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ArcGIS: General Purpose GIS Software System

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Encyclopedia of GIS

Synonyms

GIS software; ESRI

Definition

ArcGIS is a general purpose GIS software system developed by ESRI. It is an extensive and integrated software platform technology for building operational GIS. ArcGIS comprises four key software parts: a geographic information model for modeling aspects of the real world; components for storing and managing geographic information in files and databases; a set of out-of-the-box applications for creating, editing, manipulating, mapping, analyzing and disseminating geographic information; and a collection of web services that provide content and capabilities (data and functions) to networked software clients. Parts of the ArcGIS software system can be deployed on mobile devices, laptop and desktop computers and servers.

From the end user perspective ArcGIS has very wide ranging functionality packaged up into a generic set of menu-driven GIS applications that implement key geographic workflows. The applications deal with geographic data creation,...

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Recommended Reading

  1. ESRI: What is ArcGIS 9.2? Redlands, California (2006)

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  2. Hoel, E., Menon, S., Morehouse, S.: Building a Robust Relational Implementation of Topology. In: Proceedings of 8th International Symposium on Spatial and Temporal Databases – SSTD'03 (2003)

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  3. Morehouse, S.: ARC/INFO: a georelational model for spatial information. In: Proceedings of AUTOCARTO 8, pp. 388–97. ASPRS, Falls Church, Virginia (1985)

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  4. Morehouse, S.: The ARC/INFO Geographic Information System. Computers Geosci. 18(4), 435–443 (1992)

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  5. Ormsby, T., Napoleon, E., Burke, R., Feaster, L., Groessl, C.: Getting to Know ArcGIS Desktop Second Edition: Basics of ArcView, ArcEditor, and ArcInfo. ESRI Press, Redlands (2004)

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  6. Zeiler, M.: Modeling our world: the ESRI guide to database design. ESRI, Redlands, California (1999)

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  7. ESRI web site. http://www.esri.com

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. ESRI, Redlands, CA, USA

    David J. Maguire

Authors
  1. David J. Maguire
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA

    Shashi Shekhar (McKnight Distinguished University Professor) (McKnight Distinguished University Professor)

  2. Management Science and Information Systems Department, Rutgers Business School Newark and New Brunswick Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, 07102, USA

    Hui Xiong (Assistant Professor) (Assistant Professor)

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© 2008 Springer-Verlag

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Maguire, D. (2008). ArcGIS: General Purpose GIS Software System. In: Shekhar, S., Xiong, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of GIS. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-35973-1_68

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