Working with ArcGIS Data Data Management and Tips Your friend…..ArcCatalog

Working with ArcGIS DataData Management and TipsYour friend…..ArcCatalog

File Types

• Shapefiles– Contain one

feature class– Points, lines, or

polygons

• Coverages– Contain multiple

feature classes• Multiple files on

disk for each coverage file

• May cover multiple folders as well

File Types

• Geodatabase• Contain multiple feature

classes including tables not linked to spatial data

• Can store topological relationships between features and feature classes

• Also store rules and dictate how features behave

• Personal Geodatabases

• Enterprise Geodatabase

File Types

• Layer file

• Raster

• Grids

• Tables

• CAD Drawings

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H. Price 2-5

File Types

•Stores collections of data for repeated viewing and analysis

•Contains one or more data frames

•Stores current properties for each layer (symbols, etc)

•Stores a page layout for printing

•Stores references to files--not the actual data

C:\mgisdata\usa\states.shp

The map document


Map docs and data files

• Same data can be used by many map documents

• Edits made in one document appear in ALL

• Shipping map document without its data is useless

• Changing locations of document or data can cause problems

Files on disk

Points to data


Causes of broken data links

• Some causes – Data were moved or

deleted– Drive not available– Map document copied

to different computer– Data not sent with

map

Broken data links occur when a map document cannot find data using the stored pathname

C:\mgisdata\usa\supersites.shp ??

D:\mgisdata\usa\supersites


Pathnames

Usa MapDocuments

mgisdata

C:\

--States--Cities--Counties

--ex_1.mxd--ex_2.mxd--ex_3.mxd

Absolute paths always start at the top of the data tree

C:\mgisdata\usa\states.shp

Relative paths start at the location of the map document

..\usa\states.shp .. Means go up one level

Broken data links occur when a map document cannot find data using the stored pathname

?


When to use…

• Absolute paths– Data placed on

central server for access by many

– Data will never be moved or rearranged

– You want to be able to transfer map docs without transferring data also

• Relative paths– When you plan to

keep data with its map documents and move them together as a set

– When you want to distribute maps/data to other organizations

Copyright © 2006 by Maribeth H. Price

1-10

Connecting to folders

ArcCatalog

• Should always be used to delete, copy, rename and modify GIS data

• Allows users many different ways to view data– Contents– Preview– Description

Contents

Metadata

Preview

Description

• Contains important information about data– Who created it,

where it came from, coordinate system, etc.

• Metadata has hundreds of pieces of information– Much of the

metadata is entered by ArcGIS itself.

ArcCatalogArcCatalog

Windows Explorer


AVOID SPACES IN FOLDERS and FILENAMES

Spaces are Evil

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