How to re-create my Maps and Decisions Project

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Hints for Microsoft Excel

  1. To split text within a column, first insert the necessary numbers of columns then go to Data>Text to Columns. . .This will allow you to split the text up at every space or tab.
  2. If there is some information that is split that you need to merge back together, use the following equation: =A1& " "&B1. This will merge the contents of the cells A1 and B1 together plus " " adds a space in between the information.

Geocoding in ArcView GIS 3.2

  1. Go to www.esri.com/data/online/tiger
  2. Subscribe to the site by entering your email address
  3. Click on Michigan on "clickable" map.
  4. Select county of Michigan that you are interested in and what layers (I choose all of them, so I did not have to return for more information if I decided I needed it later).
  5. Download the information and save it to your personal directory.
  6. Unzip the files you are interested in. Rename the folder it creates to the county name.
  7. Proceed to unzip all the layers or shape files you are interested in. . .This time you might want to be more choosey, since you have to individual unzip each layer or shape file you are interested it.
  8. Go to Arc View.
  9. Create a new project. Incorporate the desired layers, which in my case was the voting district(vtd), water bodies(wbd), and streets(str). I saved the project as antrim.apr.
  10. I opened my registered voters information in excel and created a .dbf file. First, I had to unzip the files that I received from Antrim County.
  11. In Arc View, add antrim.dbf as a new database under tables.
  12. Go to Themes>Properties>Geocoding. Make sure the theme name is the file you want. Set the address style to the street address and keep the defaults for the rest of the options as they come up. Click OK and click it again when it asks if it is OK to build indexing files. I tried the various options under View>Geocoding such as "batch geocoding" and "interactive geocoding" to try to fix some of the flawed data. I found that the main problem was that the Census Bureau was missing the smaller streets.

Creating Web Sites in Dreamweaver and modifying pictures in Adobe Photoshop

  1. Once I liked a map in Arc View, I hit "ctrl" key and "print screen" keys simultaneously in order to copy the map.
  2. I opened a new screen in Adobe Photoshop and hit "ctrl" v to paste.
  3. After I cropped the image and added text, I would save for web and as a .gif.
  4. Dreamweaver was pretty easy to use, especially inserting images. The main caveat was making sure that the directory and the file were saved as absolute and not relative. In other words, for my images, I have a images folder and therefore I would call the file in the following way" image/elkrapids.gif.
  5. When using a hotspot, use the alt. to display a message box that can say "click here for street map of Elk Rapids."