[Qgis-us-user] Newbie question about importing shapefiles and layers from Arcmaps

I use Arcmaps as part of my volunteer work as a member of my local planning board. I’ve learned to make good use of fairly low-level skills. I’m now exploring QGIS as an alternative, especially so I train some other volunteers in my town without a budget.

I find some things puzzling, and don’t know anyone expert I can ask questions. For instance, right now, I’m trying to understand what information is lost when I import an ArcGIS shapefile. QGIS won’t import the .prj files, but the resulting QGIS vector still seems to have the correct coordinates. Similar issues with raster files, and with the NY State Orthographic files - I can only bring in a TIFF or a jp2, but the map seems OK.

Where can I get tips at my admittedly low level of background. I doubt I need high level analytical techniques, python, etc., to do useful work. But I’d like to avoid dumb mistakes.

Suggestions welcome.

Sent from my iPad

Hi Judith,

I am a long time GIS user and have taught QGIS classes over the last 8 years a many differnt audiences in different countries. I surely don’t know everything but you can ask me any question you like re to QGIS and I will do my best to answer.

I find some things puzzling, and don’t know anyone expert I can ask questions.
ok

For instance, right now, I’m trying to understand what information is lost when I import an ArcGIS shapefile.
When importing an ESRI shape file into QGIS no information whatsorever is lost at all !

QGIS won’t import the .prj files,
That is not correct , QGIS read the prj files when available . If a prj file is not available QGIS will prompt you in which projection you data is in order to project it correctly

but the resulting QGIS vector still seems to have the correct coordinates.
Yes and because of that all should be in good working order

Similar issues with raster files, and with the NY State Orthographic files - I can only bring in a TIFF or a jp2, but the map seems OK.
QGIS is a true master in importing raster files and has much faster performance for those than ArcGIS in comparison. What raster fileformat did you try to import that did not work
Aka in otehr words I don’t understand what issues you are talking about ?
QGIS can import most raster file formats (most that the underlying library GDAL supports) - here is an extract what is supported https://gdal.org/drivers/raster/index.html
an extremely long list :wink:

Let me know any questions

Cheers
Karsten

Karsten Vennemann
Principal

Terra GIS LTD
2119 Boyer Ave E
Seattle, WA 98112
USA
www.terragis.net

Phone ++1 206 905 1711

Judith,
QGIS will read almost all of the commonly used Raster formats. One exception, for now, is the undocumented proprietary raster layers inside an esri file geodatabase. Vector layers inside esri file geodatabase can be read just fine by QGIS, due to the reverse engineering efforts of the gdal project. Look at https://www gdal.org for a complete list of formats supported by gdal, most of which are compiled into QGIS.

Doug

On Tue, Mar 1, 2022, 11:00 PM Judith Kerman <jbkerman@gmail.com> wrote:

I use Arcmaps as part of my volunteer work as a member of my local planning board. I’ve learned to make good use of fairly low-level skills. I’m now exploring QGIS as an alternative, especially so I train some other volunteers in my town without a budget.

I find some things puzzling, and don’t know anyone expert I can ask questions. For instance, right now, I’m trying to understand what information is lost when I import an ArcGIS shapefile. QGIS won’t import the .prj files, but the resulting QGIS vector still seems to have the correct coordinates. Similar issues with raster files, and with the NY State Orthographic files - I can only bring in a TIFF or a jp2, but the map seems OK.

Where can I get tips at my admittedly low level of background. I doubt I need high level analytical techniques, python, etc., to do useful work. But I’d like to avoid dumb mistakes.

Suggestions welcome.

Sent from my iPad _______________________________________________
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Good morning and welcome to the list:

If you’re going to bring a shapefile into QGIS do one of the three things:

  • Use the browser. It’s like ArcCatalog and if you don’t see it - right click in the toolbar section and activate it. It should appear somewhere on the edge and you can navigate to your data.
  • If you drag and drop your data into QGIS - just drag the shp. Not the prj or any of the other files.
  • Use the data source manager icon and add it using the vector tools. Just add the shp. it will grab whatever other files it needs.

QGIS won’t lose/truncate your shapefiles. It will also open a ESRI File Based Database for viewing. You’ll need to convert it to shapefile/geopackage to editing.

Join the bigger QGIS User list for more news. QGIS (look in the documentation) has a free tutorial you can walk through. Email the list. Dig through youtube - the QGIS us group did a conference two years ago and there are some workshops up there for free.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7v5qfJYWxA

Enjoy - yell if you get stuck.

Randy

On Wednesday, March 2, 2022 12:00:38 AM EST Judith Kerman wrote:

I use Arcmaps as part of my volunteer work as a member of my local planning

board. I’ve learned to make good use of fairly low-level skills. I’m now

exploring QGIS as an alternative, especially so I train some other

volunteers in my town without a budget.

I find some things puzzling, and don’t know anyone expert I can ask

questions. For instance, right now, I’m trying to understand what

information is lost when I import an ArcGIS shapefile. QGIS won’t import

the .prj files, but the resulting QGIS vector still seems to have the

correct coordinates. Similar issues with raster files, and with the NY

State Orthographic files - I can only bring in a TIFF or a jp2, but the map

seems OK.

Where can I get tips at my admittedly low level of background. I doubt I

need high level analytical techniques, python, etc., to do useful work. But

I’d like to avoid dumb mistakes.

Suggestions welcome.

Sent from my iPad


Randal Hale

North River Geographic Systems, Inc

https://www.northrivergeographic.com

(p) 423.653.3611

(e) rjhale@northrivergeographic.com

Judith,
If you continue to have problems, then you might consider trying an older version of QGIS. Last year I bought new laptop to replace my old Win 7 desktop pc. Installed latest version of QGIS. Looked good, opened a new shape file layer and drew some lines. Had a devil of a time moving old points or adding points in between old points. Booted up the Win 7 pc and ran old version. Hooray, back to normal!
-Dave

On Wednesday, March 2, 2022, 06:21:58 AM PST, Randal Hale rjhale@northrivergeographic.com wrote:

Good morning and welcome to the list:

If you’re going to bring a shapefile into QGIS do one of the three things:

  • Use the browser. It’s like ArcCatalog and if you don’t see it - right click in the toolbar section and activate it. It should appear somewhere on the edge and you can navigate to your data.
  • If you drag and drop your data into QGIS - just drag the shp. Not the prj or any of the other files.
  • Use the data source manager icon and add it using the vector tools. Just add the shp. it will grab whatever other files it needs.

QGIS won’t lose/truncate your shapefiles. It will also open a ESRI File Based Database for viewing. You’ll need to convert it to shapefile/geopackage to editing.

Join the bigger QGIS User list for more news. QGIS (look in the documentation) has a free tutorial you can walk through. Email the list. Dig through youtube - the QGIS us group did a conference two years ago and there are some workshops up there for free.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7v5qfJYWxA

Enjoy - yell if you get stuck.

Randy

On Wednesday, March 2, 2022 12:00:38 AM EST Judith Kerman wrote:

I use Arcmaps as part of my volunteer work as a member of my local planning

board. I’ve learned to make good use of fairly low-level skills. I’m now

exploring QGIS as an alternative, especially so I train some other

volunteers in my town without a budget.

I find some things puzzling, and don’t know anyone expert I can ask

questions. For instance, right now, I’m trying to understand what

information is lost when I import an ArcGIS shapefile. QGIS won’t import

the .prj files, but the resulting QGIS vector still seems to have the

correct coordinates. Similar issues with raster files, and with the NY

State Orthographic files - I can only bring in a TIFF or a jp2, but the map

seems OK.

Where can I get tips at my admittedly low level of background. I doubt I

need high level analytical techniques, python, etc., to do useful work. But

I’d like to avoid dumb mistakes.

Suggestions welcome.

Sent from my iPad


Randal Hale

North River Geographic Systems, Inc

https://www.northrivergeographic.com

(p) 423.653.3611

(e) rjhale@northrivergeographic.com


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