GIS Workshop
GIS (geographic information system) technology combines graphics and database management to create interactive maps on a computer. The term "desktop GIS" refers to software that runs on an individual computer and includes both commercial software packages (e.g. ArcGIS, available to Windows users on the Holy Cross network) and applications that can be downloaded and installed locally at no cost (e.g. ArcExplorer, Quantum GIS). GIS technology has recently migrated from the computer desktop to the Internet. Free, web-based GIS includes such technologies as Google Earth, Mapquest.com, Maporama.com, Java applets, and web sites that provide spatial data services such as geocoding of street addresses and coordinate lookup. The Internet has also become a vast repository of free, high-quality GIS data including both raster imagery and vector layers.
This one-week workshop will introduce and explore the fundamental concepts of both web-based and desktop GIS. Hands-on experience with industry-standard GIS software (ArcGIS), and other GIS applications, will be provided. The course will cover basic GIS concepts such as map characteristics and projections, coordinate systems, spatial data, data formats, and map composition. We will also investigate some of the methods used to embed interactive maps in web pages. Instructional material will be presented during the morning sessions, with afternoons reserved for work on individual projects and searching for relevant datasets on the Internet. Faculty may also work on a series of GIS lab exercises during the afternoon as an alternative to project-oriented activity.