WHAT IS GIS

GIS SOME DEFINITIONS

GIS may include manual systems, however, it usually
refers to a computerised database system for capture,
storage, retrieval, analysis and display of spatial data
(Huxhold, 1991).

GIS is capable of assisting the storage, retrieval and
manipulation of spatially referenced data such as street
address or a census tract (Nedovic-Budic, 1999).

GIS is most useful when used to perform data analysis
(Lee and Wong, 2001, viii)
GIS SOME DEFINITIONS (cont.)
application
acts as a problem solving solution
example: water pollution, traffic, land
management
toolbox
emphasize on the generic aspect of GIS in its
definition
always used by vendors to maximize their
market share
The History
First developed in North America,
particularly the U.S. and Canada in the mid-
1960s
Previously been used in natural resources
and environmental research

Period Name of Database/
System
Objective/Purpose/Use The relevant body in
Charge
1986 Digital Cadastral
Database (DCDB)
National Topographic
Database
Management of countrys natural
Resources
Department of Survey and
Mapping Malaysia
1990 DOAs GIS-Based Land Resource
Database
Land and land use investigation,
creation and maintenance of a
spatial and attribute database
and the storage, processing and
management of this information
for the purpose of producing land
use maps
Department of Agriculture
1992 National Infrastructure for Land
Information System (NaLIS).
Provide timely access to land
information, eliminate/reduce
duplication of data capture and
promote effective data sharing
among related agencies.
Ministry of Land and
Cooperative Development
1992 Penang Geographic Information
System (PEGIS)
Creation of digital data for all
land-related administration
Penang Development
Corporation
1992 Darul Ehsan GIS (DEGIS) Integrating the diverse datasets
through the internet to create an
effective, consistent and
inexpensive GIS infrastructure
The State of Selangor
1993 Sabah GIS for agriculture Digitizing all its land use
distribution maps at a scale of
1:25,000
Sabah DOA
G
I
S

H
i
s
t
o
r
y

i
n

M
a
l
a
y
s
i
a

1994 PEGIS handed over to the Penang
Government
- same as above - Penang Development
Corporation
1994 Computerized Planning
Information System
Convert all land-related
information within the Council
Administrative area, into a more
efficient and integrated digital
Format
Melaka City Council
1995 'AGISWlk' (stand for Aplikasi GIS
Wilayah Lembah Klang).
Land use/resource
management and planning
Bahagian Kemajuan
Wilayah Persekutuan dan
Perancangan Lembah
Klang, Jabatan Perdana
Menteri (now
Kementerian Wilayah
Persekutuan)
1995 GIS for forest resources To establish an efficient and
operational Forest Management
Information System using GIS
as a tool to support and
strengthen the department to
carry out its mandate as the
custodian of the state's forest
Resources
Forest Department of
Sarawak
2002 Malaysian Cadastral Digital Data
Infrastructure
Provide the technology, policies
and standards necessary to
acquire, distribute and improve
the utilization of land
Information
MaCDDI
G
I
S

H
i
s
t
o
r
y

i
n

M
a
l
a
y
s
i
a

Tutorial question
Briefly review the history of Geographic
Information System application in Malaysia.
GIS: OLD AND NEW

Traditional GIS
MAP TYPEWRITER
MANUAL DRAFING
TOOLS
New GIS
COMPUTER PLOTTER CD-ROM
THE NEED FOR GIS
the real world has a lot of spatial data
manipulation, analysis and modeling can be
effective and efficiently carried out with a GIS
the neighborhood of the intended purchase of house
the route for fire-fighting vehicles to the fire area
location of historical sites to visit
the earth surface for purposes of army
the earth surface is a limited resource
rational decisions on space utilization
fast and quality information in decision making
... THE NEED FOR GIS
complexity of management
due to the need to combine and process many
sets of data, in addition to judge as many as
possible, situation that might happen.
intense competition
the need to use technology in making decisions
and strategy in the world of intense competition.
TABULAR DATA MAP
A. DATA VISUALISATION
Which one do you prefer: tabular data or map data?
State Population (1991)
Johor 2,074,297
Kedah 1,304,800
Kelantan 1,181,680
Melaka 504,502
P
S
Y
10 11 12
3

4

5
S
O
U
T
H

EAST
1. WHERE IS OBJECTP?
ANSWER: P = 3Y SOUTH, 12X EAST

2. WHAT CAN BE FOUND AT A CERTAIN LOCATION ?
EXAMPLE: What can be found at 5x SOUTH, 11y EAST?
ANSWER: Y
B. LOCATION
C. ATTRIBUTE QUESTION:








1. ATRIBUTE EXPLANATION
EXAMPLE: WHAT IS THE ATTRIBUTE FOR ITEM 2?

2. WHERE A CERTAIN SENARIO MIGHT HAPPEN?
EXAMPLE: WHO HAS THE HIGHEST QUALITY OF MINERALS ?


NO. AREA (HECTARE) OWNER TAX CODE MINERAL QUALITY
1 100,000
TALATU
B HIGH
2 50,100 BRAUDO A MEDIUM
3 90,900 BRAUDO B LOW
4 40,800 ANUNKU A LOW
5 120,200 SILIMA B HIGH
3. SELECTION OF AN AREA (ACCORDING TO RULES)
EXAMPLE: WHICH ITEM HAS
a) AREA >40,000 HECTARE
b) OWNER: NOT SILIMA
c) TAX CODE: B
d) MINERAL QUALITY: HIGH
NO. AREA (HECTARE) OWNER TAX CODE MINERAL QUALITY
1 100,000 TALATU B HIGH
2 50,100 BRAUDO A MEDIUM
3 90,900 BRAUDO B LOW
4 40,800 ANUNKU A LOW
5 120,200 SILIMA B HIGH
.QUESTION: RELATIONAL DATABASE
QUESTION: PATTERN AND RELATIONSHIP
X
X
X
Y
Y
Y
Z
Z
Z
Z
1. IS OBJECT X IN THE PATTERN?
YES, IN THE FORM OF LINE, FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST
IN THE FORM OF A LINE

2. IS THERE A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN X AND Y?
YES, Y IS ALWAYS NEAR X

3. WHAT OTHER SPATIAL PATTERN EXISTS?
OBJECT Z IS ALWAYS NEAR THE BORDERS AND ITS SIZE INCREASES
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT
TREND QUESTION
A
B
C
A
B
D C
1980 1990
1. WHAT ARE THE CHANGES FOR A,B AND C FROM 1980 TO 1990?
A: INCREASE IN SIZE
B: DECREASE IN SIZE AND CHANGE IN LOCATION
C: CHANGES IN SHAPE

2. WHAT HAS CHANGED SINCE 1980?
A AND B HAVE CHANGED IN SIZE
B RELOCATES
C CHANGES IN SHAPE
ADDITION OF ITEM D
Information
System
Non-spatial
Information
Systems
Spatial
Information
Systems
Management
Information
Systems
Geographic
Information
Systems
Other
Types
(CAD/CAM)
GIS AND OTHER INFORMATION
SYSTEMS
GIS
USES
VARIOUS DATA
SOURCES
VARIOUS DATA
FORMATS
AND
MAPS IMAGE
DIGITAL
PRODUCTS
GPS
TEXT
DATA
TABULAR
DATA
MAPS
DATABASE
REPORTS
1
2
4 4
3
GIS APPLICATION (I)
environment
management of natural resources
land, forest, marine, etc.
monitoring/control of environmental pollution
environment impact study
infrastructure
transport and irrigation management and
maintenance
utility management and maintenance
electric, water, gas, telephone, etc.
GIS APPLICATION (II)
socio-economy
town and country planning
monitoring of population migration
disperse of resources/services
clinics, schools, etc
military
land form visualisation
visibility analysis