[GRASS-dev] gis.m improvements

[Michael Barton]

Tevor articulated this very well. This continues a discussion that went on a
month or so back.

The "layers" for vectors are actually "key fields" for joining attribute
tables to vector objects. Each key field (currently called a "layer") can
join one attribute table to the objects in a vector file.

I'd vote for changing the name to "key field", "key", or something along
that line that more clearly denotes how this handy feature actually
functions, and referencing any relationship to OGC layers in the docs (a
rather indirect relationship it seems to me, because this is not really the
same as the data layers in something like a DXF file).

In most GIS texts I've used, layers refers to geospatial data that can be
overLAYED (composited together) to make up a composite map. Using another
term would be very confusing to GIS users.

Michael
__________________________________________
Michael Barton, Professor of Anthropology
School of Human Evolution & Social Change
Center for Social Dynamics & Complexity
Arizona State University

phone: 480-965-6213
fax: 480-965-7671
www: http://www.public.asu.edu/~cmbarton



> From: Trevor Wiens <twiens at interbaun.com>
> Date: Sun, 7 May 2006 21:16:38 -0600
> Cc: <grass-dev at grass.itc.it>
> Subject: Re: [GRASS-dev] gis.m improvements
> 
> On Mon, 8 May 2006 12:32:34 +1200
> Hamish <hamish_nospam at yahoo.com> wrote:
> 
>>> 6. There should be a menu entry "Layers" in the menu bar, right
>>> next to "File" in which the user can find all functions that
>>> are currently only reachable via icons:
>>> 
>>> Layers
>> 
>> 
>> I will second the earier comments that having both "layers" used for GUI
>> map layers and the existing vector/table layers is highly confusing and
>> should be avoided if possible. Please find another word...?
>> 
> 
> The normal term for the different raster and vector components to a
> map is layers. It is the standard abstraction used in GIS software
> and drawing programs.  The use of the term layers for vector file links
> to attribute tables should not be layers as I've pointed out before and
> will continue to do so. It seems impossible to remove this confusing
> naming because it is an OGC standard so the fact that it is wrong
> doesn't seem to matter. Thus as I see it there are two options.
> 
> One, continue to use layer in the GUI in the normal fashion and
> modify the use of layers in reference to vector attribute linkages
> using a term like "virtual layers", which will contain enough reference
> to the OGC terminology to provide a link but still distinguishes from
> the normal use of the term. Note, I would normally run away screaming
> from the suggestion to use the word virtual in naming anything, but in
> this context, it just might work.
> 
> Two, change to a different term in the GUI rather than layers and
> further add to the confusion of terminology in GRASS, making it even
> more inaccessible to naive users. Since one of the main goals of this
> GUI revamp was to increase accessibility, I think this is not an option.
> 
> T
> -- 
> Trevor Wiens 
> twiens at interbaun.com
> 
> The significant problems that we face cannot be solved at the same
> level of thinking we were at when we created them.
> (Albert Einstein)
> 
>