From the course: Foundations of Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Unlock this course with a free trial

Join today to access over 24,400 courses taught by industry experts.

Identifying GIS layer components

Identifying GIS layer components - GIS Tutorial

From the course: Foundations of Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Start my 1-month free trial Buy for my team

Identifying GIS layer components

“

GIS map layers are the building blocks of a GIS. Layers allow a single GIS dataset, like a set of polygons representing buildings to be displayed many different ways. I can show the office buildings in my city color-coded by the number of square feet available to rent and the property appraisers can display the buildings color-coded by the value, and the fire department can color-code them based on whether or not they have sprinkler systems. When a new building is added, everyone just opens their map and the new building is there, using each person's chosen color scheme. A single dataset can be displayed many different ways based on the attributes. This is one of the key elements of a GIS. Let me clarify a bit of terminology. There's a GIS layer and there's an actual GIS dataset. They're different but they go together. A GIS dataset consists of geometry: points, lines, or polygons tied to a real-world location plus the data behind it. This type of data is called a feature class. A GIS…

Contents