mapz: a gis librarian

ArcMap2GMap Fixes: Thanks for Feedback!

2008-09-13T13:42:00.001-05:00

After releasing ArcMap2GMap a couple of weeks ago, two persistent bugs have repeatedly been pointed out by users. I want to document these errors and the fixes, both of them quick, here. The script has been updated on the ESRI ArcScripts page with these fixes, so a fresh download should resolve these issues.Download Updated (fixed) ScriptArcMap2GMap PostsBug #1: Process Status Message Not

Texas Statewide Historical Maps & Positional Accuracy Pt. 2

2008-09-09T15:22:00.001-05:00

Continuation from Pt. 1Our Geographic Accuracy Measurement Procedures - OverviewWe calculate 5 positional accuracy measurements for each georeferenced map. Texas is divided into 4 quadrants, with each quadrant receiving an independent positional accuracy measurement. The fifth measurement is the average accuracy of the 4 quadrants.Each quadrant is further subdivided into 4 sections. At least 4

Texas Statewide Historical Maps & Positional Accuracy Pt. 1

2008-09-08T16:06:00.003-05:00

We have been undertaking a project, called the Texas Time Machine (TTM), which requires us to georeference statewide historic maps of Texas.Brief overview of TTM:Preparing historical materials for use within GIS for geographic analysis requires a large time commitment and high level of expertise. Once prepared, the researcher still needs to understand the fundamentals of operating a large

GIS Librarian (-ish) Positions x2

2008-08-28T16:45:00.000-05:00

1.Geographic Information Systems Specialist (Bucknell University)"Bucknell University seeks to hire a Geographic Information Systems Specialist for the Library and Information Technology organization... The primary responsibilities of this position are to develop, expand, and support a GIS user community by assisting students and faculty in the selection and use of appropriate GIS technologies;

ArcMap to Google Map Polygons

2008-08-28T10:29:00.000-05:00

ArcMap2GMap: download + (not yet tested for 9.3)Samples:+ Presidential Election Data 2004+ Hodge Podge Sample of Stuff From My Computer+ Health ResourcesFinally completed a major update for the ArcMap2GMap script that exports ArcMap layers to a standalone Google Map webpage.This latest update now includes support for choropleth polygon layers using the gPolygon object. Previous versions included

GIS-Related Dissertations/Theses Late 2007 & 2008

2008-08-23T14:31:00.009-05:00

As always, there are oodles of great GIS-related theses and dissertations out there. After taking a long and deep gander at the latest batch, here are the latest ones to have caught my eye. For previous installments, click here.An object-oriented programming approach for a GIS data-driven simulation model of traffic on an inland waterway. by Sasso, Daniel, Ph.D., University of Louisville, 2008

Summer 08 Class Final Projects: Highlights

2008-08-23T14:13:00.002-05:00

Been working my fingers to the bone teaching 9 credits last Spring, 6 credits this Summer, and getting ready to teach 6 more this Fall (next week, gulp!).This past Summer was exciting and really stood out, however, as many of the final projects from both courses were exceptionally great. I taught Seminar: Advanced GIS Topics for Real Estate Research and Understanding Geographic Information

Planning Upcoming Workshop: Predicting 2008 Local Voting Results

2008-08-20T16:56:00.002-05:00

One of the three GIS workshops we have planned for the Fall 2008 semester is entitled 'Predict 2008 Voting Patterns Across Neighborhoods in Texas'. It is not scheduled until late October, so it is oh so far from being done, but here is how we are planning to go about it.By Texas neighborhoods, I really mean that each workshop participant will estimate how voters will vote in each Voter

Mapping Oak Cliff's Realities, Possibilities

2008-08-19T19:40:00.003-05:00

Dallas Morning News Article: Mapping Oak Cliff's Realities, Possibilities (08/16/08)This recent article spotlights student Charles Jackson's use of GIS in an undergraduate project on the Oak Cliff neighborhood in Dallas, Texas. Charles is a student I assisted with on may GIS projects. For this one in particular, he used GIS to create a Google Map webpage of various resources available in this

Been a While...

2008-08-19T19:29:00.003-05:00

So, it has been a long, long while since my last post here. Why? Ah, oodles of reasons. Most of all, I just kicked a 9-month compulsive WoW habit that impeded and threatened many facets of my work and personal life.To those of you out there who were negatively affected by my obsessive gaming habits, I sincerely apologize. To everyone, I fully intend at this point to resume writing on this

Stuck in Traffic: Find the Road Segments With the Highest Pollution Levels

2007-10-25T07:11:00.000-05:00

Workshop This Afternoon!!Download Full Workshop MaterialsView Zohoshow PresentationView HandoutView FlyerView Google Maps DemoThis has been a whirlwind frantic rush to pull together but just about everything is ready to go for this afternoon's GIS workshop. Should be a great one...Dr. Melanie Sattler, Civil & Environmental Engineering professor, will lead the workshop with a 30 minute discussion

Large Table Manipulation: ArcMap vs. Microsoft Access

2007-10-05T14:53:00.000-05:00

Helped an engineering student yesterday to display a table with over 500,000 XY coordinates and convert it to a shapefile. The table the student brought was a 2.5 gig CSV file. It gave me some unexpected troubles.The conclusion is that the manipulation of large tables is often times best done using Microsoft Access. Specifically, converting field types for large tables with hundreds of

Interesting GIS/Geography Related Dissertations

2007-10-03T06:39:00.000-05:00

[updated 10/05 to include links to free dissertation abstracts and 24-page previews, compliments of UMI Dissertation Publishing at ProQuest. See comments for more info. Thanks Mike!]Here's the latest installment of GIS-related dissertations that have caught my eye. Previous lists include 11/05, 01/06, 01/06, 04/06, 07/06, 10/06, 04/07. (Of course, this is not a comprehensive list...only

Summer 2008: GIS Librarianship Course

2007-09-30T21:12:00.000-05:00

The confirmation is only preliminary at this point, but I am preparing to teach a GIS Librarianship course next summer (2008) for the University of Arizona's School of Information Resources and Library Science. This course will be 100% distance education, so I encourage any library student or librarian out there with an interest in GIS to consider enrolling. I will post more details here as

Academic Cycle: Projection Time!

2007-09-30T08:16:00.000-05:00

GIS projects must be due soon in many of our classes as folks from all over campus are coming into the GIS Lab for assistance with projecting their data. Funny how everyone from different departments and different classes are all focused on the same thing. Wonder if this has any relationship to how women's menstrual cycles sync after living close together? Does this mean the various

First GIS Workshop - Standing Room Only!

2007-09-28T10:24:00.000-05:00

Yesterday's workshop was a success on every conceivable level.We had 30 participants, which in a 27 PC lab is the best. Breakdown was 4 faculty, 12 grads, 8 undergrads, 2 staff, and 4 non-affiliates (City of Arlington intern, couple of investors, and an alumnus). By the 5 minute mark every seat was taken and a noticeable number of people dropped by and left when they saw how crowded it

Sleepin' at the Bowl: Best Locations for New Hotels in Arlington, TX

2007-09-26T08:34:00.000-05:00

Workshop Tomorrow!!Download Full Workshop Materials (coming soon)View Zohoshow PresentationView Handout (1st draft)View FlyerLast week, I posted the basic details about this semester's 3 workshops. Well, after a round of late night shifts, the new hotel workshop is just about ready to go.No doubt about it, there is so much data included in this workshop. Everyone will see that I got carried

Texas River Information Management System (TRIMS)

2007-09-23T17:44:00.000-05:00

Attended a demonstration of the new Texas River Information Management System (TRIMS) in early September at the Ellison Miles Geotechnology Institute (located in Farmers Branch, TX on the Brookhaven College campus). TRIMS went live in late August.This ArcGIS Server driven web mapping application is a fantastic resource for us here in the Trinity River Basin (North-Central, Central, and into

Coast Guard Site Selection & ModelBuilder

2007-09-23T07:31:00.000-05:00

I am teaching the spatial analysis course this semester, and the first two projects everyone is working on is based on a suitability site selection exercise. First, they need to identify the best locations for the development of a new Coast Guard facility on the Gulf Coast. Second, they need to develop an ArcMap Model to automate this suitability process.Here is their exercise scenario (

Web Data Subscriptions: Simply Map & Geolytics On-Line

2007-09-21T17:00:00.000-05:00

Our data users are so loving these new online data subscription options available through products such as the Geolytics On-Line Data & Maps and Simply Map. They can hop online, on or off campus, and access the data they need. These products make accessing demographic and business data as accessible as finding journal articles.I had two faculty this past week alone make an effort to let me know

GIS Research Assistance in Second Life

2007-09-21T06:33:00.000-05:00

Well folks, our library is making the move and has decided to test the possibility of providing research assistance in Second Life (SL). The pilot project will focus exclusively on GIS research assistance, after which we will examine its outcomes and decide how to proceed.So, starting with the public opening of the new Info International Island tomorrow (Friday, 09/21), anyone needing GIS

Sho’ah’s (שואה) Lasting Impact: Mapping Jewish Migration

2007-09-20T17:20:00.000-05:00

Sho’ah’s (שואה) Lasting Impact: Mapping Jewish Migration: http://gis.uta.edu/maus/As we did last year with Mapping the Afghan Population in the US ( see background), the Information Literacy Librarian and I teamed up to create a project that will integrate numeric and spatial resources into the freshman English Composition courses.All sections of Freshman Composition I (app. 60) are reading Maus:

Fall 2007: Library GIS Workshops

2007-09-19T10:14:00.000-05:00

First few weeks of the semester have been a rush, and our first GIS workshop is set for next Thursday. From the Superbowl, to air quality, to flipping houses, we're hoping to make a big splash with this semester's workshop lineup. (For previous workshops, see Spring 2006, Fall 2006, and Spring 2007.)Starting last semester, we began co-presenting the workshops with faculty whose research

Area Weighted Join vs. Standard Join

2007-08-14T15:29:00.000-05:00

Students from an advanced suitability analysis course this summer needed to create a report that specified the percent of the join layer that intersected the target layer. For example, they needed to calculate the percent of each use from a landuse shapefile that intersect each zip code in Texas. I wrote a quick script for the class that generated the report they needed, but the implications are

GIS to Select Foreclosure Residential Properties

2007-08-11T13:53:00.000-05:00

This summer I taught a graduate real estate course exploring the ways GIS can be used select foreclosure listings for possible investment. As far as student satisfaction is concerned, this was the most successful real estate course I taught. The course was very tight and practical, and hopefully everyone will go out and make some big bucks with the skills they learned...well, when the market

Position: Map and Data Services Librarian (University of Illinois at Chicago)

2007-04-23T16:17:00.000-05:00

Map and Data Services Librarian and Assistant Professor (University of Illinois at Chicago)"The University of Illinois at Chicago Library seeks a dynamic and energetic librarian to provide reference, research consultation/user education services for cartographic material and social science data sets, as well as implementation of GIS applications within the library and the university community."

Firefox Mapping Extensions in a Single .XPI Package

2007-04-20T20:38:00.000-05:00

Lots and lots of fantastic mapping extensions for the Firefox browser. Which ones, you ask? Well, the 16 extensions listed below.There are also a couple of extensions that allow users to back up all the extensions installed in their browser and package them into one .xpi extension file. The extensions are Firefox Extension Backup Extension and its partner Compact Library Extension Organizer.So

American Hospital Directory: Summary Hospital Data Maps

2007-04-18T08:09:00.000-05:00

The American Hospital Directory (AHD) now supplements their public hospital data with Google-powered maps. I (and many of our health care researchers) have used AHD for hospital data, but the ability to access and view the hospital data through maps is fantastic and so very useful.Check out their map of the 596 Texas hospitals in their database.Hospitals are broken up into 8 categories:Short

Position: GIS Librarian (University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign)

2007-04-17T04:30:00.000-05:00

Position: GIS Librarian (University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign)"The University of Illinois Library is seeking an energetic and creative person to serve as the lead in the Library's collection and delivery of digital geospatial data and associated geographic information systems (GIS) services. The GIS Librarian will coordinate all aspects of the Library's digital geospatial

GIS-Related Dissertations: Latest Batch

2007-04-16T19:32:00.000-05:00

Here's the latest installment of GIS-related dissertations that have caught my eye. Previous lists include 11/05, 01/06, 01/06, 04/06, 07/06, 10/06. (Of course, this is not a comprehensive list...only those I find interesting.)Now, I will continue to link to the ProQuest Digital Dissertations public database, which provides free abstracts and 24 page previews for many dissertations and theses

Mapping & Datasets @ ACRL

2007-04-13T11:21:00.000-05:00

Attended the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) Annual Conference a couple of weeks ago. There were a few mention-worthy poster sessions and vendors related to mapping and datasets and I will outline these here.Poster SessionsHistoric Images, Google Maps, and Your Digital CollectionsPresenters:Bartholomew Schmidt, Digital Projects Librarian, Cowles Library, Drake UniversityScott

Census 2010 - Less Local US Data & ACS Insufficient

2007-04-12T19:57:00.000-05:00

Census 2010 is right around the corner, folks.Have been hearing numerous faculty and students anxiously awaiting for fresh new Census data, as the 2000 data has gotten quite stale and the taste of marketing estimates is never as satisfying. However, the joyous party times we experienced during the early 2000's as summary files 3 and 4 were being released are not to be repeated this time around.

Oak Cliff Interactive - Student ArcMap2GMap Project

2007-04-09T09:00:00.000-05:00

Student-Created Map: Oak Cliff InteractiveWant to discuss this political science student's work to show an example of the effectiveness of our library's GIS workshop program and our endeavor to create customized tools to increase the access and attractiveness of geospatial resources.Have been working this semester with Charles Jackson, an enthusiastic political science student to develop an

Texas Redistricting & Workshop - Texas Redistricting

2007-04-06T09:27:00.000-05:00

# Google Map: Redistricting in Texas# Workshop Materials: CD Image (350mb)Held our library's 3rd and final workshop of the semester, entitled Congressional Redistricting in Texas: The Maps & The Demographics. It was a blast as we had 15 students, 4 staff, and 2 faculty members attending. Everyone seemed to have a good time.The 2-hour workshop was organized into three sections.Dr. Jose Gutierrez

Free Historical Census Data: 1970, 1980, 1990

2007-03-07T12:20:00.000-06:00

Received a request over the weekend for 1990 Census data on the block level beyond what is currently available through our local holdings. We are purchasing the CensusCD 1990 Blocks from Geolytics, but in the meanwhile this forced me to take some time exploring free historical Census data availability and so here are the results of what I discovered.U.S. Census BureauData Files: Census 1980Data

Public Transportation Workshop a Success!

2007-03-03T13:44:00.001-06:00

Here is an example of a bus route developed by a workshop participant.20 folks attended to hear Dr. Anjomani discuss student endeavors to plan transportation routes and to then plan their own during this hands-on GIS workshop. For more information about this workshop, see this previous post.Everyone had a lot of fun, bunch of folks stayed afterwards with questions, and I am already booked to

ACRL Poster Presentation: ArcIMS, Google Maps, & Information Literacy

2007-02-28T15:59:00.001-06:00

As I wrote a couple of days ago, Gretchen Trkay, the Information Literacy librarian and I needed to get the handouts in this week for our ACRL Poster Presentation: OneBook Meets Google Maps: Engaging Freshman in English Composition Library Instruction.As you can see from the 4 handouts below, our presentation focuses on how we integrated ArcIMS 9.1 services with Google Maps to develop a web

Free Batch Geocoding: Juice Analytics Excel Geocoding Tool

2007-02-26T21:14:00.000-06:00

As Meg Stewart stated in the GIS @ Vassar blog, "Geocoding in ArcGIS is not pleasant. Success rates hit a high of about 70 percent, in my experience." We all feel your pain, especially those of us in education where we are constantly put in the position where we need to explain this geocoding unpleasantness at least once per week.The GIS @ Vassar post points out the fantastic BatchGeocode.com,

March 2007 Conference Presentations

2007-02-25T19:25:00.000-06:00

If anyone wants to drop by and say hello, I will be holding the following two conference presentations during March:Texas Map Society 2007 Spring MeetingLocation: Nacagdoches, TXDates: March 23-24Presentation : Historical Maps & GIS: Peeling the Cartographic LayersI will be discussing our library's current endeavors to georeference and digitize historical Texas maps and distribute the maps and

ArcMap2GMap for ArcGIS 9.0, 9.1, and 9.2

2007-02-25T05:56:00.000-06:00

As I just posted earlier, I have devised band-aid solutions that will allow all of my scripts to operate in ArcGIS 9.whatever, but that I must create separate scripts for each version.Just created ArcMap2GMap scripts for ArcGIS 9.2 and 9.0, in addition to 9.1. Click here to download from ArcScripts.

Native Support for Geoprocessor in ArcGIS 9.2...Doh!

2007-02-25T05:38:00.000-06:00

OK, so finally re-installed ArcGIS 9.2 after my rash initial installation went awry. Now experiencing first-hand that all of the Python scripts I developed in for ArcGIS 9.0 & 9.1 do not work in ArcGIS 9.2.Why? As the ESRI documentation states here, "At ArcGIS 9.2, there is native Python support for geoprocessing scripting."What does this mean in practical terms? Replace the COM connection

Plan the Route: Arlington TX Largest City Without Public Transit

2007-02-23T20:06:00.000-06:00

"Arlington [Texas] remains the largest metropolitan city in the country without a public transit system for the general population."City of Arlington, 2001So, I live, work, and play in the largest city in the United States without public transportation, eh? Now to be honest, I bike everywhere on my Trek 7100, but not everyone is fortunate enough to live so close to life's many amenities and

TIGER Positional Accuracy & Geocoding: 2 Articles

2007-02-14T14:53:00.000-06:00

The following two recent articles focusing on positional accuracy and geocoding are very intriguing. Learned quite a bit about the science behind positional accuracy and geocoding. I usually advise our students to use our local parcel boundary feature class for geocoding (as I discuss here), but I'll focus first on these articles.A Snake-based Approach for TIGER Road Data Conflation, Song,

Python Script: Shape to Text to Shape

2007-02-12T10:19:00.000-06:00

Except for ironing out a few remaining buglets and cleaning up the code, I have just about completed a script that will convert a shapefile of any geometry into a text file, and then will convert that text file back into a shapefile. (I previously wrote about the development of this script here and here.)Script configured for ArcGIS 9.1: DownloadThis will not work for ArcGIS 9.0 and has not yet

Ouch: ArcIMS 9.1 & ArcGIS Desktop 9.2

2007-02-10T05:50:00.000-06:00

What a day I had a couple of days ago. Quite unproductive as I spent the entire day correcting a mistake. My mistake of course. The bottom line is ArcIMS 9.1 and ArcGIS Desktop 9.2 do not mix. Hear me now and believe me later.This was one of those days that leave your head spinning and asking yourself what the heck is your place in this world. What the heck did I accomplish today? What the

Value of Library-Based GIS Program

2007-02-09T05:14:00.000-06:00

I want to jot down some of my ideas here about assessing and perhaps even proving the value of providing GIS services in an academic library.Why Discuss This... Where the money is allocated reflects our values... How the money is allocated creates our futureEven since a colleague of mine attended the ARL 2006 Library Assessment Conference, she can not stop telling everyone how fantastic a speaker

Spring 2007: Library GIS Workshops

2007-01-29T16:53:00.000-06:00

Well, this semester is now less than 1 month old and we're all set to hold our first GIS workshop this Thursday. We are holding 3 workshops this semester. (For previous workshops, see Fall 2006 and Spring 2006. )The first workshop will demonstrate to students how easy it is to generate Google Map webpages using ArcMap2GMap. The second and third workshops are both originals that I am excited to

ArcMap2GMap v.2

2007-01-29T09:52:00.000-06:00

Just completed a major revision of ArcMap2GMap, the Python script that converts shapefiles from ArcMap to the HTML/JavaScripts necessary to overlay the layers on top of a Google Map. To download the file, see the ArcScripts entry. See here for the initial release of ArcMap2GMap last year.An example of a webpage generated by ArcMap2GMap can be viewed here.The scripts, VBA, HTML, and JavaScripts

Should Academic Libraries Spend Money on GIS Datasets?

2006-11-03T11:24:00.000-06:00

Like most questions in life, the answer is 'it depends'. It depends on the strength of the numerical datasets the library maintains.Let me explainPrimary Expense is Time (& Expertise)There are oodles of public data scattered throughout the net. Tracking these data sources down can be challenging and fun, but it requires no funds other than library salaries consumed in their hunt. For example,

New Firefox Extensions: All Your Maps Are Belong to Us

2006-11-01T09:23:00.000-06:00

Here are the three latest mapping/GIS extensions for the Firefox browser that I have come across.Previous lists of Firefox mapping extensions: 12/05, 01/06, 05/06Why use Firefox over IE on Windows? Two reasons. First, the Active-X security settings in IE make it difficult to download detailed tables from the American Factfinder website (as I rant about here). Second, IE displays Google Map

Newest Batch of GIS-Related Theses & Dissertations

2006-10-31T05:43:00.000-06:00

Have not posted a new batch of dissertations or theses since the summer, so here are the latest dissertations & theses that have caught my eye. Some of these are really quite fantastic.Most of the following links include a free 24-page preview of the dissertation.Previous lists include 11/05, 01/06, 01/06, 04/06, 07/06Decolonizing geographic information systems, by Eades, Gwilym Lucas, MA,

Flipping Properties: GIS Can Show You Where

2006-10-30T05:28:00.000-06:00

Developed a new project for my graduate real estate students to chew on this semester. Working in teams of 2 to 4, the students need to identify the top two zip codes in the D/FW Metroplex to invest in residential properties in order to flip them over.<-- Map showing the location of every residential sale in 2004.I organized the course around three projects. The first project was focused on

Workshop: Low Income Housing, Single Mothers, and GIS

2006-10-29T20:00:00.000-06:00

Bibliography of Low-Income Housing Data (annotated, with a focus on Texas)Entire Workshop Materials (Full CD)Held a workshop last week focusing on low-income housing. The purpose of the workshop was to increase awareness of the amazing datasets (GIS and tabular) available on the HUD User website, as well as numerous others. As is evident by perusing through the annotated bibliography, I

Census 2000, Voting Precincts, & Parcel Geocoding

2006-10-29T15:11:00.000-06:00

Hoo boy do I have a lot of catching up to do, but I'll start with this...Professor emailed a table to me containing app. 15, 000 addresses within Arlington, TX, and wanted to know:Voting precinct the address falls withinVoting precinct centroid the address is closest toDistance between the address and the closest precinct centroidVarious Census 2000 demographics for each precinctThis was a fun

National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses

2006-09-29T09:58:00.000-05:00

New nursing faculty on campus is researching various access to healthcare resources and possible correlations with the prevalence of particular nurse races/ethnicities. When I started discussing the data and spatial analysis my first thought was 'Holey-smokes...where the heck can we get our hands on data like this??'Well, the best answer we have found so far is the National Sample Survey of

Google Maps: Mapping the Afghan Experience in the U.S.

2006-09-28T14:37:00.000-05:00

Mapping the Afghan Experience in the US: http://gis.uta.edu/afghan This site works best in any browser other than IESpatial Reserves Our library's spatial reserves program just hit a new milestone as our latest project uses Google Maps as the front interface, as opposed to standard ArcIMS interfaces we have been using. (To learn more about our spatial reserves program, see this paper I

Pizza for Intro to GIS Tonight

2006-09-12T12:10:00.000-05:00

I was asked to teach an Intro to GIS class tonight for a professor who is unable to make the class. I think this is great. Much better than ripping these students off, and cutting them out of a class when the class only meets once a week. It's also not too bad for me as I taught this course last spring and summer.The class is going over chapters 4 and 5 in the Getting to Know ArcGIS book.

Night of Linux Ends with GIS

2006-09-10T16:54:00.000-05:00

Spent last night installing Linux OS on my laptop. Actually did it, and finished the evening off by creating a choropleth map (graduated color) displaying the distribution of median household income by block group in Dallas County. I used qGIS for this. (See left for screenshot.)This also is my first blog post written in a non-Windows environment. Tastes a bit different, eh?Here are the

Library GIS Events Fall 2006

2006-09-09T17:40:00.000-05:00

Here is a list of the workshops, ESRI webcast seminars, and event booths that our library's GIS Program will participate in this Fall 2006 semester. As the dates get closer, I will post more details about particular events here.As you can tell, workshops are my primary outreach method. I focus the workshops on how GIS and the analysis process can solve a particular problem. This is as opposed

Low-Income Housing Data & Social Work

2006-09-08T06:40:00.000-05:00

Have not posted in over a month. Miss blogging immensely. Been a bit busy teaching 3 credits during the summer, teaching 6 credits this fall, consulting on some Python scripting on the side, submitted a paper for publication, and of course my full-time job as the GIS Librarian. Nuff said...Low-Income Housing DataSocial work faculty and grad students have been over to see me frequently during the

Position: Maps/GIS Librarian (University of Hawaii)

2006-07-25T12:54:00.000-05:00

Maps/Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Services, Government Documents & Maps (University of Hawaii, Manoa)Hey, want to be a palapala'aina kahu puke??(This is a map librarian, according to an online translation service.)This tenure track faculty position has it all for the GIS/map enthusiast librarian. Responsibilities include public service responsiblities (assistance, promotion, instruction)

Rant: Can't IE & American Factfinder Get Along?

2006-07-22T18:25:00.000-05:00

OK, I am sure I am not the only person frustrated by the Census American Factfinder website's use of the automatic download prompt. Ever since Windows XP SP2 was released in August 2004, the enhanced IE security makes it a bit cumbersome, especially for students, to download

GIS Instruction & Learning Outcomes

2006-07-19T17:40:00.000-05:00

So, our university is due for a reassessment of our accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). This is a very big deal and we are all investing a lot of time and effort to ensure that we comply with all of the SACS accrediting standards.The most direct way that this affects me, a bottom feeder in the university's social strata, is a strong push towards measurable

Position: Social Science Data Librarian (University of Southern California)

2006-07-18T19:44:00.000-05:00

Social Science Data Librarian, University of Southern California(Microsoft Word // Zoho Writer)Sunny, sunny California. Why are there just so many jobs to be had in California? California sure is the place where things happen first. Ideas, culture, bad weather... When we see something happening in California, the rest of the country says oh my goodness...look what's coming our way.Anyway,

Properly Cite GIS & Tabular Datasets

2006-07-18T14:09:00.000-05:00

The Statistics Canada: How to Cite Statistics Canada Products is truly a remarkable resource. Do not let the title fool you, however, as this citation wizard will help to create a citation using virtually any GIS or tabular dataset.This Resource Can Help Cite any GIS or Tabular DatasetAs more and more faculty across campus begin to use and encourage their students to use GIS in their analyses,

2005 Second Edition TIGER/Line Files Available

2006-07-17T04:27:00.000-05:00

2005 Second Edition TIGER/Line Files:[ Download ] [ Purchase ]Contains realigned street feature coordinatesThese files are in TIGER/Line format. For those using ESRI software, these can be converted easily into shapefile or feature class format by using the Tiger to Coverage geoprocessing tool.In June 2002, the U.S. Census Bureau negotiated an 8-year, 200 million+ dollar contract with the Harris

GIS/Geography Dissertations: Education & Women

2006-07-13T05:37:00.000-05:00

Hoo-boy there are some fantastic PhD dissertations and Master theses written lately. I have been marking so many of them lately that I am starting to organize them into categories. The first two categories that I will list in this post are (1) Education and (2) Women.These two topics seem to be popular these days among dissertation and theses-writing students. Why education? I think this is a

Geographic Coordinates in MARC Authority Files

2006-07-12T21:19:00.000-05:00

According to a message posted on June 30 to the Maps-L list, MARC Proposal 2006-06 was passed to include geographic coordinates within MARC authority records.MARC Proposal 2006-06Definition of field 034 for geographic coordinates in the MARC 21 Authority FormatMARC Discussion Paper No. 2006-DP01Recording geographic coordinates in the MARC 21 Authority FormatThis has the potential to be a really

Position: Reference/Government Documents Librarian (Laredo, TX)

2006-07-12T09:51:00.000-05:00

Reference/Government Documents Librarian - Texas A&M International UniversityHey, lookie lookie at this. This is my old job back on the market. Yes, it was in this very position that I was first exposed and learned the basic fundamentals of GIS. After I left Texas A&M International to work exclusively with GIS here at UT Arlington, this guy picked up where I left off, and he's now headed for

Position: GIS/Metadata Librarian (Columbia University)

2006-06-29T09:22:00.000-05:00

GIS/Metadata Librarian (Columbia University)This is an intriguing position. As gleaned from the job posting, the Lehman Social Sciences Library has two professional GIS positions: the GIS/Map Librarian and the currently available position, GIS/Metadata Librarian.This position will focus on the cataloging/metadata maintenance and distribution of geospatial data. That is a wonderful setup that I

New Library GIS Blog: geoLibro (Purdue University)

2006-06-28T14:09:00.000-05:00

Just came across geoLibro, a new blog to enter the geospatial-library blogosphere. From the blog description, "let this blog document the installation of library-centric GIS services at Purdue University."The initial post, dated June 1, states that Purdue Libraries is looking to create these library-centric GIS services pretty much from the ground up. Their new GIS Librarian, who authors this

H5N1 Avian Flu GIS & Migratory Bird Flyways

2006-06-28T10:22:00.000-05:00

As is to be expected, one of the most popular GIS requests that I have received lately (especially last Spring semester) are data resources concerning the H5N1 Wild Bird flu virus. There are some great resources out there, the best that I am aware of I will list below.Earlier this summer, a student researching the epidemiology of the virus needed a shapefile of the common worldwide migratory

Geocoding to Parcel Boundary

2006-06-25T09:36:00.000-05:00

A growing request by students on campus lately is the accurate geocoding of addresses. My opinion is that with the high accessibility of aerial imagery these days, students want geocoded addresses to be placed exactly on the house or business. I have been recommending these students to geocode their addresses based on parcel boundaries as opposed to using a street file. I want to take this

My Powerful Geospatial Suite of Free GIS

2006-06-24T09:33:00.000-05:00

These are the freely available applications and services that make up my own personal free GIS. Individually, many freely available applications do not of themselves constitute a full geographic information system, but when these are all pulled together within one suite of tools...Well, it is remarkable what someone can do without spending a cent. (And without needing to spend an enormous

Sort , Filter, & Copy Tables in Your Browser

2006-06-21T21:19:00.000-05:00

TableTools is a new (to me) Firefox browser extension that is really, really cool.Tables on the web become interactive with this extension. Right-click menu includes sorting (yes, actually sort previously static tables), filtering (yes, just like Excel's auto-filter), and copying as tab-delimited or HTML.A great use of this extension is to use it with BatchGeocode.com. As many folks are aware,

2006 Statistical Abstract + Zoho Sheet Excel Viewer

2006-06-21T13:18:00.000-05:00

All of the tables in the 125th edition (2006) of the Statistical Abstract of the United States are available in Excel format. This is a huge leap forward from PDF, which is how StatAb has traditionally been published online.Via: The librarian is: BLOGGING | Journalism Library, Columbia UniversityI really appreciate that all tables have static URLs. This means that I can save and share these

Position: Research Librarians (GIS) - University of California, Irvine

2006-05-23T08:25:00.000-05:00

Position: Research Librarians - University of California, Irvine"The University of California Libraries seek a minimum of five Research Librarians to join an enthusiastic staff in building a research library of excellence for a young and rapidly growing university ranked nationally in the top universities."Subject areas of interest "include African-American Studies, Classics, Education, GIS (

Finding GIS/Mapping Positions in Libraries

2006-05-20T08:51:00.000-05:00

Just want to point out that I have been fairly consistent with prefacing new GIS or mapping positions within libraries with the word 'Position:'.This means that anyone seeking employment in this sector can easily keep up with current and older employment opportunities with this link, which uses a Google search of this site.Even though I am not seeking new employment for myself, I diligently

Position: Head, John R. Borchert Map Library - University of Minnesota

2006-05-19T11:36:00.000-05:00

Head, John R. Borchert Map Library - University of Minnesotavia: MAPS-L"The University of Minnesota Libraries seeks innovative and energetic applicants for the position of Head, John R. Borchert Map Library, one of the largest and most heavily used academic map libraries in the nation."Wow! Now, this is one of the most exciting new positions I have seen...And there have been quite a lot of late.

1990 Census Block Population Counts

2006-05-18T14:02:00.000-05:00

Received an email from someone needing block-level population counts from the 1990 Census. The data was more difficult to obtain that I anticipated.Discovered that Factfinder only provides access to SFT1A and not SFT1B. I was not previously aware of this. STF1A provides population counts to the blockgroup, while STF1B provides down to the block level. Dropped by to see our Gov Docs Librarian,

Call For Papers: GIQ Special Issue on Libraries

2006-05-18T06:43:00.000-05:00

Government Information Quarterly, a premier peer-reviewed journal, is calling for papers for a special issue entitled, "Digital Government Information and Libraries: Shifting Paradigms Or Predictable Partnerships"Click here to view a description of the planned special issue and the call for papers from GovDoc-L.This is really exciting as I think about the extent to which library-sponsored GIS

Library as Central Hub for GIS Activity

2006-05-17T16:23:00.000-05:00

GIS4LIB is not the most active list, but the when a message is sent is is usually a good one. Here is a snippet from the latest message:I am about to begin planning and writing a pitch for a new GIS lab (housed in a library with a mission to act as a central hub for interdisciplinary GIS activity on a large campus) and I would like to hear from any librarians who are storing and managing their

It's Not a Habit...It's Cool, I Feel Alive.

2006-05-17T05:42:00.000-05:00

It's not a habit, it's cool, I feel aliveIf you don't have it you're on the other sideI'm not an addict (maybe that's a lie)(lyrics by K's Choice).OK, well maybe I am. As I mentioned in a previous post, I am quite obsessed with having and providing access to the latest and the greatest datasets.But is this really so bad a quality for a librarian?I obsess with always providing our students with

Grades In! Semester Over!

2006-05-16T20:21:00.000-05:00

NOW the semester is over. In addition to all of the recent successes the UTA Library: GIS Program had, I just submitted final grades for the semester. Spent much of the previous week grading papers, and it feels just as good for me to be done as it is for the students. I taught 6 credits this semester, ‘Introduction to GIS’ for the Earth and Environmental Sciences department and ‘Advanced Real

American Factfinder: Statistically Significant Thematic Maps

2006-05-14T10:03:00.000-05:00

The American Factfinder website recently added some new features, most notably the geographic display of statistically significant U.S. state comparisons.Via: ResourceShelfI want to take this opportunity to outline the newest Factfinder features, as well as some cool features that are less well known (to the students and faculty I generally work with, anyway...)Newest Features (link)Statistical

North American Regional Science Council: Proceedings Search

2006-05-11T14:52:00.000-05:00

The North American Regional Science Council (NARSC) is "an international scholarly organization that focuses on regional analysis, ranging from urban and spatial theory to applied problems in regional development, sustainability, environmental management, and rural land use."Just discovered (via: Openspace) that the NARSC provides a searchable archive of their 2005 annual conference. No

New Mapping Extensions for Firefox

2006-05-06T12:16:00.000-05:00

Newest Extensions:Photo MapDeveloped by Adam JudsonDisplays Flickr and 23 Account images within Google Maps.I'm really getting excited about geotagging photos and other images, and this extensions works great.Skyhook Wireless LokiDeveloped by Ted Morgan"Leveraging Skyhook's Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS) to automatically define a user's exact physical location, this customizable toolbar not only

Indiana University To Shut Down Map Library?

2006-05-06T06:49:00.000-05:00

Among 4 library branches Indiana University is proposing to close is their Geography and Map Library.IDSnews.com Story: Four libraries facing closuresBudget issues seem to be one of the main reasons library administration has begun its investigation of campus libraries. Lou Malcomb, the head of IU Libraries Government Information, Microfilms and Statistical Services Department said administrators

USDA Agriculture Research Service: Most Cited GIS Publications

2006-05-05T11:26:00.000-05:00

Here are the top 10 institutions that have contributed to the most highly cited works in the field of GIS.USDA Agriculture Research ServiceUS Geological SurveyUniversity of North CarolinaUniversity of California, Santa BarbaraUniversity of WisconsinColorado State UniversityUniversity of MinnesotaUniversity of IllinoisOhio State UniversityPurdue UniversityClick here to view a graph.Click here to

Transformations: Managing and Supporting GIS in Higher Educational Contexts

2006-05-03T19:22:00.000-05:00

Latest issue of Transformations is entitled 'Managing and Supporting GIS in Higher Educational Contexts'.via: GIS4LIB.This issue presents seven separate case studies providing an overview of GIS in higher education, with a focus on growing GIS programs at smaller liberal art colleges. While my current university (UTA) is neither small nor strictly liberal arts and has a long-standing GIS program

DataFerrett & TheDataWeb

2006-05-03T12:31:00.000-05:00

I have not used the DataFerrett for quite some time and a student came by to ask about it yesterday. We extracted variables from the 'Loan Application Register Dataset' of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act in SPSS format. Student will be returning this weekend to use GIS to geospatially analyze these variables. Thank goodness I remembered enough about it to help the student, but I want to take

Position: Map Librarian - University of Florida - Florida

2006-05-03T06:38:00.000-05:00

Map Librarian - University of Florida - Florida"The George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida seek a customer service oriented individual to lead, develop, and manage the Map and Imagery Library, the largest map library in the southeastern U.S. and the fifth largest academic map library in the United States."All I have to say about that is: Wow! Now, GIS skills/experience is only

Government Printing Office Sale - Navigation Products

2006-05-02T11:15:00.000-05:00

GPO SaleThe U.S. Government Printing Office is currently running a sale with discounted prices.There are a few inexpensive navigation CD-ROM products, as well as a couple of basic stats/demographic products. Now, before you run out and slam down your hard-earned cash, note that many U.S. Federal Depository Libraries might have these products.Sailing Directions (2002)Publisher: Defense Dept.,

Position: GIS Data Steward (South Florida Water Management District)

2006-05-01T20:13:00.000-05:00

GIS Data Steward - South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, FLNo, this job posting does not use that viscous L-word, but is this not what a steward is? This seems like a great opportunity for a librarian seeking to shift into the public administration sector.Let's take a look at some snippets:The creation and maintenance of GIS datasets for spatial data and metadata that will be

Position: AGS Library - Digital/Spatial Data GIS Librarian

2006-05-01T19:58:00.000-05:00

Digital/Spatial Data GIS Librarian - American Geographical Society Library (UW Milwaukee) [PDF]Previous postings (03/15/06 | 12/12/05)This is a fantastic entry-level opportunity for new librarians/recent graduates. Here is a snippet of the responsibilities:"The Digital Spatial Data/GIS Librarian is responsible for the daily operations of the Digital Spatial Data Clearinghouse. Responsibilities

Easy Export PDF to Spreadsheet

2006-05-01T10:21:00.000-05:00

There is a wealth of freely available data tables on the net, but available only in PDF format. Now, for those of us that need delimited tables (to use within GIS applications, for example) this stinks. However, last week I discovered the advanced table capabilities included with Acrobat 7.Last month, my department upgraded our PCs to Acrobat 7 Professional. I thought nothing of it until

Looking Back on a Great Semester...

2006-04-28T16:53:00.000-05:00

Want to see an overview of UT Arlington Library GIS services this Spring 2006 semester? Here is a draft of a summary I just wrote for our library newsletter, Connections. It sure has been one heck of a semester. Felt like much of the time I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off, but looking back a lot was accomplished.Hello. We are the UT Arlington Library: GIS Services team

Last GIS Library Instruction: Nursing PhD Course

2006-04-26T14:27:00.000-05:00

I am getting ready for the last GIS library instruction session this Friday **. This will be the 23rd GIS workshop/instruction session that I held for the library this semester. All of you conspiracy-minded Robert Anton Wilson fans out there should grin at this evidence of the 23 enigma. (I was a college freshman back in '93 when I first read Illuminatus!).Well, yesterday the professor asked

Position: Map Librarian - University of Tennessee, Knoxville

2006-04-26T08:18:00.000-05:00

Map Librarian - University of Tennessee, Knoxville"We are seeking a creative, user-oriented professional to serve as Map Librarian and subject liaison for Geography."This really seems like a great job as there appears to be a nice balance between all of the aspects of map/geospatial librarianship. From user consultation, to general reference duties, to FGDC metadata maintenance, to collection

From Sample Points to Attractive ArcGlobe Image: Not So Easy

2006-04-24T19:29:00.000-05:00

Here's the situation:Biology professor needs a 3D map of the US, where the z-values represent particular species richness as opposed to the actual elevation of the terrain. The professor (and her GRA) came during my office hours with a delimited text file containing sample lat/long points along with the associated richness values.Here's a quick shot of the result:How many hours I spent on this: