GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

SYSTEM (GES203)

GIS Components

Level 2:1

By: Mrs Mupfiga

Presentation Layout

 Recap
 Learning Objectives
 Components of GIS
 GIS Data
 References
 Lecture Evaluation
Learning Objectives
 To identify the 5 basic components of a GIS

 To describe the basic components of a GIS

 To describe geographic data

 To identify the sources of geographic data

 To describe the GIS Cycle

Recap
 What is so special about GIS?

 Where can GIS be applied?

GIS Components
 People
 People are the most important part of a GIS because they
define and develop the procedures used by a GIS
 GIS technology is of limited value without the people who
manage the system and develop plans for applying it to
real-world problems.
 Ground truth data collection
 Data storing, processing and analysis
 GIS users range from technical specialists, who design and
maintain the system to those who use it to help them
perform their everyday work.
Approaches / Methods/ Organizational
protocols.
 A successful GIS operates according to a well-designed
plan and business rules, which are the models and
operating practices unique to each organization
Hardware

 Hardware is the physical components on which a GIS

operates
 CPU
 Monitor
 Digitizing table
 Scanners
 Printers

 What are the hardware specifications for GIS?

Hardware
 GIS can be run on a wide range of hardware types, from
centralized computer servers to desktop computers used in
stand-alone or networked configurations.

 A fast computer, large data storage capacities, and a high-

quality display.
 A fast computer is required because spatial analyses are often
applied over large areas and/or at high spatial resolutions and
calculations often have to be repeated over tens of millions of
times,
 In GIS large volumes of data must be entered to define the
shape and location of geographic features, such as roads,
rivers.
 Hardware
 For presentations, a printer and a projector are needed
 Digitizing tables and scanners are needed to convert
analogue map data and tables to digital databases
 It is important to adapt the investments in hardware to
the needs of the organisation.
 All system components need to be connected in a Local
Area Network (LAN) if maximum efficiency should be
reached in a complex organisation.
 Software
 GIS software provides the tools to capture, manage, analyze,
and effectively display spatial data and spatial information.

 There are many public domain and commercially available

GIS software packages,

 Many of these packages originated at academic or

government-funded research laboratories.

 List the GIS software that you know.

 The GIS software often represents a considerable share

of the investment costs when introducing GIS in an
organisation.
 Software
 It is important to consider the needs, the user
category and the functionality, since it is rather useless to
provide a person with very limited knowledge in GIS an
advanced software and vice versa.

 Thus to optimize the investment software must be

adapted to the activities of users in the organization

 Another important issue to consider when selecting

software is the possibilities to get technical support
from national suppliers rather that being dependent on
support from organizations overseas.
Software
 Examples of the major or widely used software packages
are
 ArcGIS,
 ERDAS (Earth Resources Data Analysis System, used for
Remote sensing image processing e.g is ERDAS
IMAGINE 9.1),
 ILWIS(mostly used for hydrological modelling),
 QGIS
 Grass (Geographic Resource Analysis Support System) ,
 Mapmaker
 Data
 Is the fuel of the GIS.
 Data can be collected in-
house or purchased from
a commercial data
provider.

 This means that the

information must be
from a reliable source.
It must be accurate
record of reality. The
suppliers of data must
have a reliable rate of
supply.
 Data
 Data must carry with it quality statements about how
the data was collected, by whom and when etc. this
information guaranties / verifies the quality of the data.
 Data must be relevant for the purpose for which it must
be used. It must be the correct type of data.
 Data must be accessible. This is a big issue in most
developing countries.
 Data
•No matter how sophisticated a GIS
may be, it cannot change the fact that
the system is never better than its
weakest link.

•If a GIS is fed by garbage data, the

output from analysis and other
operations will also be garbage
Video
 Components of GIS
GEOGRAPHIC DATA
What is geographic data?
 Data that can be allocated a location,
 It is necessary to define what geographical data is,
since GIS operates by using this type of data.
 Geographic data includes all things on the earth’s
surface.
Geographic data = Geometric data + Non Spatial
data (attributes/properties)
Geometric data: gives the location data and spatial
extent (shape) of map objects.
 Attribute data: represents some property that describes
the map objects.
 Almost all objects in our surroundings can be
connected to a specific location and are possible to
handle in a GIS.
Geographic Data

describe
Geometric data

 Location is given by using a coordinate system.

Non spatial data: Attribute data
 Attribute data is the non-spatial data about a geometric
object

 Attributes describe the characteristics of the map

objects and are linked to these objects in the GIS
 Examples??
Object Attribute
Road Road No. ; Surface type, Width,
House Owner, Address, No of rooms
Administration district Name of District, Population
Geographic Data
Demonstration
 Hardware

 Software

 Geometric Data

 Attribute Data
Homework: Attribute Data Types

Describe giving specific examples, the following

attribute data types:
 Nominal

 Ordinal

 Interval

 Ratio [15]
Metadata
 Information about data

 Acts as quality statement. It assures a certain level of

quality, reliability and flexibility for the users of the
database

 Description of the source of data and the database

development process
– information about where the data was retrieved from
and how it has been processed before entering the
database.

 Attribute accuracy – Is the attribute an actual

measurement, estimation or interpolation of attribute
values.
Metadata
 Date(s) of data collection and interval of updating the
data.
- It is important as it informs the user about future
extensions of the database. Some databases, e.g. census data,
may be valid for a certain time span, which should be
indicated in the metadata.

 Name and owner of database,

 The projection, co-ordinate system, map datum

 Completeness – is the information true for the whole area

covered by the database or are there differences in quality,
temporal accuracy, consistency ,etc.
Functions of a GIS
 Capture GIS data,
 Storage of data,
 Analysis of data,
 Visualization of GIS data, presentation of GIS
analysis products,
Next Lecture

 Vector Data Model

 Raster Data Model

References
 DeMers, M N, 1997, 2003, 2005, Fundamentals of
Geographic Information Systems (1st, 2nd or 3rd edition). John
Wiley, New York.
 Heywood I, Cornelius S, Carver S, 1998, 2002, 2006, An
Introduction to Geographical Information Systems (1st, 2ndor
3rd edition). Addison Wesley, Harlow.
 Longley P A, Goodchild M F, Maguire DJ, Rhind DW, 2005,
Geographical Information Systems and Science. (1st or 2nd
edition). Wiley, Chichester
 http://www.rst2.edu/ties/gentools/comp_gis.html
 http://map.sdsu.edu/geoagent/gis_intro.htm