Skill Levels

Competent

Overview

"Shape files" are sets of associated files and are a standard way to record information about areas including the area outlines and data values for various attributes associated with each area.  The outlines are in a "shp" file and the attribute information is in an associated "dbf" file.

The following brief discussion shows a method of handling "shape files" with an open source GIS editor.  This program will let you edit the Attribute Table, such as adding new information to each of the polygons in the database.

Further, the "shape files" can be used with several visualization programs to create meaningful data displays.

Sources of Information

GeoCommons: Finder!

The website www.geocommons.com provides two resources.  Finder! is a web-based program that searches a large database of geographic information.  You can get area outlines as well as values from this resource.

MapWindow: Editing Shapefiles

MapWindow GIS is an open source GIS that functions well in viewing, editing and analyzing GIS data, such as shapefiles.  Find this program at www.mapwindow.org.

Visualization

GeoCommons: Maker!

GeoCommons provides a very intuitive visualization tool called

Google Earth

Importing shapefiles directly into Google Earth requires the Pro version ($400/year).  Instead, you can convert shape files into KML files (the native language for Google Earth) and import this file with any version of Google Earth.

Alternative strategies for doing the shapefile to KML have been reviewed on the Free Geography Tools website.  It is worth check out their alternatives.  Here is some information that will get you started.

• GPS Trackmaker will convert one attribute and the outlines of the areas to KML.  This is a free program that is also useful for downloading track from GPS receivers or trackers.
• A free product, shp2kml converter, will do a good job with as many attributes as you want to include.
• An inexpensive alternative ($30) is the plugin for MapWindow called Shape2Earth.  If you are already working inside MapWindow, this may be a worthwhile alternative.