OE-6.4 GIS Concepts & Data Models
You can identify the components of a GIS, join spatial to attribute data, and choose between raster and vector data models for a given problem.
A GIS is a database in which every record knows where it is, and the join between spatial geometry and attribute table is the mechanism that makes it more than a map. Raster versus vector is the recurring practical decision: raster for continuous fields such as elevation and imagery, vector for discrete objects such as roads and parcels. Converting between them loses something each way, which is worth remembering before you do it casually.
Work through these
Key components of a GIS
The parts of a geographic information system: hardware, data, people and method. The people and method halves are the ones most courses skip and most projects fail on.
Joining spatial and attribute data
The central trick of the whole field: a shape on a map and a row in a table are the same record. Everything a system does follows from that link.
Functions of a GIS
What such a system can do, taken as a list before the detail. Use it as a checklist against any tool you are asked to evaluate.
Advantages and applications of GIS
Why anyone uses one, with examples across fields. Read for the range rather than the specifics, because the range is the argument.
The spatial data model
How the world gets turned into data at all, before choosing a representation. It is the item that frames the choice between the next two.
The raster data model
The grid representation: a value per cell, good for continuous surfaces. Its resolution is fixed everywhere, which is a strength for analysis and a weakness for storage.
The vector data model
The shape representation: points, lines and areas with exact coordinates. Better for boundaries and features, and harder for anything that varies continuously.
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