Working with projections and datum transformations in ArcGIS

An invaluable aid for ArcGIS users: This book contains an ideal mix of background information on projections and transformations together with detailed explanations of their usage in ArcGIS. Recent decades have seen major developments in geodesy and GIS software, so that ArcGIS users are increasingly being confronted with the need to deal with coordinate systems and projections. Have you, too, wondered why your data doesn’t align or how to convert your data from one UTM zone to another? This book provides clear, practical answers to these and many other questions. The emphasis is on how to perform projections and transformations in ArcGIS as well as when and why you need to do so. It contains no formulae – the first book of its kind to do this. Recognizing the need for a book which can bridge the gap between theory and practice and provide in-depth support specifically for ArcGIS users, two GIS experts (a geodesist and a mathematician) took on the challenge. Following its successful launch in German the book has now been made available to the English speaking ArcGIS community just as ArcGIS 9 has brought further important changes in the treatment and availability of projections and transformations. Working with Projections and Datum Transformations in ArcGIS contains four practical chapters covering coordinate system handling, customizing and programming techniques. The theoretical chapters supply solid background information without overloading the book. The authors have taken care to ensure that the complex terminology and conceptual basis of the subject are clearly explained. Chapter 8 contains Frequently Asked Questions distilled from practical experience in User Support. These sections provide quick access to some typical scenarios and problem solutions. There are many useful tips for general users, administrators and programmers. The examples involving ArcObjects and VBA will whet the appetites of both beginners and experienced programmers to enhance ArcGIS with their own creativity. Thus many different types of user will find the book a fund of useful information: General users will value the balance of theoretical and practical information; software experts will appreciate the geodetic sections, whilst geodesists will profit from the authors’ intimate knowledge of ArcGIS.