Lab 4: Proposed Airport Expansion

Lab 4 was very challenging for me. I have no GIS experience, and do not consider myself to have very advanced computer skills. Some of the initial challenges with the lab were tasks like finding the proper tool bars and saving the files to my travel drive. For a majority of the lab, I felt like I was just just completing steps but I did not really understand what exactly I was doing to the maps. Once the lab instructed me to start giving descriptive labels to the Table of Contents, each layer on the map's meaning began to make more sense to me. Another difficult aspect of this lab was that there were so many steps in each of the 5 parts. With so many steps, and similarities within them, it is easy to miss one direction. With such a long assignment there was no room to just "play around" with the software to better understand it. The problem is that missing just one instruction can result in the entire lab being incorrect. Even right as I was completing the lab, I had to ask someone to help me understand how to save my work as a Jpeg image. After doing this once I am hoping that the process is ingrained in my memory. Another change in this lab from the last was the lack of creativity needed to construct the Airport Expansion Map. In the previous labs I got to decide what I was mapping but in this lab a very practical selection was made for the class. I will need to work much more with ArchMap before I consider myself to be comfortable with the program.

It does seem that with time I will become more comfortable with ArchMap. As I get used to working with the layers and familiar with the toolbars, I am hoping that I am not so afraid to make mistakes. It was especially daunting in a lab with this many steps to make one wrong move. I have used PhotoShop before so applying layers was similar but ArchMap can involve many images, where in PhotoShop only one final image is being created. One thing I like about ArchMap is that it completes all computations and lines for the user. This makes less room for me to make an error because the program is working like a fact checker. The good thing about this particular assignment was that much of the information was already located within the program, I just had to find it. I'm assuming that with more experience I will begin entering more of the data  myself. For instance the shape of the county already existed in the program, but I wanted to make a map of my hometown, I would have to create the shape of the city on my own.This makes the maps more credible than a human could complete on their own. Toward the end the lab started requiring the user to repeat some of the steps used earlier without reexplaining them. With a quick glance for memory, I was able to duplicate the steps. I look forward to using this program in the future to make more fun types of maps like the ones the class looked up for the first lab. Those maps are the ones that are fun for me to look at and GIS provides the opportunity for these maps to be created and distributed online.

This lab did give me more insight into the reality of GIS and how it works. It showed me how GIS can be very useful in any spatial design. Since so many layers can be added a great assortment of data can be compiled in one place.GIS has potential to be the entire future of spatial information as society turns more paperless. The data has the potential to share more information in one place where people would otherwise have to research resources. I think learning how to work with programs like ArchMap is very beneficial to students because it the direction that technology and society are moving. The only dangerous thing of learning one program like ArchMap is that in the technology sector, everything is always rapidly evolving. One week a certain program is the standard, the next weekend it is outdated. Hopefully the skills learned using ArchMap create a foundation for using a variety of GIS programs. Places where I see GIS being important in the future would be industries like National Security. GIS programming can be used to show old information and simultaneously make minute to minute updates. Another similar industry that GIS could potentially strengthen is air travel. With the amount of data programs like ArchMap can handle, hopefully it can be used by airlines to increase flight safety and limit air traffic confusion. The potential of GIS really does seem limitless as it will become more advanced and be used for everything from consumer studies to solving global issues such as disease and war.

There are potential pitfalls relying solely on GIS. In the ArchMap program it seems as though it may be very rigid in what can and cannot be done. GIS may also not be entirely user friendly for everyone. I am usually good at understanding maps, but GIS can get so technical that the person trying to use it may not understand all parts. GIS may be seen as the future of mapping, or the most accurate, but in many cases I think I would just opt for a traditional map. One pitfall discussed in class was aggregation and distortion problems. It is important to remember that even with a digital program humans can manipulate data to look the way they want it. Though GIS is used for the mapper to be very creative, in this lab I felt very limited. This uniformity seems necessary though to see if I really used the program properly. I liked that the ArchTutorial included step by step pictures so I could make sure I was using the write tools and completing each step correctly. Without these images and other students to reassure me, I am sure that much of the information would have gone over my head and I would have missed steps. Another limitation of GIS is that it is restricted to those who can afford the software. I assume that elaborate technical programs like ArchMap are not cheap to purchase. Computer programs like PhotoShop are very pricey so the intended market cannot be that large. Fortunately being a student, I get to use this program through the school. However after the class, if I wanted to continue working with ArchMap I doubt that I would be able to purchase the software for myself. GIS programs are very cool but there are flaws that need to be examined before looking solely to GIS in the future.