MapForums

how do these two tools compare? is there any advantage of mappoint over arciew?

actually we going to create a housing society GIS from scratch i.e. we only have scanned maps right now.

thanks in anticipation
Haris

I work as a consultant in the GIS area, and have some insight in the differences.

First, ArcView is designed as an "open" GIS tool, meaning that you have to get your own maps and create your own cartography. With MapPoint, you don't need this, but on the other hand, you can't do it even you want to. This I see as the most important difference, the control of the map data.

Second, ArcView file format, shape, is an open standard and can be used with other products. Most of all from within ESRI:s Arc product family which contains a lot more powerful tools that MapPoint. MapPoint is designed to get easy access to a lot of map data to display your own business data on, and do a few GIS operations on, like distance buffering, routing and such.

Conclusion: MapPoint is great to get going in the GIS area, but if you are serious in becoming a map vendor or a GIS supplier, you should really look into the heavier artillery. There are other products that compare to the Arc family, MapInfo for instance.

Hope this helps a bit.
- Niklas

I agree with nringdahl.

What brought me to MapPoint was actually a subcontracting job for housing associations. Only proof of concept stuff and we haven't developed it further (yet).
The attraction of MapPoint was that it came with maps. We were looking at creating a complimentary product for the bargain-basement end of the market to sell alongside the company's housing GIS system.
They could easily drop the price of their GIS (and multiple licenses tended to be very cheap), but users had to pay huge sums for the maps from the national mapping agency concerned.

If you want to use your own maps, use something like MapInfo or ArcView.

Depending on what you want to do exactly, and you're happy with MapPoint's maps then go ahead try MapPoint.
Although low-end, MapPoint does have a programming interface and there are many people here who can help you (or do the programming work for you ).

Richard

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I wonder if someone has experience choosing between MapInfo and ArcView.

I work in the tourism industry and my company is going to switch to a more serious GIS system from MapPoint.

Initially, what we need is a program that have good cartographic capability to generate maps for individual clients. Eventually, we may use the GIS for analytical purpose.

I am coming from ArcView background and find MapInfo quite limited in its control. (I am on it for only a few days, so may have overlook things)

I would appreciate it if anyone of you out there can give me some guidelines.

Thanks in anticipation.

C.L.

MapInfo's got a great discussion list hosted by Directions - http://www.mapinfo-l.com , they actually have good MapInfo vs. ArcView threads in there, search the list history.

More "serious" GIS often can't do many things MapPoint does very simply, it's really complementary technology in my view.. Also, Mapping Solutions has an add-on which puts MapPoint fairly seamlessly right into MapInfo and ArcView called Map-In-A-Box.

Eric

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