Lesson 1: INTRODUCTION TO

GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS

What is GIS?
A geographic information system, commonly referred to as a GIS, is an integrated
set of hardware and software tools used for the manipulation and management of digital
spatial (geographic) and related attribute data. (http://gis.nic.in)
A GIS is a computer system capable of capturing, storing, analyzing, and
displaying geographically referenced information; that is, data identified according to
location. Practitioners also define a GIS as including the procedures, operating personnel,
and spatial data that go into the system. –USGS
A geographic information system (GIS) integrates hardware, software, and data
for capturing, managing, analyzing, and displaying all forms of geographically referenced
information. GIS allows us to view, understand, question, interpret, and visualize data in
many ways that reveal relationships, patterns, and trends in the form of maps, globes,
reports, and charts. – ESRI
GIS is an integrated system of computer hardware, software, and trained
personnel linking topographic, demographic, utility, facility, image and other resource data
that is geographically referenced. – NASA

How GIS works?

The power of a GIS comes from the ability to relate different information in a spatial
context and to reach a conclusion about this relationship. Most of the information we have
about our world contains a location reference, placing that information at some point on
the globe. This is done by using a location reference system, such as longitude and
latitude, and perhaps elevation. A GIS can reveal important new information that leads to
better decision-making.
Many computer databases and different kinds of data in map form can be entered
into a GIS. A GIS can also convert existing digital information, which may not yet be in
map form, into forms it can recognize and use. For example, digital satellite images can
be analyzed to produce a map of digital information about land use and land cover.
Likewise, census or hydrologic tabular data can be converted to a map like form and
serve as layers of thematic information in a GIS.
Also, GIS makes it possible to link, or integrate, information that is difficult to
associate through any other means. Thus, a GIS can use combinations of mapped
variables to build and analyze new variables. For example, using GIS technology, it is
possible to combine agricultural records with hydrography data to determine which
streams will carry certain levels of fertilizer runoff. Agricultural records can indicate how
much pesticide has been applied to a parcel of land. By locating these parcels and
intersecting them with streams, the GIS can be used to predict the amount of nutrient
runoff in each stream. Then as streams converge, the total loads can be calculated
downstream where the stream enters a lake.

Components of a GIS
A GIS can be divided into five components: People, Data, Hardware, Software,
and Procedures. All these components need to be in balance for the system to be
successful. No one part can run without the other.

People
The people are the component who makes the GIS work. They include a plethora
of positions including GIS managers, database administrators, application specialists,
systems analysts, and programmers. They are responsible for maintenance of the
geographic database and provide technical support. People also need to be educated to
make decisions on what type of system to use. People associated with a GIS can be
categorized into viewers, general users, and GIS specialists.
o Viewers are the public at large whose only need is to browse a geographic
database for referential material. These constitute the largest class of users.
o General Users are people who use GIS to conduct business, performing
professional services, and making decisions. They include facility managers, resource
managers, planners, scientists, engineers, lawyers, business entrepreneurs, etc.
o GIS specialists are the people who make the GIS work. They include GIS
managers, database administrators, application specialists, systems analysts, and
programmers. They are responsible for the maintenance of the geographic database and
the provision of technical support to the other two classes of users. (Lo, 2002)

Procedures
Procedures include how the data will be retrieved, input into the system, stored,
managed, transformed, analyzed, and finally presented in a final output. The procedures
are the steps taken to answer the question need to be resolved. The ability of a GIS to
perform spatial analysis and answer these questions is what differentiates this type of
system from any other information systems.

The transformation processes include such tasks as adjusting the coordinate

system, setting a projection, correcting any digitized errors in a data set, and converting
data from vector to raster or raster to vector. (Carver, 1998)

Hardware
Hardware consists of the technical equipment needed to run a GIS including a
computer system with enough power to run the software, enough memory to store large
amounts of data, and input and output devices such as scanners, digitizers, GPS data
loggers, media disks, and printers. (Carver, 1998)

Software
There are many different GIS software packages available today. All packages must be
capable of data input, storage, management, transformation, analysis, and output, but
the appearance, methods, resources, and ease of use of the various systems may be
very different. Today’s software packages can allow both graphical and descriptive data
to be stored in a single database, known as the object-relational model. Before this
innovation, the geo-relational model was used. In this model, graphical and descriptive
data sets were handled separately. The modern packages usually come with a set of
tools that can be customized to the user’s needs (Lo, 2002).
Data
Perhaps the most time consuming and costly aspect of initiating a GIS is creating
a database. There are several things to consider before acquiring geographic data. It is
crucial to check the quality of the data before obtaining it. Errors in the data set can add
many unpleasant and costly hours to implementing a GIS and the results and conclusions
of the GIS analysis most likely will be wrong. Several guidelines to look at include:
o Lineage – This is a description of the source material from which the data were
derived, and the methods of derivation, including all transformations involved in producing
the final digital files. This should include all dates of the source material and updates and
changes made to it. (Guptill, 1995)
o Positional Accuracy – This is the closeness of an entity in an appropriate
coordinate system to that entity’s true position in the system. The positional accuracy
includes measures of the horizontal and vertical accuracy of the features in the data set.
(Guptill, 1995)
o Attribute Accuracy – An attribute is a fact about some location, set of locations,
or features on the surface of the earth. This information often includes measurements of
some sort, such as temperature or elevation or a label of a place name. The source of
error usually lies within the collection of these facts. It is vital to the analysis aspects of a
GIS that this information be accurate.
o Logical Consistency - Deals with the logical rules of structure and attribute rules
for spatial data and describes the compatibility of a datum with other data in a data set.
There are several different mathematical theories and models used to test logical
consistency such as metric and incidence tests, topological and order related tests. These
consistency checks should be run at different stages in the handling of spatial data.
(Guptill, 1995)
o Completeness – This is a check to see if relevant data is missing with regards to
the features and the attributes. This could deal with either omission errors or spatial rules
such as minimum width or area that may limit the information. (Guptill, 1995)
(Chrisman,1999)
Functions of a Geographic Information System

Data Capture
Data input to a geographical information system can be best broken into three
categories: entering the spatial data, entering non-spatial data, and linking the two
together. Entering the spatial data can be done numerous ways. Spatial data can be
acquired from existing data in digital or paper form, or it can be collected from scratch.
There are two methods of getting paper maps into the computer: digitizing and scanning.
Geocoding is the term used for the conversion of analog spatial information into digital
form. Digitizing on a tablet captures map data by tracing lines by hand, using a cursor
and an electronically sensitive tablet, resulting in a string of points with (x,y) values.
Scanning involves placing a map on a glass plate while a light beam passes over it,
measuring the reflected light intensity. The result is a grid of pixels. Image size and
resolution are important to scanning. Small features on the map can drop out if the pixels
are too big. (Clarke, 2001)

Finding data via the Internet can be done by performing a basic search. There are several
sources for downloadable data such as:
The Geography Network
Data Depot
Spatial Information Clearinghouse

Finally, if the data available does not meet the needs of the user, it can create by use of
GPS, Remote Sensing, Aerial Photography, and field collection techniques.

Projection and Rectification

For the spatial data of a 3-dimensional earth to be represented in a 2-dimensional
GIS, the data must make use of one of the various projection methods. Because different
projections place the same special entities on different coordinates on the flat surface, it
is vital that a projection be set for the specific data set being used. One of the main
features of a GIS is the ability to overlap different data layers for better analysis. These
different layers must have the same projection, datum, and reference ellipsoid so that all
coordinates are lined up correctly.

Data Modeling
Spatial modeling represents the structure and distribution of features in
geographical space. In order to model spatial processes, the interaction between these
features must be considered. There are several types of spatial data models including:
vector, raster, surface, and network (Burrough, 1998).

Vector Data Model

The vector data model is a method of storing and representing data on an X, Y
Cartesian plane. A coordinate and an equation defining the curvature of each feature are
stored for both the beginning and the end point of each feature. The building block of the
vector structure is the point; lines and areas are composed of a series of points in a
specific order that gives the object direction (Clarke, 2001). The attribute data in the vector
model is stored in a separate table that can be linked to the map. Because every item on
the map has its own separate attribute data, analysis can be very easy. For example, if a
vector road network is being used to analyze the amount of carbon monoxide produced
by cars per year in both rural and urban communities, each road would be capable of
having separate attributes, thus allowing the GIS user to view or select each road and
access information associated with just that road.
Vector data entities in a GIS hold individual values, for example, if two lines
overlap; unique values are recorded for each line in the database (spaghetti model).
Selecting an appropriate number of points is another consideration to be made with vector
data; if too few points are chosen, the shape and properties of the entity will be
compromised and if too many points are used, duplicated information can be stored
resulting in data overload (Burrough, 1998).

Raster Data Model

The raster data model uses a grid composed of rows and columns to display map
entities. Each cell in the grid is equivalent to one map unit or one pixel. Spatial resolution
determines the precision of spatial representation by raster data. The smaller the size of
the pixel, the higher the resolution and the better the precision of spatial representation
(Lo, 2002). An entity code is assigned to each cell that is connected to a separate attribute
table, which provides information to the user as to what entity is present in what cell.
The term raster data when applied to GIS and mapping includes scanned
monochrome and color printing separates, scanned black and white and color aerial
photographs, remote sensing images, digital elevation models, as well as thematic spatial
data created by manual and computer-based methods (Lo, 2002). These methods of
storing one or more values for each grid location in the data drastically increase the file
size (Lo, 2002).
The raster data model represents spatial phenomenon such as topography, land
use cover, and air quality as categorical or continuous surfaces. This makes raster-based
methods particularly suitable for spatial modeling that involves multiple surface data sets.
However, this method is not suitable for applications that rely on individual spatial features
represented by points, lines, and polygons (Lo, 2002).

Tabular Data
Tabular data, also called attribute or descriptive data, is one of the most important
elements in a GIS. It is statistical, numerical, or characteristic information that can be
attributed to spatial features. Like spatial data the tabular data is stored by the GIS
software in a method that allows it to be accessed and viewed, usually in a relational
database format. Depending on the application, attributes that may be useful to assign to
a feature would be population of an area, traffic measurement of a road, or types of
landmines in a particular area. The GIS software allows the attribute data to be linked to
the spatial data in such a way that it gives the attributes a location. A GIS package knows
a specific location geographically from the storage of spatial data. By linking attribute data
to the spatial data, the GIS package knows some of the characteristics of a feature in the
spatial data set.
Two or more tabular databases can be linked when there is a common data filed.
This allows the GIS to become a powerful spatial analysis tool. A GIS user, after
integrating both spatial and attribute data, has the capability to learn a great deal about
the defined study area.
Data Types
Geography data comes in three basic forms:
Map data. Map data contains the location and shape of geographic features.
Maps use three basic shapes to present real-world features: points, lines, and areas
(called polygons).

Attribute data. Attribute (tabular) data is the descriptive data that GIS links to
map features. Attribute data is collected and compiled for specific areas like states,
census tracts, cities, and so on and often comes packaged with map data. When
implementing a GIS, the most common sources of attribute data are your own
organization's databases combined with data sets you buy or acquire from other sources
to fill in gaps.

Image data. Image data ranges from satellite images and aerial photographs to
scanned maps (maps that have been converted from printed to digital format).

Top Five Benefits of GIS

GIS benefits organizations of all sizes and in almost every industry. There is a
growing awareness of the economic and strategic value of GIS. The benefits of GIS
generally fall into five basic categories:

1. Cost Savings and Increased Efficiency. GIS is widely used to optimize

maintenance schedules and daily fleet movements. Typical implementations can result in
a savings of 10 to 30 percent in operational expenses through reduction in fuel use and
staff time, improved customer service, and more efficient scheduling.

2. Better Decision Making. GIS is the go-to technology for making better decisions
about location. Common examples include real estate site selection, route/corridor
selection, evacuation planning, conservation, natural resource extraction, etc. Making
correct decisions about location is critical to the success of an organization.
 3. Improved Communication. GIS-based maps and visualizations greatly assist in
understanding situations and in storytelling. They are a type of language that improves
communication between different teams, departments, disciplines, professional fields,
organizations, and the public.

4. Better Recordkeeping. Many organizations have a primary responsibility of

maintaining authoritative records about the status and change of geography. GIS
provides a strong framework for managing these types of records with full transaction
support and reporting tools.

5. Managing Geographically. GIS is becoming essential to understanding what is

happening—and what will happen—in geographic space. Once we understand, we can
prescribe action. This new approach to management—managing geographically—is
transforming the way that organizations operate.

What can you do with GIS?

“The limitation is your imagination….”