Latest Contributions by ChrisDonohue__GISP

Just a thought - I have not used HAZUS myself, but have heard from other GIS folks who use it that it has some levels of raster processing as part of it.  What potentially may be going on is that the folder it is being pointed at violates the ESRI GRID format rules, which are very strict.  Therefore, try creating a very short folder name (<13 characters, or better <9 characters) and see if it then works. Esri Grid format The name of an Esri Grid format raster has more specific restrictions: The maximum number of characters is 13. It cannot have spaces. It cannot use special characters other than underscore ( "_" ). For tools that output an Esri Grid Stack, the stack name cannot have more than 9 characters. The total length of the name for a Grid and its path cannot be more than 128 characters. Source:  Output raster formats and names—ArcGIS Help | ArcGIS Desktop  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Curtis Price has the answer.  To add to it, if you are interested with what the % % signs are for, check out this subject: A quick tour of using inline variable substitution—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Examples of inline model variable substitution—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Examples of in-line variable substitution with ModelBuilder system variables—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

I personally find it is handy to have a portfolio of work to take to interviews.  While sometimes you don't get an opportunity to present it, I can be useful if the interview turns to where the interviewers ask the candidate "tell us about what you have done in GIS" or "Give us an example where you have done (topic) using GIS."  As they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words".  On the flip side, as an interviewer, I think having examples provides the interviewee with an opportunity to establish credibility to back what they say they have done.  Plus it provides the interviewer a specific topic to explore this, as they can follow up with questions about it.  As an interviewer, I can ask "what processes did you use to do this", "what challenges did you run into", and other questions that establish whether the candidate really has done this type of work.  After all, it is easy for candidates to respond yes to a generic question like "Have you done spatial analysis before?".   Having an example and being able to explain how it was derived shows that the candidate has more than just a passing understanding of the realities involved in performing that task; that, as they say "have seen the beast".  If the interview is for a position that requires the candidate be experienced, this can be a deciding factor. One caveat - interviews for public sector jobs in the United States typically have less opportunities to show off portfolio's than private sector ones, as the pubic sector typically sticks to a format of asking each candidate exactly the same questions and often does not allow for free-flow questions and follow-up where an example would be a great asset. Anyways, that's my two cents on it.  Given the vast experience and background of folks here on GeoNet I don't expect this to be a cut and dried rule for all situations, but probably a common one that many have seen/experienced. To directly answer Andrew's question, in terms of choosing one map to bring to the specific interview mentioned, research what the company/organization does.  It may be that they specialize in a certain area, in which case consider bringing an example that fits that area.  For example, if the company is an Environmental firm that primarily does many National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents, see about bringing a typical NEPA figure done in a nice cartographic style. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Can you provide some context for your question?  Are you looking to categorize food trucks:   As per a specific existing software/application package/database?  In the framework of a specific subject area, like Regulatory Permitting, Economics, Business Development, Health Department tracking, Entertainment guide, etc? Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

I don't know the specifics, but in the City I work for we have many systems linked to our Enterprise Geodatabase in one way or another.  Some access the data right from the Enterprise Geodatabase (SDE), while others access the back side of the Enterprise Geodatabase (SQL Server) through Views.  Examples of these systems linked to GIS include:  New World (for Computer Aided Dispatch), Cayenta (for billing), and Maximo (utilities). To help folks respond to your question, can you provide some more details?  Are you on an Enterprise Geodatabase?  If so, what is the back-end?  Oracle?  Sequel Server?  Another? What version of GIS are you running? Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

1).  If you have access to ArcGIS and the Spatial Analyst extension, one approach would be to use the Zonal Statistics geoprocessing tool: How Zonal Statistics works—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  2).  If the Spatial Analyst extension is not available, another approach using ArcGIS would be to convert the NDVI results to a feature class, then use one of several vector overlay processes to combine the information, and then calculate the average.  For example, if you have an Advanced ArcGIS license level you could use the Identity geoprocessing tool.  Note that before running the tool you will want to create a static field to hold the original area of each of the 30 polygons, as if there are multiple NDVI zones that end up in the original polygon, the result will be multiple polygons.  Then after running the Identity, add another field called Percent.  Divide the new shape.area by the original area to determine the percent of the original.  You can then use that as part of finding out the overall average for your original polygons. Raster to Polygon—Conversion toolbox | ArcGIS Desktop  Identity—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Note also that if an Advanced License is not available, there are other overlay tools that could work, but it will be a bit more involved. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

What xander_bakker is suggesting is after the analytical part is done to finish the interpolation, one can use one of several processes to cause the final display to have the "curved look".   For example, one could create a polygon in a feature class that covers a far larger area than the interpolation, color it black, then create a "hole" in the center for the part of the interpolation for the part of the interpolation you want to be visible to show through.  This polygon layer would be located higher up in the Table of Contents in ArcGIS than the interpolation layer, so would it would cover the interpolation.  The net result for the viewer would see visually is just the interpolation visible through the "hole".  The polygon layer is in effect the mask.  Note that this is the most simplistic way to do this; there are other ways of masking. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

It may be that someone designed a custom tool and placed it on your toolbar.  Another possibility is that it was a third-party tool (like XTools). To help narrow it down, would you by any chance have a screenshot of what the display looked like when the tool was open?  Also, any chance there is another computer that you could access that has the same functionality? Once you have narrowed down as to what the tool it is to be used, here's some information on how to rebuild the toolbar: Creating a new toolbar—Help | ArcGIS Desktop  Adding a command to a toolbar or the main menu—Help | ArcGIS Desktop  Example of the Customize environment: Also note that you can also add tools other have made using the "Add From File" button to browse for them. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

One possibility that comes to mind from using the California Highway Shields set (ddvca), which sounds similar in nature - since it is based on custom fonts, you may have to load the fonts onto the computer that is being used.  So it is not just installing the style, but a second step of adding fonts to Windows. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

Here's a starting resource that may provide ideas.  Though a bit dated, you could modernize it to ArcGIS 10.  I'm not sure on the specifics, however.  There is a Python toolbox listed on the bottom of the post that may help. Sinuosity  Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

What settings are you using in the Set Up Data Drive Pages dialog box? Creating Data Driven Pages—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  Also, before the run that didn't work, did you hit the "Refresh Data Drive Pages" button on the Data Driven Pages toolbar?  I've found things often go awry pretty fast if I don' hit that button before trying to print when using Data Drive Pages. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

One potential possibility would be to employ this: Parse Path—Tools | ArcGIS Desktop  Also, there may be some potential to use these: Creating stand-alone variables—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop  That said, I have not played with either a whole lot, so you would have to do some testing. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more

If the issue is that you would like to suppress other polygons in a layer except the single one of interest for that map (due to proximity, overlaps, potential confusion, etc), I believe it can be done with scripting, but I don't recall at the moment the particulars. Chris Donohue, GISP ... View more