Thematic mapping with free software PhilCarto

Kazimierz Zaniewski, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh

In addition to ArcGIS and other major mapping software packages, there are several less known but fairly powerful programs designed for generating high quality thematic maps. One of them is PhilCarto, a free software developed and maintained by a French geographer at the University of Bordeaux. This mapping software is capable of producing all major types of thematic maps, including choropleth, proportional symbol, bar graph, pie chart, dot density, flow, 3-D surface, and gravity maps. It also has a set of statistical tools for mapping the results of exploratory data analysis, including ternary diagrams and regression, factor, and cluster analyses. The PhilCarto cartographic output is of very high quality and can be exported to illustration software for final touches. A companion to PhilCarto is PhilDigit, a boundary creation (digitization) and manipulation software. It can import and export ArcGIS (shapefiles) and MapInfo (mif/mid) boundary files.

NACIS 2014

Transcript

1. Thema&c  mapping  with   free  so3ware  PhilCarto   Kazimierz  (Casey)  J  Zaniewski   Geography  and  Urban  Planning   University  of  Wisconsin  Oshkosh  
2. PhilCarto  and  PhilDigit  
4. PhilCarto:  Boundary  and  Data  Files  
5. PhilCarto:  Variables  for  Mapping  
6. Choropleth  and   Propor*onal   Symbol  Map  
7. Colors  and  Hatches  
8. Data  Classifica&on  
9. Choropleth  Maps  
10. Pie  Chart  Maps  
11. Propor&onal  Symbol  Maps  
12. Propor&onal  Symbol  Maps  
13. Dot  Density  Maps  
14. Isarithmic  (Trend  Surface)  Maps  
15. Flow  Maps  
16. “Sea  Urchin”  Maps  
17. Isarithmic  Maps  
18. Gravity  Maps  
19. Ternary  Diagram  
20. Regression  Analysis  
21. Hierarchical  Cluster  Analysis  
22. Factor  Analysis  
23. PhilDigit   Boundary  Import  
24. PhilCarto  and  PhilDigit     •  Strengths   –  Free  so3ware   –  Easy  installa&on   –  Large  selec&on  of   thema&c  maps   –  Import  of  ArcGIS,   MapInfo  and  text   boundary  files   –  High  quality  exported     images   •  Weaknesses   –  One  person’s  so3ware   –  Limited  ability  to   generate  bivariate  maps   –  Limited  choice  of  colors   for  classifica&on   schemes   –  Very  limited  tolerance   for  making  errors   –  Limited  boundary   manipula&on  tools