UAB GRID

Geospatial Research and Information Domain

GIS DAY 2024

We’d like to thank everyone who attended this year’s GIS Day at UAB! To visualize the reach of our event, we’ve created a map highlighting the locations of some of our attendees.

GIS Day Attendees Map

What is GIS?

A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer-based system that creates, manages, analyzes, and maps all types of data. GIS connects data to a map, integrating location data (where things are) with all types of descriptive information (what things are like there). This provides a foundation for mapping and analysis that is used in science and almost every industry. GIS helps users understand patterns, relationships, and geographic context. The benefits include improved communication and efficiency as well as better management and decision making.

GIS software lets you create, edit, and analyze maps, helping you answer questions like "Where is something located?", "What's nearby?", "How are things related?", and "What's changing over time?" It's used in a wide range of fields, from urban planning and environmental management to emergency response and business logistics.

GIS isn't just about making maps though. It's about understanding the world in a more dynamic and informed way, helping people make better decisions by visualizing complex data in an easy-to-understand format.

How GIS works:

GIS is both a technology and a science. It relies on a simple notion of organizing data into discrete layers that are aligned (georeferenced) in relation to one another in geographic space.

The science of geography at work.

How to Access?

Important: Your UAB Blazer ID is NOT your Esri membership username.

Access to ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Online, and other Esri GIS products can NOT be accessed using the UAB IT Software request page.

Please follow the instructions detailed below to be granted access to ArcGIS Online (AGOL) through which you will download ArcGIS Pro and access extensions and other Esri products. (Important Note: AGOL and ArcGIS Pro work together you will need to sign into AGOL to use ArcGIS Pro. You may never use AGOL directly but you will still need to have a login to use ArcGIS Pro on your desktop.)

Instructions:

  1. Email Ariann Nassel at anassel@uab.edu with your full name, UAB email, and a list of the products that you need.
  2. You will receive an email from Esri with a username and instructions detailing how to login and create a password. (Write down this information. Resetting a password can take 48 to 72 hours.)
  3. Login to AGOL using the following link  https://www.arcgis.com/index.html 
  4. Download ArcGIS Pro: Follow the instructions for downloading ArcGIS Pro from ArcGIS Online found here  https://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/latest/get-started/download-arcgis-pro.htm  (The directions are roughly halfway down the page) NOTE: Do NOT try to download ArcGIS Pro from MyEsri.

ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online work together.

Sign in to ArcGIS Online (AGOL):

Sign in to ArcGIS Pro:

The first time you use ArcGIS Pro, you  sign in  with the credentials( assigned username) of your ArcGIS Online organization. After that, you can sign in automatically.

Where to start?

ArcGIS Online AGOL Start Page

ArcGIS Pro Start Page

 ArcGIS Pro   ArcGIS Pro is a professional desktop GIS application from Esri. With ArcGIS Pro, you can explore, visualize, and analyze data; create 2D maps and 3D scenes; and share your work to ArcGIS Online. The sections below introduce the sign-in process, the start page, ArcGIS Pro projects, and the user interface.is the next generation GIS software product coming out of Esri. 

Before installing ArcGIS Pro, please  review the system requirements  and run Esri's  Can You Run It? tool  to verify that the computer on which you are installing it meets the minimum requirements. While ArcGIS Pro requires a Windows operating system, although it can be installed on a Mac in a virtual machine environment by using software such as  Boot Camp  or  Parallels . UAB does not have tech support to assist with installation or use on a Mac.


ArcGIS Pro- Home Tab

On the Home tab , you start  new projects  and  open existing projects .

How do I learn more?

Learning Resources

On the Learning Resources tab , you can find resources to help you develop skills, solve problems, and answer questions. Learning resources can also be accessed from a side tab on the Settings page  or from the Learning Resources button  on the Help tab of the ribbon.

Projects

In ArcGIS Pro, a  project  is a body of related work that may include maps, scenes, layouts, and connections to resources such as system folders and databases. Project files have the extension .aprx. By default, a project is stored in its own folder along with an associated file geodatabase and toolbox.

ArcGIS Pro user interface

The main parts of the ArcGIS Pro interface are the ribbon, views, and panes. The  Introducing ArcGIS Pro  quick-start tutorial helps you explore the user interface.

Ribbon

A horizontal ribbon at the top of the application window organizes functionality in a series of tabs. Some tabs (core tabs) are always present. Others (contextual tabs) appear when the application is in a particular state. For example, a contextual Feature Layer tab set appears when a feature layer is selected in the Contents pane of a map.

Featured Projects

Notable UAB Geospatial Research

Featured Articles: Criminal Justice


Featured Story Maps in GIS for Managers Course

Christian Spruiell

Trauma Wastelands

Nicole Caston

Why location matters: Availability of cancer clinical trials

Heather Crowe

Endangered Loggerhead Sea Turtles

Christina Powell-Jackson

Infant Mortality in Pickens County, Alabama

Austin Armstrong 

The search for Mobila

Christian Spruiell

About Us

Acknowledgments

UAB GRID is grateful for its collaborative partners, including UAB School of Public Health, Lister Hill Center for Health Policy, UAB Facilities Management, the UAB Minority Health & Health Equity Research Center, the Social Determinants of Health Core, and the Center for Clinical and Translational Science.

UAB GRID Steering Committee

Azar M. Abadi

Jennifer Croker

jcroker@uabmc.edu

Ariann Nassel

anassel@uab.edu

School of Public Health Lister Hill Center for Health Policy

Jeffrey Wickliffe

jwickliffe@uab.edu

School of Public Health Department of Environmental Health Sciences

Gabriela Oates

goates@uabmc.edu

Stephanie Rozelle Yates

Qasim Hussaini

shussaini@uabmc.edu

Jamie Gajos

Akhlaque Haque

ahaque@uab.edu

Michelle Wooten

Suzanne Judd

sejudd@uab.edu

Brian Templeton

btemp@uab.edu

Jeff Walker

jeffw@uab.edu

Spence Henderson

mhender4@uab.edu

Christopher Wilson

cawilso2@uab.edu

Moiz Usmani

musmani@uab.edu

Chad Murchison

cfmurch@uab.edu

School of Medicine  Department of Neurology 

Andrew King

GRID Steering Committee

  

Thanks to our Sponsors

The science of geography at work.

ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online work together.

Christian Spruiell