ArcWatch: GIS News, Views, and Insights
December 2011
Afghanistan Commits to Conservation
By Barbara Shields
Esri Writer
Maps created using GIS technology are being used to identify the wildlife habitats to protect and other sensitive areas to conserve in Afghanistan, including Band-e-Amir, the country's first national park.
Band-e-Amir is a chain of six deep lakes, situated high in the Hindu Kush mountains. The lakes are separated by mineral deposits of white travertine limestone and lie like a jeweled necklace on a woven rug. The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) played a strategic role in working with Afghanistan's citizens and agencies to open the park. WCS uses Esri's ArcGIS to develop sustainable resource management plans for the park and other areas throughout the country. For example, ArcGIS was used to create maps of habitats for ibex, wild cats, and snow leopards. The technology also was used to create a map of biologically significant wetlands and important bird habitats. One of the important bird areas that was identified and mapped was Band-e-Amir. Read this article.
A deep blue lake, surrounded by travertine stone, glimmers in the sunshine in Band-e-Amir, Afghanistan's first protected national park.
Tip of the Month
Tips for Using the Light Gray Canvas Basemap
Your map's message will be easy to see and understand on Esri's new Light Gray Canvas basemap. For great ideas on how to make appropriate color choices for your operational overlays and learn about other ways to make this basemap more effective, read these tips.
Connect with ArcWatch
ArcWatch is published monthly by Esri and contains GIS news, practical advice, and updates about the company's software and events. To submit article ideas, e-mail editor Carla Wheeler at arcwatch_editor@esri.com.
Join the Conversation
Analyzing Income Disparity
Researchers at the University of Redlands in California used Esri technology and data to analyze income disparity between the rich and poor in the United States. The study's findings appear on an interactive map available through ArcGIS Online, Esri's cloud-based map and data service. "We were interested in looking closer at income inequality, which has obviously become a hot-button issue for many Americans, as evident through the Occupy Wall Street movement," said Carlo Carrascoso, a faculty fellow with the Banta Center for Business, Ethics and Society at the university. Read the article.New in ArcGIS Online
Find out what's new in ArcGIS Online, including the addition of the Light Gray Canvas map, new geographic content for the World Topographic map, improvements to the ArcGIS.com map viewer, and much more. Read the article.See What's Coming in ArcGIS 10.1
Dynamic legends. Editor tracking. New software development kits (SDKs). Easy publishing and sharing capabilities. New runtime technology for building customized solutions. These are a few of the new features coming in the next release of ArcGIS. ArcGIS 10.1 Beta 2 is available now for you to preview and test the new features. If you are current on maintenance and would like to participate, join the beta program today.
GeoDesign at University City
In addition to teaching GIS, Kuwait University is applying the geospatial concepts discussed in the classroom to support designing, building, and operating the new, huge University City in Kuwait. When completed, University City will be an ultramodern campus with state-of-the-art facilities. Read the article.
Newsroom
4-H Clubs Use GIS
Supported by grants from Esri, 4-H clubs across the United States are launching GIS projects to help young people get a better grasp of science and technology. "GIS technology contributes to the 4-H science program goals because it teaches youth about a technology that most have never used," said Jim Kahler, a 4-H program specialist at the United States Department of Agriculture. "They also learn more about the subject that they are mapping—plants and animals, wildlife, natural resources, or historic places." Read the article.Registration Open for Esri UC
Join us for the world's largest GIS gathering. Register today to attend the Esri International User Conference (Esri UC), which will be held July 23-27, 2012, in San Diego, California.
ArcPad 10.0.3 Is Available
ArcPad 10.0.3 includes enhanced customization options such as Python scripting, a new Archive eXchange Format (AXF) reader that imports AXF features directly into ArcMap, and improved StreetMap Premium datasets for North America and Europe. Try it free today.
Ogden Police Department Uses GIS to Fight Crime
Watch this video to see how Esri technology is being used at the Real Time Crime Center in Ogden, Utah. Police chief Jon Greiner and other police officials talk about how the department uses GIS analysis and mapping to decide where to deploy officers and prevent and solve crimes.
GIS Supports Mission to Locate Americans Missing in Action
Ryan Taira, GIS manager for the Joint Prisoners of War/Missing in Action Accounting Command (JPAC), talks about how GIS supports the search for the remains of Americans missing in action. Listen to the podcast.
Map Story: Mapping the Impact of the American Jobs Act
Esri technology powers a map that shows the potential state-by-state impact of the Obama Administration's American Jobs Act. View the maps.
Esri Census 2010 Data Released
In this second release of Esri Census 2010 data, you will receive demographic data about population, households, housing, mortgage status, family size, age, race, Hispanic origin, and more.
Track It. Map It. Use It.
South Carolina residents can now quickly track environmental public health information via an interactive website developed by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) using ArcGIS technology from Esri. The site's tag line is "Track It. Map It. Use It." And users can do just that, viewing and creating maps, graphs, and charts, along with community data, to help make better choices for health and the environment. Read the article.Role of GIS in Demining
The database and software system known as Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), which incorporates Esri's ArcGIS technology, plays a major role in demining projects around the world. About 4,000 people are killed or injured by land mines or ordnance annually, according to the United Nations Mine Action Service. Read the article.Crime Analysis Tutorial
Learn how to apply crime mapping and analysis methods within your agency, department, or course with the new workbook, GIS Tutorial for Crime Analysis. The step-by-step tutorials and independent exercises introduce key GIS skills, including data preparation, template building, and map production automation. A trial version of ArcGIS 10 for Desktop software and exercise data is included. Instructor resources are available upon request. Buy the book.
Technical Talk
Create a Grayscale Version of Any ArcGIS Online Basemap
Rajinder Nagi, a research cartographer and product engineer at Esri, offers step-by-step instructions on how to use ArcMap to create a grayscale basemap from any of the color basemaps in ArcGIS Online. Read his tip.
Learn How to Add Labels to ArcGIS Online Web Maps
How can you add labels to features in the ArcGIS.com map viewer so they appear as part of the map? Esri research cartographer Ken Field explains a technique to use in this Esri Mapping Center blog post.
Introduction to Portal for ArcGIS
Wittaker Mathot and Paul Ross from Esri demonstrate Portal for ArcGIS, a private, collaborative, geospatial content management system. Watch the video.
Introduction to ArcGIS Runtime SDK for Android
This free live training seminar on January 19, 2012, will help you get started building mapping applications using ArcGIS Runtime SDK for Android.
Campus Place Finder Template for ArcGIS 10
The Campus Place Finder template, a configuration of ArcGIS Server and a JavaScript application, gives employees, students, and visitors the ability to locate people and places on a campus or in a single building.
Spatial Roundtable
Can Government Improve Its Image?
Esri government industry manager Christopher Thomas asks just how committed citizens and government are toward creating a more open government and whether GIS can support a happy medium. Contribute your thoughts at the Spatial Roundtable.Sweet Solution for Cookie Seller
Tom Brenneman, a solution engineer at Esri, writes about how he used ArcGIS for Desktop, ArcGIS for Server, ArcGIS Online, and the ArcGIS for iOS application to better manage his daughter's Girl Scout cookie-selling project. Read Brenneman's post in the GIS Education Community Blog to learn how he created a mobile mapping solution for selling cookies.Web Resources and More
GIS Routes Water Crews
The City of Woodland, California, uses Esri's ArcLogistics to create the shortest routes for crews to follow when they are sent to shut off and turn on water at residences in the city. The result? Less vehicle wear and tear and fuel consumption. Read the article.Esri Press Publishes Virtual Geographic Environments
Edited by Hui Lin and Michael Batty, this book discusses virtual cities and landscapes, geovisualization, and more. Buy the book.
Need Great Basemaps?
ArcGIS Online has free high-quality, ready-to-use basemaps, specialty maps, and reference layers.
Save the Dates for the 2012 Survey Summit
Join GIS professionals from around the world at the Survey Summit, which will be held July 19-24, 2012, at the San Diego Convention Center. Learn about the emerging technologies that shape the geospatial industry and see and try out the latest and greatest surveying and mapping solutions—all under one roof.
ArcGIS for Desktop Free 60-Day Trial
See what ArcGIS can do for you. Request a download or a disc.
White Paper: GIS Technology: Supporting the Wildfire Mission [PDF]
Free Web Course: Basics of Geographic Coordinate Systems
Training Seminar: Introduction to Spatial Pattern Analysis
Blog Spotlight
The Public Safety blog will give you technical tips and news about tools for mapping crimes, crises, humanitarian disasters, and other incidents.
Hardware Offers
Esri offers to US customers GeoCollector, a field data collection solution that merges Esri mobile GIS software with Trimble professional-grade GPS hardware. With solutions available for ArcGIS and ArcPad, GeoCollector will help you increase the accuracy of your data collection, ultimately increasing the quality and value of your enterprise GIS. Learn more about all Esri and Trimble offers.Visit the Esri Store to find more software and extensions, upgrades, data, books, and hardware bundles.
