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Introduction to GIS Mapping and ESRI’s ArcGIS Software
Objectives
In this exercise you are introduced to the ArcMap interface and some of the basic skills necessary to begin exploring geospatial
data and create simple maps. Once you have successfully completed this part of the tutorial, you should know:







How to open ArcMap and a Map Document (.mxd)
How to examine your spatial data using ArcCatalog
How to add spatial data to your Map Document
How to add tabular data to a Map Document and
turn it into spatial data
How to join tabular data to geographic boundary files
The difference between Data View and Layout View
How to label Map Features





How to alter Map Feature Symbology
How to add essential Map Elements (North Arrow,
Legend, etc…) for effective map creation
How to modify the properties of a data frame.
How to set relative pathnames to allow you to move
and share your Map Projects
How to export your map to PDF and JPG
Getting Ready for the Tutorial
Sign Up for the GIS-L Listserv
The Yale University GIS-L Listserv is an internal University
message system, devoted to GIS use and issues at Yale.
The list is the primary source for updates on software and
license server issues, data acquisitions and workshop
announcements. All GIS users are encourages to sign up
for the list. The GIS-L list is very lightly used, so that you
will not be overwhelmed with messages that are not
relevant to you.
1. In your Web Browser, Go To the Map Collection
Website, at www.library.yale.edu/maps
2. Under the Quick Links section on the right,, Click
on the “Sign up for the Yale GIS-L Mailing List”
link to go to the GIS-L registration page.
3. Enter your Email Address and Choose a
Password.
Note: We suggest that you not select the Daily Digest
feature.
4. Click on the Subscribe Button to finish.
You should receive a confirmation email shortly afterward, with instruction on how to use the GIS-L list.
Download the Data
The datasets used in this tutorial are available for download on the Map Collection Website. Feel free to download and use these
tutorial materials, as you wish, and to pass them along to interested colleagues.
1. Return to the Map Collection Homepage, in your Web Browser.
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2. Under the Quick Links Section on the right, Click on the
“Download Gis Workshop Materials” link.
3. Find the “Data” Link for the ArcGIS 9.2 “Introduction To
GIS Mapping And ESRI’s Arcgis Software” and RightClick on the Link.
4. In Firefox, Select “Save Link As,” in Internet Explorer,
Select “Save Target As…”
5. Depending on your browser and setup, you may be offered
a Browse Window, to select the folder into which you want
the downloaded file placed. If so, Browse to a Folder on
your hard drive that you have write permission for. For this
tutorial, we will assume that you are using the C:\temp
folder of the machine you are working on.
6. Clicking on the Create New Folder
Button, Create
a New Folder, using your initials as the name of the folder, so that you end up with a full path something like:
C:\temp\your_initials\
7. Save the Downloaded File to this New Folder.
Unzip the Data
You should now have a file called “01-Introduction to ArGIS_92.zip” in your new folder. It is now
necessary to decompress, or unzip, the tutorial data for use. Note that in Microsoft Windows XP and
Vista, it is possible to “Explore” a compressed file, as if it were a folder. ArcMap does not support this
type of browsing, so it is necessary to actually unzip the file for use. This part of the tutorial assumes that
you are using Windows’ built in Compressed File support.
1. Browse into the Folder where you saved the 01Introduction to ArcGIS_92.zip file.
2. Right-Click on the File and Select “Extract All…”
3. Click Next to arrive at the window shown at the
right.
4. Under “File Will Be Extracted To This
Directory:” Remove the \01-Introduction to
ArcGIS_92\ part of the Path Name (this is
redundant, as the zip file contains a directory
structure of its own).
5. Click Next to Extract the File.
6. Once the extraction has completed, you can
Uncheck “View Extracted Files” and Click Finish.
Explore the Data in Windows Explorer
Now you will take a look at the data you have extracted, using Windows Explorer. This part of the tutorial is designed to
familiarize you with the difference between how Windows recognized common spatial dataset filetypes, and how ArcGIS
recognizes them.
1. Browse into the extracted C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\ Data\ Shapefile\ Folder.
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You should now see a number of different files, some of which
have the same filename, but with different extensions (Windows
doesn’t always show file extensions for known filetypes, such as
dbf, or shp, in some cases).
2. If necessary, Click on the Name Field Header in the
Explorer Window to Sort the files By Name.
What is critical to recognize about the contents of this folder is that all
of the files with the same filename are actually part of a single
“shapefile.” The shapefile is ESRI proprietary vector data format.
The fact that it is called a shapefile can cause some confusion, since
it is actually a collection of files.
Explore the Data in ArcCatalog
Now you will take a look at the same data using the ArcGIS version of
Windows Explorer, which is designed to interact with these types of
spatial data filetypes.
1. Go To Start>Programs>ArcGIS> and Launch the
ArcCatalog program.
2. Using the “Catalog Tree” Panel, at the left side of the
Arccatalog application window, Browse to your
C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\ Data\
Shapefile\ Folder.
3. Make Sure that the “Contents” Tab at the top of the
“Catalog Display” on the right side of the ArcCatalog
Application Window is active.
Note the difference in how ArcCatalog and Windows display
shapefiles. ArcCatalog ‘knows’ that a shapefile is actually a collection
of files, as so it only shows you a single file, where Windows Explorer
showed all of the files. You should always use ArcCatalog for Moving,
Deleting, Copying, etc… any spatial data files, for this reason. Using
ArcCatalog for these tasks prevents critical parts of the spatial data files from being ‘left out’ and rendered useless.
4. Click on the “Railroad” Layer in the Catalog Tree, on the left.
5. Click on the Preview Tab, at the top of the Catalog Display, to Preview the Data in this layer.
6. Click on the Metadata Tab, at the top of the Catalog Display, to View information about this shapefile.
Introduction to the ArcMap Data View
Opening ArcMap & Getting Familiar
1. In the Arccatalog Catalog Tree, Scroll to the bottom of the Folder Group you are
currently browsing and find the “Intro_To_Arcgis” File. This is the Map Document
(Intro_to_ArcGIS.mxd) that we will start the tutorial with.
2. Double-Click on the Intro_to_ArcGIS.mxd to Launch Arcmap and Open the Map Document.
The Yale Map Collection
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Main
Menu
Standard
Toolbar
DataMap
Layers
Display
“Tools”
Toolbar
Map
Display
“View”
Toolbar
Table of
Contents
You should now see something like what is shown above (don’t worry about the little red exclamation marks, yet). Take a few
seconds to familiarize yourself with the ArcMap interface.

The Main Menu should be familiar to anyone who uses Microsoft Windows software. It is where you perform basic
file and document editing functions.

The Table of Contents is the area where your data layers will be listed and where you can interact with and alter the
properties of individual layers.

The Add Data
Button is located on the “Standard” Toolbar and opens a dialog box that allows new layers to be
added to the Table of Contents and Map Document. It should not be confused with the Open Document button,
which is located on the same toolbar, but is not unique to ArcMap.

The Map Display is the area where your map data will be displayed.

The “Tools” Toolbar contains a series of tools that operate on the data displayed in the Map Document Window.

The View Toolbar changes between the Data View and Layout View of the Map Document.
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Repairing Broken Data Links
When you opened the Intro_to_ArcGIS.mxd file, you might have noticed
that there were several data layers listed in the “Table of Contents Panel,”
but that these layers had little red exclamation marks superimposed upon
the checkboxes next to them. ArcMap Map Documents do not actually
‘contain’ the data that they display. Instead, to save storage, and prevent
multiple copies of a single dataset from proliferating within a single
document, ArcMap ‘refers’ to the data, using what are referred to as
“absolute paths.’ This means that the locations of the data layers in this
Intro_to_ArcGIS.mxd Map Document are referred to using the full path
(i.e. “C:\2007_GIS_Workshops\01Introduction_to_ArcGIS\Data\Shapefile”) which happens to no longer be
valid for the datasets in this project, since we downloaded the project from
a web server, and extracted the files to our C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to ArcGIS\ folder. There are ways to prevent this from
happening, which will be covered later in the tutorial, but for now, you
simply need to ‘tell’ ArcMap where to find the data that its layers are
looking for.
1. Right-Click on the
“Area_of_Interest_polygon_polygon” Layer, which is
the first layer in the Table Of Contents Panel.
2. In the resulting Context Menu, go to Data>Repair Data
Source…
3. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to
ArcGIS\Data\Shapefile\ Folder and Select the
Area_of_Interest_polygon_polygon.shp shapefile.
4. Click Add to Repair the Data Source.
You should be left with something that looks similar to the ArcMap
window below. Note that when all of the data sources are in the same folder, ArcMap will repair all of the broken links in the Map
Document.
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Adding Data from ArcCatalog
1. Bring ArcCatalog back to the front
your Windows Desktop, but move it so
that you can still see the ArcMap
Table Of Contents Panel.
2. From the Catalog Tree Panel, ClickAnd-Drag the following shapefiles
from the C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to
ArcGIS\Data\Shapefile Folder to the
ArcMap Table Of Contents Panel:

CT_State_wo_Boundary

CT_Towns

Hydrography_Polygon

Railroad
You should be left with something similar to
the image below (ArcMap applies symbology colors randomly, so your color scheme may differ)
Visibility & Working in the Table of Contents
Note that, depending on exactly where you ‘dropped’ the layers in the Table of Contents
Panel, some of your data may be obscured, and is almost certainly not in the best order of
display.
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1.
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Check the Checkboxes next to the Two Layers (municipalproperty and
DEPProperty) that are Unchecked.
Note that the checkboxes determine whether the layer is visible, or not.
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Navigation Tools in the Data View
1. Select the Zoom In
Tool from the Tools Toolbar.
2. Drag a Box across the Central Part of the Map Display
Panel to Zoom Into the Data View.
3. Click on the Back To Previous Extent
Button to
Return to the Previous Map Display View.
4. Click on the Fixed Zoom Out
intervals.
5. Select the Pan Tool
Button to Zoom Out of your Map Display at fixed
from the Tools Toolbar and use it to Move your Map Display.
6. Click on the Full Extent
Button to Zoom Out to the extent of the Layer in your Map
Document with the largest extent.
7. Right-Click on the Area_of_Interest_polygon_polygon Layer and Select “Zoom To Layer” from the Context Menu.
8. Finally, on the Main Menu, Go To View>Bookmarks>Create to Create a Bookmark, called Main View, of the current
extent of your Map Display.
Working with Tabular Data
Not all data that you will use in GIS Analysis will come in an explicitly spatial data format. That is, some data may come in
“tabular” form, as a table of attribute records that pertain to some
spatial feature or phenomenon. Many times, this data may have
spatial data included as an attribute (for instance you may obtain
a table of Toxic Release sites, with Latitude Longitude
Coordinates as attribute fields). Here, you will learn how to add
tabular data, display it and subset to the portion of the dataset
you are interested in.
Adding a Table & Displaying XY Coordinates
1. Click on the Add Data
Button and Browse to the
C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to
ArcGIS\Tabular\ Folder.
2. Double-Click on the USGS_Geographic_Names.xls
File.
ArcMap treats XLS Files as if they were folders, within which,
spreadsheets are contained. If you try to open an .xls file in
ArcMap, you will get an error. Instead, you must browse into the
file and select the worksheet you wish to add to your Map
Document.
3. Select the USGS_Geographic_Names$ worksheet and Click Add to Add it
to your Map Document.
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Note that the Source Tab in the Table of Contents is now active, and this new data layer is visible there, but there has been no
change in the Map Display window. This is because the data you have added is a table, rather than a shapefile and it does not
yet have an explicit geographic display.
4. Right-Click on the USGS_Geographic_Names$ Table and Open it.
Note that there are a number of attribute fields for the features in this table. Most importantly, there are numeric fields with
Latitude & Longitude Coordinates in Decimal Degrees that we can use to display this data.
5. Close the USGS_Geographic_Names$ Table.
6. Right-Click on the USGS_Geographic_Names$ Table in the Table Of Contents Panel and Select “Display Xy
Coordinates.”
7. Under “Coordinate System Of Input Coordinates,” Click on the Edit Button.
8. In the resulting ”Spatial Reference Properties” Dialog, Click on the Select Button.
9. Browse to Geographic Coordinate Systems>North America>North American Datum 1983.prj, Select it and Click
Add.
10. Click Ok Twice to Display the Coordinates.
You will be warned that the resulting layer does not contain Object-ID’s and
you will be restricted in what you can do with it.
11. Click Ok, since we will remedy this problem, next.
12. Right-Click on the USGS_Geographic_Names$ Events Layer and Go
To Data>Export Data.
13. In the resulting Export Data Dialog, Change the “Use The Same
Coordinate System As:” to “The Data Frame.”
This is a shortcut to projecting your data to the same projection as the rest of the
data in this Map Document.
14. Browse to your C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to ArcGIS\Data\Shapefile
Folder and Save the New Shapefile as
USGS_Geographic_Names.shp. Click
Save.
15. Click Ok to Export the Data.
16. When prompted whether you want to add the
exported data as a layer, Click Yes.
17. Right-Click on the original
Usgs_Geographic_Names$ Events Layer
and Select Remove.
18. Remove the USGS_Geographic_Names$
Table, also.
19. Click on the Display Tab, at the bottom of the
Table Of Contents Panel.
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Subsetting Using “Select by Attributes”
1. Right-Click on the new USGS_Geographic_Names Layer and Open The
Attribute Table.
2. Click on the Option Button of the Attribute Table and Go To “Select By
Attributes.”
3. In the Select By Attributes Dialog, Make Sure that “Create New Selection”
is the Method.
4. Double-Click on [CLASS] in the
Fields Box.
5. Click on the Equals (=) Button to
Add it to the Selection Argument.
6. Click “Get Unique Values,” and
Double-Click ‘school’ from the
results.
7. Make Sure that your Selection
Argument is: [CLASS] = ’school’
8. Click the Verify Button to verify
the query syntax (not really
necessary here, but complex
queries on large datasets can
crash ArcMap if the syntax is
invalid). Click Ok.
9. Click the Apply Button, and then
Click Close.
10. Close the Attribute Table.
You should see that some of your points in the USGS_Geographic_Names$ Events Layer are now highlighted bright blue. This
means that you have an active selection.
11. As you did previously, Right-Click on the USGS_Geographic_Names Layer and Go To Data>Export Data.
Notice that now, the “Export:” drop-down is set to “Selected Features.” This is something of a universal in ArcGIS. Anytime you
have an active selection in a layer and you apply some tool (Export, ArcToolbox Tools, Calculate Fields, etc…) to that layer, the
processing is done ONLY TO THE ACTIVE SELECTION. This can be a powerful tool, but can also be the source of frustration. If
you are getting unexpected or quirky results from a process, always check to see if you have a forgotten active selection by going
to the Main Menu>Selection>Clear Selected Features.
12. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\
Data\Shapefile Folder and name the new file Schools.shp.
13. Click Save.
14. Leave the Coordinate System as the Default this time and Click
Ok.
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15. Add the Exported Data as a layer when prompted.
16. On the Main Menu, Go To Selection>Clear Selected Features, to Clear the Selection.
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Working with Spatial Data
Adding a Census Boundary Shapefile & Defining the Coordinate System
Many times, attribute data is contained in tabular form, separate from the Geographic boundary files that are used by GIS
software. This is particularly the case with Census Data. This is because the number of attributes available for some GIS data is
so large that including the files together creates prohibitively large layer files. In most cases, a researcher only needs a limited
number of attributes for analysis. ArcMap allows you to “Join” a tabular attribute file to its corresponding Geographic File. Here
we will use a “key field,” present in both the attribute table and the geographic boundary file for the Census data for New Haven,
to “Join” those two files.
1. Use the Add Data
Button to Add the tgr09000sf1blk.dbf Table from the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to
ArcGIS\Data\Tabular Folder.
2. Use the Add Data
Button to Add the tgr09009blk00.shp shapefile from the C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to ArcGIS\Data\Shapefiles Folder.
You will be warned that one of your datasets is missing its “spatial reference.” Your table of Contents view will also change back
to the Source Tab, since you have just added a table of data, as well as a shapefile.
Note that you probably cannot see the Census Block Group files we just added, tgr09009blk00.shp (If you can see the file, you are
likely using ArcGIS version 9.1 or before). This is because the dataset does not have a *.prj file, which contains information about
how the numeric values that record the point, line and polygons in the dataset, relate to geographic location on the face of the
Earth. This means that you need to ‘define’ the coordinate or projection system.
Prior to ArcGIS 9.2, the software would examine the numeric values that recorded the geometry of the boundaries and, if the
values fell within the normal Lat/Lon values (-90 to 90 & -180 to 180), it applied an “assumed geographic coordinate system” using
the North American Datum from 1927. This worked, sometimes. But what if your data was located in India? The NAD 1927
Datum is not nearly as accurate as current datums, and is wildly inaccurate for any dataset falling outside North America. Also,
much of the data you work with in GIS is now created on the NAD 1983 datum, a far more accurate reference system.
So, ESRI dropped the assumed geographic feature, so that you must now explicitly assign the correct coordinate system.
Unfortunately, ESRI has not updated much of its available data to reflect this new lack of automation, and much of the base data
they provide (not to mention that included with the last 20 years of software releases) still has no defined coordinate system /
projection. Here, we will learn to remedy that, and familiarize you with the
ArcToolbox.
Defining a Projection/Coordinate System
1. Click on the ArcToolbox
Panel.
Button to Launch the ArcToolbox
2. Click on the Search Tab, at the bottom of the ArcToolBox Panel,
and Enter “define” as your Search Term.
3. Define Projection Tool should be one of the returned results.
Double-Click on Define Projection to open the ArcToolbox Tool’s
Dialog.
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4. Select the tgr09009blk00 layer from the Input Dataset Drop-Down Menu.
5. Click on the Spatial Reference
Button to
Open the Spatial Reference Properties Dialog
Box.
6. Click on the Select Button and Browse to
Geographic Coordinate Systems>North
America>North American Datum 1983.prj.
Select and Add this as the Spatial Reference.
7. Click OK again to Apply the Spatial Reference to
the ArcToolbox Dialog.
8. Click OK to Define the Coordinate System for
this file.
9. You may need to Refresh your Data
View in order to see the results, using
the Refresh View Button, on the View
Toolbar at the bottom left corner of the
Data View.
10. Click on the Display Tab at the bottom
of the Table of Contents.
You should now see
something like what is
pictured at the left. The
tgr09009blk00 Layer has
been added to your Table
of Contents.
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Joining the Attribute Data to the Census Boundary Layer
1. Right-Click on the tgr09009blk00 Layer
Name and Select Open Attribute
Table from the Context Menu.
Note that the table contains a few fields that
mostly identify the various geographic entities
within this boundary file. There is nothing that
indicates any information about the people who
live within these boundaries. Note the Field
called STFID, in particular.
2. Close the tgr09009blk00 Attribute
Table.
3. Right-Click on the tgr09000sf1blk
Layer Name and Select Open from the
Context Menu.
Note that, in this case, there are plenty of
attributes about people. This table contains the
counts of total population, racial, gender and age
breakdowns and other information about the
people who live in the Census Blocks. Notice,
also, that this table has the same STFID field we
found in the boundary file.
4. Close the tgr09000sf1blk Table.
5. Right-Click on the tgr09009blk00 Layer and Select Joins And
Relates>Join….
6. In the resulting Join Data Dialog Box, Populate the Options as
shown on the left.




Join attributes from a table
Join Field 1=STFID
Join Layer=tgr09000sf1blk
Join Field 2=STFID
7. Click OK to Apply the Join.
8. Right-Click on the tgr9009blk Layer and Open the Attribute Table.
9. Scroll across the Attribute Table and Make Sure that the two
datasets have been joined.
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Note that the Field Names have now
changed and are prefixed with the
name of the dataset that they come
from. ArcMap has used the STFID in
each of the datasets to join the
attribute records to the appropriate
Census block unit.
Subsetting Using “Select by Location”
We now have a Census Boundary Layer with demographic attributes.
However, if we want to work with this dataset further, it is best that we
export it to a new shapefile that contains all of the fields we need.
Further, we are only interested in the area of and immediately
surrounding the Area_of_Interest Layer.
1. Close the Attribute Table.
2. On the Main Menu, Go To Selection>Select by Location.
3. In the resulting Select by Location Dialog Box, fill in the options, as
shown at the right, selecting features from tgr09009blk00 that
intersect with the Area_of_Interest_polygon_polygon Layer and
Apply a buffer of 500 feet.
4. Click Apply and note that the selection you made should be
highlighted in blue in your Map Display.
5. Close the Select by Location Dialog Box and note that your selection
will remain active.
6. Right-Click on the tgr09009blk00 Layer and Select Data>Export
Data….
Notice that the Export Drop-Down list has defaulted to “Selected features.” It is
the default action in ArcMap that anything you do to a layer, when you have an
active selection, only applies to the selection.
7. Check the checkbox that allows you to use the same Coordinate
System as the Data Frame.
Remember that we defined the Coordinate System as GCS North American Datum
1983? That was because the layer was created using Lat/Lon coordinates.
Lat/Lon coordinates locate features on the surface of the (roughly) spherical Earth, and are angular measurements. ArcGIS
needs a linear unit to perform many of the mathematical calculations you may want to apply to the data, such as calculating area,
distances, etc…. By using the coordinate system of the Data Frame (which is State Plane) to export the dataset, we can avoid the
added step of projecting the data to a projection with a linear measurement.
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8. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\Urban_Forestry_Workshop\Data\Shapefiles Folder and Save the Output
shapefile as AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1.shp.
9. Click OK to Export the Data.
10. You will be prompted to add the new layer to
the current Map Document. Click Yes.
11. Right-Click on the new
AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1 Layer and Open
the Attribute Table.
Note that all of the attributes from the joined dataset
have transferred, but that the fieldnames are no
longer prefixed.
12. Close the Attribute Table.
13. Right-Click on the original tgr09009blk00
Layer and Select Remove from the Context
Menu.
14. Right-Click on the
Area_of_Interest_polygon_polygon Layer
and select Zoom to Layer.
Adding a New Field and Calculating It’s Value
1. Right-Click on the AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1 Layer and Open
the Attribute Table.
2. Click on the Options Button and Select Add Field.
3. Name the New Field ‘UNDER18’, and Use the Type: ‘Short
Integer’.
4. Click Ok.
5. Again, Click on the Options Button and Select Add Field.
6. Name the New Field ‘AREA’, and Use the Type:
‘Float’. Click Ok.
7. Scroll to the far right of the Attribute Table,
Right-Click on the Field Header for ‘AREA’ and
Select “Calculate Geometry...”
8. Click Yes when warned about calculating outside
an edit session.
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9. Change the Property Drop-Down Menu to ‘Area.’
10. Change the Units Drop-Down to ‘Square Miles US [sq mi].’
11. Click Ok
12. Right-Click on the Field Header for ‘UNDER18’ and Select
“Field Calculator…”
13. Click Yes when warned about calculating outside an edit
session.
14. Scroll Down the Fields List and Click on the ‘AGE_UNDER5’
to Insert it in the Calculator Argument.
15. Click on the Addition (+) Button to Insert the Addition
Operator in the Calculator Argument.
16. Scroll Down the Fields List and Click on the ‘AGE_5_17’ to
Insert it in the Calculator Argument.
17. Make Sure your Calculator Argument reads as:
[AGE_UNDER5] + [AGE_5_17]
18. Click Ok to Apply the Calculation.
19. Close the Attribute Table.
20. Click on the Display Tab of the Table Of Contents Panel.
Note that you have now created and calculated the values for two different attributes of your data. One variable, UNDER18, was
calculated from other variables in the dataset. The other, AREA, was created using the Calculate Geometry Tool, which is a new
feature in ArcMap 9.2.
Working with Layer Properties
One thing that is important to understand about layers and other
elements of the Map Document is that virtually everything in a Map
Document is an ‘Object’ with properties that can be altered using various
means, but primarily through the properties dialog box. Now that we
have created a set of attributes that we are interested in mapping, we
can begin to apply symbology to the layers in the Map Document. There
are many ways to apply symbology to a layer, and it is even possible to
symbolize a single layer based upon several attributes, creating a map
that displays multiple dimensions of demography, or feature attributes.
Labeling can also be applied to the Map Document in various ways that
can illuminate the attributes of the layers included.
Labeling Features
1. Right-Click on the Schools Layer and Open the Properties.
2. Click on the Labels Tab.
3. Check the “Label Features In This Layer” Checkbox.
4. Change the Text Symbol to Bold. Click Apply.
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Adjusting Symbology
1. Click on the Symbology Tab of the Schools Layer
Properties Dialog.
2. Click on the Symbol Button to Open the Symbol
Selector.
3. Scroll Down and Select the ‘School2’ Symbol.
4. Click Ok twice to Apply the Changes and Close
the Properties Dialog.
5. In the Table Of
Contents Panel, Click
on the Symbol under the Railroad
Layer.
This is an alternative way to open the Symbol Selector directly.
6. Change the Color of the Symbol for the Railroads Layer.
7. Click Ok to Apply the Changes.
Applying Symbology Based Upon Attribute Values
1. Right-Click on the AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1 Layer and Open
The Attribute Table.
2. Click on the Symbology Tab, if it is not already active.
3. Click on the “Quantities” Item under ‘Show:’.
4. Select ‘UNDER18’ as the Value Field and ‘AREA’ as the
Normalization Field.
5. Under Classification, Set the number of Classes to ‘10’
6. Click on the Classify Button.
7. On the resulting Classification Dialog, Click on the Exclusion Button.
8. Enter ‘UNDER18’ = 0 as the Argument in the Data Exclusion Properties
Dialog.
9. Click Ok twice to Return to the Properties Dialog Box.
10. Select an appropriate Color Ramp from the Drop-Down Menu.
11. Click on the ‘Label’ Field Header and Select “Format Labels.”
Under Rounding, Set the Number Of Decimal Places to ‘1’. Click Ok.
12. Click Ok to Close the Properties Dialog for the AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1
Layer and Apply the Symbology.
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Using a Layer (.LYR) File to Apply Symbology
1. Right-Click on the Hydrography_Polygon Layer and
Open its Properties.
2. Select the Symbology Tab and Click on the Import
Button.
3. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to ArcGIS\ Data\ Layers Folder
and Select the Hydrography_Polygon.lyr File.
4. Click Open.
5. Click Ok.
6. Accept ‘AV_Legend’ as the Value Field, when
prompted.
7. Click Ok to Apply the Changes and Close the Properties Dialog for the Hydrography_Polygon Layer.
Final Cleanup and Loose Ends…
1. Hold Down the Ctrl Key and Click on the
Hydrography_Polygon Layer, the
municipalproperty and DEPProperty
Layers to Select them.
2. Right-Click on one of the Layers and
Select “Group.”
3. Click-And-Drag the New Group Layer
above the AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1
Layer.
4. Turn On the Visibility of the
DEPProperty and municipalproperty
Layers by Clicking on their Visibility
Checkboxes.
5. Click on the Symbol for the CT_Towns
Layer and Change its Symbol Color to
Light Grey.
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Introduction to the Layout View
We are now ready to begin finishing our Map Document and preparing it so that it can be shared with others. To do this, we will
change from the ArcMap Data View to the Layout View. The Layout View will provide tools not available in the Data View,
primarily those relevant to creating Map Layouts.
Navigation in the Layout View
1. Click on the Layout Button (it looks like a page), on the View Toolbar at the bottom left
corner of the Map Display.
Note that you are now presented with the Layout Toolbar.
This toolbar is only available in Layout View. Some of the
Tools on this toolbar work in a way that is similar to the
Tools Toolbar, but with one critical difference… these tools
act on “the page” rather than the data.
2. Click on the Layout Zoom Tool and Drag a Box
across the top half of the Layout Display.
3. Click on the Page Extent Button to Return to the
Full View of the page.
Layout
Zoom
Page
Extent
Layout
Pan
Note that these tools did not change the scale or extent of the data.
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Working with Data Frame Properties
The data is contained within a rectangle referred to as the Data Frame. In the Data View, this rectangle was represented by the
edges of the Map Display Panel. Now, the Data Frame is an ‘Object’ on the layout page. The fact that the Data Frame is an
Object on the Layout Page means that we can alter its properties.
1. At the very top of the Table Of Contents Panel, Right-Click on the
“Layers” Layer and Open the Properties.
2. Click on the Size And Position Tab.
3. Change both the Width & Height to 5 Inches.
4. Change the ‘Element Name’ to Main Data Frame.
5. Click on the center blue box under “Anchor Point.”
6. Click on the Frame Tab.
7. Select a Border Style.
8. Click Ok to Apply the Changes.
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Adding Essential Map Elements
Finally, there are a few elements that are considered fundamental to good mapmaking. While it is true that ALL maps do not need
ALL of these elements (Does a map of the entire earth really need a north
arrow?), it is also true that they can be critical tools in conveying spatial
messages, when used properly. Here, we will take the final steps to complete
our map layout, before exporting to portable formats.
Map Title
1. On the Main Menu, Go To Insert>Title. A Highlighted
Text Box will be inserted into the Map Layout.
2. Double-Click on the Text Box to Open its Properties.
3. Change the Text to “Under 18 Population Density of
New Haven, CT” using carriage returns to Insert line
breaks.
4. Leave all other Settings at their Default, but note that
there are many options for altering the title text.
5. Click OK.
6. Use the Select Elements
Tool to Move the Map
Title to an appropriate position above the Data Frame.
North Arrow
1. On the Main Menu, Go To Insert>North Arrow.
2. In the North Arrow Selector, Select the first
North Arrow in the list.
3. Click Ok.
A highlighted North Arrow will be inserted into your Map
Layout (probably at the worst possible place).
4. Use the Select Elements
Tool to Move the
North Arrow to a more appropriate part of the
map.
5. If necessary, or desired, you can Use the Blue
‘Resize Handles’ to Change the Dimensions of
the North Arrow.
6. Since the North Arrow is an Object, you can Access its Properties by
Right-Clicking and Selecting Properties.
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Legend
1. On the Main Menu, Go To Insert>Legend to
Open the Legend Wizard.
2. Highlight and Remove all layers but the
AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1 Layer from the
Legend Items List Using the <
Button.
3. Click Next twice.
4. Select a 1pt Frame.
5. Select a White Background.
6. Click Next.
7. Change the Area Patch to the
Urbanized Area shape.
8. Click Next.
9. Accept the default settings for the
final window and Click Finish.
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10. Using the Select Elements
Page 24 of 27
Tool, Move the Legend to the lower right corner of the map layout.
11. Use the Resize Handles to make the Legend smaller.
12. In the Table Of Contents Panel, Click once on the AOI_Census_Blocks_SF1 Layer Name, Wait, then Click Again to
Highlight the Text.
13. Change the Name of the layer to Census 2000
14. Highlight the ‘UNDER18 / AREA’ Text beneath the Layer Name and Change it to ‘Under 18 per Sq Mi.’
Note that the text changes with the alteration of the Table of Contents Panel.
Neatline
Finally, we will insert a neatline around all of the Map Elements as a way to ‘finish’ the map, but also to control the clipping that will
occur when we export to JPEG.
1. On the Main Menu, Go To Insert>Neatline to Open the
Neatline Wizard.
2. Select a 4pt Border.
3. Select a ‘Hollow’ Background.
4. Make Sure that the “Place Around All Elements” Radio
Button is Checked.
5. Click Ok.
Other Essential Map Elements
Other elements are warranted when creating a
map and have been neglected here only for
expedience. These elements are primarily
textual, and can be included using a procedure
similar to that used to insert the Map Title.
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
Date the map was made

Author of the map

Who the map was made for

Projection / Coordinate System
information

Data Source(s)

Descriptive Text (if necessary)
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
Page 25 of 27
Location (in the title, or using an inset map)
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Sharing Your Map Project
At this point, you might like to export your map to an image that you can use in PowerPoint or a Word Document. Or, you might
want to save the map in a format that you can send to colleagues to view or print. Here you will learn to export your map.
Exporting to JPEG
1. Save your work by Clicking the Save
Button.
2. On the Main Menu, Go To File>Export Map.
3. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\ Folder.
4. Change the Save as Type: Drop-Down to JPEG (*.jpg).
5. Set the Resolution to 150 dpi.
6. Check the box to Clip Output to Graphic Extent.
7. Click on the Format Tab, under Options.
8. Make sure that the Color Mode is set to 24bit True Color.
9. Click Save.
10. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01Introduction to ArcGIS\ Folder and doubleclick on the Intro_to_ArcGIS.jpg to Open it.
Exporting to PDF
1. On the Main Menu, Go To File>Export Map.
2. Do Not Check the Clip to Graphics Extent box.
3. Change the Save as Type Drop-Down to PDF (*.pdf).
4. Click Save.
5. Browse to the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\ Folder
and double-click on the Intro_to_ArcGIS.pdf to Open it.
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Setting Relative Pathnames & Making ArcMap Projects
Portable
By setting “Relative Pathnames” in File>Map Properties>Data Source
Options, you can move your ArcMap Project Folder as a single unit,
preserving the location of your data files relative to your MXD document,
without breaking the internal links to the datasets. You can also Zip the
folder and send it through the email to colleagues.
1. On the Main Menu, Go To File>Document
Properties.
2. Click on the Data Source Options Button.
3. Set the Option to “Store relative path names
to data sources.”
4. Check the “Make relative paths the default
for new map documents I create” Checkbox,
if it is not already.
5. Click Ok.
6. Click Ok.
You can now move your project by copying or zipping the C:\temp\your_initials\01-Introduction to ArcGIS\ Folder, in its
entirety, without having the problem of broken links that we experienced at the beginning of the tutorial.
ArcCatalog & Project Management

Create a main Project Folder for your GIS analysis project. Under this main folder, create a Data folder, under which you
should create a series of subfolders for each type of data you are using, or creating in your project (shapefile, raster,
image, tables, etc…). For complex projects, you may even find it helpful to create further divisions (original, working, final,
etc…) within each of your data subfolders to contain the multiple versions of data files that can accumulate during the
course of a GIS project.

MXD Map Documents are very small! You can save many versions of a project by saving multiple Map Documents. This
allows you to save several layout versions of the same data without using a great deal of disk space.

ArcMap supports long filenames for MXD Document, table and shapefile names. Use this to your advantage by giving
these files very specifically descriptive names. Coverage and raster filenames are limited to 13 characters.

Congratulations! You are now ready to explore ArcMap on your own! If you are interested in additional training materials,
or just need help with a specific GIS related issue, feel free to contact us at the Yale Map Collection!
The Yale Map Collection
At Sterling Memorial Library
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Stacey Maples – GIS Assistant
203-432-8269 / stacey.maples@yale.edu
www.library.yale.edu/maps