GEO 465/565 - Lecture 6
Maps as Numbers - Part 2

NSDI Notes

TIN: Triangulated Irregular Network - GRAPHIC


A TIN can be used to represent surfaces

Based on the Delaunay triangulation model of a set of irregularly distributed points.

Way to handle raster data with the vector data structure. Common in some GISs and most AM/FM packages

More efficient than a grid

Formats

Most GIS packages can import different data formats, or use utility programs to convert them

Data formats can be industry standard, commonly accepted or standard

Vector Data Formats

Vector formats are either page definition languages or preserve ground coordinates

Page languages are HPGL, PostScript, and Autocad DXF

True vector GIS data formats are DLG and TIGER, which have topology

The TIGER data structure - GRAPHIC


Raster Data Formats

Most raster formats are digital image formats

Most GISs accept TIF, GIF, JPEG or encapsulated PostScript, which are not georeferenced

DEMs are true raster data formats

Data Exchange

Most GISs use many formats resulting from one data structure

If a GIS supports many data structures, changing structures becomes the users responsibility

Changing vector to raster is easy; raster to vector is hard.

Data also are often exchanged or transferred between different GIS packages and computer systems

The history of GIS data exchange is chaotic and has been wasteful

Vector to raster exchange errors - GRAPHIC


Transfer Standards

GIS Data Exchange

Data exchange by translation (export and import) can lead to significant errors in attributes and in geometry

In the United States, the SDTS was evolved to facilitate data transfer

SDTS became a federal standard (FIPS 173) in 1992

SDTS contains a terminology, a set of references, a list of features, a transfer mechanism, and an accuracy standard

Both DLG and TIGER data are available in SDTS format

Other standards efforts are DIGEST, DX-90, the Tri-Service Spatial Data Standards, and many other international standards

Efficient data exchange is important for the future of GIS


Overview of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI)


http://dusk.geo.orst.edu/gis/lec06.html

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