Scale, Resolution and Accuracy in GIS

Because GIS data is stored in a very different way than paper map data, the relationships between map scale, data accuracy, resolution, and density are different between GIS and paper maps. A map in a GIS can be shrunk or enlarged at will on the screen or on paper. You can zoom in until the screen displays a square meter or less, or zoom out until the screen displays the entire earth. This means that geographic data in a GIS doesn't really have a 'map scale'.
From: http://srmwww.gov.bc.ca/gis/gisscale.html

NHD at two spatial scales

1:100,000 scale 1:24,000 scale

Streams and Map Scale

1:100,000 scale 1:24,000 scale

20 times no. of lines 3 times total length of lines San Marcos Basin Flow Lines 1:100,000 scale 557 lines, Total length 1890 km San Marcos Basin Flow Lines 1:24,000 scale 11,338 lines, Total length 5559 km

Length of the San Marcos River

San Marcos River

1:100,000 scale 39 records, total length = 130.0 km 1:24,000 scale 112 records, total length = 138.1 km 6% longer and 2.9 times no. of lines for 1:24,000 scale

From http://www.colorado.edu/geography/gcraft/notes/error/error_f.html

Scale, Resolution and Accuracy in GIS

Accuracy is the degree to which information on a map or in a digital database matches true or accepted values. Precision refers to the level of measurement and exactness of description in a GIS database.

From http://www.colorado.edu/geography/gcraft/notes/error/error_f.html

Relating scale and accuracy

United States Geological Survey mapping standards: "requirements for meeting horizontal accuracy as 90 per cent of all measurable points must be within 1/30th of an inch for maps at a scale of 1:20,000 or larger, and 1/50th of an inch for maps at scales smaller than 1:20,000." 1:1,200 3.33 feet 1:2,400 6.67 feet 1:4,800 13.33 feet 1:10,000 27.78 feet 1:12,000 33.33 feet 1:24,000 40.00 feet 1:63,360 105.60 feet 1:100,000 166.67 feet

From http://www.colorado.edu/geography/gcraft/notes/error/error_f.html

http://geography.usgs.gov/standards/

http://rockyweb.cr.usgs.gov/nmpstds/nhdstds.html

STREAM/RIVER - A body of flowing water. Horizontal data are confidently positioned within 0.02", at map scale, of the true ground position. Vertical data are confidently positioned within one-half contour interval of the true ground position 0.02" x 100,000 = 2000" = 167 ft = 50 m 0.02" x 24,000 = 480" = 40 ft = 12 m