MMS3013


Pengenalan kepada Sistem Maklumat Geografi (GIS)
Introduction to Geographical Information System (GIS)

Idham Khalil
[email protected]
+601110655307
Introduction to GIS

2
Definition:


A computer-based system to aid in the
collection, maintenance, storage, analysis,
output, and distribution of spatial data and
information (Bolstad 2002)
Key to this definition:
Absolute and relative location of features
Properties and attributes of features
Basic Structure of a GIS

Data Input

Geographic
Query
Database

Transformation
Output: Display
and Analysis
 Geographic
Information Systems

A – Information Technology and Geography
B – The Purpose of GIS
C – Organization of Information in a GIS
A Information Technology and Geography

1. What is Information?
2. What is Geographical Information?
3. What are Geographic Information
Systems?
1 What is Information?
 Information
Database A
 Knowledge about
Part No. Qty Description something.
103521 5 Wheel spoke  Recorded in some way.
105322 1 Ball bearing  Information age
106832 6 Wheel rim
104338 2 Tire  The computer has become
103922 7 Handlebars the main mean of storing
and accessing information.
 Tremendous amounts of
Database B digital information created:
Date Address Type  Spreadsheets.
1/22 123 James St. Robbery  Databases.
1/26 22 Smith St. Noise  Internet.
2/24 9 Elm Dr. #4A Assault  Most of the “interesting”
3/02 12 Fifth Ave. Vandalism jobs involve information
3/10 1067 Park Robbery processing.
1 What is Information?
Database B

Date Address Type


Geocoding
1/22 123 James St. Robbery
1/26 22 Smith St. Noise
2/24 9 Elm Dr. #4A Assault
3/02 12 Fifth Ave. Vandalism
3/10 1067 Park Robbery

Elm

Smith

Park

5th
James
1 What is Information?
Information Systems
Information System  Dominant tool.
 Set of computer programs
Low order task that are used to input
Encoding Repetitive (encode) information and
store it in a structured
Automatic manner.
Management Established
 Can be retrieved, analyzed
Structure
and, finally, reported as a
High order task table, graph, map or
Analysis Unique picture.

Medium order task

Reporting Common
 What is Geographical
2 Information?
 Spatial information
 Between 70 and 80% of the
digital information is
spatially related.
 Can be placed on a map.
 Tools to deal with this
information are
consequently very useful.
 Reveal information that
Destination was previously “hidden”.
Customer addresses
Store / factory / warehouse location
Census information
Environmental information
Resource location
 What is Geographical
2 Information?
1. Spatially related
 Can be assigned coordinates
or any spatial reference.
 On the surface of the earth.
Coordinate system  Involves location and
organization.
2. Scale
 Can be from general to
specific.
 Simple to complex.
 A satellite can generate one
Scale
terabyte (1012 bytes) of
information per day.
3. Dynamics
 Spatial dynamics (variations
in space).
Time 1 Time 2
 Temporal dynamics
(variations in time).
B The Purpose of GIS

2 General Purpose

GIS is a database application
 All information in a GIS is linked to a spatial
reference.
 Other databases may contain locational
information (street addresses, zip codes, etc.).
 GIS database uses geo-references as the primary
means of storing and accessing information.
2 General Purpose
GIS is a tool

 Must serve a purpose.
 Not an end in itself but a mean (process) to achieve this
end.
 Should be viewed as a process rather than as software or
hardware.
 For decision-thinking (scenarios) and decision-making
(strategies).
 75% of the time used to be spent at building the spatial
database:
 Acquiring data for a new GIS has become much simpler.
3 Advantage and disadvantage
Advantage 
 Ability to integrate vast quantities of spatial information.
 Provide a powerful repertoire of analytical tools to explore this
data.
 Ability to separate information in layers:
 Combine it with other layers of information.
 Good employment opportunities (information society).

Disadvantage
 Long process of encoding and verifying the integrity of
information.
 Compatibility between different GIS (less an issue).
 Technology changes rapidly.
 Information overload.
C Organization of Information
in a GIS

1. Layers
2. Features
3. Attributes
4. Relationships
1 Maps are Composed of Layers

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2 Features

 Layers contain features or surfaces
 Features
 Real world objects.
 Natural or man-made.
 Represented on a map as a single entity.
 Each map feature has a location, shape, and symbol that
represents one or more of its characteristics.

 Surfaces
 Some elements do not have a distinct shape.
 E.g. : elevation, slope, temperature, rainfall.
 Raster is the most common surface; composed of a grid.
2 Features
1. Points

 Points represent objects that have discrete locations and are too small to be
depicted as areas.
 Schools, traffic lights, crime locations, and park benches are examples of
point features.

2. Lines
 Lines represent objects that have length but are too narrow to be depicted
as areas.
 Freeways, streets, pipelines, and waterways are examples of line features.

3. Polygons
 Polygons represent objects too large to be depicted as points or lines.
 Parks, census tracts, postal codes, and trade areas are examples of polygon
(or area) features.
2 Features in ArcMap
(DataView)
3 Attributes
 Attributes
Street name, Width, Direction, Lanes
 Features are stored in a
database along with
information describing
them.
 The descriptive information
stored with a feature.
 Attributes of a street might
include its name, street
type, length, street code,
number of lanes, and
pavement type.
 The attributes of a park
may be its name, area,
Address, Lot #, Type, # Rooms, Owner, Value hours of operation, and
maintenance schedule.
3 Attributes
 Relationships
 Features and their
attributes are linked.
Features  Types:
 One feature as one record
in a database.
 Many features to one
record.
 Access the attributes for
any feature or locate any
feature from its attributes.
Attributes  Attributes are displayed in
a spreadsheet-like
ArcView document called
a Table.
3 Attributes

4 Layout

 Layout
 A GIS links sets of features and their attributes and
manages them together in units called layout.
 Consists of a collection of geographic features.
 Attributes for those features.
 Thematic map
 A map (set of features) which visually represents a set
of data (attributes) is called a thematic map.
4 Layout View in ArcMap

Thank you
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