How do I create a new feature class/shapefile?
This post covers an essential skill – creating new feature classes and shapefiles. We’ll cover how to create a blank layer and then how to digistise new features into that. (Updated April 2020 for Pro) Creating you own data layers is an important part of most analysis projects, so in this post I’ll cover some […]
The data I need aren’t on the J: drive!
This post outlines some of the on-line data portals, including Koordinates.com, and portals from LINZ and Landcare Research. Before getting to the main topic, I’ll put a quick word of appreciation in for Dorje McKinnon, who is heading overseas for a wee while. As the Applications Group Manager at ITS, Dorje’s been a big supporter […]
Data with a View
This post covers viewsheds – raster grids that indicate which areas are visible from a specific location. (Updated May 2021 for Pro.) Some of you may remember that stately Timeball Station in Lyttelton: Coming out of the tunnel and into Lyttelton, it was hard to miss the structure above the port. The castle-like building stood […]
Data, data everywhere, but what about what I need?
This post outlines the data currently available on our network. Those of you who have done any work with GIS will know how important the right data are. Spatial analysis is very much a garbage in-garbage out process so making sure you’ve got good data to start out with is crucial. Last week’s post was […]
Canterburymaps.govt.nz and Web Services
The Canterbury councils recently got together (gasp!) to produce a map portal for the whole region. This post covers that as well as brings up how web services can be used to access publicly available data. Canterburymaps.govt.nz It may sound hard to believe, but the district, city and regional councils got together recently and decided […]
GIS and Precision Agriculture
This post is about how GIS fits in with precision agriculture, something that’s likely to be an important topic here over the next few years. Someone recently asked me if GIS could be used for precision ag. The definitive answer is: Yes! Another answer is: How could you not? Precision ag strikes me as an […]
Mapping the Census
In this post I’ll take about how we can make the most of the recent (and previous) census data and how to add spreadsheet data to a map. So did you fill in your census form on Tuesday night? In the course of filling in the forms, you no doubt entered a lot of personal […]
My data aren’t lining up!
In this post I’ll talk about using the Spatial Adjustment toolbar to shift vector data from where it is to where it should be. A key underlying idea of GIS is that data layers overlay because they all live in the same geographic space. If this doesn’t happen then there’s not much value in the […]
How can I get some data?
All of our GIS data are stored on the network and anyone can easily access them. To get started: Open Windows Explorer and right-click on This PC and then Map Network Drive: In the Drive window, pick J: In the folder window, type \\V-FS-LU1\gis2 If you’re always going to using the same computer, tick the “Reconnect at logon” […]
Welcome to the GIS Blog
They say that there are three things that matter most in property: location, location, location. This isn’t going to be a blog about property but if location is important to you than you’re in the right place. We (Crile Doscher and Brad Case) have started this blog in the hopes of doing a better job […]
