gis-l: Frequently asked questions and a couple notifications

[North, Joe]

Good Afternoon,

OTIS/GIS's section staff is frequently asked a number of questions about FDEP's enterprise GIS.  The answers to some of these benefit a wider audience and so we'll publish them periodically via GIS-L.  Just fyi that an archive of all GIS-L emails is retained here<http://lists.dep.state.fl.us/pipermail/gis-l/>

Question: I manage or am aware of a GIS layer that would help others.  How do I make this GIS data layer available via FDEP's Dataminer utility or SDE library?
Answer:  Contact your program area's GIS coordinator or GIS_Librarian at dep.state.fl.us<mailto:GIS_Librarian at dep.state.fl.us> if you're not sure who this is.

Question: Is ArcPad<http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcpad/index.html> licensing covered on FDEP's current Enterprise Licensing Agreement with ESRI?
Answer: In a word, no.  However, an unlimited number of ArcGIS Mobile<http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcgismobile/index.html> licenses are.  The two applications are offered by ESRI to meet similar but slightly different needs.  Please let me<mailto:joe.north at dep.state.fl.us> know if your group has a GIS-feature data collection mobile device need so that we might weigh different future licensing options.

Question:  Why does FDEP use the modification of the Albers Equal Area Conic projection as its standard Spatial Reference System?
Answer:  The decision predates most of FDEP's current GIS users.  It was based on the advantage that equal area projections do a better job of allowing for the consistently accurate measurement and display of area features like wetlands over an area as large as the State as compared with other Spatial Reference systems.  It has been "customized" (specifying the standard parallel parameters [among others] 24.0 degrees and 31.5 degrees) to our immediate region; an area approximately 36 miles north of and south of the state boundary.



The Department of Environmental Protection values your feedback as a customer. DEP Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. is committed to continuously assessing and improving the level and quality of services provided to you. Please take a few minutes to comment on the quality of service you received. Simply click on this link to the DEP Customer Survey<http://survey.dep.state.fl.us/?refemail=Joe.North@dep.state.fl.us>. Thank you in advance for completing the survey.

ArcIMS notification:  We have received word from ESRI that the web mapping authoring application ArcIMS will no longer be supported by ESRI in August or September of 2011.  If you have an application that is dependent upon FDEP's ArcIMS services and would like to continue the functionality please consider reconfiguring your application. FDEP's standard web mapping application, Map Direct has been and will continue to be customized to meet this need.  Please contact the  GIS_Librarian at dep.state.fl.us<mailto:GIS_Librarian at dep.state.fl.us> if you'd like to replace ArcIMS services with Map Direct functionality.

ArcGIS Desktop 10.1 release notification:  ESRI is expecting to release this version in the third quarter of this year (Aug-Sept 2011).  In keeping with a relatively conservative approach to software modernization we will likely wait until one or two service packs have been published to move the upgrade to production.  This would likely equate with making 10.1 available department-wide on a voluntary basis by April - May 2012.

Happy official Spring weekend!


OTIS/GIS

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