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Geography & Environmental Studies . . . . . . Northeastern Illinois University
Professor Erick Howenstine
FALL 2007 SYLLABUS
Aug 29 - Dec. 5/W 7:05-9:45 Sci-24; Final: Th. Dec. 13 6-7:50
http://www.neiu.edu/~ejhowens/377

Learning Outcomes

Acquire and prepare base maps for a cartographic theme
Understand how information is coded in various numeric or categorical ways
Understand cartographic principles including use of text, color, and symbols
Create a legend with all appropriate information
Control the visual appearance of maps to make them aesthetically pleasing
Gain experience creating a wide variety of map themes
Create, manage and display digital images with raster and vector graphic software
Manipulate graphical data using a variety of program.

Welcome to Computer Cartography. Most of the assignments will use computer graphics programs and some will use specialized peripheral equipment. Students will submit their maps by publishing to a web directory on their NEIU account. There are two examinations which will be based on lecture, readings, and practical skills developed by way of assignments.

Prerequisite: There is no course prerequisite for 377, but prior experience with computers and/or with maps will be useful. The assignments, unless otherwise noted, are to be done independently.  Grades will not be based on the relative performance of  classmates.   This course is a prerequesite for G&ES 387 (Interactive Cartography). Most students find it helpful to take this course before G&ES 391 (Research with GIS).

Meeting Place: The Smart Classroom in the Science Building is on the second floor just to the left as you come up the ramp. This room is equipped with 20 student workstations and a podium projection station. It is not available outside of class.

Instructor:

Professor Erick Howenstine
Office: 344A (3rd floor, NW corner Science Building).
Hours: M 10-12, Wed. 4-7 and easily by appointment
Telephone + answering machine: (773) 442-5647
Email: E-Howenstine@neiu.edu

Graduate Technical Assistant:

Matt Anderson -- Hours and information, check the HELP button on the menu
Has office hours in the laboratory to assist students with their projects; helps maintain labs and performs technical services
Email: ______________***

Textbook: 

Dent, Borden Cartography: Thematic Map Design. 5th Ed. 0-697-38495-0
Fourth Edition would do as well.
Recommended Text: Slocum, et. al, Thematic Cartography and Geographic Visualization, Prentice Hall 2nd Ed. 0-13-035123-7
Readings will be from Dent. The Slocum text is an excellent text for further reading.

Or order them in advance from Campus Book FindER or at BestBookBuys (cut & paste the ISBN number). The greatest difference between the 4th and 5th edition of Dent is the insertion of Chapter 6 (GIS) in the Fifth Edition (which I do not assign) and the combination of chapters 12 and 13. If you purchase the Fourth Edition refer to the conversion table (right) for assigned chapters.

Software:

The primary software for this course is Corel Draw 11.0, a vector graphics program that is similar in function to Adobe Illustrator or MX Freehand. Older versions of Corel Draw are very inexpensive and the software is backward compatible (you specifically must save to the previous version). Students will also Microsoft's Paint, Lview, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer, Surfer, Corel Photopaint and FTP.

Meeting Places

Classes will take place in the Science Building Smart Classroom (S242)
This room is networked with 20 computers, and outfitted for demonstrations.
It is available to students only during class time.
During the week wtudents will work in the G&ES Computer Cartography Lab (S-252)
This room has 10 networked workstations and peripheral equipment.
The lab phone is (773) 442-5651 -- ext 5651 on campus.
It allows swipe card access. Please swipe even if the door is open, and sign in near door.

Rules

Back up your work on the individual station's hard drive and on a jump drive or CD-R.
Ideally, keep your work on a separate media from that used for other purposes.
Shut down computers when finished working on them. Turn off monitors separately.
Don't cover air vents on equipment.
Report any problem to the technical assistant or instructor immediately.
No food or drink is allowed in S-252. Absolutely no spilling (if you do, clean it up thoroughly).
Help to monitor room usage to keep it clean and problem-free.
Substantially presenting someone else's work as one's own will result in an F for course.
Helping one another is encouraged after one's own work is finished, but don't someone's work for them.
If you are falling behind, let the instructor know immediately. No I's for procrastination.
Attendance is required.  Absence more than 3 of course meetings will affect your grade.

Grading

Each assignment will be given an initial grade, and if completed early enough may be resubmitted for more credit.  Each thematic map is worth 10 points, except for the hand-drawn map (5 pts) and the finished direction map which is worth 15.  Exams are each worth 15 percent of the grade each, and are a combinaton of multiple choice, matching, true/false, map work, short answer, fill in the blank, and sometimes a small project.  All scores are factored together with their weights but at least initially one point can be taken as about 1% of the grade. There may be minor changes to this grading system, as announced in class.

Subject to change if necessary.

Preparation for assignments

Lecture outlines and detailed assignments are available from this syllabus by selecting the numbered buttons in the bottom frame. Print handouts yourself and read through them shortly before the class in which they are assigned; and refer to them while completing assignments. There may be changes or additions to the handouts until class time; the date of the last revision to the page will appear at the top or bottom of the assignment. Read the associated chapter of the text before completing the assigment and, if possible, before the lecture.

Submitting and revising assignments

Read this section carefully! Unless otherwise noted, all assignments are due 2 weeks after they are given.  Until that time assignments may be improved and resubmitted with the original comments once each for a maximum score of 9. To attain excellent grades complete assignments well in advance of the deadlines, post them to your account and notify the instructor by e-mail.  To expedite matters, please paste the URL in the request.  After receiving specific criticism, you may make any necessary changes before the deadline, if time allows. On the other hand, it's not necessary to email a request for grades -- assignments posted without notice to the instructor will be graded after the deadline. Revisions posted after the deadline may not be graded.


I've made the changes you recommended to the map text.gif and would like you to give it a second look.  Below, I'm copying the comments you made earlier. Please see http://www.neiu.edu/~myloginid/377/textmap.jpg
-------------------------------
Michelle -- You've stretched the text over Finland, etc. instead of kerning it -- notice that the letters themselves are stretched.  And over Lapland you skewed the text, were you trying for italix?  Never skew text, and Lapland, an area, should be all UPPER CASED.  The North Sea is an area too ... the ....

Graduate credit

Students wishing graduate credit for this course must notify the instructor on Day 1 or Day 2.  For graduate credit, all assignments and exams must be completed and the student must create at least one extra (exemplary) map to accompany his/her own research or professional interests.  A written plan (e-mail) for this graduate level assignment must be approved in advance.  Students seeking graduate credit but not completing the final assignment will receive a grade for the course, but not graduate credit.

Schedule of Assignments


Meeting Activity Date Due Date
1 Email the Instructor
YOUR NAME as the subject.		 Aug 29 Aug 30
2 Internet sources/base maps Sept 5 Sept 12
2 Choroplethic Sept 12 Sept 26
3 Prop. Circle Sept 19 Oct 3
4 Color map Sept 26 Oct 10
5 Text map Oct 3 Oct 17
6 Review for exam/Hand Drawn Oct 10  
7 Exam Oct 17  
8 Scattered Dot Oct. 24 Nov 7
9 Scanning, start Direction map Oct 31 Nov 14
10 Direction/Inset map
advanced tools		 Nov 7 Nov 21
11 Direction/Inset map - advanced tools Nov 14 Noc 28
12 Isarithmic (demo) Nov 21 Dec 5
13 Projects/Review/Next Courses Nov 28  
14 Exam Dec 5  

 

Summary of Classes


Mechanics

COMPUTING SKILLS: overview of course and mechanics
Windows basics/Unix accounts/e-mail addresses and swipe cards/navigation/file transfer/screen capture/copyright/overview of course
Read: Chapter 1: Introduction to thematic mapping
Read Chapter 7: Mapping Enumeration Data (only pp 138-143, box on 145)


Choroplethic

RASTER GRAPHICS: use of enumeration data to make a quick range graded map in grayscale
Base maps/attribute data/raster images/finding base maps/choroplethic mapping/ranges/grayscale/B-W patterns/file conversions/posting assignments
Assignment: Use a public source base map and data to make a  choroplethic map for U.S. States.
Read: Chapter 9 -- Proportional Symbols

Proportional Symbol

PROPORTIONAL SYMBOL MAP Adjust the size of circles or other symbols so their area reflects a quantity
intro vector mapping/cartograms/proportional symbols

Corel Draw tools: sizing/alignment/duplication/scale/grouping/deletion/shadow/masking/powerclipping/exporting
Assignment: Create proportional symbol map with data and base map (provided).
Read Chapter 15: Color

Color

USE OF COLOR using two color themes on the same map
color theory/numeric data types, categorical data /4-, 8-, 24-bit images/resolution/color conventions/multiple themes/finding data
Assignment: Use a base map (provided) to present a theme using color for quantitative and qualitative information.
Read Chapter 14: Typographics

Text

USE OF TYPOGRAPHICS: text rules and conventions for labels titles and legends, text placement and style/fonts, font families/size/color/alignment
Corel Draw tools: artistic & paragraph text/selecting font/new fonts/formating text/symbols/italix/bold/underline/capitalization

Assignment: Crate a text-rich country map using a base map (provided)
Review for exam
Read: Chapter 8:  Thematic Map Symbols

Exam

EXAM

Designing a direction map

STREET DIRECTION MAP: Designing a direction map for a single destination, use of insets
line symbols/detail/landmarks/key points/destination symbol/insets

Assignment: With pencil and paper, create a map to direct people from all distances and directions to a single point.

Read Chapter 4:  Mapping Point Phenomenon

Scattered Dot

DOT MAP: representing enumerated data with scattered symbols
determining dot value/dot size/edges/placement/legend

Assignment: Create a scattered dot map for U.S. states or Community areas
(base maps provided)
Read Chapter 13: Elements of Composition

Linear features

SCANNING AND "HEADS UP" DIGITIZING: use of scanner to create virtual light table for tracing.
resolution/format/prescan/contrast adjustments/importing/locking/tracing/viewing working image/exporting

Assignment: Scan the directional map produced in an earlier assignment, import it to Corel Draw and render it again with vector graphic tools.
Direction Map in Corel Draw
More Corel Draw tools for the direction map
special fills and edges/railroads/photos/grids/curves/special symbols/masking roadsigns

Read Chapter 10: Isarithmic Mapping

Isarithmic

ISARITHMIC MAPPING: contour mapping and 3D surfaces interpolated from scattered data points
grid interpolation/surface interpolation/z-scale/rotation/perspective vs. orthographic/contour labels, lines, and fills

Assignment: Use a 3-D mapping program to create contour and surface maps.

Exam

Final Exam.  All assignments due today
Final Comprehensive Exam schedule: Wed. June 30 in S-242: Normal Class time

© Erick Howenstine -- Geography & Environmental Studies 1997-2007
Northeastern Illinois University: (773) 442-5647 Email: E-Howenstine@neiu.edu
not to be used without permission