Interactive GIS: Symbolizing your Data
in Google Earth and Google Maps
Stephen Titchenal
www.RailsandTrails.com
Lakeland Community College
April 11 2015
Introductions
Stephen Titchenal
Retired Teacher/Librarian/Technology Specialist
Cleveland Heights – University Heights Schools
Maintains railsandtrails.com website with
extensive historical mapping resources.
Introductions
Please share with the class:
●Name
●Organization or Lakeland Community College
Major
●What experience do you have with Google
tools, GIS, and other technology?
●What do you hope to get out of the
workshop?
Why Google Earth for GIS
Professionals
●Part of your tool box to process geographic
information.
●Useful tool for clients and the general public
to interact with geographic content you have
created and/or organized.
●Great for beginning GIS users that are not
ready to learn QGIS or purchase ESRI
products.
Google Maps/Earth Versions
●Google Earth desktop (Windows, Macintosh,
Linux)
●Google Earth Pro desktop (Windows, Macintosh)
free license now available
●Google My Maps – web based maps
●Google Fusion Tables – spreadsheet maps
Changes to Google Mapping
Programs
●Google Maps Engine (ends in 2016) parts
supported in Google My Maps
●Google My Maps Pro features are now included in
Google My Maps
●Google Earth Plug-in - javascript API (application
programing interface) for Windows & Macintosh
web browsers. API No longer works as of 2014-
12-12
●Google Sketch-Up (now owned by Trimble
Navigation - Free and Pro versions)
●Google Building Maker was retired in 2013.
Google Earth Topics
●Exploration of the features of Google Earth and Google Maps including:
navigation and configuration tips; streetview; 3D buildings; transparency; layers;
historic aerial time slider.
●Finding additional layers that can be added to Google Earth including USGS
Topographic Maps and Digital Elevation Models; historic map overlays.
●Creating content using the tools available in Google Earth and/or Google
Maps including points, paths, polygons, tours, image overlays and network
links.
●Google Earth’s native file format KML (Keyhole Markup Language) including:
basic structure of language; features commonly supported during conversion
between ESRI shapefiles and KML; use of Google Docs and Fusion Tables
(spreadsheets) to create kml content; advanced features supported by
programming.
●Mention of other free or inexpensive tools for creating and adapting GIS
content.
Exploring Google Earth – 3D
Exploring Google Earth
Exploring Google Earth
Select
Imagery
Dates with
slider
Historic Imagery
Exploring Google EarthFlight Simulator
CTRL + Alt + A
Flight Simulator
Keyboard
Commands
CTRL + H
Exploring Google EarthAnd other Planets!
Google Earth ResourcesWarning: some content
is out of date, some
features are no longer
supported and links
may no longer work
Google Earth Outreach Exercises
oCreating points, lines, & polygons
oAdding photos & videos to balloons
oAdding image overlays
oCreating a narrated tour
oSaving your file
Annotating Google Earth
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Create a placemark
1. Go to Add menu
> Placemark, or click the
Placemark button.
2. Move the placemark,
if desired.
3. Add title and description.
4. Click OK.
Change the Icon
1. To edit a placemark, right-click on placemark
and choose Properties.
2. Click the icon button at
top-right.
3. Choose another icon,
and click OK.
4. Click OK to close the Properties.
Change the Style
1. To edit a placemark, right-click on placemark and
choose Properties.
2. Click the icon button at
top-right.
3. Choose another icon,
and click OK.
4. Click OK to close
the Properties.
Create a Line (or “path”)
1. Go to Add menu > Path, or click the Path button.
2. Draw the line by clicking on the Earth.
3. Add title and
description.
4. Click OK.
Create a Polygon
1. Go to Add menu > Polygon, or click the Polygon
button.
2. Draw the polygon
by clicking on the
Earth.
3. Add title and
description.
4. Click OK.
Create a Folder
1. Go to Add menu > Folder.
2. Add title and description for folder.
3. Click OK.
4. Drag your content into the folder.
5. Your Places panel should look like this:
Embed Photos into Balloons
1. Edit the placemark, by right-clicking on the placemark,
and choosing Properties (on a PC) or Get Info (on a Mac).
2. Click on the Add image... button, and copy and paste the
following image URL into the
Image URL box. Then click
OK.
http://earth.google.com/
outreach/images/
stories_adelia3.jpg
3. Click OK.
Images online vs. on your computer
Type in the following code into the Image URL box:
● Image from Internet:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/
commons/thumb/7/78/The_Blue_Marble.jpg/578p
x-The_Blue_Marble.jpg
● Image from computer:PC: C:\Documents and Settings\All
Users\Documents\My Pictures\Sample
Pictures\Sunset.jpg
Mac: file:///Users/JaneDoe/Photos/photo1.jpg
Embed videos from YouTube
1. Go to www.youtube.com.
2. Search for a YouTube
video you want to embed.
3. Copy the Embed code.
4. Right-click on a placemark
or polygon, and paste it into
the Description.
5. Click OK.
Add Photos & Image Overlays
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Create an Image Overlay
1. Go to Add > Image Overlay, or click the Image
Overlay button.
2. Use the green lines to
move, rotate, and scale
the image.
3. Add title and description.
4. Click OK.
Create an Photo Overlay
1. Navigate to location where photo was taken.
2. Go to Add > Photo, and
paste link or browse for
photo.
3. Line up photo with
landscape
4. Add title and description.
5. Click OK.
Add Views & Perspectives
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Add Views & Perspectives
1. Change the view angle or perspective to a good
position for the point (make sure you tilt the Earth!)
2. Right-click on a placemark.
3. Choose Snapshot View.
4. Repeat again for other
placemarks!
Share a screenshot on G+
1. Click Sign in and enter your Google email address and
password.
2. Click Share > Share
screenshot on G+.
3. Add any comments or
links to your screenshot.
4. Click Share.
Importing GPS Data
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Importing GPS Data
1. Go to the File > Open… menu
2. Change the file type to be Gps (*gpx, …)
3. Select your.gpx file (you can
use the elephant tracking .gpx
data from the tutorial website
if you wish)
4. Click Open.
Importing GIS Data
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Importing GIS Data
1. Go to File > Import...
2. Change the file type to be ESRI Shape (*.shp)
3. Select your .shp file (you
can use the Southeast Asia
rivers from the tutorial website
if you wish).
4. Click Open.
Creating a Narrated Tour
earth.google.com/outreach/tutorials.html
Create a Tour
1. Go to Add > Tour.
2. Click the Record
button.
3. Zoom in and double-click
on placemarks to create
tour movements.
4. Click the Record button to stop recording.
3 ways to create a tour
● Fly around, zooming in and out, clicking on
placemarks, etc.
● In advance, create tour stops with placemarks, and
then double-click them to create your tour.
● Create a line, and then click Create tour from line
button while recording.
Save your Google Earth KMZ file
1. Right-click on your folder, and click Save Place As…
2. Name your file, and save to your desktop.
Q & A
Network Links
Network Links
http://peoplemaps.esri.com/arcgis/rest/services
Right Click on
Google Earth
and Copy link
address
Network Links
Add Network Link
Name your link
Paste copied link into link: text box
Google Earth Gallery
Click on Earth
Gallery
Tip:
Google Maps Gallery can also be viewed from your web browser at Maps.google.com
National Elevation Dataset
National Elevation Dataset
●Appears as a new layer with two sub layers….
Cannot be saved to my places, but the downloaded kml file can
be saved to your local hard drive for easy access.
National Elevation Dataset
Colored coded
Elevation Points
Triangulated
Irregular
Network (TIN)
Geographic points with elevation above sea level
Digital
Elevation
Model with
hill shading
Image Overlays
Hopkins 1927 v5 Gates Mills
Match Google Earth view to chosen overlay
http://goo.gl/DnrJEr
Image Overlays
Image Overlays Hopkins 1927 v5 Gates Mills
Add Image Overlay and browse to saved file image
(or type link to image on website)
http://goo.gl/DnrJEr
Image Overlays Hopkins 1927 v5 Gates Mills
Use edge controls to resize – Hold shift key down to maintain proportions
Elevation Profiles Right click on C&E path and choose:
Show Elevation Profile
Layers: Hopkins 1927 (opacity adjusted),
NED 1/9 arc, Roads, C&E right-of-way path
Elevation Profiles and DEMs using a professional GIS
Using Google Earth
Google Earth ProDemographic Data (U.S. Census)
Google Earth Pro
Parcel Data (property lines)
Google Earth Pro
Traffic Counts
Google Earth Pro
Importing GIS data
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=yUO_vcN7xqo
Tips and Troubleshooting
●Cache can be deleted if you are having crashing
problems.
myplaces.kml loads on startup with all saved
My Places. Save often and make backups in
another location. Warning: myplaces.kml used by both
Google Earth & Google Earth Pro!
Google Maps Historical Street Views
Google Maps Historical Street Views
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.503825,-
81.694876,3a,75y,152.72h,87.03t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1safxzlglFN1Cfu_7WdQrl1Q!2e0!5s20140701T000000
Google Maps Historical Street Views
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.503825,-
81.694876,3a,75y,152.72h,87.03t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1syEk4XZtKW31qQpUbdYw_qQ!2e0!5s20110601T000000
Google My Maps
https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3370982?hl=en
https://www.google.com/maps/d/
Separating Content from Style
●Database/Spreadsheet content (tables) vs. display
layout views
●KML – Keyhole Markup Language
●XML – Extensible Markup Language
●CSS – Cascading Style Sheets
●HTML – Hypertext Markup Language
National Map – Small Scale
http://nationalmap.gov/small_scale/
National Map – Small Scale
Web Map Services Technical Information
National Map – Small Scale
Google Earth WMS Parameters
Add WMS Server URL
National Map – Small Scale
Google Earth WMS Parameters
After Transparent Layers list is populated, choose
one layer and click add.
National Map – Small Scale
Google Earth Image Overlay Refresh Parameters
Default is After Camera Stops (earth stops moving)
On Request requires you to
manually refresh the image by
right clicking on the Overlay
Name
National Map – Legend
View WMS Get Capabilities URL in Web Browser
Find the Geologic
Map Layer and
copy the Legend
URL
National Map – Legend
Add Legend to
Description using
the Add Link button.
Replace the second
url text with
“Legend” to be more
user friendly
National Map – Legend on Map
Add New
Image Overlay
and paste the
Legend URL
into the link:
text box
ArcGIS REST Services
http://basemap.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/
http://basemap.nationalmap.gov/
ArcGIS REST Services
http://basemap.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/USGSHydroNHD/MapServer
http://basemap.nationalmap.gov/
Tiles not available:
Wait a minute
to see if they
load…
Change Scale (Zoom in or
out) to load a different set
of tiles
Using Google Drive
●Login to your google (gmail) account or use one of
the public accounts created for this workshop:
Using Fusion Tables
Using Fusion Tables
Tools->Change Map
Change Feature Styles
Change Info Window
Using Fusion Tables
XML is everywhere
●Microsoft Office docx, xlsx, etc. are xml documents.
●Most databases can read and write xml with the aid
of XSLT.
●Google Earth KML is XML (just change the file
extension)
●KMZ is just KML text + images that have been
compressed into one file. (change the file extension
to .zip and unzip)
Understanding XML/KML
●Text document that can be opened by any text
editor (notepad, notepad++, Word, etc.)
●Most XML is created by an application, not written
by hand.
●Text editor find and replace tools are useful to clean
up data for import or export.
●Regular Expression is a powerful search/replace
language built into many text editors.
KML Documentationhttps://developers.google.com/kml/
KML Time and Animation
https://developers.google.com/kml/documentation/time
https://developers.google.com/kml/documentation/Time
Span_example.kml
Google Docs and Network Links
Create a new Google
Document and paste
the text of a kml file
into it
Google Docs and Network Links
Share your
Documents with
anyon with a link
Google Docs and Network Links
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pQrhTbTyEHHL
Hjo-iZ-afzVgwZeajrPUIX_ayzqpuZE/export?format=txt
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pQrhTbTyEHHL
Hjo-iZ-afzVgwZeajrPUIX_ayzqpuZE/edit?usp=sharing
Replace the red text with the green text
and copy to a Network Link
Troubleshooting KML
KML Error Handling
Normally leave off,
but “Show prompts
for all errors” will
help identify KML
coding errors.
Troubleshooting KML
http://www.google.com/earth/outreach/tutorials/jedit.html
Google Maps APIhttps://developers.google.com/maps/
Google Maps for Workhttps://www.google.com/work/mapsearth/
Other Web Based Mapping Programs
http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcgisonline/features
Local Support and interesting projects
http://www.meetup.com/cleveland-civic-hacking/
Local Support and interesting projects
http://www.meetup.com/cleveland-civic-hacking/events/220971282/
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