In this lab, you will become acquainted with the ArcMap interface. You will learn how to create and edit shapefiles (point, polyline, and polygon vector files). You will add attributes to the files you create, and work with basic cartographic elements. In the end, you'll have a beautiful map of your own dream island.
Learning Outcomes
Establish an understanding of a standardized folder structure.
Use ArcMap user interface and basic navigation tools.
Articulate vector data types; point, polyline, polygon.
Feel free to watch the demo of this lab below. The step-by-step instructions are provided below the video.
If you are using Internet Explorer, you will need version 11 or newer to view the embedded video.
Walk Through: Setting up a workspace
You will begin by creating a folder structure or "workspace" that will keep your files organized and prevent any confusion as you work with multiple data sets in the future.
Log into campus computer with student ID and password.
Locate the drive named “Data (D:)”.
Create a folder in (D:\TempData) with your HSU user ID (e.g. ABC123).
Right click on white space inside the (D:\TempData) folder window.
Click on New → Folder.
Within the folder you just created, create a subfolder named “Lab_01”.
Within the folder named “Lab_01”, create three subfolders as below:
Folder Structure (within Lab_01 folder):
01_Originals
02_Working
03_Final
Creating a folder structure is best practice for organizing your files. It makes them easy to locate and helps to prevent confusion when there are multiple versions of the same file.
Now we will add a basemap dataset to our local folder using ArcCatalog.
Open ArcCatalog from the start menu in Windows.
Click on “Start” on the Windows toolbar.
In the search bar, type “Arc.”
Arc programs will populate the programs list.
Select "ArcCatalog 10.1."
In ArcCatalog, click on “Connect to Folder” icon.
Navigate to “SA Course Files (X:)” and select this folder for connection. Click Add to connect to the folder.
Locate file named “ne_50m_admin_0_countries.shp" in the "X:GSP270/Lab01_data" folder.
Right Click on this file and select “Copy”.
Navigate to “Data (D:)” in the ArcCatalog tree. Click the plus sign to expand the folder.
Locate your personal workspace folder, and then the “Originals” folder .
Right click and “Paste” the file into “Originals”.
Close ArcCatalog.
Next we will add our basemap data to ArcMap and choose our dream island location.
Open ArcMap 10.1.
Select “Catalog” tab on the upper right hand corner of the ArcMap interface.
Navigate to your personal workspace folder and then to the “Originals” folder.
Drag “ne_50m_admin_0_countries.shp” to Table of Contents window on the left hand side of the ArcMap interface.
Use the zoom in/out and pan tools to explore the map.
Pick an area for your new island.
To zoom, select the magnifying glass with the plus symbol, and click on the area you’d like to zoom into. To zoom out, choose the magnifying glass with the minus symbol. You can also click and drag with either tool to zoom in/out on a large area.
Create a spatial bookmark once you have chosen the location of your dream island. This spatial bookmark will keep us from losing our place if we accidentally pan or zoom away from our island location.
Bookmarks → Create Bookmark.
Name your bookmark “Island Location”
Skill Drill 1: Creating Shapefiles
Now we will create shapefiles in ArcMap that will contain our island shape, trees, and rivers/streams/roads.
In the ArcCatalog window on the right hand side of the ArcMap interface, right click on your “Originals” folder (if this window has minimized, expand it by clicking on the “Catalog” tab on the right hand side of the ArcMap interface).
Hover your mouse over “new.”
Select “Shapefile.”
Name the new shapefile “Island.”
Select “polygon” as the feature type.
Select Edit underneath the spatial reference description window.
Expand geographic coordinates folder at the top of the list.
Scroll down to “world” and expand the folder.
Select “WGS 1984” (at the bottom of the “world” folder).
Hit “OK”.
Select “OK” to finish creating the new shapefile.
Your new shapefile has been automatically added to the Table of Contents (See the window on the left).
Repeat steps # 7-11 to create shapefiles for each feature type of vector file (polyline and point).
Name the next file “Trees” and select “point” feature type.
Name the third file “Roads” or “Streams” and select “polyline” feature type. (This is up to you because you must be creative with your island. Is it a deserted island with only streams, or a bustling tourist destination with many roads?)
Remember to set the coordinate system to WGS 1984 for each file .
Set Relative paths in ArcMap settings.
Click on “File” on the toolbar at the top of the ArcMap interface.
Select “Map Document Properties”.
Check the box labeled “Store relative pathnames to data sources”.
Click “OK”.
This ensures that the .mxd will be able to locate your files even if their file path names have been changed.
Save your ArcMap document by selecting the save icon on the upper toolbar of the ArcMap interface.
Navigate to the (D:) drive and save the .mxd (ArcMap Document File) to your Lab_01 workspace folder.
Use the name of your island as the title of this file, so it will be easy to locate later .
Walk Through: Digitizing
Now we can begin drawing our island by editing the features of the shapefiles we just created.
Right click on your Island in the Table of Contents.
Hover your mouse over “Edit Features” .
Select “Start Editing”.
This will add an editor toolbar to your ArcMap interface (if it was not there already).
It will also open a “create features” window that will allow us to edit the shapefile.
In the “create features” window, select your “Island” shapefile icon.
A “construction tools” window will appear at the bottom of the Create Features toolbar.
Select “Polygon” in this window.
Your cursor will become a cross hair symbol when you move it into the map window.
Click your mouse on a space where you’d like to begin your island border.
Continue clicking once to add new points that add to the border of the island.
When you are happy with the shape and size of your island, double click to add a final point, this will close your polygon
On the editor toolbar, click on the word “Editor”.
Select “Save Edits” from the drop down menu.
Once saved, select “Stop Editing” from the drop down menu.
Skill Drill 2: Digitizing
Repeat steps # 14-19 to add trees, rivers or roads to your point and polyline shapefiles.
When editing the trees shapefile, be sure to select “point” as the feature type.
When editing your roads/streams/rivers shapefile, be sure to select “polyline” as the feature type. (Keep in mind that you will name these streams later, so don’t plan on creating 200 streams.)
If you are having trouble with the polyline snapping to the edges of your island polygon, zoom farther in on your island location.
Your layers may need to be rearranged in the table of contents in order to see what you are digitizing.
Change the colors of your island/trees/rivers/roads by adjusting the symbology of each shapefile.
Select the rectangle displayed underneath the label “Island” in the table of contents.
A symbol selector window will pop up, choose an appropriate fill color and outline color for your island.
You can adjust the outline color widths as well.
Click OK when you are done, and see that the icon for your feature has updated itself in the Table of Contents.
Repeat the process for rivers or roads (choose an appropriate color and width of the line).
For the trees, in the symbol selector window, type “Tree” into the search box at the top of the window.
Select a tree style you’d like to use, and make sure it is colored appropriately.
Click OK.
To make the trees different sizes, right click on the shapefile name “Trees” in the table of contents.
This will bring up the layer properties window.
Select the “Symbology” tab at the top of the window.
Click on the “Advanced” pull down menu.
Select the “Size” option.
In the “Size Points by Value in this field:” pull down menu, select “Random”.
Set the Random minimum to “1” and the Maximum to “50”.
Click OK.
Click OK.
When you are happy with your island and its features, save your edits, and stop editing. Also be sure to save your updated .mxd file.
Skill Drill 3: Editing the Attribute Table
Next we will add names to the rivers and/or roads you created.
Right click on your polyline shapefile.
Select “Open Attribute Table”.
From the pull down arrow menu at the top of the attribute table window, select “Add Field”.
In the new “Add Field” Window, type “Name” into the “Name” window.
Set the Type to “Text”’.
Click OK.
On the Editor Window toolbar, select “Start Editing”.
Double click on the first line of the attribute table, and type a name for your road and/or stream/river.
Continue double-clicking on the lines to name each feature.
When you are finished typing the names of your lines, select “Save Edits” and “Stop Editing” in the Editor toolbar.
Select the “Identify” icon in the tools toolbar and click on one of your rivers/streams.
This will bring up the “Identify” window, and you will be able to see the name of that river/road/stream.
Open the attribute table of your island polygon.
Right click on your “Roads” or "Streams" layer in the Table of Contents (whichever you chose to create).
Click on “Open Attribute Table”.
From the pull down menu at the top of the attribute table window, select “Add Field”.
Name this field “Area” and set the type to “Double”.
Click OK.
Right click on the name of the new field “Area”.
Select “Calculate Geometry”.
An alert window will inform you that you must start an edit session to complete this task, select “Yes”.
From the Property pull down menu, select “Length – disabled”.
Why is this disabled? Because we are in decimal degrees, and this map is not projected, but in a geographic coordinate system. We must wait until it is projected to calculate the area of our island polygon.
Click “Cancel”.
Close your attribute table window
Save your .mxd.
Be sure to back it up to a U drive or thumb drive, or zip and email your workspace folder to yourself, to make sure you don’t lose all of your hard work!.
Admire your beautiful island.
In Lab Turn-In
Export your island as a high quality JPG and uploaded to Moodle.
Make sure your entire island is visible on your screen.
Select View → Layout View.
Select File → Export Map.
Choose JPG as the file type and save to your 03_Final folder.
Take Home Turn-In
Add basic cartographic elements to your dream island in layout view.
Click on the Layout View Button at the bottom of the ArcMap Interface (next to data view).
Click on the “Insert” tab at the top of the ArcMap interface, and take a look at the cartographic elements that can be added (Legend, Scale Bar, North Arrow, Title).
Use these tools to add the name of your island as the title, a scale bar and a north arrow. Make sure to only use appropriate cartographic elements. If you are having difficulty with this, refer to the Basic Cartographic Design Reference.
Include information about your island (such as where it is, what it is for, whether it is developed or deserted)
Be creative!
Insert your map into a final report (MS-Word report template provided). You can reference the learning module on Creating Spatial Analysis Reports with MS-Word as needed. Your document will be returned to you with "Track Changes" turned on and comments added to the document to provide both positive feedback and areas the need improvement. Please check the comments each time an assignment is returned to you so your work can continually improve.
