Introduction to
Geographic Information Systems in Forest Resources |
Exercise: Using ArcView 3.x Help
Objective:
- Learn how to open ArcView 3.x
- Learn how to open ArcView 3.x on-line documentation ("help")
ArcView 3.x 's online documentation system should become your best friend while
you are learning to use ArcView 3.x. The documentation is extensive and quite
well written, in comparison to most other software applications' documentation.
As you are leaning ArcView 3.x, you should automatically open Help and
keep it open until you are finished with your ArcView 3.x session. One of the
biggest differences between those who learn GIS quickly and those who take longer
to learn, or never learn, is that the fast learners use Help extensively.
The fast learners will be able to teach themselves a tremendous amount; the
slow learners will struggle a lot, attempt a lot of things through trial-and-error
(mostly error) and learn relatively little.
- Start ArcView 3.x
- Start ArcView 3.x help
- Open Context-sensitive help
Start ArcView 3.x
- Start by finding ArcView 3.x, by navigating through the Start Button
on the Windows Task Bar.
- You should see a structure something like this:
- Open ArcView 3.x by selecting the ArcView GIS Version 3.2 shortcut.
ArcView 3.x will start with a dialog prompting you to either create a new
project or open an existing project. We won't be working with projects today,
so click Cancel.
You will see the ArcView 3.x application window that contains a single window
(the Project Window) containing a few icons, a few menu choices, and a few
buttons.
Start ArcView 3.x Help
- There are several ways of starting ArcView 3.x 's on-line documentation
("Help") system:
- Open ArcView 3.x Help by selecting the shortcut for ArcView 3.x
GIS Version 3.2 Help (in the same Windows Start menu location as ArcView
3.x ).
ArcView 3.x 's help functions just like any other Windows help system
for other software applications.
You can also open help by selecting one of the choices in the Help
menu in ArcView 3.x.
- The second method is to click the Help menu, always the rightmost
menu on the ArcView 3.x graphical user interface.
- The third method is to use context-sensitive help, described below.
- When Help opens, you will see an application with 3 tabs. The first tab
is the Contents tab.
The Contents tab contains all of the main topics in ArcView 3.x Help.
The contents are arranged in a hierarchical order. Each book icon 
represents an upper-level subject in the documentation. As you open these
books, you will see other book icons, which represent subordinate subjects.
Each subject contains topics and/or subordinate subjects.
- Double-click the Types of data you can use in ArcView 3.x subject.
You will see the book icon change to look like the book is open
, and a dropdown list of other topics will open (topics are displayed with
the question-mark page icon 
).
Double-click on the Tabular data subject, and you will see a dropdown
list of specific topics.
- Double-click on the Accessing external databases with SQL connect
topic.
Peruse the topic. You do not need to try to understand the topic, but notice
the green hyperlinks. These hyperlinks function the same way as hyperlinks
work in a web browser. Click the Setting up a database connection with
ODBC hyperlink. You will see how the hyperlink takes you to another topic.
- Click the Glossary button to open the ArcView 3.x Glossary. If you
encounter terminology that is unfamiliar, you should search the Glossary for
a definition.
- Click the M button, and then the map extent topic. The definition
will open.
- Close the Glossary.
- Click the Help Topics button. This will return you to the main Help
application.
- Click the Index tab. This is an alphabetical list of all the topics
in ArcView 3.x 's Help.
As soon as you begin typing, the list will scroll to entries matching the
word you are typing. Use this feature of help whenever you are searching for
specific topics that you think you might know the name of.
For example, you might like to know how to measure the distance between features.
Start typing "measure" in the text entry control. As soon as you
have typed in the characters me, the list will automatically scroll
to the entry for measures.
Double-click on the index entry measuring features on a a view to open
that help topic. Peruse the help topic. We will use this functionality in
our next lab session.
- Click the Help Topics button again, and then click the Find
tab on the main Help application. You may need to build the Help search database.
If so, the Find Setup Wizard dialog will appear.
- If the Find Setup Wizard appears, click the Maximize search
capabilities radio button, and then click the Next button.
Otherwise skip ahead.
- Click the Finish button. You may need to wait a minute or 2 for
the index to rebuild.
- Type "tabulate areas" in the text
entry control. You will see a list of help topics that contain the search
string. Open and peruse one of these topics.
Use the find functionality in help if you are searching for a word
or phrase that might be present within the body of the help topic.
Context-sensitive help
- To find out about individual parts of ArcView 3.x, you can use context-sensitive
help. In the ArcView 3.x application GUI, click the context-sensitive help
button
and then click anywhere
on the application. Help will open with a topic related to the object you
clicked. We will use context-sensitive help during our first lab session using
ArcView 3.x.
Summary
You have just learned how to open ArcView 3.x help, and how to search for help
on a specific topic. The difference between those of you who learn a little
or a lot about ArcView 3.x and GIS will be determined by those of you who learn
to use and consult this on-line documentation. If you learn nothing else
this quarter, you should learn to use ArcView 3.x 's Help.
Syllabus