chapter 17: Calculating Distances (calculating distance among many points) Chapter 18: Creating Buffers Publishing maps and organization Chapter 19: Publishing maps (getting maps into Google Earth®, Google Maps, in to HTML format, PDF®, Map Book) Chapter 20: File Organization (file types, geodatabases, ArcCatalog) Additional resources Appendix 1: Where to get shapefiles
Appendix 2: How to download Census data