Best products from r/gis

We found 59 comments on r/gis discussing the most recommended products. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 118 products and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the top 20.

Top comments mentioning products on r/gis:

u/fiftycircles · 16 pointsr/gis

The first programming-related thing a company would look for in a candidate for a purely GIS job is Python, no doubt. Especially if you're brand new to programming, start with Python. If you're proficient in ArcGIS already, I recommend this book. You can also start with the easy online tutorials like Korlyth mentioned, but remember that you won't truly learn Python unless you apply it. Come up with a project and practice using your new skills. Then, if an employer asks for a portfolio, you have some good examples to share! A good example would be to analyze a large Excel file, import that data into ArcGIS, make some shapefiles from the data, and then maybe run some spatial analysis on those shapefiles-- ALL within your Python script (you don't even have to open ArcMap!). The big advantage is using Python for automation of repetitive tasks. It's tedious to do some analysis for all the individual counties in a state by hand, but you could practice doing this analysis in a script.

After that, I recommend learning some geospatial R. More and more organizations are starting to use R, and it can be helpful to learn some languages/packages that are not strictly used by ArcGIS. I recommend this book.

SQL might be good to learn since GIS tends to be all about databases. It might be tough to learn if you don't already have a huge database/server to work with, but try to learn what you can. I feel like Python, R, and SQL cover a lot of the non-web aspects of GIS programming.

If you want to take it to the next level, then you could learn some web-based programming. It can be tricky to learn this because there are several languages that work together (ex. HTML puts the content on the web page, CSS edits the content to make it look nice, and JavaScript manipulates the behavior of the content). You could start by building a basic web page (non-GIS) so you can learn these languages individually. Once you have a better idea about syntax and how they work together, you could move to GIS stuff. You could start by using a pre-existing web map service such as CartoDB and using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc. to put the web map on your own website and edit it.

u/discobanditt · 1 pointr/gis

In my opinion, the best place to start is to learn some Javascript. Chances are, any development framework you use to build your web apps will involve Javascript at some stage. And even if not, it's an excellent starting point!
Eloquent Javascript is a great book. Also, I highly recommend utilizing online classes from sources like Lynda. CodeAcademy is a good source for step-by-step tutorials.

After you get a grip on Javascript, I agree with the other posters that Web AppBuilder with customized widgets is a great platform for developing web apps. Download the developer edition and work with Javascript to create your own widgets. This is a good description on how to get started. The ArcGIS API for Javascrist is built on the Dojo library, so it's worthwhile to learn how to navigate Dojo as well. If you want to delve deeper, you can build an app from the ground up with the ArcGIS API for Javascript, rather than using the Web AppBuilder as the foundation for your maps.

If you don't have a developer license or you don't want to go the ArcGIS route, Leaflet is a pretty good, albeit simple, Javascript library for creating web maps. Their community is great, too, and they have quite a few plugins. There is also OpenLayers, and other similar libraries. You can use GeoJSON for your geometry files, and quite a few open source data bases our there (Like PostGIS) support the GeoJSON file format.

u/MZITF · 1 pointr/gis

I have taken a few GIS classes in college and we used these books: http://www.amazon.com/GIS-Tutorial-1-Basic-Workbook/dp/158948259X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1335239443&sr=8-2

Get the used one unless you need an ArcGIS key.

I could have more or less taught myself out of these books. It might be good to take a class if you can too, like I said I could have taught myself out of those books but it is awesome having a teacher so you can be like "how do I do this really obscure thing?". Once you get past the basics I would get in to model builder as it is REALLY USEFUL.

The ESRI website stuff is useful too, particularly their intros that introduce you to some of the most basic language. If you want to sound like a "pro" it really is best to be able to actually define what GIS is and to be able to correctly define and use words like "feature", "raster", and "vector"

u/DataJawn · 3 pointsr/gis

My recommended path for you:

  1. Work through Getting to Know ArcGIS to understand basic GIS concepts. This book comes with a 1-year ArcMap trial. Some may recommend you use ArcPro but if you are working with large datasets, which is likely as a developer, I would recommend using ArcMap as it performs a lot better in most cases.
  2. Complete Penn State's GEOG 485 to get to know ArcPy, ESRI's scripting package for Python.
  3. Complete Penn State's GEOG 863 to get familiar with the ArcGIS Javascript API for making web maps programmatically.

    Penn State's courses are free and you can view all of their content without registering for anything. There are a few other courses that would be helpful to you through Penn State, but those two should definitely be the first ones you take. Here's the link to the rest of their open courses if you are interested. I'd also really recommend learning some other data analysis packages for Python like numpy and pandas as well as a database interface like psycopg2.
u/alogicalfallacy · 5 pointsr/gis

Some good suggestions so far.

I've actually taught with both the [Slocum et al.] (http://www.amazon.com/Thematic-Cartography-Geographic-Visualization-Information/dp/0130351237) and [Tyner] (http://www.amazon.com/Principles-Map-Design-Judith-Tyner/dp/1606235443/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367588286&sr=1-1-fkmr1&keywords=tyner+principles+of+math+design) books. I would say the Slocum book is both dryer and more in depth while Tyner is easier to read, but that comes with it being a bit more cursory.

Honestly, it depends on where you are and what you want to get out of it. With a strong enough GIS background and some core principles already understood (generalization, for example), you might only need something like [Designing Better Maps] (http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Better-Maps-Guide-Users/dp/1589480899/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367588425&sr=1-1&keywords=designing+better+maps). If you truly want to understand things like how color works, why and when to choose various projections, etc., you probably want the Slocum text.

For what it's worth, much of Cindy Brewer's course material from her Intro Cartography class can be found online [here] (http://www.personal.psu.edu/cab38/GEOG321/321_syllabus.html). It's worth a look.

u/justanothergisdev · 3 pointsr/gis

There are a few more options

  1. https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkbook-series/Lenovo-ThinkBook-14s-IWL/p/88LG8TB1343 For a similar price you get similar hardware to what you found, but a better brand laptop (and a business line instead of consumer). Should have good battery life and decent performance for school.
  2. https://www.newegg.com/p/1TS-000A-05ZU8 It has a better CPU and GPU. Battery life won't be as long, and the SSD might be a bit slower, but it should work great for most workloads. Not sure on quality though as I don't buy much from newegg. Amazon alternative https://www.amazon.com/Dell-G3-Gaming-Laptop-G3579-5965BLK-PUS/dp/B07C9J1PY6/ref=sr_1_6?fst=as%3Aoff&qid=1568821642&refinements=p_n_feature_fourteen_browse-bin%3A2057441011%2Cp_n_graphics_type_browse-bin%3A14292273011%2Cp_n_size_browse-bin%3A2423840011%7C2423841011%2Cp_n_feature_five_browse-bin%3A13580790011%7C13580791011%7C7817224011%2Cp_n_feature_twelve_browse-bin%3A9521908011%2Cp_n_feature_three_browse-bin%3A9647486011%2Cp_n_feature_four_browse-bin%3A2289792011%7C2289793011&rnid=676578011&s=pc&sr=1-6
  3. https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/ideapad/ideapad-300-series/IdeaPad-L340-15IRH-Gaming/p/88IPL301161 This goes a bit above your price range, but has better specs than the newegg dell even (minus SSD size) if you have ebates or something similar in the states it might offset your extra cost. SSD is a bit small though on the affordable model.
  4. https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-IPS-Level-i5-8300H-GeForce-2666MHz/dp/B07L28M2CB/ref=sr_1_10?fst=as%3Aoff&qid=1568821514&refinements=p_n_feature_fourteen_browse-bin%3A2057441011%2Cp_n_graphics_type_browse-bin%3A14292273011%2Cp_n_size_browse-bin%3A2423840011%7C2423841011%2Cp_n_feature_five_browse-bin%3A13580790011%7C13580791011%7C7817224011%2Cp_n_feature_twelve_browse-bin%3A9521908011%2Cp_n_feature_three_browse-bin%3A9647486011&rnid=9647481011&s=pc&sr=1-10 This is similarly specced to the newegg one but cheaper. It's heavier and definitely appears gaming. Battery life will be less too.
u/geobug · 3 pointsr/gis

Look at maps. Seriously, this is the best way to make your maps better. Save a folder of maps you like, different styles, layouts, colors, symbology, trail patterns, typography used, ... As you are able to appreciate a good map, you will be able to replicate these types of success in your own work.

Read cartography blogs such as Brian Greer , buy (or ask for gifts) cartography books such as Cartographer's Toolkit .

These are general tips. ArcMap is great for GIS, but map design it is a bit clunky. Specific tips include:

1) learn to use guides for aligning objects in your map
2) learn to use multiple data frames for inset maps
3) learn text formatting tags and dynamic text
4) learn all the legend options. Click through the multiple tabs and windows, see what they do.
*5) look up color palettes (Adobe Kuler) try using different fonts than Arial.

Look at a map you find does one thing really well and try to replicate that using the tools at your disposal. As you advance, learn a graphic design program such as Illustrator or Inkscape - you will export your GIS layers and stylize the map itself in these other programs. Good luck.

u/jjniev01 · 1 pointr/gis

Here is what it sounds like to me what you are wanting to do, correct me if I'm wrong:

  • Input a list of coordinates in some format (e.g. table view, csv file, etc) along with a search radius value

  • Have something, ArcMap or a python script, go through each set of coordinates and return pertinent information within the designated search radius for each input coordinate

    You could possibly do this in model builder using a table object, table view, or a linked Access database as the input object containing the coordinates. Honestly, I have never been able to figure out the iteration tool in model builder and find it much easier to write everything in Python. Perhaps another user could be of assistance if you take the model builder route.

    If you were to go about it in Python, as a script in a custom ArcTool, you would have the user put in a table object of some sort as mentioned above and could also go the CSV file route which would allow you to easily convert Excel related files to a more friendly file type. You could also make a standalone script which would allow you to do everything without having to open ArcMap.
    However, if you are very new to Python and are not familiar with object oriented program, I would say that model builder is your best bet as what you describe is very likely outside of your current programming capabilities.

    Here are some great books for learning Python and using Python within ArcGIS.
    Python Scripting for ArcGIS
    Introduction to Computing Using Python: An Application Development Focus
u/KnotHanSolo · 39 pointsr/gis

A great book is Cynthia Brewer's Designing Better Maps. This will give you some ideas about visual hierarchy (making some elements appear more important than others), and how to use color, texture and pattern to your advantage. IIRC there's a section on font and typeface as well. Additionally, Ms. Brewer has a great online resource called ColorBrewer2.0 that is helpful in determining color combinations and includes criteria such as colorblind-safe, use in print or multimedia.

​

These are where I would start and I believe many undergrad cartography courses would start too. Good luck!

u/vahtos · 1 pointr/gis

I've never been to one of these live courses, but I doubt they are any more valuable then just looking at free videos online and reading books. The main advantages to books/videos is you can go at your own pace, they are packed full of more information than can possible be conveyed/received in a short live course, and they are going to be MUCH cheaper.

A couple of good books to check out:

For learning to interact with ArcGIS software: https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Know-ArcGIS-Michael-Law-ebook/dp/B01DK3SWO4/ref=mt_kindle?_encoding=UTF8&me=&dpID=41J4z6t5nqL&preST=_SX342_QL70_&dpSrc=detail

GIS Basics: https://www.amazon.com/GIS-Fundamentals-Geographic-Information-Systems/dp/1506695876/ref=pd_sbs_14_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1506695876&pd_rd_r=WM4VTBZR7PNZM326YA47&pd_rd_w=3jJcZ&pd_rd_wg=8MKvp&psc=1&refRID=WM4VTBZR7PNZM326YA47&dpID=51oUfZ5VUCL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=detail

For ArcPy/Python: https://www.amazon.com/Python-Scripting-ArcGIS-Paul-Zandbergen/dp/1589483715/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1517942628&sr=1-1&keywords=python+for+arcgis

There are also plenty of free resources to learn to use QGIS: http://www.qgistutorials.com/en/

The important thing to focus on from any of these sources though, is to learn the concepts, not the processes. The GIS concepts are the same across different softwares, platforms, programming languages, etc.

u/Focus62 · 1 pointr/gis

No problem, python was my favorite class while I was in school, haha. My professor actually has a pretty good textbook (what an amazing rarity, a textbook pushed on students for the professor's own personal gain that's actually good). Looks like it can be rented for $30 through amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/Python-ArcGIS-Laura-Tateosian/dp/3319183974/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1539568587&sr=8-2&keywords=python+for+gis

​

It has a lot of step by step, basic instructions on all sorts of stuff for ArcPy. There's also a lot of exercises to do if you're so inclined.

u/BRENNEJM · 1 pointr/gis

Definitely Bolstad. QGIS is free and great software. If you’re wanting to get some experience with ArcMap, Esri’s GIS Tutorial books are great. Only $30 to buy and you get a code for an advanced license with full extensions for 6 months.

u/emmr · 1 pointr/gis

Just finished taking a cartography course actually and our book was "Thematic Cartography and Geographic Visualization". It's pretty good, just dry. This is the 2nd edition and it's very cheap on Amazon, though there is a 3rd addition as well.

Another extremely useful book all about GIS, geodatabases, etc. is "Modeling Our World: The ESRI Guide to Geodatabase Concepts". This was the textbook for another GIS course I just completed. It's fantastically easy to read and has tons of visuals in it. It's way more interesting/dynamic than traditional textbooks.

u/MyWorkID · 3 pointsr/gis

You can definitely script this.

This is a really, really great book- I think:

http://www.amazon.com/Python-Scripting-ArcGIS-Paul-Zandbergen/dp/1589482824/

Check the sidebar at /r/GISscripts if you haven't. You might find something helpful.

Otherwise, just figure out the exact workflow you need to do and then Google stuff like "ArcGIS 10.1 select by location" which would lead you to this:

http://resources.arcgis.com/en/help/main/10.1/index.html#//001700000072000000

And just learn from there.

You might take a look at ModelBuilder as well.

u/owenloveslife · 5 pointsr/gis

My college GIS 1 textbook was Introductory Geographic Information Systems and I found it very helpful. I keep it on my desk at work and reference it occasionally. It gives a brief overview of Python but nothing to really sink your teeth into - for that I'd recommend Python Scripting for ArcGIS. Hope that's helpful!

u/mapadelphia · 2 pointsr/gis

Looks cool. I'm personally not a big fan of the slanted map but the content looks great. For cartographic design, I really like this cool by Cynthia brewer http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1589480899

u/ThunderMountain · 1 pointr/gis

Thanks! I have a student license, I've been working my way throught the GIS Tutorial Series and will be getting Python Scripting for ArcGIS. Do you have any recommendations for any other books in perticular? Personal projects sound like a great option too.

u/w_t · 2 pointsr/gis

For JS in general, I like JavaScript the Good Parts

And you have tons of options depending on what web mapping framework you go with...you might want to check out Leaflet. The API docs are pretty good, but here's a book:
Leaflet.js Essentials

I really like the Manning books, http://manning.com/
There's books on a variety of topics, including PostGIS, MongoDB, Node, and D3 for visualization stuff.

u/smal737383 · 2 pointsr/gis

Taking some GIS courses as an undergrad, likely ArcGis and QGIS, looking to spend up to $750. Is this the best I can do at this price point? I don't need anything sexy, aiming for best power/price ratio. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated as I'm pretty clueless.

u/996149 · 3 pointsr/gis

Find and read everything you can by Dr Cynthia Brewer. Start with Designing Better Maps: A Guide for GIS Users. I've had to re-buy most of her stuff two or three times as they mysteriously disappear from wherever I'm working.

Have a look at typebrewer, it's tools are broken right now, but the sites a good read.

Have a read of some it the stuff from the Google Maps blogs, and the blogs about Google Maps.

There's a couple of good YouTube channels out there talking about graphic design for web site or UI coders. While they're not about maps, most of the concepts are very relevant.

u/trytodothis · 2 pointsr/gis

I think the answer to your question is "yes" (I think--question has awkward wording), to a certain degree. Page 39 of the book Python Scripting for ArcGIS explains Python vs ModelBuilder well enough. I'll try to summarize:

  • Some lower-level geoprocessing tasks are only possible in scripts (i.e. using cursors to manipulate rows in an attribute table).

  • Scripting allows for advanced programming logic such as error handling and more advanced data structures

  • A script can run outside of ArcGIS; a ModelBuilder "script" cannot.

  • Scripts can be scheduled to run, Models to my knowledge, can't.

  • ModelBuilder "models" cannot be intergrated with other software.

    In general, a script allows you more flexibility in both where/how/in what situation you need to use it. Creating a model in ModelBuilder and then converting it into a (python) script can give you the framework/basic idea of how a process may need to be automated.
u/Avinson1275 · 2 pointsr/gis

To be completely I honest, it is adequate work for a GIS class and I have seen worse cartography from "trained" GIS professionals. I use to work for an assessor office in a US city with nearly 250k people and the IT/GIS and planning depts gave maps of poor quality to a well known non-profit for a presentation. I am no cartography expert but it is one of the easiest things to criticize/fix for most maps. If I count my grad school job, I have been working with GIS for 6 years and I seen/made plenty of bad maps from cartographic point of view. Probably most in this subreddit. I think good cartography can make a newbie GIS professionals stand out if they are looking for work samples.

If you have the money:

Cartographer's Toolkit: Colors, Typography, Patterns

Designing Better Maps: A Guide for GIS Users

u/pierotofy · 1 pointr/gis

To start, this line:

if radioanswer == qanswer{

Is not valid JS. You need to put parenthesis:

if (radioanswer == qanswer){

Then radioanswer should be assigned within the function block, not outside of it. Otherwise it will always have the same value.

Please, please do not try to improvise Javascript (even if you are not a developer by profession). You will fall into the many confusing pitfalls of the language. Find some time to read (at a minimum) https://www.amazon.com/JavaScript-Definitive-Guide-Activate-Guides/dp/0596805527/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0596805527&pd_rd_r=5DC6HMEAZ6MCTJY2YYQQ&pd_rd_w=JasEw&pd_rd_wg=wBgln&psc=1&refRID=5DC6HMEAZ6MCTJY2YYQQ and https://www.amazon.com/JavaScript-Good-Parts-Douglas-Crockford/dp/0596517742/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525662051&sr=8-1&keywords=javascript+the+good+parts

It will save you countless hours of troubleshooting.

u/lordnequam · 2 pointsr/gis

The Intro to GIS course my university offers uses a book called Getting to Know ArcGIS that I found pretty easy-to-use and helpful when I took the class a while back.

u/shbpencil · 2 pointsr/gis

I've had two separate intro GIS books. Jensen & Jensen and Chang. I preferred Chang but J&J has a better price.

u/GLukyn · 7 pointsr/gis

In my intro GIS class, we used this book. It is friendly to learning the basics of the program and some geoprocessing.

In the next class, we moved to this one, which overlaps some and expands more on the geoprocessing bit.

Each book comes with a 6 month license for ArcMap 10.0.

u/GIS_Trainee · 3 pointsr/gis

Python Scripting for ArcGIS by Paul A. Zandbergen is a text published by ESRI, it is a few years old now and does not make use of Python 3 but its a good start.

u/digitalorchard · 1 pointr/gis

Not as quick as OP's tutorial, but the "Interactive Data Visualization For The Web" book is good too.

http://www.amazon.com/Interactive-Data-Visualization-Scott-Murray/dp/1449339735

u/bishrant · 10 pointsr/gis

For QGIS I would suggest: https://docs.qgis.org/testing/en/docs/pyqgis_developer_cookbook/

If you are into arcpy, "Python scripting for arcgis" is a fantastic book to get you up and running:
https://www.amazon.com/Python-Scripting-ArcGIS-Paul-Zandbergen/dp/1589483715

u/EarlyFish · 6 pointsr/gis

I would experiment with the regular geoprocessing tools and ModelBuilder in ArcGIS. ModelBuilder is basically a visual representation of a python code. It's much easier (in my opinion) because you don't have to worry too much about syntax and formatting. It's a fairly easy way to get your feet wet with the geoprocessing abilities of ArcGIS. You can also export a model to python if want to work with python, but aren't sure how to start.

THIS book is what I'm currently using to learn Python.

u/xbrightcursivex · 3 pointsr/gis

The ESRI Press tutorial books are pretty good. I'm taking GIS courses through Penn Sate but it's been slow. I started supplementing my education with the GIS Tutorial 1: Basic Workbook

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/158948259X

u/-shrug- · 3 pointsr/gis

Amazon. Perhaps they mean this book

u/Mikeduke_324 · 0 pointsr/gis

Thank you. I noticed that after I printed it, unfortunately. Also, I got the color scheme from this book my father got me called Cartographer's Toolkit. It has fonts, color schemes, and map styles. Link here if you want to take a look -
https://www.amazon.com/Cartographers-Toolkit-Colors-Typography-Patterns/dp/0615467946

u/albinofoxyo · 1 pointr/gis

I found the combination of www.codeacademy.com and Learn Python the Hard Way really helped me to understand the fundamentals of Python.

Then this book by Paul Zandbergen Python Scripting For ArcGis opened the doors to Python scripting with ArcGIS and how the two tie together in a GIS environment.