Types of source materials

In this unit, you will get an overview of the available sources of data for Geographic Information Systems.

Although the type of spatial and tabular data will vary greatly from project to project, you will be aware of some of the most commonly available data sources at the end of the course.

Government agencies and commercial business collect and publish spatial and tabular data, which are used quite widely. Some of the government and commercial sources will be highlighted here, for your immediate knowledge.

In the past, GIS exclusively relied upon paper map as the source of information. Present day, a great deal of spatial information is available in digital format through Internet web sites.