Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (Hardcover)

by Michael N. Demers (Author) "This is a book about geography..." (more)
Key Phrases: elevational values, raster data input, doughnut buffer, New York, John Wiley, Review Questions (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"...most definitely [a] worthwhile addition to any introductory GIS reading list or personal book shelf." -- GI News, October 2000 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
This informative book on the principles of geographic information systems (GIS) interweaves the idea of geographic inquiry and spatial discovery throughout. It provides a comprehensive and accessible look at GIS without burdening the reader with an imposing array of equations, algorithms, computer code and command structures.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 504 pages
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc; 1 edition (November 6, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471142840
• ISBN-13: 978-0471142843
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,993,729 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A comprehensive and very understandable text., October 20, 1998

By A Customer

This is unquestionably one of the finest GIS textbooks available today. It covers not only the basic input, data management, and reporting concepts, but includes sufficient depth of spatial analysis issues that anyone not able to take additional geographic analysis courses will come away with enough practical knowledge to truly unleash the power of geographic information systems.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Useful, but needs editorial work, March 20, 2004

By	Scott Bohning (San Francisco Bay Area, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems, 2nd Edition Update with Integrated Lab Exercises (Hardcover)

I am a GIS novice, and am about 1/3 of the way through the book. There is definitely a lot of useful and current information in this book, so I find it worth reading. However, I feel editorial work on it is needed in several ways. There are numerous examples of sloppy use of English (both in choice of words and in paragraph structure), discussions that are overly abstract, and explanations that are lengthy yet unclear. This was not universal, but occurred annoyingly often. On subjects I knew something about already, I was able to see how the book's accounts were accurate, but only after puzzling over the author's choice of phraseology. I will definitely have to look elsewhere for an understanding of map projections, database structures, raster models, and other topics.

Too much time is spent early in the book belaboring an abstract conceptual framework, where some concrete examples would serve much better. It was also disconcerting that certain terms are used without being defined (or only defined very abstractly), forcing the reader to guess meaning from the context. Yet other relatively simple terms are defined at length. The discussion questions at the end of each chapter are sometimes too open-ended, not focussed on the chapter material.

It is difficult to write for neophytes about a subject one knows intimately -- as I'm sure the author does. Important terms and assumptions are embedded in the one's thinking, so one does not realize that some crucial points are unfamiliar to the student, and one tends to skip certain steps. This book has good coverage of GIS issues, but it would benefit from a more severe editor and from more feedback from the undergraduate audience on which areas need clarification.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A review from an undergraduate user, December 11, 2005

By	Katie Mclane (Las Cruces, NM) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (Hardcover)

I was privileged to take a class from Dr. Demers, himself, using this textbook. I found it to be a great textbook, and I particularly enjoyed his sense of humor in the book, a welcome addition to what I found to be a somewhat difficult and challenging topic. He has a good understanding of the topic, and a sensitivity to the needs of students that is unparalleled. I recommend it to anyone willing to put the effort into learning a new way of looking at geography and the world.