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SurView Tutorial
Introduction |
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SurView (SURvey VIEWer) is a graphics application designed for Microsoft
Windows 3.x. It also runs on Microsoft Windows '95 and NT or equivalent
emulation on other platforms (if available). It was originally created
to view multivariable airborne
gamma ray spectrometry survey data (flight
lines, profile maps, stacked profiles, and grid files) for the Airborne
Geophysics Section. As the application evolved, generalized support for
polygons, text, and symbols was added to make it more complete, thus
providing facilities for displaying lakes, rivers, geology, and point
data (for geochemistry). SurView was never designed as an alternative to
consumer GIS packages like ArcView or MapInfo.
Despite the proliferation of features, SurView remains primarily an
application for viewing geophysical, geological, and geochemical
data files interactively and is not intended to be used as a map
composition tool for the creation of 'finished' high quality maps suitable
for publication. However, SurView can print very nice maps on any of the
hundreds of printers supported by Microsoft Windows. As a Microsoft Windows
application, SurView enjoys most of the features and benefits of all Windows
applications. Complete SurView documentation is provided in a .HLP file
driven by the Windows WinHelp help engine.
The Geological Survey of Canada provides a limited version
of SurView on some CDs of digital data, at the discretion of the
CD author. This free viewer is provided for the convenience of those
who are not familiar with GIS software and/or who do not have such
software. In the limited version of SurView, all of the import &
export tools have been disabled.
The full-featured version of SurView is available separately, as:
Geological Survey of Canada Open File 2661 |
It can be ordered directly from the Geological Survey of Canada Bookstore
for a very reasonable price:
Geological Survey of Canada Bookstore
601 Booth St.
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0E8
Voice: (613) 995-4342
FAX: (613) 943-0646
e-mail: gsc_bookstore@gsc.nrcan.gc.ca
This information also appears in the Help | About SurView dialog box.
All versions of SurView are accompanied by the following Licence Agreement:
The SurView application supplied is under
Crown copyright. It is supplied on the understanding that it is
for the SOLE USE of the purchaser and is NOT to be DISTRIBUTED in
any form to third parties. In acknowledging receipt of SurView,
the purchaser undertakes to abide by the foregoing legal requirements
implicit in the purchase. |
SurView requires a PC with at least an 80386 processor running Microsoft
Windows 3.x, Windows NT or Windows '95 (or equivalent emulation). A math
co-processor is not required, but is highly recommended (math co-processors
are embedded in all 80486 and up processors). SurView uses relatively
little memory and has no specific memory requirements: it should run on
most systems.
Features, capabilities & limitations |
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SurView was originally written specifically for viewing multivariable
airborne survey data as:
- flight lines
- profile maps
- stacked profile sections
From the map view of the flight lines (or a profile map of a selected
variable), a flight line can be selected with the mouse or from a table
of flight line numbers. A new window is created to display the multivariable
stacked profile section for that line. Both the map and the stacked profile
views can be printed on any printer supported by Windows.
Although SurView was not designed or written as a general purpose GIS,
it can also display point, polyline, polygon and image data, allowing the
airborne survey data to be displayed and interpreted in the context of
underlying layers of geology, drainage and images.
SurView IS:
- primarily an application for viewing the data in a working
environment, rather than preparing final hardcopy maps in a
production environment
- a useful tool for providing access to data in the field,
allowing field geologists to bring a complete set of existing
airborne survey data to the field
- a comprehensive tool, supporting a wide range of data types
including stacked profile data, which is not supported by most
GIS packages
- designed for ease of use and flexibility
- suitable for use as a viewing package to accompany digital data distributed by the GSC
SurView is NOT:
- a map composition tool. It has limited facilities for
adding legends, text or logos, and is not suitable for producing
publication quality maps.
- an image analysis tool. It has no facilities for display
of multiple images, filtering, correlation or other such analyses.
- a data processing package. It does not apply corrections
to magnetic or radiometric data, and can not perform gridding or
contouring operations. Most of these needs can be met by other
commercial software packages.
- a GIS. It has limited facilities to attach information
to points, polygons & polylines, and it can display that information
when an individual item is picked. However, it does not have
search/query facilities or support for creating 'theme' maps based
on a set of selection criteria as would be found in a true GIS.
Comments and questions regarding SurView may be directed to the author.
Feel free to discuss the use of SurView with me at any time (questions?
bugs?) via telephone or e-mail. I'm usually at the office in the evenings.
John A. Grant
Geological Survey of Canada
Mineral Resources Division
Airborne Geophysics Section (http://gamma.gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/)
601 Booth St., Room 591
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0E8
Voice: (613) 992-1082
FAX: (613) 996-3726
e-mail: jagrant@gsc.nrcan.gc.ca