Mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) : GIS Software
Conversion Tools
Area Conversion
From convertme.com
Degrees-Minutes-Seconds to Decimal Degree Conversion
Earth Point Batch Converter
Convert spreadsheet coordinates from one system to another (defined as "tools for Google Earth")
Convert Lat/Long to UTM
Converts latitude/longitude (geographic) coordinates to Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM). Courtesy of Steven Dutch, Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
History of Open Source GIS from makepath
GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology is a powerful way to understand our world. Thanks to the open source community, the public today has access to excellent analysis tools, and many of them are free!
makepath is a proud contributor to many open source spatial analysis projects. Through this piece, we want to honor and highlight the contributors that have made it possible for open source GIS to grow and flourish.
This is an interactive piece. You can click on each entry to see more details as well as some anecdotes from project creators we connected with. You can also search for entries using the search bar or filter using by clicking on the categories (Vector, Raster, Both or Other) listed right underneath the search bar.
ESRI ArcGIS Software
General Information
Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) is the company that produces the popular ArcGIS software, used heavily in industry, government, and academia. The University of Wisconsin System has a system-wide site license for ESRI software, so most campuses have access to ArcGIS in classrooms and labs. Although often seen as the industry standard, there are emerging software programs like QGIS that are more frequently being used in classroom instruction at UW-Madison (in conjunction with ArcGIS).
The UW-Madison Library Workshop "Introduction to GIS" utilizes ArcGIS software to demonstrate concepts and simple operations for analysis.
InfoLabs on campus have ArcGIS installed for use by UW faculty, staff, and students for research projects and classroom assignments.
For information and access to student and other licensed versions of ESRI software at UW, visit the UW-Madison ESRI Software website: https://esri.wisc.edu/
For questions, contact esri@dpla.wisc.edu
Obtaining/Accessing ESRI Software Licenses for use at UW-Madison:
ArcGIS Pro
Under our UW site license, any student can install ArcGIS Pro on their personal computers. Installation media for ArcGIS Pro are at: https://esri.wisc.edu/ (Choose "For Students at the top and select your software preference.) Users will need to authenticate with their UW NetID credentials to access software downloads.
Once ArcGIS Pro is installed, users can choose the "Enterprise Login" and enter the following URL: uw-mad.maps.arcgis.com - this will prompt a NetID login to the UW-Madison enterprise license for ArcGIS Pro.
ArcGIS Desktop
Student software is at the ArcInfo license level and includes the Spatial Analyst, 3D Analyst, Geostatistical Analyst, Data Interoperability, Publisher, Schematics, Tracking Analyst, ArcScan, Maplex and Network Analyst extensions.
Under our UW site license, any student can install ArcGIS Desktop on their personal computers. Installation media for ArcMap and Pro are at: https://esri.wisc.edu/ (Choose "For Students at the top and select your software preference.) Users will need to authenticate with their UW NetID credentials to access software downloads.
For ArcGIS Desktop, a license key is required and must be obtained prior to use. Students can request the license by emailing esri@dpla.wisc.edu All licenses are for a one year period, from August 1 to July 31 of each year.
GIS Technical Support Email List
For technical/analytical GIS questions, you can send questions to the GIS Support List
A team of Geospatial Alliance members will be happy to help, or refer you to someone on campus who can!
Software for UW-Madison Academic Departments
If you are faculty or staff in one of the following departments, you can possibly obtain ESRI software installation media directly from your departmental support staff (this list changes frequently):
Ag & Applied Economics
Business School
CAE
CEE
Community & Environmental Sociology
Computer Sciences
Forest & Wildlife Ecology
Geography
Geoscience
Planning & Landscape Architecture
Population Health Sciences
Rural Sociology
Sea Grant
SAGE
SSEC
Soil Science
Zoology
Other Software and Utilities
Software
Quantum GIS
FREE
Quantum GIS (QGIS) is a user friendly Open Source Geographic Information System (GIS) licensed under the GNU General Public License. QGIS is an official project of the Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo). It runs on Linux, Unix, Mac OSX, Windows and Android and supports numerous vector, raster, and database formats and functionalities.
DIVA GIS
FREE
DIVA-GIS is a free computer program for mapping and geographic data analysis (a geographic information system (GIS). With DIVA-GIS you can make maps of the world, or of a very small area, using, for example, state boundaries, rivers, a satellite image, and the locations of sites where an animal species was observed. We also provide free spatial data for the whole world that you can use in DIVA-GIS or other programs.
ENVI
LICENSE (available in the Robinson Map Library and Geography Library)
Geospatial imagery is used to evaluate biodiversity, detect and identify targets, plan emergency response efforts and a variety of other applications important to understanding the world around you. ENVI is the premier software solution for processing and analyzing geospatial imagery and is designed to be used by everyone from GIS professionals to image analysts and image scientists, regardless of prior experience with imagery.
GRASS GIS
FREE
Commonly referred to as GRASS (Geographic Resources Analysis Support System), is a free Geographic Information System (GIS) software used for geospatial data management and analysis, image processing, graphics/maps production, spatial modeling, and visualization. GRASS GIS is currently used in academic and commercial settings around the world, as well as by many governmental agencies and environmental consulting companies. GRASS GIS is an official project of the Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo).
Scribble Maps
FREE
Scribble Maps and Scribble Maps Pro are both free products that enable users to create customized maps online. Users can mark up maps, measure distances, import KMLs, Shapefiles, tabular files, add placemarks, text, images, and shapes. Finished maps may be embedded into webpages or exported in various formats.
MAPme
FREE
Mapme is similar to Scribble Maps in that users can customized maps by adding points, labels, lines, images, then share their product with others via URLs or widgets.
Free Online Utilities
Axis Maps Resources
Resources for cartographers of all experience levels. Free utilities include: IndieMapper, TypeBrewer, Color Brewer 2.0, and a code library.
BatchGeo
Geocode addresses. Make a Google map with the addresses, or export latitude/longitude coordinates for export to a GIS.Zonums KML to ship
KML to SHP
Zonums Software offers several utilities including: Epoint2GE: Excel to Google Earth; Kml2shp 2: Google Earth to GIS; DigiPoint 2: Points export from Google Maps; Shp2kml 2: Shapefile to Google Earth; Epoint2CAD: Excel to AutoCAD; Ucons: Units Conversion Tool; Color-it: Color your Map; KMLTolbox: KML online tools
NYPL Map Warper
The NYPL Map Warper is a tool for digitally aligning ("rectifying") historical maps from the NYPL's collections to match today's precise maps. Visitors can browse already rectified maps or assist the NYPL by aligning a map.