Maps!

I know what you're thinking. What's so exciting about maps?* During my first two months of VISTAhood, I guess you can say my appreciation for them has grown - especially in relation to the stimulus project. I've made quite a few and have adopted a somewhat unconventional patchwork approach to mapping due to resources. Also, it turns out that the supervisors at PSO were right! There are many ways to get to any one goal and creativity is key. Usually, one would use GIS software to map information like Census data, but those tools are very expensive and not accessible in most public libraries. With that in mind, I'm presenting this list for VISTA posterity which I fondly call...

"Mapping when you don't have GIS" (yes, it's possible) :

1) Try ArcGIS Explorer - PRO: You can download the tool or use the online version. It's FREE and you can feel your way around enough to get your project done, no GIS experience needed. CON: You have to piece together all the right data and shapefiles yourself, which can be daunting if you're rusty or have never done this before. Luckily, if you choose this mapping method, there is lots of free data to use online - searchable on data.gov.

2) Random Internet Tools - Thank you, Internet. Thanks to free user-made tools, it's surprisingly easy to find websites to help you with mapping. My favorite census-related example is this the KMZ Census Mapper developed by a University of Tennessee Professor. It's so simple and takes you step-by-step through making a map either by census tracts in states of counties. You can choose your subject (poverty, population, education, households, etc.) and view the results on Google maps. Also, Texas A&M has this free DIY website that let's you maps states with customized, color coded counties. Freemaptools.com is also a good place to go. I used it to generate a radius from a point, save the information as an RMZ, then upload it on my own Google maps. I know that there are tons of tools online, so if anyone is reading this and has an addition to this list, please comment!

3) "Mapping by Numbers" - Sonja christened this old fashioned mapping method after those little paint-by-number sets when she saw me squinting at a computer screen and labeling these paper maps by hand. I'm a digital native, but paper is not below me! When the free mapping tools online cannot deliver, a trusty highlighter and office scanner will never let you down.

4) Make Friends with Someone who has GIS - We are very lucky in Winston Salem because the Center for Community Safety has a GIS lab. Last week MaryKarinna and I went on a field trip to their offices and made some maps. When all else fails and you simply need GIS resources/a GIS expert, sometimes community resources or public universities can be of service.

I've written this post for both selfish and archival reasons. If I didn't centralize all of these links soon, I would've forgotten about them for future projects!

*If you still need an answer to that question, you should definitely watch this clip from the West Wing. It will make you want to map something.

Best from NC,

Denise