Conversion from ARC/INFO to GRASS

[sayeed at weirich530.geography.uiowa.edu]

>I want to convert some data from ARC/INFO to GRASS. I used ungenerate 
>command in ARC/INFO to create
>the three files required for v.in.arc, polygon coordinates file, 
>label-points file and label text file.
>Then when I used v.in.arc via the interactive mode, it couldn't 
>recognize the label text file format.
>I created this file in ARC/INFO using unload command and then imported 
>to Exel and saved it as a text
>(tab delimited) format . There are 5 columns in this file but v.in.arc's 
>interactive mode can 
>recognize only the first column in this file. I could not use Display 
>command in Info as recommended in
>the GRASS Manual simply because this command displays or prints on the 
>sreen the specified categories
>in the look up table but it does not save them to a file. Please, if 
>anyone can tell me how to create this label text file?.

>Thanks in advance

>Tarek Sadek
>Civil and Environmental Engg,
>University of Melbourne
>Parkville, Victoria, 3052
>Australia

 
Hi Tarek,
I converted some files from ARC/INFO 7.0.2 to GRASS vector format.  Like you, 
I could not use the DISPLAY command in INFO to create the .txt files. The 
DISPLAY command printed the INFO items and their values on the screen 
even though I used the OUTPUT command to assign the spool file for INFO. 
Finally, I ended up using the REPORT command in INFO to create my 
attribute (.txt) file.  You may try using the following sequence of 
commands:

In INFO:

SEL <FILENAME.PAT>
LIST
CALC $COMMA-SWITCH = -1     /* if necessary */
ITEMS                       /* to check the item names */
OUTPUT /path/filename.txt INIT  /* This creates the filename.txt */
REPORT 
   ENTER COLUMN CONTENT> <ITEM_NAME>
   ENTER REPORT OPTIONS> <enter>
   ENTER COLUMN HEADINGS> <enter>
   /* repeat for individual items, and press enter to 
      'ENTER COLUMN CONTENT>' when done */
   ENTER REPORT TITLE> <enter>
   DO YOU WISH TO EXECUTE THIS FORM ( Y OR N ) > Y
   OUTPUT TO PRINTER(Y OR N)?> Y
   LINES PER PAGE?> <4000>      /* any large number to reduce editing job */
   ENTER REPORT OPTIONS> <enter>
Q STOP

Note that INFO creates the filename.txt but does not write anything until 
you use Q STOP.  Use any of the ASCII editors to open the filename.txt 
and delete the header space.  Copy the filename.txt (along with the 
UNGENERATEd filename.pol and filename.lab) to the arc subdirectory of the 
current mapset in GRASS, and run v.in.arc.  I hope this will help.  

If somebody have used the DISPLAY command in info to create ASCII file, I 
would really appreciate knowing how to execute that.  The DISPLAY option, 
if available, seems to be faster when there are many attributes in an INFO 
file that has to be converted to GRASS.   

Thanks.

- Sayeed
  sayeed at blue.weeg.uiowa.edu
  sayeed at weirich530.geography.uiowa.edu