PresGuru MapInfo Workbook Sample
- 1. MapInfo Fundamentals User Guide Beginner/Refresher Workshop for Custom’s Presentation Center Staff December 28, 2011 Presented by PresGuru Training For Custom Staffing Copyright 2007-2011, daCollective dba PresGuru, All Rights Reserved
- 2. MapInfo Fundamentals Section 1 About This User Guide Copyright: Copyright © 2007-2011 by daCollective LLC doing business at Presentation Guru, written by Sabrina Easley. All rights reserved. This publication, or any part thereof, may not be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, photocopying, or otherwise, without the express written permission of Presentation Guru. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. Trademark Acknowledgements: MapInfo are registered trademarks of Pitney Bowes Corporation. Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Office are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other brand names and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Disclaimer: Presentation Guru assumes no responsibility for errors or omission and assumes any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein. However, every precaution has been made in the production of this book thereof. These user guides and workbooks are provided without any warranty whatsoever, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. All names of persons or companies in this manual are fictional, unless otherwise noted. PresGuru Training Custom Staffing 2
- 3. MapInfo Fundamentals Table of Contents Table of Contents 1. What is MapInfo? — Not The Average Application 2. Core Components a. What is a Table? Overview of a Table’s Files — .Tab, .Dat, .Map, .Id and .Ind b. What is a Workspace? c. File Organization Using Template Folders 3. Creating Points Maps a. Methodology for Creating a Map: 8 Steps to Remember When Mapping b. Geocode c. Create Points d. Thematic Mapping e. Cleaning up Data for Thematic Mapping f. Labeling Points 4. Creating Regions Maps a. What is SQL? b. Creating Simple Queries—Filtering US State Regions c. Creating Two Part Queries—Filtering US County Regions 5. Additional Practice Exercises Workbook Exercises List: Number Description Page(s) 1 Working with Various Windows (Views) 8 2 Creating a Point Map Using Geocode, Part 1 14–18 Manually Plot a Point, Part 2 19–20 3 Creating a Point Map Using Geocode 21–24 4 Creating a Thematic Map Using Create Points 26–29 5 Creating a Thematic Map Using Create Points 30–32 6 Adding Labels to Points on an Existing Map 33 7 Creating a Region Map—US States 37–40 8 Creating a Region Map—US Counties 41–40 PresGuru Training Custom Staffing 3
- 4. MapInfo Fundamentals Section 1 What is MapInfo In this section, you will learn to: Describe how the MapInfo application works Identify the differences between MapInfo and other software Recognize and apply basic MapInfo terminology What MapInfo Is… MapInfo is a GIS (Geographic Information System) desktop mapping software that can create a wide range of maps, from state shading maps to point maps, to customized region and line maps (such as counties), statistical market areas, telecom network lines and more. MapInfo can use imported information (or data) from various sources, as long as it is in database (“dB”) form. Maps are created from the most common types of databases, such as a client address database. Maps can be created using a client's street address, city and state or zip code. There are two ways to visualize GIS data—raster maps and vector maps. For the most part, raster maps usually fuse satellite photos or aerial pictures with spatial data. Vector maps, on the other hand, are derived entirely from spatial data that are represented by points, polygons and lines. Raster Map Example Vector Map Example GIS mapping is widely used by several industries including Security, Law Enforcement agencies, Telecom, Retail companies, the Federal Government and Environmental agencies, just to name a few. What MapInfo is Not… Most new MapInfo users have been known to say, “MapInfo isn't user-friendly” or “MapInfo isn't an intuitive application.” In the beginning, this is undoubtedly true, given the years that an operator may have been using insightful software such as Word or PowerPoint which are world-renowned applications known for ease of use, detailed help files, and a vast pool of internet resources including video tutorials and books. They are PresGuru Training Custom Staffing 4
- 5. MapInfo Fundamentals Section 1 user-reliant, requiring user input for an immediate effect such as entering a sentence, bolding a word, drawing a box or diagram. On the other hand, MapInfo (“MI”) is a “method-based” software that requires a user to build or arrive at a solution(s) using one or more databases of geographic and statistical data. While it has been slated a desktop application, most of MapInfo's primary and most powerful features are analytical in nature. From this perspective, it is very similar to Excel and dBase, which are also database-driven applications. MI's inclusion of “the geographic aspect” is what differentiates it. With Excel, for instance, when you need to create a chart, you must answer these basic questions: 1) What type of chart is being created? 2) What data is used to create the chart? However, when you are given a submission to create a map, you are given basic information such as the region of the map, the type of map to be created and a submission of data. Before you can create the map, you answer one or all of these basis questions: 1) Can I create the map with the data available? 2) If unavailable, can the data be bought, found or created? 3) What region template is required? 4) Based on the type of data submitted, what MapInfo function must be used to create the map, and 5) What reference data must be used? Overall, the creation of a map is more involved and requires a meticulous processing methodology. Initially, it may seem profound, but over time and with practice, it will be a piece of cake. Most Common Types of MapInfo Maps MapInfo can create a variety of maps and can be used to perform a wide range of data analyses. The most of the vector maps created by MapInfo are: Point Map Example Line Map Example Line Map Example PresGuru Training Custom Staffing 5
- 6. MapInfo Fundamentals Section 1 Basic Glossary of Terms: How MapInfo Interprets Data Browser Window A tabular view of a table. Similar to a spreadsheet, it contains rows and columns of information. Layout Window Use to arrange one or more windows on one page—similar to laying out a page in PowerPoint. A layout window can be exported as an .emf for insertion into other applications. Map Window A visual view of a table's geographic and graphic information. Another name for a map window is mapper or view. If a table does not have geographic information, this option will not be available. Mapper Another MapInfo term for a map window or map view, the visual view of a table's geographic and graphic information. Table A set of data that contains geographic and non-geographic information. If a table does not have geographic information, it can not be opened as a map window. View One of MapInfo’s terms for a table’s window. Browser, map and layout are all types of views. Workspace A feature that saves the table information and formatting of map and layout window arrangements used during a mapping session. Browser Window Example Map Window Example Layout Window Example Window | New Browser Window Window | New Map Window Window | New Layout Window or (F2) or (F3) or (F5) PresGuru Training Custom Staffing 6