My ArcMap Experience

     My personal ArcMap experience wasn't pleasant. Unfortunately, I didn't get far into the tutorial (not even to exercise 2) because I kept on getting stuck on what seemed to be the simplest things. My apologies, my map remains unfinished. Either the ArcMap tutorial wasn't clear enough on the instructions or I simply couldn't wrap my head around the convoluted software program, (I think both). I'm not exactly anywhere near the term "computer wiz" and certain ideas don't click for me the way they do for others.
     Also, the tutorial seemed to be more for a person who was either already computer savvy or for a person who had more time to explore the program. (My schedule conflicted with the free computer labs hours therefore I didn't have as much time to get a real hands on experience with the program). Even tough my experience on the tutorial wasn't particularly fantastic, I did find certain things interesting though. The fact that text can be inserted pretty much anywhere on the page at the click of a symbol was nice. I also liked how there could be a different symbol for various buildings or specific points on the map.
     There is a lot of potential for the programmers and mapmakers in the field of GIS because ArcMap, along with several other software and programs, have various features and options that go into developing a digital map. And since there are about as many definitions of GIS as there are people working on computer maps of any kind, this field has the ability to expand on a much wider basis.
     However, a potential pitfall in the field of GIS is that the programs and software used to make such maps can be complicated and too difficult to understand for a person who has no background on any kind of GIS programs relating to it. A simple way of making a program more easy to understand is to make the instructions as visual as possible. The software can come with a video tutorial (similar google mymaps) that doesn't skip steps. Easy to use and crysal clear visual instructions will definitely make the programs more hospitable for new users.

View Titanic's Maiden Voyage in a larger map

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=us&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=207599391696628191135.0004aef79b1fd425a541b

Neogeography has many things going for it in this information age. Data is being collected all the time by average people. From what I've read, companies are actually paying users to take detailed pictures of buildings, streets, and other places to help the company on their projects. The level of detail that can be obtained will help many users know exactly where they stand in the world.

The only negative sides I can think of about Neogeography is that, even though it's paving the way for a new form of global centralization, it's making normal paper maps more obsolete and that it's up against privacy issues every now and then. In a matter of years no one will be able to read a USGS topographic map (even though it's not like everyone used to anyway) that the average public will be completely dependent on computers in another area once again. I'm just saying if something happens to the earth that wipes out all computers no one will be able to tell where they stand in the world. My second point is that Google Streetview is an example of an invasion of privacy because it's 3-dimensional view uses pictures taken at a certain time, that includes people and cars. That means a random user can view someone who was caught in the series of pictures (creepy much?) or they can read someones license plate, among other things.

Apparently the pros outweigh the cons when it comes to Neogeography because these it can come in handy in natural disasters and save people's lives. Neogeography can help the world in a lot of ways; from helping companies make good geographically related choices and contribute to the economy, helping a government official know where the poverty levels are most prominent by means of a poverty related map, to assisting a lost person in a forest by means of GPS. At least industries and corporations realize that the benefits of neogeography far outweigh the costs of a few privacy issues.

Lab 2: USGS Topographic Maps

1.) Beverly Hills Quadrangle, California-Los Angeles Co.
2.) Beverly Hills Ca.
3.) The quadrangle was first creted in 1995.
4.) North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27) and North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83).
5.) The scale of the map is 1:24,000.
6.  a.) 5 centimeters on the map is equivalent to 120 meters on the ground.
     b.) 5 inches on the map is equivalent to 1.893 miles on the ground.
     c.) 1 mile on the ground is equivalent to 2.64 inches on the map.
     d.) 3 kilometers on the ground is equivalent to 12.498 centimeters on the map.
7.) The contour interval on the map is 20 feet.

9. a.) Elevation: Greystone Mansion (in Greystone Park) = ranges from approx. 580 to 540 feet/176.784 to 164.592 meters.
    b.) Elevation: Woodland Cemetery = approx. 140 feet/42.672 meters.
    c.) Elevation: Crestwood Hills Park = ranges from approx. 600 to 880  feet/182.88 to 268.224 meters.
10.) Universal Transverse Mercator, zone 11.
11.) the UTM coordinates for the lower left corner of the map are ³7 63, ³62.
12.) 1,000 meter increments between UTM lines translates into 1,000,000 square meters.
13.) This is a rough estimation for the elevation levels among the UTM grid lines.

Elevation Measurements from West to East Along UTM Northing  3771000 (in rough increments of 20 feet):
	680
			640
		600
				520	520
						440
Feet:
							380
								360
									300
										260
											200
												160
UTM Line:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12

14.) The magnetic declination of the map is 14 degrees E.
15.) Water in the intermitten stream between the 405 freeway and the Stone Canyon Reservoir flows south.
16.) UCLA Map