GIS Instructional Videos
Peggy Minnis, Ph.D. (MMinnis@pace.edu)
Pace University                 Februrary 2012 update

This page has links to a variety of instructional videos of GIS operations.  The titles explain what they do. To view any of the videos, click on the topic.  They use Flash Player, so you may have to click Allow ActiveX before the video will start.  You may have to scroll down to see if there is a video for you.  I also have integrated some videos for using Google Earth combined with ArcGIS. 

This is always a work in progress.   (MMinnis@Pace.edu). Write to me if you find a problem or want to link your own videos.

BOOK: For my Pace University GIS course use GIS Tutorial for ArcGIS 10 Book 1 by Wilpen L. Gorr and Kristen S. Kurland, ESRI Press 2011, which you can get from many sources.  It has a full-blown copy of the program, useable for 180 days.  You can also download a 180-day version of the program from the ESRI site.  Don't buy a used copy or rent it.

The videos at the top are for Arc 10.  Below are ones for 9.3.1, many of which will work in 10 with some small modifications on your part.

If you are interested in the US Forest Service's iTree suite of programs, go to http://www.iTreetools.org .  If your community already has a database of street trees and wants to run an analysis of it, I did a little video of how to convert an Excel spreadsheet to iTree Streets.   The iTree suite of programs is free and supported. Use the App Leafsnap to identify your trees.  I have some other videos on this topic, so get in touch with me if you want more.

  
ArcGIS 10 Videos that were new in 2011 and 2012.  The  9.3.1 videos are lower down on the page
Starting up.  This is a 2012 introductory video for my class.  It shows how to go to Westchester County's GIS data warehouse, download and unzip GIS data and then how to create a map of one town only and export it as a layered PDF file. (skills: download, unzip, ArcCatalog, layout, make a layered PDF)
ArcGISTenIntro  This is so last year.  It shows you how to activate the Table of Contents, the Catalog and how to make a simple map of the US with hyperlinks to each state's webpage.  It also shows you where the attribute table can be found and what's in it.   For people using the textbook, some of the first exercises in the book are on the bottom of this web page.
Converting E00 files in ArcGIS 10.   This is using the Toolbox and is fairly simple once you see the pathway.

Outputting your finished map with either PDF or in with ArcPublisher for ArcReader use
Making a PDF of your work.  This will allow you to email your maps to others or upload them to the Internet (on Blackboard).  The PDF allows the viewer to click on layers and to zoom in.  There are some subtle things to do under "options" that allow the viewer to click on and off layers and labels.  This is really helpful if you are making a map for "citizens."  Like, your neighbors or your mom.

Clipping features, then making a geodatabase.  We downloaded GIS data from Westchester County, clipped  to a town (your choice).  Then, we made a geodatabase.  This covers a lot of little features.

Publishing your map to use in ArcReader  If you have the ArcPublisher extension, this allows you to make a map in ArcMap (using the data from a geodatabase).  Make sure you have relative pathnames for the data, then publish your map and the data so that it can be used in the free ArcReader.  If you are emailing it, you will have to zip the folder.  Then, be sure your recipient knows enough to unzip everything before they click on the ArcReader document (under folder "pmf").  (Lots of people have not unzipped the package, then complained that the program can't find the data.)  You can have your friends and family download the free ArcReader from ESRI so they can admire your maps.
Another video on how to publish maps with ArcPublisher for reading in ArcReader.

Making a new shapefile (polygon).  This differs a bit from the 9.3.1 version, especially with the editor.  We also learn how to create a new field that calculates the geometry (square footage) of each parking lot.

Geocoding in 10 is easier because there is a toolbar to activate an address locator (if you have Internet access).  Customize>Toolbars>Geocoding.  Our friends at ESRI make it possible to avoid some of the pain of making an address locator for a table of addresses (and zip codes or whatever you have to define your locations).

Geocoding addresses in an Excel spreadsheet. If you are using 10 and want to make up your own address locator, this is for you.  For this, I made up a small Excel table of some colleges in Westchester, downloaded Westchester County's current Tigerline shapefile and made a few mistakes trying to make my own address locater, finally deciding to use ESRI's new included address locator.  Subsequent messing with the Address Locator project showed that it worked similarly to that in 9.3.1 (see below) but check out the next note:

Show your file on Google Earth.  If you have a shapefile to share, ArcGIS allows you to create a little file that , when clicked opens Google Earth opens and zooms to your file and displays it.  In this video, I mapped fire hydrants in Norwalk, CT. 

Using Google Earth's 3D mapping and analysis to show your route.  For this, I used a bike ride in Lancaster, PA that I rode.  If you use both ArcGIS and Google Earth, you get some pretty good, shareable stuff.  You can show the cross section of your altitude, adjust the 3D features of Google Earth, etc.

Hyperlinking photos to historic sites in Pittsburgh to be eventually used in an ArcReader document.  This requires the ArcPublisher license.
After you make the map, you will have one main folder and two sub folders.  One of the subfolders has the data and the other one, the pmf, has the map.  Add your photos to the pmf folder before you zip it.  That way, the hyperlink feature will work.  How you zip is a function of what program you have on your computer.  Both Windows 7 and Windows XP have a built-in zip utility.
Captioning in Photoshop   This is to enable you to put a readable caption on a photo.   We want a white background for a box, filling it with the description of the house for subsequent hyperlinking.

Sketchup with Google Earth.  This tells you to download Sketchup 8 .  Install and make sure you have downloaded the latest version of Google Earth.  This video shows you how to import a location from Google Earth into Sketchup and to create a simple 3D structure.  Then, you can select and export that structure to Google Earth as a .kmz file.  Very cool.

Taking a walk with the class using GPS and a digital camera.  The how-to video is below.

Making Movies with your .avi files from your camera or Flip
MovieMaking  This is how to use Windows Movie Maker.  If you have Windows XP, it's one of your built-in utilities.  If you have Windows 7, you may have to download the free Windows Movie Maker from Microsoft.
It was for my brother Kevin, which accounts for the reference at the beginning.  I am using Flip Video .avi files in this.  It seems that not all .avi files are created equal.  Most of the video editing software works about the same, but some of them are fussy about what kinds of .avi files they will edit.  You should be able to use the SD card from your digital camera if you have the ability to take videos.  I think you should be able to edit videos you take on your phone if you know how to get the file transferred to your computer.

If you are still using 9.3.1 or earlier  These didn't change too much with 10

Starting up the Program (9.3.1 version)   Lots of these work in ArcMAP 10.
Starting ArcMap and making the first map using Pennsylvania data from the workbook data (GisTutorial data)
Introduction to GIS    This isn't as good as the first one; it's different.  The Pennsylvania data came from here.  Pennsylvania has a very complete GIS data set to download.
Making a Layout to produce a pretty map with legend, scale of mile, north arrow and titles
Making a Geodatabase from Shapefiles   This takes the data we've been using in Lackawanna County, PA and puts it all in a geodatabase, which can easily be mailed and is a must for using ArcPublisher or ArcServer.  You have to learn it sooner or later.

Making New Shapefiles:
Making Polygons    If you need to make polygon shapefiles; here's how.
New Shapefiles     Get creative.
Making a line shapefile.  This is good for when you want to map out a pathway 

Getting your data ready to work for you
Changing Projection     This used to be a big issue in ArcView and it's good to know how to do it in 9 and 10, especially if you load in data that winds up several states away from where it's supposed to be.  Don't let this make you crazy.
Converting Internet Interchange files (.E00)    Lots of places zip their E00 files for the Internet.  Set them free!  It's anything but straightforward.

Geocoding Stuff  - Geocoding involves finding places that have street address and/or zip codes on a map. Geocoding an Excel spreadsheet of addresses & names to making an address locator to geocoding them in ArcMap.  If you are working in pre-10, this will be for you.
AddressLocators    This is how to create an address locator in ArcGIS  
Making Tables in Arc      You can use Excel now when you geocode instead of dbase format.  Make an Excel spreadsheet of your favorite places, the find them on the map.
Geocoding an Excel table of names and addresses.  Making an address locator.

Clipping - isolate just certain bits of information.
Clipping         Often, you just want to use one town's data for your map.  This is how to isolate that info.  There is a whole video for doing this in 10 and creating a geodatabase.  That's up at the top under the new ArcGIS 10 list.
Clipping an Image     If you have a .5 GB image file, but only need a bit of it, why bog your machine down? Clip it!
Clipping an image  from the ESRI server maps.   You might want to use the ESRI to get your aerial images, then save a little of the aerial to your computer in case you will be using the aerial data where the Internet is not reliable.  Like, at a GIS meeting when you are giving a presentation.  Always back up with another medium.



Miles of Streets - This video shows how to determine the miles of streets, in the Byram River Watershed, that are in CT and how many are in New York State.

Data in tables manipulation - This shows you how to do interesting analysis with the data in the tables - Pittsburgh data.
Append - If you have data from two or more sources that should be in one shapefile, this is very handy.  I used it to combine the data from the NY and CT parts of the Byram watershed.
Rasters
Making a Raster Catalog.  This will be useful if you are using the ESRI server for your aerial photos or other information and just want to show a bit of it or you can't connect to the server where you will be working.  This makes for a much cleaner Table of Contents.

Drawing    - How to use the drawing toolbar, very basic.
Dot Density (census exercise for New York City)      This will help you use census data to see where people live
Dot Density (New York State)   How to isolate NY from the USA data that comes with your Arc disks.

New York City - Bytes of the Big Apple
Brooklyn Schools - This is how to get data about NY City facilities as a txt file, to isolate what you need in Excel so that it can be geocoded with an address locator.
ArcGIS Aerial photos.   ESRI server has many useful things and is a good starting point for beginning to use servers for getting your data for maps.

Using Photo Editing Programs to prepare for ArcGIS work
Merging Photos  - This uses PhotoShop to put together parts of a scanned-in paper map to eventually georeference.  This is good for historical maps.  To scan historical maps, I use an HP Scanjet 3970, which allows you to take the cover off.  I put the old maps on a flat surface and lay the scanner on top of them (upside down).  Then, you move the scanner across the map, careful to be sure to overlap already-scanned sections.
PhotoStitch   This is a utility that comes with Canon digital cameras and automatically can merge together photos that are of adjacent areas and have a tiny bit of overlap.  This is especially good for scanned-in sections of maps that you want to eventually georeference.

Georeferencing:    If you have a paper map and want to make it part of your GIS, this is how to do it:
        This is how to convert a PDF to a JPG   This is important if you are going to georeference in ArcMap
        This is how to georeference that JPG to our campus data (New York State Plane East)
        This is how to create new shapefiles in ArcCatalog for our campus roads.
        Georeferencing  To learn how to make a scanned paper map geographically referenced.  This is Norwalk, CT

A project to create 3-D dorms on the Pace campus, using ArcMAP, Google Earth and Sketchup.
This video takes you from our campus to a new shapefile for the new dorm footprints to Google Earth and then to Sketchup where you will build a new dorm and then back to Google Earth where you will show the 3D version of your dorm.  

USING YOUR GPS (Garmin)
Minnesota DNR's created a program to convert your GPS data to a useable tracklog and to do some other fun things..  You've got to download the Minnesota DNR software, which can become a plug-in GUI in ArcMap.  If you read their page, you will see that they have a lot of other really useful tools for Arc users.

Hyperlinking photos to GPS points in a Garmin tracklog according to the Minnesota DNR directions.  This has a lot of helpful hints to avoid hours of agony.  This automatically links the times on the GPS to the times on your digital camera and creates a new data table in your Minnesota DNR file.  
Newer GPS to GIS.  This is how to make a shapefile from GPS., by Roger Strong, using the GPS he mounts on his bike. USB connection.
GPS to GIS Garmin  Thank you, Minnesota DNR for making this happen.  This is a 2006 video, before DNR updated their software.
HyperlinkingPhotos  This shows you how to hyperlink photos to places where you have been with your GPS.   This is the simple way.
An example of using GPS, a digital camera and GIS to make a video of your adventures.  This is my May 2, 2010 Five Boro Bike Tour story.  You can do this yourself with your trips.

ArcPadwithGPS   This is using either a PDA with GPS (Garmin iQue M5) or a BU-353 receiver with your laptop and ArcPad.  If you are going to coordinate photos to points you use, make a time field.  That way, the times on the photos will line up with the times on your ArcPad captures.
Reprojecting a tracklog   We did a several tracklogs with a GPSs using ArcPAD and it did not come into ArcMAP.  This fixes that.  Remember to delete any tracklog.prj files before you do this. 

SpatialAdjustments     To correct street lines, you will need to learn how to do Spatial Adjustments.  When you choose the method, if you only want to adjust a small part, choose Rubber Sheeting, not affine, as your method.  That should be obvious in the video, since I mention rubber sheeting.  Roger discovered this.

For 3-D work      This is using either ArcScene or some aspects of ArcGIS.  You need elevation data to get the ball rolling.  
The Easier Way:  USGS Seamless:  (They have changed this recently and it may require a bit of navigating around to get to the ability to download a DEM.)

If you Google USGS Seamless, you will get to the website where you can download the DEM's for an area you want to create a TIN or raster for.  It's slow.  But, it works really well if you are working in two different topo regions and just want to use one TIN for your base heights.  This is important if you are draping data over the TIN.  After you do this, use the next next video to create the TIN for ArcScene or for working with the 3D extension.
note:  If you put the TIN into ArcScene and all you get is a straight red line, do not despair.  Remove the TIN.  Then, go to Scene Layers and set the projection to the area you are going to use.  For example, if you are doing Norwalk, you select Projection> State Plane (US Foot), then Connecticut in the dropdown boxes.  THEN, you can put the TIN in and it will show as a green flattish thing.  To increase the relief, go to scene layers>general>vertical exaggeration.
You are not forced to use a TIN.  You can use the DEM to set the base heights.

The Hard Way:  I don't do this anymore, since I use the USGS seamless server.    The process is covered in a set of four videos:
One    Two     Three    Four     Download the STDS2DEM.exe file from the Internet and put it in the same folder you unzipped your USGS files into.  Then, run the program according to the video.  My steps here are halting, so forgive my errors as I stumble toward the right method.  I did this before I was introduced to USGS Seamless.

3D Profiles.  This will show you how to use the 3D analyst in ArcMAP, after loading a TIN to determine the profile of the topography going from my daughter's house in Norwalk to my house.  Conveniently, there are two steep hills involved.

MergingTINS  If you are using TINS that someone gracefully provide you covering a watershed, you may need to merge TINs to eliminate a lot of painful clipping.  This shows how.  You have to have the 3D extension, then convert the TINS you want to use to rasters.  You can merge rasters carefuly, then make a new comprehensive TIN. There is also a helpful article on at   The ESRI knowledge base.  It tells how to merge rasters. But, really, think about using the USGS Seamless site to avoid having to merge rasters.  If you are trying to drape stuff over a TIN in ArcScene, you want to have just one TIN or you will be pulling your hair out.  I've found that if you use the USGS seamless at night or on weekends, it's faster.  It's still slow, but it's a faster slow.
 
Extruding features in ArcScene.   This is good for comparing aspects of different locations.  Or, you can use it to pop up building heights if you have the data for the footprints.

If you have any good videos to add, let me know how to link them and I'll add them to this list.  My email is MMinnis@Pace.edu  I also have a lot of videos for teaching consumer chemistry. 

Book Exercises for GIS Class

Exercise 1-2  This is how to get to your book's data and open the geodatabase for the first exercise.  It's a little different from the exercise for 9.3.1 because the file structure is different.
Exercise 2-1 (page 82)  This is working with Pittsburgh school data in a geodatabase.  You learn how to select parts of a file for a new shapefile, how to display the data, how to hyperlink and how to mess up and recover.  It's about 20 minutes, including missteps.  In the video, I talk about Pittsburgh and the topography.