Versions Compared

Old Version 33

changes.mady.by.user Arjun Sethi-Olowin

Saved on

compared with

New Version 34

changes.mady.by.user Arjun Sethi-Olowin

Saved on

Key

  • This line was added.
  • This line was removed.
  • Formatting was changed.

...

  1. Using a web browser, search for "houston metro gis" and select the result as shown below or go directly to: https://www.ridemetro.org/Pages/DigitalAssets.aspx

    ADD SCREENSHOT ON MAC (ARJUN)

  2. Scroll down to the bottom of the webpage and select "Get Started".
  3. From the left "Featured collections" dropdown select "Transit Data Files".
  4. Select "shape files".
  5. Click on "Bus Routes - shape file" and  and download. 
  6. Do the same for "Bus Stops - shape file".

HCAD and COHGIS

Though it is not used in this course, the Harris County Appraisal District (HCAD) Public Data and the COHGIS (City of Houston GIS) Open Data Portal are other great online sources.

...

The COHGIS (City of Houston GIS) Open Data Portal website provides over 100 data sets including administrative boundaries, amenity locations, transportation routes, crime, and flooding and is available at: https://cohgis-mycity.opendata.arcgis.com/. (Whenever you see a URL that ends in opendata.arcgis.com, you will know that you are visiting a standard ArcGIS Open Data portal.)

OPTION 2: Accessing tutorial data from Fondren Library using the gistrain profile

If you are completing this tutorial from a computer in Fondren Library and are logged in using the gistrain profile, follow the instructions below:

  1. From the Start menu, click Computer > gisdata (\\file-rnas.rice.edu) (R:) > Short_Courses > Introduction_to_GIS_Data_Management.
  2. To create a personal copy of the tutorial data, drag the IntroTutorialData folder onto the Desktop.
  3. Close all windows.

OPTION 3: Accessing tutorial data online using a personal computer

If you are completing this tutorial from a personal computer, you will need to download the tutorial data online by following the instructions below:

  1. Using a web browser, go to the Introduction to GIS short course webpage at: http://library.rice.edu/gis-intro
  2. At the bottom of the webpage, under the Resources section, click the Introduction to GIS – Tutorial Data link to download the tutorial data.
  3. Unzip the IntroTutorialData folder.
  4. Copy the unzipped IntroTutorialData folder to your Desktop or another location of your choice. Ensure that you note the file path of the location you have selected.

Any time throughout the tutorial that you see reference to the file path C:\Users\gistrain\Desktop\IntroTutorialData, you will need to substitute it with the file path you have just selected.


The following step-by-step instructions and screenshots are based on the Windows 7 10 operating system with the Windows Classic desktop theme and ArcGIS Pro for Desktop 10.1 SP1 2.5.0 software with an Advanced license. If your personal system configuration varies, you may experience minor differences from the instructions and screenshots.

...

Once you have downloaded the Bus Stops and Bus Routes data from Houston METRO and the SuperNeighborhoods Census and Freeways data from COHGISHGAC, you should be able to find the data files in your Downloads folder. You will see that all the files are zipped, meaning they contain compressed files of data within them (you can tell a file is zipped when the file type column reads “Compressed (zipped) Folder”). You will need to unzip the folders to be able to see the data inside them. To do that:

  1. Open the Downloads folder.
  2. Ensure that you see the following zipped folders in your Downloads folder.

    1. CensusCensus2010_2010Redistricting_ByData_SuperNeighborhoodShapefiles

    2. HGAC_Major_Roads-shp

    3. METRO_BusStops

    4. RS2688_Bus Stops - shape file

    5. RS2689_Bus Routes - shape fileMETRO_BusRoutes

  3. Select all four folders.
  4. Right-click any of the selected folders and select 7-Zip > Extract here.

...

  1. In the Catalog pane, right-click Folders and select Add Folder Connection.
  2. In the left column, click My Computer. In the right column, click C:/ > Users > gistrain.ADRICE and single click on Downloads. Click OK.
  3. In the Catalog pane, expand Downloads.
  4. Fully expand all folders and geodatabases in the Downloads folder.
  5. Your 'Folders' directory should look like the below.
    Image RemovedADD SCREENSHOT ON MAC (ARJUN)

Importing and Exporting Data in the Project Geodatabase

For this tutorial, we are working with vector data which is a spatial data format that uses points, lines, and polygons to represent real features on the Earth's surface. Vector data is ideal for discrete themes with definite boundaries. A Feature Class is a vector storage format that represents a homogeneous collection of common features. There are two types of Feature Classes: a Shapefile feature class and a Geodatabase feature class. A Shapefile feature class is an open source format. Its file extension is .shp and its icon is green. A Geodatabase feature class is an Esri proprietary format. A Geodatabase feature class must be stored inside a Geodatabase (.gdb) and its icon is white. To better organize our project, we will import data into our Project Geodatabase.

  1. In the Catalog pane, click the  the HGAC_Major_Roads geodatabase feature class from the Major_Rivers.gdb and drag-and-drop it into the Intro.gdb. A progress bar will appear that reads 'Copying...' Once it is complete, you will see a copy of Major_Roads inside the Intro.gdb as shown below. (THIS FILE IS NO LONGER A .GBD)

  2. CensusHGAC_1010Major_ByRoads, HGAC_SuperNeighboorhoodtracts, METRO_BusRoutes, and METRO_BusStops are Shapefile feature classes, so these Shapefiles require a different method to be imported into the Project Geodatabase. In the Catalog pane, right-click on Census_1010_By_SuperNeighboorhood on HGAC_tracts.shp and select Export > Feature class(es) to geodatabase.



  3. In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Folder button to the right of the blank input features drop-down.
  4. In the 'Input Features' window, click Project > Folders > Downloads in the right column and click Open.
  5. Select HGAC_Major_Roads.shp, METRO_BusRoutes.shp and METRO_BusStops.shp and click OK. 
  6. In the Geoprocessing pane, accept default settings as shown below and click Run. 
    Image Removed
    ADD SCREENSHOT ON MAC (ARJUN)

  7. In the Catalog pane, right-click on Intro.gdb and select Refresh. 
    Your Project Geodatabase should now contain four Geodatabase feature classes: Major HGAC_Major_Roads,  Census_1010_By_SuperNeighboorhoodHGAC_tracts, METRO_BusRoutes, and METRO_BusStops.
    Image Removed
    ADD SCREENSHOT ON MAC (ARJUN)

  8. In the Catalog pane, in the Folders section, right-click on Downloads and select Remove.

...

  1. .

The Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) is the 13-county Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Houston region. Federal legislation requires that an MPO be designated for each urbanized area with a population greater than 50,000 people (as established by the U.S. Census Bureau) in order to conduct long-range metropolitan transportation planning and be eligible for Federal funding for transportation projects. Their mission to carry out metropolitan transportation planning means that MPOs are a great source of data on topics such as demographics, employment, land use, transportation, and environmental conditions and most of these topics are well-suited towards GIS analysis.

...