Introduction

This course is designed to introduce the basic concepts of ARC/INFO GIS, specifically as it relates to getting data prepared for use in the Landscape Management System (LMS). It is not designed to be a general introduction to ARC/INFO, and therefore does not cover many topics which are central to a thorough understanding of, and ability to use ARC/INFO.

Help!!

To start using ARC/INFO, enter "arc" at a system prompt. Undoubtedly, your best friend while using ARC/INFO will be the on-line documentation. Type "help" at any ARC/INFO sub-module prompt to start ArcDocs. Because almost every command has multiple arguments, you should read the documentation for any of the commands that are introduced in the course.

A note on usage

When sample commands are listed, command arguments are also listed. Those arguments which are required are enclosed in <angle braces>, and optional arguments are enclosed in {curly braces}. When several optional arguments are specified, the default option is listed first. To skip an optional argument or to accept the default, use a hash mark (#) as a place holder.

For example, the surfacedrape command usage is:

Usage: SURFACEDRAPE MESH {FISHNET | DIAGONAL | ALONGX | ALONGY} {distance}
                    {lookup_table | linesymbol_grid {item} }
Usage: SURFACEDRAPE MESH {FISHNET | DIAGONAL | ALONGX | ALONGY} {distance}
                    {RANGE | ASPECT | SLOPE}
Usage: SURFACEDRAPE LOCATOR {distance} {*}
Usage: SURFACEDRAPE XYZ <* | xy> {z_value}
Usage: SURFACEDRAPE GRAPHICSFILE <graphics_file>
Usage: SURFACEDRAPE <map_space_drawing_command>

To draw a simple fishnet, use the command

Arcplot: sd mesh

but to draw a simple fishnet using slope, use the command

Arcplot: sd mesh # # slope

Sample Data

For use in this course, we will be using the Pack Forest GIS Database. GIS Data for Pack are available at http://weber.u.washington.edu/~packfor/gis/main.html.