Maps in your pocket

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 1
 How do I get there?

Where am I?

Where is that place?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 2
Where is that place?

Where am I? 1.65” x 2.93”

How do I get there?

Maps on your device

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 3
 1.65” x 2.93”

Maps on your device

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 4
 1.65” x 2.93”

Google Maps, Esri Explorer and Collector

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 5
 Google Maps

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 6
Where is it?
What is it?
Why is it there?
Why do we care?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 7
What is a map?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 8
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 9
Reality

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 10
Reality

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 11
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 12
 Simplified version of reality

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 13
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 14
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 15
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 16
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 17
Take a closer look at 
the maps you see…

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 18
What is a GIS?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 19
geographic information system
(not a proper name, so it’s not capitalized)

GIS
(acronym, so it’s capitalized, with no periods)

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 20
 Picture = 1,000 words

Not easy to interpret 7

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 21
 Roger Tomlinson

 Canada Land Inventory
 Canadian Geographic 
“Data for Decision”
National Film Board, 1968
https://www.nfb.ca/film/data_for_decision/
Information System
 “Father of GIS”

Canada is big!

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 22
© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 23
Canada Land Inventory

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 24
Reading: Introduction to GIS

visualizing

analyzing

spatially 
referenced

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 25
Defining GIS

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 26
Geographic information system
A computer system for:  What a GIS can do
capturing
storing
filtering
analyzing
visualizing
geospatial data

(Chang, 2014)

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 27
Components of a GIS
 Hardware What a GIS is made of
 Software
 Geospatial data
 Procedures (data management and analysis)
 People.

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 28
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 29
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 30
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 31
ArcGIS Desktop
A collection of programs:
ArcMap: Creating and analyzing maps
ArcCatalog: file management
ArcScene: 3D visualization

ArcGIS Pro: Eventual replacement for above
ArcGIS Earth: Earth viewer.

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 32
A quick tour of the software

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 33
 Data View

Catalog
Table of
ArcToolbox Contents

Table

ArcMap

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 34
 ArcCatalog

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 35
 Ribbon

Map

Project

Toolboxes Table
Contents

ArcGIS Pro

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 36
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 37
 Header
Menu

Map

Contents
Table

ArcGIS Online

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 38
 Explorer app

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 39
Examples of geospatial data

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 40
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 41
 ?

What data can be used to map things?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 42
 43°42′ N 79°24′ W

Longitude and latitude

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 43
 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

Street address

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 44
Forward Sortation Areas (FSA)

Postal codes

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 45
Local Delivery Units (LDU)
FSA LDU

Postal codes

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 46
 Zip codes

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 47
 Area codes

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 48
Locations Attributes

Relationships

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 49
Locations and attributes

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 50
 Proximity

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 51
Mapping business data…
Estimated that 80% of all business data have a 
spatial component

…no one knows if this is true, 
…but you hear it all the time. 
Why?

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 52
Vegetation  Dense
Select
Index Vegetation

Close to Golf
Golf courses Buffer
Courses

Procedures and people

Preferred
Intersection
Areas
Close to 
Libraries Buffer
Libraries

Close to 
High schools Buffer
Schools

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 53
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 54
 Vegetation  Dense Housing
Select
Index Vegetation suitability?

Close to Golf
Golf courses Buffer
Courses
Preferred
Intersection
Areas
Close to 
Libraries Buffer
Libraries

Close to 
High schools Buffer
Schools

Procedure for analyzing data to create information

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 55
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 56
Desktop GIS The cloud Web GIS

x1000’s

Hardware Hardware Browser

Software Software Apps
Data Data
Procedures Procedures

© Donald Boyes, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Toronto 57