Fundamentals of Spatial Information Systems (Apic Series) [Hardcover]

Robert Laurini (Author), Derek Thompson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0124383807 | ISBN-13: 978-0124383807 | Publication Date: April 2, 1992 | Edition: 1

The study and application of spatial information systems have been developed primarily from the use of computers in the geosciences. These systems have the principle functions of capturing, storing, representing, manipulating, and displaying data in 2-D and 3-D worlds. This book approaches its subject from the perspectives of informatics and geography, presenting methods of conceptual modeling developed in computer science that provide valuable aids for resolving spatial problems. This book is an essential textbook for both students and practitioners. It is indispensable for academic geographers, computer scientists, and the GIS professional.

Key Features
* Serves as the first comprehensive textbook on the field of Spatial Information Systems (also known as Geographic Information Systems)
* Contains extensive illustrations
* Presents numerous detailed examples

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It is...the first serious attempt to write a GIS text that has some substantial computer science in it.... an exciting new treatment of the computer science of GIS."
--Michael Goodchild, NATIONAL CENTER FOR GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION AND ANALYSIS
"I think this is a remarkable book, and the two very different personalities have combined to produce a very cohesive piece of work. This book presents a detailed and comprehensive discussion of the technical and theoretical aspects of spatial information. It ranges widely over important themes such as the nature and sources of spatial information, spatial referencing and modelling. This book should be essential reading for all those involved in teaching, research and development in spatial information systems. It is a comprehensive course book for all those who take Masters or Doctoral research in GIS, and should become a standard graduate-level text."
--Michael Blakemore, NATIONAL ONLINE MANPOWER INFORMATION SYSTEM, United Kingdom
"I am impressed with the approach... the combination of the backgrounds of the authors--a geographer and a computer scientist--has worked to produce a book with a distinct 'modern' perspective."
--Andrew U. Frank, NATIONAL CENTER FOR GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION AND ANALYSIS
"A real service to the field... The book is rich with examples, many supported by the large number of clear--and clearly labeled--tables, diagrams, and other graphics; these illustrations...will be especially useful in teaching or explaining the topics covered... It should be especially attractive to students and others new to this growing field who will find it provides a thorough introduction to the underlying concepts."
--Jack Dangerod, President, ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH INSTITUTE, Inc. (ESRI)

From the Back Cover

Spatial Information Systems have involved primarily from the use of computers in the geosciences, and their principal function is the handling of 2-D and 3-D information. This textbook brings together geoscience and computing in the spirit of 'geomatics' combining space-
oriented and information-oriented disciplines. It has been written as a comprehensive introductory text for students of geography and computer science, and as a sourcebook for professionals in Geographical Information System.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 680 pages
• Publisher: Academic Press; 1 edition (April 2, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0124383807
• ISBN-13: 978-0124383807
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #938,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the greatest introduction to spatial information systems, December 10, 2004

By 

Konstantinos-N (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fundamentals of Spatial Information Systems (Apic Series) (Hardcover)

I am a Ph.D candidate in GISs and when I was an undergraduate this book was the first one recommended to me as the "bible" on the topic. Well...it definitely is a commendable effort from the authors (especially considering it was written circa 1990) but absolutely not the bible.

The book tries to cover most aspects, theories, and topics that come together to comprise a GIS and does not have a particular focus on any of the sub-disciplines. There are many examples and figures which enhance understanding of some difficult concepts, however, there also major weaknesses.

The primary one, at least to me, is the lack of structure and organization. One would expect the provision of some fundamental theoretical starting points at the beginning and then incremental building and expansion on those concepts as chapters progress. Unfortunately this is not the case as many topics are interweaved and repeated at several parts of the book and the chapter-structure does not seem to have a well-thought rationale. There is in general an abrupt and rapid introduction to many different topics without some provision for allowing the readers to consolidate and digest the incoming knowledge incrementally. In the end this might leave novice gis readers more confused than informed.

Another problem is the omission of precise definitions for many terms commonly used in GISs or their substitution with descriptive narratives instead.

Finally, this book is old and hence, outdated. As such it does not include references to significant advances in the field that took place in the 90's. For example, two important topics not addressed are uncertainty and qualitative reasoning. In addition, the examples often refer to software implementations of the era, which now might be completely ouf of play.

There are much better and newer introductory books for GIS and spatial information systems and two that I would recommend are Michael Worboy's "GIS: a computing perspective (second edition)" complemented with Nicholas Chrisman's "Exploring Geographic Information Systems". This book serves to me only as a quick reference on certain topics and it does so only in very rare occasions.

If you are a collector of GIS literature you might want to buy it. If you are looking for a good introduction to the field, buy another book instead.