Components of GIS:
– Hardware: includes computers and peripheral devices.
– Software: is the brain of the system, GIS software is very diverse and can be divided into 3 groups (graphics management software group, map management software group, and spatial management and analysis software group).
– Data: includes spatial data (map data) and attribute data (non-spatial data). Spatial data describes the geographical location of an object on the Earth’s surface. Attribute data describes information related to the object, this information can be quantitative or qualitative.
– Method: an important part to ensure the continuous and effective operation of the system to serve the user’s purpose.
– People: In GIS, the human component is the most important component because people participate in all activities of the GIS system (from building databases, searching, analyzing data …). There are 2 important groups of people: users and GIS managers.
GIS functions
GIS has 5 main functions:
– Data collection: is the most difficult and heavy work in the process of building a GIS application. Data is collected from many different sources such as field measurement data, data from various types of maps, statistical data, etc.
– Data manipulation: because data is collected from many sources with different formats and there are cases where data types require conversion and manipulation in some ways to be compatible with the system. For example, geographic information has different representation values at different scales (population layers on cadastral maps are shown in more detail in topographic maps). Before these information are integrated together, they must be converted to the same scale (same level of detail or level of accuracy). This can be only a temporary conversion for display purposes or a permanent one for analysis requirements.
– Data management: is an important function of all geographic information systems. Geographic information systems must be able to handle different types of data and effectively manage a large volume of data in a clear order. An important element of GIS is the ability to link the system between map automation and database management (the link between spatial data and object attributes). The descriptive data for any object can be systematically linked to their spatial location. That link is a prominent advantage of GIS operation.
– Q&A and data analysis: Once a GIS database system has been built, users can ask simple questions such as:
+ Information about the land plot: Who owns the land?, How many square meters is the land plot?
+ Find the shortest path between two locations A and B?
+ Statistics on the number of trees planted on the street?
+ Or determine the density of green space in urban areas? …
GIS provides simple “click and click” query, search, and powerful spatial data analysis tools to provide information quickly, promptly, accurately, and support decision making for managers and planners.
– Data display: GIS allows the best display of data in the form of maps or charts. It is also possible to export attribute data to excel tables, create statistical reports, or create 3D models, and many other data.
Applications of GIS
Environment
At the simplest level, GIS can be used to assess the environment based on location and attributes. More advanced applications are that we can use GIS to model soil erosion processes as well as environmental pollution based on the analysis capabilities of GIS
Meteorology and hydrology
GIS can quickly respond to flood disaster forecasting as well as forecasting the location of storms and currents…
Agriculture
GIS can serve land use management, research on soil, and can check water sources
Financial services
GIS is applied in determining new bank branches
Healthcare
GIS can guide it can provide a route between the ambulance and the patient in need of emergency care, thereby helping the ambulance to reach the patient’s location as quickly as possible, increasing the patient’s chance of survival. In addition, it is also used in disease research, it can analyze the cause of outbreaks and spread of epidemics
Transportation
Information system GIS geography can be applied to
positioning in freight transport, as well as determining the shortest route, as well as traffic planning.
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