What is Precision Agriculture??

1
Getting Started with ArcGIS Desktop Module 1
ESRI Virtual Campus Learning ArcGIS Desktop
Training Course
2
Course Introduction

• You benefit from GIS software every day
• Regular delivery of your morning newspaper
• Synchronization of traffic lights
• Convenient location of your favorite park
• All over the world, organizations are using GIS
  to
• Manage the environment
• Work more efficiently
• Provide better customer service
• Save money

3
Course Introduction

• This course introduces the fundamental concepts
  of GIS and the major functionality contained in
  ArcGIS Desktop software.
• In the interactive course exercises, you will
  work with a variety of ArcGIS tools as you learn
  how to
• create maps
• find information
• create and edit geographic data
• solve a variety of geographic problems
• By the end of this course, you should feel
  comfortable working with ArcGIS Desktop software
  on your own

4
Learning Objectives

• Explore a GIS map and get information about map
  features
• Preview geographic data and metadata
• Add data to a map
• Describe the structure of a GIS map
• Explain how a GIS represents real-world objects
• Change the way features are drawn on a map
• Access feature information in different ways
• Describe spatial relationships of map features
• Describe how GIS can be used to solve problems

5
ArcGIS

• In a GIS, data about real-world objects is linked
  to an onscreen map.
• Geographic features are drawn quickly and can be
  displayed using different information in the
  database.
• ArcGIS is the name of the family of ESRI's
  software solution programs.
• While the depth of functionality in ArcGIS is
  tremendous, as you'll see, it takes a friendly
  approach to GIS with easy-to-use tools that help
  you through the most complicated of tasks.
• This module provides an overview of basic GIS
  concepts and standard ArcGIS functions, while
  remaining modules provide more in-depth
  information.

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Exploring a GIS Map

• What's the difference between a GIS map and a
  static paper or electronic map?
• GIS maps are dynamic.
• While you can look at a static map and see where
  features are located and even measure approximate
  distances between them, you can't do much more
  than that.
• With a GIS map, however, you are in charge.
• You can zoom in and out to see different areas
  with more or less detail
• You can decide what features you want to see and
  how they are symbolized
• Most importantly, you can access a database of
  information about all the features shown on the
  map

7
Exploring ArcGIS Desktop

• ArcGIS Desktop is a scalable product that
  includes three license levels
• ArcView
• ArcEditor
• ArcInfo

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Exploring ArcGIS Desktop

• All three software products look and work the
  same
• They differ only in how much they can do.
• ArcEditor does more than ArcView, and ArcInfo
  does more than ArcEditor.
• This course teaches ArcView, but
• everything you learn applies to all three
  products
• and you can complete all course exercises using
  any of the three.
• All ArcGIS Desktop products can share the same
  map documents and data.

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Exploring ArcGIS Desktop

• Each ArcGIS Desktop product includes two
  applications ArcMap and ArcCatalog.
• ArcMap
• The application you work with to explore and
  analyze data and make maps
• ArcCatalog
• The application you work with to manage data
• ArcToolbox
• An integrated application that contains many
  tools for GIS tasks.
• You can access ArcToolbox from both ArcMap and
  ArcCatalog.

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Excercise

• Plan a Trip to San Diego

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How is a GIS Map Organized?

• A GIS map consists of one or more data frames
• A data frame contains a collection of thematic
  layers.
• Layers, in turn, contain a collection of features
  that represent real-world objects.

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How is a GIS Map Organized?

• On a GIS map, features have a location, shape,
  and a symbol.
• Features grouped into a layer have the same shape
  and characteristics and are located within the
  same geographic extent.
• To make a GIS map, you can add as many layers as
  you want.

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How is a GIS Map Organized?

• These four layers might be used by a city
  government to create a GIS map.
• The layers all contain features located within
  the city's boundaries, but each one represents a
  distinct "theme."
• The layers are drawn on top of each other to
  create an informative GIS map.

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Representing the Real World

• In the real world, geographic objects have a wide
  variety of shapes.
• In a GIS map, geographic objects are primarily
  represented as point, line, and polygon features.

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Representing the Real World

• In this map of South America
• Countries are represented as polygons
• Rivers are represented as lines
• Cities are points
• Each feature shape has its own unique set of
  characteristics.
• The geometry type used to represent an object
  depends on the amount of detail that needs to be
  shown
• The same object may be represented as a polygon
  in one layer and a point in another layer.

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Points

• Composed of one coordinate pair representing a
  specific location on the earth's surface.
• Used for objects too small to be polygons, such
  as cities, trees, and hospitals.

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Lines

• A sequence of two or more coordinate pairs.
• Has length, while polygons have two intrinsic
  values, perimeter and area.
• Represent objects too narrow to be polygons, such
  as streets, rivers, and telephone lines.

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Polygons

• Composed of one or more lines whose starting and
  ending coordinate pairs are the same.
• Have two intrinsic values
• Perimeter
• Area
• Represent objects large enough to have
  boundaries, such as
• Countries
• Building footprints
• Lakes

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Linking Features to Information

• On a GIS map, there's more to a feature than its
  location and shape.
• There's all the information associated with that
  feature.
• For a road, this might include its name, speed
  limit, and whether it's one-way or two-way.
• For a city, this might include its population,
  demographic characteristics, number of schools,
  and average monthly temperatures.

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Linking Features to Information

• A particular type, or category, of information
  associated with a feature in a GIS is called an
  attribute.
• For example, population can be an attribute of a
  city, country, continent, and other features.
• Feature attributes are stored in an attribute
  table.
• In an attribute table, each feature is a record
  (row) and each attribute is a column, or field.
• The attributes for all the features in a layer
  are stored in the same attribute table.

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Linking Features to Information

• This attribute table for a layer of cities stores
  each feature's
• ID number
• Shape
• Name
• Country in which it's located
• Status

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Linking Feature to Information

• A feature on a GIS map is linked to its record in
  the attribute table by a unique numerical
  identifier (ID).
• Every feature in a layer has an identifier.

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Linking Feature to Information

• Because features on the map are linked to their
  records in the table
• you can click a feature on the map and see the
  attributes stored for it in the table.
• When you select a record in the table, the linked
  feature on the map is automatically selected as
  well.

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Linking Feature to Information

• In this map of India, the city of Bombay is
  selected.
• Its record is also selected in the attribute
  table.
• The unique identifier for Bombay is stored in the
  FID field.

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Linking Feature to Information

• Links between features and attributes make it
  possible to ask questions about the information
  stored in an attribute table and display the
  answer on the map.
• This linkage makes GIS maps much more informative
  than static maps.

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Understanding Map Scale

• Scale is the relationship between the size of
  features on a map and the size of the
  corresponding objects in the real world.
• Scale is commonly expressed as a ratio, or
  representative fraction, such as 124,000.
• This scale means one unit on the map is equal to
  24,000 units on the earth.
• Another way of thinking about it is that the
  objects on the earth are 24,000 times larger than
  the features on the map which represent them.

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Understanding Map Scale

• You will commonly see references to two types of
  maps
• Large-scale
• Covers a small area in more detail
• i.e. a map of city streets or a building plan
• Small-scale
• Covers a large area in less detail
• i.e a world map,.
• GIS maps are dynamicyou can change the scale to
  see more or less detail as desired.

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Understanding Map Scale

• Map on the left
• Large scale
• A small area of the earth's surface (the city of
  San Diego, California)
• Features such as roads are visible.
• Map on the right
• Small scale
• Bigger area of the earth's surface (the
  continental U.S.)
• But with less detail

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ArcMap

• Use ArcMap to
• explore and edit geographic data
• perform analysis
• create professional-quality maps, graphs, and
  reports
• When you work in ArcMap, you work with a map
  document file, which has the .mxd file extension.

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ArcMap

• ArcMap interface consists of
• Table of contents
• The map display area
• A number of toolbars and menus for working with
  the map and its data.
• The order of layers within the table of contents
  is important
• the layers at the top of the table of contents
  draw on top of the layers below them.
• Therefore, you should put the layers that form
  the background of your map, such as the ocean, at
  the bottom of the table of contents.

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ArcMap

• There are two views for working with data
• data view
• layout view.
• In data view, you
• explore
• edit
• query
• analyze
• symbolize data.
• In data view, you can view only one data frame at
  a time.

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ArcMap

• Layout view
• arrange data frames
• add other map elements
• scale bars
• titles
• legends
• Create a map layout that can be published in
  print or digital form.
• In layout view, you can view multiple data
  frames.

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ArcCatalog

• Designed for browsing, managing, and documenting
  geographic data.
• A window into your GIS database.
• From ArcCatalog you can access data stored on
  your computer's hard drives, local networks, and
  even the Internet.
• To access data, you create a connection to its
  location
• Collectively, the connections you create are
  called the Catalog.

34
ArcCatalog

• The ArcCatalog interface consists of
• Catalog tree on the left and
• Preview pane on the right.
• You use the Catalog tree to navigate and browse
  data.

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ArcCatalog

• Preview pane ?view
• Contents of a folder
• Geography (feature shapes)
• Attributes stored with individual datasets
• Metadata

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Arc Catalog

• ArcCatalog and ArcMap work together.
• You can find and preview data in ArcCatalog
• Then drag and drop the data into ArcMap to work
  with it.

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ArcToolbox

• Provides an organized collection of tools used
  for
• GIS analysis
• Data management
• Data conversion
• Accessible from both ArcMap and ArcCatalog.
• The number of tools you have depends on your
  ArcGIS license
• ArcView supports a core set of GIS tools
• ArcEditor adds more
• ArcInfo provides the most comprehensive set of
  tools

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Metadata

• Data about data
• Information that describes, or documents, a
  geographic dataset
• Real world example of unofficial metadata
• Can be found almost everywhere
• Handwriting on the back of a photograph

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Metadata

• Standardized metadata
• Type of metadata used to describe data used in a
  GIS
• Official
• Government organizations create rules for
  standardizing metadata
• Federal Geographic Data Committee
• Organization for U.S.

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Metadata

• GIS metadata typically includes
• information about why the data was collected (its
  purpose)
• what geographic area the data covers (its
  geographic extent)
• who collected the data
• when the data was collected
• what processes were performed on the data
• who should be contacted for more details about
  the data

41
Metadata

• You create and edit metadata in ArcCatalog.
• ArcCatalog automatically derives and documents
  some data properties, such as the geographic
  extent.
• Other properties, such as when and how the data
  was collected, must be documented by the data
  creator.

42
Metadata

• ArcCatalog provides different style sheets for
  viewing metadata.
• The FGDC ESRI style sheet consists of three tabs
  
• Description
• Spatial
• Attributes

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Description Tab

• Displays
• Thumbnail graphic of the data
• Keywords
• Abstract
• Purpose statement
• (not shown here).
• Publication information

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Spatial Tab

• Displays the coordinates that define the data's
  geographic extent.

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Attributes Tab

• Where you find information about each attribute
  stored with a dataset.
• Clicking an attribute name displays specific
  information about that attribute
• such as its definition and data type

46
Metadata

• Members of the GIS community like to share data
  and methods.
• Metadata is critical for sharing datapeople who
  are thinking about using a dataset for a project
  first view its metadata in order to determine
  whether the dataset is appropriate for the
  project.
• If a dataset lacks metadata, it may be used
  inappropriatelyand any analysis results or
  measurements made with the data may be
  inaccurate.

47
ArcGIS Desktop Help

• Provides comprehensive explanations of
• Procedures
• Tools
• Buttons
• Commands
• Access it from multiple locations within ArcMap
  and ArcCatalog
• Context-sensitive Help
• Click a tool or button and get information about
  it right there

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ArcGIS Desktop Help

• Four tabs that provide different ways of
  accessing information

49
Exercise

• Calculate Tornado Damage

50
Using GIS to Solve Problems

• Solving problems relies on good decision making.
• Good decision making relies on accurate
  information.
• In the real world, people make decisions, not
  computers.
• Computers help people make decisions by providing
  useful and accurate information.
• A GIS is a computer-based tool that helps us
  visualize information and see patterns and
  relationships that aren't otherwise apparent.
• The ability to ask complex questions about data
  and analyze many features at once, then instantly
  see the results on a map makes GIS a powerful
  tool for creating information.

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GIS A Tool to Solve Everyday Problems

• Your alarm goes off at 600 a.m. You get up and
  turn on the lights.
• Electric utility companies use GIS to manage
  their complex infrastructure, which consists of
  transmission and distribution lines and utility
  poles.
• You make a pot of coffee.
• The water the coffee is made with is provided by
  a water utility company.
• The utility uses GIS for customer service,
  emergency response, water distribution,
  infrastructure maintenance, automated mapping,
  network tracing, flow analysis, and other aspects
  of engineering, operations, administration, and
  finance.

52
GIS A Tool to Solve Everyday Problems

• You stop at the gas station on your way to work.
• Oil companies use GIS for exploration, operation
  and maintenance, production, land lease
  management, and data management.
• Before the oil becomes gasoline, pipelines move
  it from the oil fields to the processing plant.
• The pipeline industry uses GIS for route planning
  and construction, operations, and supply market
  analysis.
• You drive to work.
• The community uses GIS for managing its
  transportation infrastructure.
• More than 80 percent of the information used to
  manage road, rail, and port facilities has a
  geographic component.

53
GIS A Tool to Solve Everyday Problems

• It's the day before a holiday weekend. You leave
  at noon and go to the beach.
• GIS is used to help manage coastal resources,
  including shoreline, aquatic, and terrestrial
  habitats and biological resources, and the
  distribution of threatened and endangered
  species.
• You enjoy a picnic lunch.
• A GIS can produce maps that show farmers how to
  treat a given field, allowing for precise
  applications of fertilizer that produce optimal
  crop yields while protecting the environment.

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GIS A Tool to Solve Everyday Problems

• On the way home, you stop at a video store.
• The store is at that particular location because
  GIS helped define the right store mix for the
  location's potential customers.
• GIS integrates strategic sales volume models and
  demographic data to help businesses find suitable
  sites.
• When you leave the video store, your car is still
  in the parking lot, right where you left it.
• GIS is being used to reduce crime.
• The vast majority of information used in law
  enforcement is map-based. Incidents can be
  displayed by beat, reporting district, or zone
  and law enforcement resources can be deployed in
  the areas where they're needed most.

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GIS A Tool to Solve Everyday Problems

• After a long day, you arrive home safe and sound.
  GIS has been there nearly every step of the way,
  helping make life more comfortable and safe.
• Remember that GIS stands for geographic
  information system.
• It's geography that makes GIS such a useful tool
  for solving problems.

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Using Location to Get Information

• All features can be related to other features
  based on their locations.
• Spatial relationships
• Relationships based on location
• Spatial relationships provide a basis for making
  decisions and solving many problems.
• Getting answers to questions that are based on
  spatial relationships is the reason people use a
  GIS.
• Because a GIS stores feature coordinate
  locations, it can quickly find and select
  features that meet some spatial criteria.

57
Spatial Relationships

• A GIS answers questions based on spatial
  relationships by selecting features on the map.
• The map allows people to visualize information at
  a glance and detect patterns that aren't obvious
  in a written report or on a graph.
• There are four basic types of spatial
  relationships
• Distance
• Containment
• Intersection
• Adjacency.

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Distance

• Points within a given distance of the red point
  are selected.
• Which cities are located within 25 kilometers of
  a river?

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Containment

• Points contained by the red polygon are selected.
• Which countries contain a lake completely within
  their borders?

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Intersection

• Lines that intersect the red line are selected.
• Which countries have a river that intersects
  their border?

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Adjacency

• Polygons adjacent to the red polygon are
  selected.
• Which countries share a border with Russia?

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Using Location to Get Information

• Questions that can be answered using feature
  spatial relationships are
• How many houses are less than 1 mile from the
  airport?
• Which parcels are contained by the contamination
  plume?
• Which bridges intersect the fault line?
• Which land uses are adjacent to the proposed
  subdivision?

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A GIS performs 6 fundamental operations

• Capture data
• Add data from many sources to a GIS
• Or create your own data from scratch
• Store data
• Can store and manage information about the real
  world in ways that make sense for your
  application
• Query data
• Ask complex questions about features based on
  their attributes or their location and get quick
  results

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A GIS performs 6 fundamental operations

• Analyze data
• Integrate multiple datasets to find features that
  meet specific criteria and create information
  useful for problem solving.
• Display data
• Display features based on their attributes
• Present data
• Create and distribute high-quality maps, graphs,
  and reports to present your analysis results in a
  compelling way to your audience.

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Geographic Inquiry Process

• Provides necessary framework for solving problems
  with GIS
• Consists of five steps

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Geographic Inquiry Process

• Process can be iterative
• Depending on the type of problem
• Last step of the process
• Leads to more geographic questions
• The whole process begins again

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Exercise

• Find potential sites for a youth center

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Key Points to Remember

• A GIS organizes and stores information about the
  world as a collection of thematic layers.
• Each layer contains features with the same shape
  and attributes, all located within a common
  geographic area.
• Each feature is assigned a unique numerical
  identifier and is characterized by a unique
  location in space and a corresponding record in a
  table.
• Features can be stored in a GIS as three primary
  shapes points, lines, or polygons.
• Features have spatial relationships with other
  features, and with a GIS you can find features
  based on their spatial relationships.
• The geographic inquiry process provides a
  framework for solving problems with GIS.

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Review Questions

• How is a GIS map different from a static map?
• What is one way you can get information about a
  feature using ArcGIS Desktop software?
• What are the primary operations that a GIS can
  perform that make it a useful tool for solving
  problems?
• What are the five steps in the geographic inquiry
  process?

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Review Answers

• The dynamic nature of a GIS map makes it
  different from a static map. In a GIS, map
  features are linked to a database of information.
  You can pan, zoom, get information about
  features, control feature display, and change how
  they're symbolized.
• You can use the Identify tool to click a map
  feature and see its attributes. You can also open
  the attribute table to view a feature record.
• A GIS can capture, store, query, analyze,
  display, and present data.
• The five steps in the geographic inquiry process
  are 1) ask a geographic question, 2) acquire
  geographic data, 3) explore geographic data, 4)
  analyze geographic information, and 5) act on
  geographic knowledge.