(Part 2) Top products from r/gis

QGIS equivalent to ArcPy is PyQGIS, so you can write scripts and plugins.

https://docs.qgis.org/2.2/en/docs/pyqgis_developer_cookbook/

Book by Gary Sherman (who founded the QGIS project)

And a YouTube video about the new QGIS plug-in builder

I transferred 16 Gb of data in 7 databases from my laptop to PC but between PostgreSQL installations, via the pgAdmin GUI (backup and restore command). It didn't take long, about an hour to restore everything.

Yes, ogr2ogr is used to migrate ESRI databases to PostgreSQL....

http://www.bostongis.com/PrinterFriendly.aspx?content_name=ogr_cheatsheet

(ogr2ogr comes with GDAL that installs with QGIS, so there's no need to install FW Tools).

By the way, QGIS / GDAL now supports ESRI File/(Personal) Geodatabases via the OpenFileGDB driver. So there's a possibility you can import GDB files straight into QGIS and from there import data into PostgreSQL. GDAL supports GDBs saved from ArcGIS 9 and above. It used to be finicky but since GDAL version 1.11, the current version, its reliability has improved.

http://www.gdal.org/drv_openfilegdb.html

p.s. By the way, last week someone was asking for help as ArcMap was very slow georectifying 60 Mb aerial photos or maps. Here's a guide for how to georectify in QGIS. The image size is 588 Mb. Welcome to QGIS.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYBhhAW7QEk

Here is what it sounds like to me what you are wanting to do, correct me if I'm wrong:

• Input a list of coordinates in some format (e.g. table view, csv file, etc) along with a search radius value
  
  
• Have something, ArcMap or a python script, go through each set of coordinates and return pertinent information within the designated search radius for each input coordinate
  
  You could possibly do this in model builder using a table object, table view, or a linked Access database as the input object containing the coordinates. Honestly, I have never been able to figure out the iteration tool in model builder and find it much easier to write everything in Python. Perhaps another user could be of assistance if you take the model builder route.
  
  If you were to go about it in Python, as a script in a custom ArcTool, you would have the user put in a table object of some sort as mentioned above and could also go the CSV file route which would allow you to easily convert Excel related files to a more friendly file type. You could also make a standalone script which would allow you to do everything without having to open ArcMap.
  However, if you are very new to Python and are not familiar with object oriented program, I would say that model builder is your best bet as what you describe is very likely outside of your current programming capabilities.
  
  Here are some great books for learning Python and using Python within ArcGIS.
  Python Scripting for ArcGIS
  Introduction to Computing Using Python: An Application Development Focus
  

The program itself (I learned on the 2013 version) comes with three guides, as I recall. The tour guide is the only one that comes to mind at the moment. Maybe the field guide is another. I used the tour guide primarily. The annoying thing was learning the program with the guides that were not updated. So if a lesson says it should take x amount of time, it will take more, due to you having to figure out where certain tools have been moved to.

Here is the 2010 tour guide, its probably the one I used.

I would also suggest taking the time to learn about the chip & subset tool, and supervised and unsupervised classification. Those are the most powerful tools I learned to use. I really like remote sensing, and would love to land a job doing at least some rs. Its a great way to create your own raster data.

If you are looking for reading on the topic of RS, I used two books by John R. Jensen, Remote Sensing of the Environment, and Introductory Digital Image Processing. The latter being the most useful imo.

Honestly I recommend taking a course in cartography.Many GIS software packages (ArcGIS in particular) are absolutely fantastic at analysis, but generally poor when it comes to producing maps that are readable for a general audience. As a side note, not to disparage anyone, but it also seems that there is a sizeable subset of the GIS-using population that doesn't fully understand the fundamentals of cartography -- such as comprehending what exactly projections are and how they work, etc.

Now, if you are producing maps for geography-minded people (researchers, etc. who are used to looking at maps produced in ArcGIS), perhaps you don't have much to worry about. But I find that when I show people maps produced in ArcGIS, even with enhancements, they don't find them particularly agreeable.

Thus, if I am producing a map for a general audience, I do all analysis in ArcGIS and then take the final product into Adobe Illustrator for enhancement. I won't even mess with text, a legend, etc. -- I'll generate all of that in Illustrator itself (except maybe a scale bar, which I'll modify in Illustrator).

If you're looking for a good book in this field in lieu of a cartography class, perhaps this might be a good selection: http://www.amazon.com/Mapping-Out-Expository-Cartography-Humanities/dp/0226534170
It's becoming a bit dated, but all the information contained within about map design, statistical representation, color, etc. is great information.

Get this book (be sure it is the latest edition).

http://www.amazon.ca/Mastering-ArcGIS-Video-Clips-DVD-ROM/dp/0077826264

It is a good introduction to gis text with a lot of hands-on tutorials and a fair amount of theory to help understand what you are doing.

ESRI has a $100 home use ArcGIS lisence available here:
http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcgis-for-home

And they also have a free 90 day trial.

QGIS is great and works really well but it doesn't have this type of material available for learning. There are lots of blogs and forums for it, but not much in terms of a well compiled learning resource.

Can't speak to the DB-professional end, but one of the best intros to GIS and geographic data on computers I read is Chrisman's Exploring GIS, particularly Chapters 3-7, talking about basic data types and operations. That's the user perspective, completely divorced from platform/software packages.

For a more manager/networking perspective Tomlinson's Thinking About GIS might be more useful

Does anyone have any thoughts on the MSI Modern 14?

Links to the 2 configurations are below. I am a student studying GIS currently and will graduate in a year and a half. I have a powerful custom built desktop PC so this would be a secondary machine for when I don't want to be tethered to my desk. Will also use it for PS4 remote play and general web browsing/video watching and the like.

MSI Modern 14 A10M-460 14" Ultra Thin and Light Professional Laptop Intel Core i5-10210UUMA 8GB DDR4 512GB NVMe SSD Win10 Home https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WC93HJB/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_wzIRDb3454JG0

MSI Modern 14 A10RB-459 Ultra Thin and Light Professional Laptop Intel Core i5-10210U MX250 8GB DDR4 512GB NVMe SSD Win10Pro https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WC93HJ6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_oGIRDbVQBMJP4

To start, this line:

if radioanswer == qanswer{

Is not valid JS. You need to put parenthesis:

if (radioanswer == qanswer){

Then radioanswer should be assigned within the function block, not outside of it. Otherwise it will always have the same value.

Please, please do not try to improvise Javascript (even if you are not a developer by profession). You will fall into the many confusing pitfalls of the language. Find some time to read (at a minimum) https://www.amazon.com/JavaScript-Definitive-Guide-Activate-Guides/dp/0596805527/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0596805527&pd_rd_r=5DC6HMEAZ6MCTJY2YYQQ&pd_rd_w=JasEw&pd_rd_wg=wBgln&psc=1&refRID=5DC6HMEAZ6MCTJY2YYQQ and https://www.amazon.com/JavaScript-Good-Parts-Douglas-Crockford/dp/0596517742/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525662051&sr=8-1&keywords=javascript+the+good+parts

It will save you countless hours of troubleshooting.

I'd start with something like [Head First Javascript] (http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CCAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FHead-First-JavaScript-Michael-Morrison%2Fdp%2F0596527748&ei=js88UIufG6WxiQLPwYDwCw&usg=AFQjCNHEfU37UYvJ8CMm7vpfcyBHwxucVQ&sig2=lFdA94ReKf-xEDW7Tnqa6w) and then move on to Javascript: The good parts.

If you want to build a GIS website, I'd also suggest GIS For Web Developers Although, it's more PostGIS than it is Javascript.

I might recommend picking up this [book] (http://www.amazon.com/GIS-Cartography-Effective-Design-Edition/dp/1482220679/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412953609&sr=8-1&keywords=gis+cartography) if you can. it's helped me out with various different designs has improved my Cartography skill.

The Amazon search is as good a place as any to look for books. This is the one we read at Uni.

For what you want to do, don't code it up... Use GDAL.

Use warp: http://www.gdal.org/gdalwarp.html

Here's a guide: http://gis.stackexchange.com/questions/27297/how-to-georeference-using-gdal-tools

This gets you a georeferenced image. Have a read of more about GDAL, for example this: http://www.gdal.org/gdal_datamodel.html or this: http://www.gdal.org/gdallocationinfo.html

In fact, that last link seems to give you just what you want.

Discovering QGIS is a great one.

Not as quick as OP's tutorial, but the "Interactive Data Visualization For The Web" book is good too.

http://www.amazon.com/Interactive-Data-Visualization-Scott-Murray/dp/1449339735

For just learning about GIS and various algorithms, this book is pretty solid: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1446274330
"GIS Algorithms" by Ningchuan Xiao, with implementations in Python.

This is the book I used in college for all my GIS courses. Highly recommend it.

http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Statistical-Problem-Solving-Geography/dp/1478611197

My moment was after reading How to lie with maps https://www.amazon.com/How-Lie-Maps-Mark-Monmonier/dp/0226534219

This book is so important for people who work with geospatial data
http://www.amazon.com/A-Manual-Astronomic-Grid-Azimuth/dp/0910845220

I had to re-teach myself stats for my current position since really hadn’t used it since grad school. I am not a statistical expert but I recommend Discovering Statistics Using R . If you don’t know R, it will help you kill two birds with one stone. If you are looking into spatial statistics, look for An Introduction to R for spatial analysis and mapping and this Modern Spatial Econometrics in Practice

First I will remark that you have not actually stated whether or not you believe the climate is changing or that humans are doing it, etc. This begs the question of whether you do or don't deny it occurs..

Second the evidence for climate change and the whole list of propositions you so succinctly summarized (we did it, it will have disastrous consequences, fixing it is going to be very difficult, etc) is as strong as our evidence for gravity and the general theory of relativity. No scientist claims, or will ever claim to be 100% certain, as this is impossible due to the problem of induction. But at some point doubt and the false equivalency you seem to present above simply become irrational.

Doubting gravity will not prevent someone from falling to their deaths if they jump of a cliff. Similarly doubting climate change is not going to prevent the planet from warming, the sea levels from rising and the waters from acidifying. And thinking "okay either it happens or it doesn't so the odds must be 50/50" is a fallacy.

If you have any concrete doubts or questions about climate change I will be happy to answer them. I do happen to be an environmental physicist so I do know a thing or two about climatology. Evidence for harmful human-caused global warming can be found here, here, here and here and in basically every university library that isn't run by the republican party or some religious group.