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MidAmerica GIS Consortium

We believe geospatial technology creates value far reaching from ourselves. We are a network of dedicated leaders in the fields of mapmaking, location services, & data management.

Sunday, April 24, 2016::8AM-5PM

101. Introductory Geoprocessing with Python/Introduction to Python for the GIS Professional (Lab/Intermediate) - Brett Lord-Castillo, St. Louis County Emergency Management, MO & Kristen Jordan-Koenig, Kansas Data Access & Support Center
Part A) This course will get you up and running with python in four sections. We still start with installation, including installation with ArcGIS, integrated development environments (IDEs) and where to find more help. Next, we will cover basic syntax, import statements, writing functions, and adding additional libraries and site packages to your installation. For the third section of the class, we will dive into python programming basics: variables, scopes, datatypes, flow control, debugging, and error handling. The class will wrap up by covering common data structures and an introduction to libraries with the widely used os and datetime modules. You should have a very basic understanding of script writing, as we will be up and running with our own scripts by the end of the class. Knowledge of basic flow control (if-then-else, for loops, while loops) is recommended.

Part B) Python is a straightforward scripting language that interfaces with multiple existing programs to automate workflows. Python works with many programs like ArcMap, AutoCAD, Excel, Word, websites, etc. The possibilities of workflow automation are only limited by your imagination!

This course is intended for people who have never programmed before (if you already know programming basics, this is not the class for you). The material will begin with programming basics, continue into the logic of programming, and extend into where to find programming resources for building your scripts. Discussions will include analogies of pirates, Dr. Frankenstein, cooking, and cars.

102. Legal Issues in GIS (Class/Introductory) - Chris Dunn, Law Office of Christopher W. Dunn; Amie Coleman & Tom Haynes - Carson & Coil
Chris Dunn, Amie Coleman, and Tom Haynes are lawyers licensed to practice in Missouri. The Missouri rules of professional conduct require them to remind you that; the choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements.

Join us for an introduction into the legal aspects of the geospatial profession in this new course. Public policy touches GIS in many ways, and we plan to discuss as many of those ways as possible: state open records acts, geospatial data acts, liability, sovereign immunity, intellectual property, privacy of your constituents, data use licenses, charging for your data - or not, plus all the questions you pose to us.

We'll discuss how the law applies to you and your organization and why that knowledge is so important. Do you know what you should know before you are called to testify about your data in court? We do and we want you to, too. We'll put on our propeller beanies and talk about drones. After we land that discussion, we'll talk about the gathering geospatial data licensing storm. Last but not least, we'll point you toward additional geospatial legal help available to you.

Please visit this course page to submit your legal questions prior to the short course.

Monday, April 25, 2016::1PM-5PM

301. Advanced Geoprocessing with Python (Lab/Expert) - Brett Lord-Castillo, St. Louis County Emergency Management, MO
Advanced Geoprocessing with Python continues the series of python courses with advanced special topics. Open source libraries such as GDAL, ogr, shapely, fiona, and rasterio will be explored in more detail, including their interaction with arcpy. We will dive deeper into raster and image processing, focusing on the use of numpy arrays. This will be followed by master class style workshop time to tackle individual programming problems that students bring with them to class. We will wrap up with the special topics of web communication using the requests library, multi-thread processing in python, and a basic exploration of python processing of mapbox vector tiles.

302. CANCELLED Advanced Geodatabases (Lab/Advanced) - Steve Marsh, City of Lee's Summit, MO
This short course will be conducted in a graduate seminar style. Participants are asked to bring their scripts, data, and questions, and the group will discuss coding problems and topics of interest.

303. Hands-On with ArcGIS Mobile Technology (Lab/Introductory) - Jake Stevenson, Burns & McDonnell
Workshop attendees will have the chance to build their own ArcGIS Collector application and learn how to use the ArcGIS Operations Dashboard to view the results and report on what's being collected in the field. Coming out of the workshop attendees will understand how to create their own mobile applications as well as best practices and lessons learned from using the technology on various projects. Over the course of workshop, attendees will see real world examples of how ArcGIS mobile technology has been used on various different types of real world projects.

304. CANCELLED Implementing the Latest ISO Metadata Standards for your Organization (Lab/Intermediate) - Mark Duewell, MSDIS
This half-day course will discuss the new standards being implemented globally, suggest methods of porting your current metadata to the new standards, and recommend tools for accomplishing such tasks.

305. JavaScript Web Mapping API (Lab/Intermediate) - Steven Graf, Stantec
This course will be an introduction to the ArcGIS API for JavaScript. Using the ArcGIS API for JavaScript, you can create custom web applications intended to fit the need of your audience. The class will include an overview of the API, exploration of available resources, and hands-on exercises. Attendees do not need to have any previous application development experience.

306. Introductory ModelBuilder (Lab/Intermediate) - Ken Wilkerson, GISEdge
Esri ModelBuilder (MB) provides a visual programming environment for combining data and tools to automate tasks or create custom scripts. This course will introduce MB processing with hands-on exercises demonstrating the creation of models ranging from simple to complex. You will learn how to quickly and effectively develop models that help you become more productive ArcGIS users.

307. Tableau Public - Creating Compelling Dashboards and Fascinating Stories with Interactive Data (Lab/Introductory) - Aaron Baumgarden & Ron House, Johnson County, KS AIMS
One must understand that data will only be remembered if presented in the right way. We'll show you just how easy it is to build a polished presentation by converting a simple flat data file into a beautiful visual representation using Tableau Public. Next, we'll show you how to generate informative dashboards using Tableau's drag and drop interface with no coding required! Tableau dashboards are also interactive, so we'll walk you through how to customize a dashboard that engages the user and enables them to explore the data. To cap things off, we'll run through how to create dynamic stories and embed them into a website to further impress your audience - and your boss!

Sunday, April 24, 2016::1PM-5PM

103. GIS and Mapping A to Z (Lab/Introductory) - Tim Haithcoat, University of Missouri
This hands-on 1/2 day lab will provide exposure to several of the myriad analyses and applications that can be done using GIS. Many people by now are familiar with the concepts of GIS and mapping, but their experience may be limited to a few areas specific to their profession. The intent of this course is to survey the wider range of applications to which GIS can be put. The 'tour' will include both raster-based and vector-based analysis and include watershed modeling, network analysis of roads and streams, siting analysis, spatial interpolation, geocoding, and viewshed analysis. Finally, we will briefly demonstrate newer geospatial applications for conflation, human geography analysis, and human movement models being explored at the University of Missouri's Geographic Resources Center.

104. Getting the Most out of Your ArcGIS Online Subscription (Lab/Introductory) - Jesse Adams & Sam Giebner, North Point GIS
You may already have an Esri ArcGIS Online (AGO) account and are aware of some of the things you can do with your subscription, but if you are eager to build on your existing knowledge, then let us show you more of what AGO offers. Participants will learn how to create story maps, utilize AGO dashboards, build applications using the Web App Builder, and more! We will also discuss setting up open data sites, which provide a resource for the general public to search, download, filter and visualize an organization's data through their web browser or mobile device. Come join us and see how you can take your AGO knowledge to the next level!

105. Remote Sensing (Lab/Introductory) - Peter Metzger, Minnkota Power Cooperative
This hands-on lab will cover the principles and practices of using both passive and active remote sensing technology using Esri software. Lecture will include background on the different types of sensors and their operations while course work will range from using aerial imagery and LiDAR to measure ground objects to using multispectral aerial and satellite data to classify ground cover. The course will cover photogrammetry, change detection, georeferencing, vegetative indexes and multi return LiDAR data.

106. CANCELLED GISP: The Road to an Exam (Class/Introductory) - Bill Hodge, GISCI
This series of presentations and interactive discussions will provide a background on certification in general, the GISP's history in particular, and an overview of its status, now that an exam is being added. All who participate will have a clear understanding of the current requirements and where each participant stands with it in regard to her or his individual career.

Bill Hodge GISP is the Executive Director of GISCI, the GIS Certificate Institute. Before taking that position, he was the GIS Manager for the City of Midland, from which he recently retired, and has been a geospatial professional in several levels of government over the last 15 years. He continues to serve on the Advisory Committee of the GeoTech Center.

Monday, April 25, 2016::8AM-12PM

201. Intermediate Geoprocessing with Python (Lab/Advanced) - Brett Lord-Castillo, St. Louis County Emergency Management, MO
Intermediate Geoprocessing with Python will pick up from the introductory course starting with writing your own modules and classes, including logging. We will examine the standard python library in more detail and cover file I/O, string formatting, regular expressions, and database cursors. The emphasis will be learning how to read, modify, and process vector data and its attributes. The second half of the class will cover how to install additional site-packages with pip and explore the arcpy library in more detail (including writing expressions for Field Calculations). We will close with some work with raster processing and arcpy as well as an introduction to open source libraries. You should understand the concepts covered in the basic class as a prerequisite to this class. We will be writing our own module with object oriented class implementations to learn the concepts presented.

202. Introductory Geodatabases - (Lab/Intermediate) - Steve Marsh, City of Lee's Summit, MO
This course introduces basic elements of a geodatabase, its structure, the storage options, and the attributes and spatial validation rules. Participants will explore the geodatabase structure and properties in ArcCatalog and ArcMap, as well as techniques to convert existing data into a geodatabase. This course is intended for those familiar with ArcGIS 10, those considering migrating to or just getting started with the Geodatabase data model.

203. Hands-On with ArcGIS in The Cloud (Lab/Introductory) - Brian Hiller, Burns & McDonnell
There are a variety of options for using ArcGIS technology in the Cloud. Choosing which one to use can often be challenging. Over the course of the course attendees will review the options for using ArcGIS technology in the Cloud and discuss advantages and things to consider with each option.

Through a series of hands-on exercises attendees will have an opportunity to build and publish their own Cloud GIS applications. In addition attendees will learn about ways in which ArcGIS has been used in the cloud on real world projects.

The workshop will focus on the following areas:

  • Software as a Services (SaaS) - ArcGIS Online
  • Private Cloud - Portal for ArcGIS
  • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - ArcGIS for Server/Portal on Cloud Infrastructure (Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure)

204. Attribute Assistant Setup and Usage (Lab/Intermediate) - Lee Allen, Shawnee County, KS
Editing GIS data attributes has traditionally been the most labor intensive part of maintaining high quality data. With ArcGIS 10.x and feature templates, updating attributes got much easier, but there are still limitations to using feature templates. Enter the Attribute Assistant from Esri. The Attribute Assistant is an Add-In available with the Local Government Model that can be used for updating more than 50 attributes at a time programmatically. Much of the real power comes from the ability to utilize GIS analysis to populate attributes, such as intersecting features. This course will cover topics such as: where to get the Attribute Assistant, how it to set it up, how it works, and most everything you need to know to successfully implement it. This tool is great for editing NG911 data and Utility data.

205. Introduction to Web Mapping (Lab/Intermediate) - Will Breitkreutz, US ACE
This short course will create dynamic web maps using open-source solutions rather than the Esri library. Online tools and resources that make life easier will be covered. The basics of web mapping concepts will be introduced, ways to get and create data for the web, and then exercises programming your first web map.

206. Spatial Statistics in ArcMap (Lab/Intermediate) - Pamela Jurney, Cross Timbers Consulting, LLC, Cross & Jonnie Gilpen, Oklahoma State Department of Health
Take a trip through the spatial statistics toolbox in ArcGIS.

Analyzing patterns, mapping clusters, measuring geographic distributions. Cluster and outlier analysis, hot spot analysis, mean center.

Have you ever wondered what these terms mean and how you can use them to further explore spatial relationships?

This half-day short course has been set up to work through applications of the spatial statistics tools that are available in ArcMap. We will discuss basic statistical applications, how to render results in ArcMap, and how to interpret the results.

Thursday, April 28, 2016::12PM-4PM

401. US National Grid (Class/Introductory) - Jason Warzinik & Matthew Smith, Boone County, MO
The U.S. National Grid, endorsed by FEMA and the U.S. military, is an easy to use reference system for identifying and finding locations nation-wide. The use of USNG enables responders from across jurisdictions and agencies to speak the same language for location information. During this workshop, students will learn the fundamental concepts of the US National Grid (USNG) and the importance it holds in responding to local and multi-jurisdictional incidents. Participants will also learn how to read USNG coordinates and locate them on a map, participate in an outdoor USNG navigation course, see how to include USNG in map book development in ArcMap, and be introduced to tools that are available to assist with the use of USNG. Students will participate in a critical incident exercise where they will perform various tasks using the skills obtained in this course. This course is meant to introduce staff to the grid before there is a need to use it in your County or agency.

402. Cartography (Lab/Introductory) - Shannon White, University of Missouri Extension
Crafting a strong message is the essence of cartography. What are you trying to say with your map? Presenting problems and solutions through geographic data and analysis can pose a number of challenges for the GIS professional. This hands-on workshop will provide an introduction to cartographic fundamentals: representing data through colors, symbols, text, labeling and annotations; creating layouts with an introduction to design and best practices; and sharing your print and web mapping products to achieve your cartographic goals.

403. Finding, Using, and Applying Census Data (Class/Introductory) - Matt Gerike, City of Columbia, MO
Learn how to find Census geometry and population, housing, and economic attribute on line, turn it into data for use in GIS, and see some examples of how to build Census information into your organizational program.

Participants are encouraged to bring laptops and work along. Having a spreadsheet program and a GIS program on the laptop will enhance the user experience.

404. 911 and the GIS Professional (Class/Intermediate) - Sherry Massey, Dickinson County, KS
When you dial 911, how does the call get to the correct dispatcher? In Next Generation 911, GIS is the answer to that question. This class will cover the role of the GIS Professional in 911. We will look at the many systems impacted by GIS in the 911 center. We will cover the basics of the current 911 call routing system and emerging NG911 call routing technologies. We will discuss the critical role of GIS in NG911 and the impact NG911 will have on GIS and the GIS Professional.

405. HAZUS Flood and Earthquake Tools (Lab/Introductory) - Shanna Michael, AECOM
Hazus is a loss estimation software package developed by FEMA to aid local officials and planners in their risk assessment and hazard mitigation planning efforts. This course will provide an introduction to the earthquake and flood models capabilities, the basic types of analysis that Hazus can perform, as well as the results that can be generated regarding the social and economic impacts of the hazards. Hazus has recently updated to 2010 Census data and now includes a dasymetric data analysis option.

406. Innovations in Airborne LiDAR and Geospatial Technologies (Lab/Introductory) - Qassim Abdullah, Woolpert
The workshop discusses the latest capabilities and trends in geospatial technologies including:

  • LiDAR sensors including Geiger mode, Flash, and photon counting LiDAR.
  • New generation of large format digital mapping cameras ADS-100, UltraCAM-Eagle, and DMC-II250.
  • UAV/UAS products and capabilities.
  • Mobile LiDAR.
  • Futuristic looks into the LiDAR and imagery technologies and markets.
  • The new "ASPRS Positional Accuracy Standards for Digital Geospatial Data" and how it applies to the new LiDAR and UAS products.

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