Final Project

http://pns.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=f3a885258ad04bcdb942026bda9f2325

     The above link directs to a story map for a proposed FPL transmission line between Manatee and Sarasota counties in the state of Florida. This story map project was the final project for our Intro to GIS class and required several analyses and map outputs. Some of these maps required tables and/or inset maps as well.

     The majority of this project was rather simple, but several aspects were quite time-consuming. The analyses and the project were not fully completed due to this time-consumption, scheduling issues, and a few technical difficulties.

Module 6: Georeferencing, Editing, and 3D

     The above map depicts the UWF Campus with roads and buildings on or intersecting the campus also displayed. The map also contains georeferenced LIDAR imagery of the campus and an inset map displaying the location of an eagle nest and associated protective easement in relation to the campus. The below map is a 3-dimensional version of the above map, minus the eagle nest inset. The 3D map uses UWF_DEM as an Elevation Ground preset.

     This week's lab required us to utilize various georeferencing tools within ArcGIS Pro to move, scale, and align LIDAR images with known points on the UWF campus. In the process, the lab introduced us to transformation orders and root mean square error. We were also introduced to the editing functions of ArcGIS Pro. Using these editing tools, we were asked to create a building polygon and a road line. Then we edited the attribute table for the EaglesNest layer to add a hyperlink leading to a picture of the nest. Finally, we were required to create the above 3D map using LIDAR imagery and a DEM created with the LAS Dataset to Raster conversion tool in ArcGIS Pro.

     The lab this week was excellent, the majority of it was rather intuitive and simple. The experience was quite enjoyable and immensely informative. The greatest difficulty I encountered was during the creation of the 3D map. In my attempts to display the Building 072 layer atop the Buildings layer, I somehow managed to have both display only partially. Fortunately, this was the only issue I encountered during the lab. I have greatly enjoyed my time in this class and am sad to see it end, but I look forward to future GIS courses.

Module 5: Add XY Data & Geocoding

http://pns.maps.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=9dbe6969165d42aabd718ae39599a1d6

     The above link is for a web map depicting the geocoded locations of various schools in Brevard County, FL. The lab this week required us to create x,y coordinate data via Excel and add it to a map in ArcGIS Pro. We were also required to clean up data in Excel for Brevard County schools and to create a web map out of said data. In doing so, we used the Project tool to project several feature layers, Select by Attribute to create several feature layers, created an address locator, and geocoded the addresses of various schools in Brevard County, FL.
     This week's lab was rather enjoyable, despite the issues I encountered while cleaning up the schools data in Excel. The equations for City and Address were giving me issues, but I eventually figured out what I was doing wrong. The process of rematching addresses was interesting and slightly challenging for a few of the schools.

Module 4: Vector Analysis

     This map details possible campsite locations and their areas within De Soto National Forest in the state of Mississippi. The map also includes nearby roads and water features, such as lakes and rivers. There is an inset map incorporated that displays the location of De Soto National Forest within the state of Mississippi.
     This week's exercise required us to create a geodatabase, change the default geodatabase within our ArcGIS Pro projects, select features by location and/or attribute, and conduct several queries along with spatial analyses. The spatial analyses conducted included finding intersecting features, spatially joining feature layers, creating several types of buffers, unifying feature layers, and overlaying features layers. All of this was to culminate in the creation of the above map.
     The lab this week was immensely interesting and extremely challenging. The overlay tools table in ArcGIS Help was a life-saver and reduced the time spent figuring out sections of the exercise dramatically. There were many points during the lab that the instructions left us to figure things out for ourselves. While I did not necessarily enjoy this, it was a great learning opportunity and an excellent addition to the exercise. While not my favorite of our labs, this was a beneficial experience and I look forward to the rest of the class.

Module 3: Data Collection with ArcGIS Collector & Introduction to Projections

     This map depicts the counties of Florida and four selected counties projected using three different coordinate systems. The map also contains a table comparing the areas of the selected counties calculated by each projection.
     This weeks lab introduced the class to various projections and how to change or establish them for a data set. We were asked to create a map comparing three projections and the areas calculated by them. The concepts of distortion caused by a projection and projection transformation were explored at some length. The lab also explored data collection utilizing the ArcGIS collector app and the use of ArcGIS Online and Google Earth for map sharing. We were required to export a map created from data we had collected on public safety features (not depicted) as a .kml file.
     Despite the various complications and technical issues this week, this was my favorite lab so far. There were certainly times I wanted to put my laptop through the wall because I could not figure out what I was doing wrong, but the data collection with the app was a fascinating look into possible real world applications of GIS and a fun getaway from the computer. The projections portion of the lab was just as challenging, if not more so, and equally fascinating in its own way.

Module 2: Cartography

     This week's assignment tasked us with creating a map detailing the location of UWF's main campus, highways, major rivers, and two nearby cities within Escambia County, Florida. We also were required to create an inset map depicting Escambia County's location in the state of Florida. The map was required to include the UWF logo and all the essential map elements: title, legend, north arrow, scale, preparer's name, the date, and source of the data.
     While this lab appeared somewhat complex at first glance, it turned out to be a rather straightforward and enjoyable experience. Most of the time spent creating the map was due to exploring the various artistic options for the essential map elements. The most difficult portion of the lab was the metadata portion of the Process Summary. This section felt like a puzzle, or a detective's investigation, in that the provided pieces of information served as clues to find the missing metadata.

Module 1: Overview of ArcGIS

     This week's assignment required us to access data from a repository drive and to extract it from a .zip file into a folder of our creation. We then launched ArcGIS Pro and connected the folder containing the data. We adjusted the basemap, symbology of the data, and created a map layout after familiarizing ourselves with some of the available tools. Finally, we exported the map as a .jpeg file.
     Having explored some of Esri's educational training before this class, I was already somewhat familiar with the design of ArcGIS Pro. The hands-on experience of this assignment was immensely informative and has caused me to greatly anticipate future labs. While the overall assignment was not very difficult, the framing of the map and creating the layout did cause me some brief confusion.

Module 1: Orientation Assignments

Creating this blog was a joyous experience. I look forward to the rest of this class and the exciting material that it will cover.