Module 6- Data Classification

This week was a little simpler than some of the weeks as the lab was centered on classifying data rather than learning graphic design software. We took another trip down memory lane and looked at statistics again. This time the focus was on determining the best way to classify a particular data so it could be accurately represented and easily understood by a map reader. The maps below show different classification methods for census data in Escambia County, Florida.

To create this graphic I used ArcMap and worked with the same shapefile in four separate layers. Each layer was classified by Quantities using Graduated Colors within the Properties of the shapefile. All of the classification methods depicted in the graphic are available as options in a drop-down menu with several other options not shown in the graphic. As for the color choice, at first I was unhappy with every choice of color ramp in ArcMap because the distinction between boundaries was a little unclear. Finally after choosing a darker color ramp and changing the outline to a light gray I think it turned out alright. The other thing I had to be careful with this week was the scale bar because there were so many different maps on one page. Before adding the scale bar I adjusted each map to a 1:800,000 scale in order to get a scale bar with numbers that were easy to work with.

*As side note, I even though I had my arguments with CorelDraw7 over the last few weeks, I decided it was the easiest way to add the text paths I needed for my graphic in Intro2GIS this week.