My Geographic Information Journal

Transcript link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/159daNb5ytSLFVpiSvWUdv-fK7UYOWlAG/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=107434086861039984206&rtpof=true&sd=true PPT link: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1PVbeyJJYVJxHel-eS4AInq_naRA2YJSX/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=107434086861039984206&rtpof=true&sd=true This project was to analyze the impacts of a new transmission line on surrounding areas, including homes, schools, and environmentally sensitive areas. The ppt presents multiple Map Layouts and describes how they were done, as well as descriptive analysis of findings. The transcript is more detailed than the ppt but does not have any visual models. This project was much more demanding of time and attention than I expected. There are some amazing things one can do with GIS to analyze problems for people or agencies. I would like to give myself a lot more time on future projects so that I can more deeply analyze the data and make a more interwoven presentation. 

  During this module we learned how to georeference images into ArcGIS layers that were already existing, as well as editing these images. The georeferencing took some time to get used to. I found out after a while that the best way to get the smallest possible error was to zoom in on the images as closely as possible when choosing the reference points for the image to attach to. When editing a new building and road onto my layer, I found some of the editing tools to have a learning curve. It was very easy to make a line look wonky and I had to redo them multiple times, especially with the curves tool that goes around turns. Eventually I got used to it and it went smoothly. When I was turning this into a layout map, I had to play around with the transparency of different layers so that the entire map looked smooth, while still showing all of the information necessary. 

https://arcg.is/8Pnzv The geocoding lab was not too difficult for me to comprehend. I was not very familiar with cleaning data on an Excel sheet before this, but once I grasped what was going on, it came very easily. We took data from a webpage and copied it into an Excel sheet. We then made the data useable in an ArcGIS Pro Map by deleting unnecessary cells and organizing all the necessary data. Once we put the Excel data into an ArcGIS Pro map, we had to use various tools, such as Address Locator and Geocoding to further sort out our data so that every data point was on the map and accounted for. Using Geoprocessing tools in ArcGIS Pro is not too difficult for me, in comparison with other things we have learned. I feel like maybe address matching would be pretty confusing in the future when I don't have instructions in front of me, but that is why we practice! This map ended up showing a baselayer Imagery Hybrid, FL Counties, Manatee County, and our Data points. 

  This map shows potential camping areas in De Soto National Forest. The areas were determined by their proximities to rivers and roads, needing to be certain distances from each, but also close enough for access to both. The inset map shows where in the state of Mississippi the National Forest is located. This project was very useful for learning how to utilize attribute data and custom specifications to create buffers and the join different buffers together in unions. A huge part of this lesson that took some time for me to figure out was how to use the Erase geoprocessing tool to clip out areas that met all other requirements, but were within Conservation zones. It is important to know how to create buffers meeting ones requirements, but then crop out certain parts of the buffers that do not meet other requirements. 

  This assignment made a lot of sense for me. Being able to create the domains of the map that I was going to be collecting on made it very simple to set things up in a way that made sense in the field. I thought that the different ways that we learned to share a map like this (like the KML file) were simple and got the job done without any hiccups. The only thing that I got majorly confused about was that I had to log back into to ArcGIS pro to see my points after I had collected them. It took me a while to figure out why mine was not working. I also liked learning how to share a map on google earth because many people do not have accessibility to Arc that I work with, but it it easy to tell someone how to go on google earth. This lab brought a lot of things together for me that I have seen the GIS manager that I work with do, but had not learned to do myself. I enjoyed creating the domains because I know what will make sense when collecting in the field, as I have done a lot of t...

  In the exercise I learned how create different map frames and views, and moving around between them. I learned about editing symbology to create a pleasant and clear view for the reader. I learned how to clip out certain parts of a map so that they show only the area of the feature layer that you want to detail. I learned how to swap layers around in different orders to highlight different things. These techniques are very fundamental for creating a map with clear purpose and message, which is important for me in the environmental field, as I will have to portray messages in ways that make sense to viewers who are not out in the field with me looking at things. The biggest areas of this exercise that were difficult for me was when I would follow the directions, but the program would not work properly, such as changing the extent to degrees. No matter what I did, this would not change. However, the majority of the lab was enjoyable for me, and I particularly liked clipping parts o...

I used the blue color ramp and black circle 1 dots as my symbology. For some reason my dots look too big. I did not make them this way. Overall there were some hiccups in completing some aspects of the lab, but overall I believe I understood how to do all of the steps.