The GIS 20: Essential Skills

I took a GIS course in college in 2004. Since then I haven't used it much and when I have, it's been for very basic tasks, like plotting a single point or viewing a project that someone else created. I purchased this book when I needed to do a bit more with GIS for a project I was working on. I found that completing the exercises in the book was really helpful for refreshing my memory on how the software works, as well as for acclimating me to the newer version.My only real complaint about the book is that it lacks an index. Since multiple tasks are embedded in one "essential skill" within the book, it was sometimes difficult to figure out where I had seen instructions for performing a task if I needed to do it in some other context. Thus, although this book is good for talking you through the 20 skills, expect to do a bit of page-flipping and growling if you are trying to apply the concepts to other skills and need to refer back to a specific task.That being said, I think this book is great as a refresher course for those who need to get acquainted with updated software and as a reference for performing the 20 essential skills it is focused on. I felt it was well worth the price!

As books covering ArcGIS 10 are generally not available right now this one is worth considering. Novices and even experienced ArcGIS 9.x users may benefit from it. Enough has changed between versions 9 and 10 to make this book a handy resource, although online help built into ArcGIS will assist experienced users solve most problems. There are step-by-step solutions for the 20 "essential" tasks/skills with data and exercises to provide hands-on practice. The book's instructions with illustrations are generally excellent. Think of the book as a condensed cookbook. That aspect of the book is satisfactory. Here is my one complaint -- there is no index -- but that is my quibble. Nevertheless I have amply received my money's worth. Although more expensive the GIS Tutorials 1,2 and 3 from ESRI Press provide much more extensive coverage of the subject areas and I highly recommend them.Note that ESRI Press has since published a second edition of this book.

Although the title uses GIS, this book is only directed at ArcGIS desktop. The book was written for version 10, but works well with version 9.3.It is a good review for those that have not used ArcGIS for a while, or those familiar with version 9.3 and need to transition to version 10. The 20 skills are introductory to intermediate and do not cover more advanced skills. For those using the text as a bridge to version 10, this should be enough to make the transition. It was for me.I would highly recommend this book to anyone making the transition to version 10. The local university is using this book as a text for a special topic course for those students that are near the end of their certification. Up to this point they have used version 9.3 and want to transition to version 10 to improve their resumes.

I purchased the book to study for a upcoming test. I had planned to finish it in 5 days. I was surprised to see that it was not a long book and easily finished it in 4. The book is well written and laid out with just the right amount of color here and there. That is, it is not garish and hard to look at but rather inviting. The illustrations are very good. The chapters are concise and to the point. Chapter 8 caused some problems though and therefore I was unable to do the problem. Nevertheless, because of the quality of writing, the fact that it is not long and overly detailed, it is an excellent quick reference. I will keep it and refer to it from time to time, knowing that I will not have to kill a whole day to review some basic procedures.

Book showed up on time and shipped fast. Definitely recommend and will check them out next time I need a textbook

The book is laid out in lessons on a single skill. The lessons show just how easy GIS can be. It is likely to be a useful reference for things like geocoding in the future. However, the instructions for getting census data are already out of date (they anticipated this and provide the data in a CD), and the fundamentals are like what are the different reference systems, when or how would you know which one a map is, etc. are not in the book. This is strictly a reference book for specific skills, not a learn everything you need book. Generally, it's what I was looking for and has proved useful.

I would have liked it to cover a few other things as well. I have just skimmed the book so far. It appears to explain everything well and it is easier to look up information in than my notes from school.

I bought this book because is a guide for a GIS Lab class, however, when I tried to download the trial/software -included- I received this message: Subscription cannot be created for this evaluation code. The book no has information about these issues.

This book is useful for the GIS starters who are looking to understand basic tasks. This is worth reading for learners but no use to experienced. I feel the cost of the book is more than the value addtion.

No GIS Software was provided for the evaluation of the data/exercises. No such software could be downloaded from ESRI (as the book software is older version).

Intended audience of this book is for people with minimal gis exposure. I purchased it with the intention of improving upon skills and maybe seeing some new skills that I could incorporate into my job. What I got was maybe less than 4 hrs of tutorials on basic GIS skills.

Terrific book! Very useful, easy to understand, and implement. I wish there were more on ArcMap like it!