GIS Blog - Bonnie C. Morris

This week we learned how to share GIS components and data. To begin the lab, we added basemaps from ArcMaps using the search tool and online with only a blank map open. As simple as this was, I was very impressed that I could get the World Street Map layer online. Next, we created an ArcGIS Online map with data we chose ourselves. I decided to map the "Top 10 Worst Cities of Georgia" since two of the cities are close to my hometown. (Ahh!) It was nice to know for sure where the cities are located when reviewing the points - during other labs when we have worked with foreign countries this was not the case. We created an ArcGIS online map, custom map package that could be shared online, and a KML Google Earth Map. My favorite of the three was the map package simply because it could be edited the most; however, for sharing purposes and considering the message I was trying to convey, I believe the three would be equally effective. Issues: Step 7-  I didn't change the ...

In this weeks lab, we learned how to use colors, lines, and symbology to communicate information on a map. For the first map, which compares the population density in each Mexican state, we were expected to choose a graduated color that we felt accurately described the population of each state. It is important to note that the darker the color, the greater the population. Note: I expanded the applicable layers to the size of the paper in print settings, but then reduced their size to fit the title and match the example. The purpose of the second map is to detail a specific part of Mexico. We used several key features to describe this area including highways, rivers and streams, railroads, and cities with a population greater than one million. It was important to not only have these features present, but to use lines, fonts, and colors that make locating them on the map as simple and "user friendly" as possible. This map gave me the most trouble this week because of an er...

In this weeks lab, we created a map of Escambia, County that utilized enough key features (roads, etc) to locate the UWF campus. The purpose of this lab was to get a feel for what design decisions to make based on an intended audience. It is important to make the map as concise and clear as possible and include details that are necessary to meet the goal of your map.  One major skill I took away from this lab was learning how to separate certain features from a larger layer for emphasis. We separated Escambia, County from the entire state of Florida and enlarged it, since this was the area we were focused on the most. I also became more comfortable with locating metadata, but I had issues locating certain information for the UWF Logo.  Overall, I encountered far fewer problems this week than last week and I believe I am learning how to navigate around them; however, I still ran into a few. When I was exporting the map, part of it was cut off and I had to play around w...