GIS 5050 Module 2: Cartography

 This week's lab assignment was considerably longer than the first module, but it was an excellent opportunity to dive deeper into some of the abilities of ArcGIS. The objective was to create a map of Escambia County, FL that shows exactly where the University of West Florida is located. The map was also to provide reference using landmarks, such as cities, rivers, and interstates. It was also to include an inset map of the state of Florida that marked where Escambia County is located within the state. We learned many new features, such as clipping a shapefile to the boundaries of another shapefile [notice how the interstates and rivers stop at the border of Escambia County, FL], adjusting the scale of the maps, and specifically customizing the focus of a map frame to a particular layer's extent. Also, there were numerous map elements that were introduced [i.e. legend, scale bars, north arrows] and we were given the chance to explore their various settings to create a map that was individualized to our own personal artistic styles. Lastly, we explored each shapefiles' meta data which lists all sorts of information relevant to who collected the information, when the information was collected, and how the information has been revised and stored over the years. The files are very exhaustive in nature and will take some experience learning how to navigate through them, considering the amount of information that is included in them. Overall, I am pleased with the amount of learning that was involved in this cartography lab and I am very pleased with the aesthetic quality of the UWF Campus Location Map that was created during this assignment.