Date:         Tue, 20 Aug 2002 11:01:17 -0700
Reply-To:     Cassell.David@EPAMAIL.EPA.GOV
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         "David L. Cassell" <Cassell.David@EPAMAIL.EPA.GOV>
Subject:      Re: GIS / spatial analysis
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

"Laurel A. Copeland" <lacop@UMICH.EDU> wrote:
> I know nothing about GIS.

Join the crowd.  :-)  There's not much reason for the typical SAS
programmer to know a great deal about GIS, and _vice_versa_.  Our GIS
people have to lead me by the hand through the intricacies of ARC/INFO,
while I have to do likewise when they need to do a little SAS.

> I browsed the archives for postings on spatial analysis and found a
> critique of SAS/GIS as being stronger in the statistical than spatial
> analysis.
>
> I wonder if this is still true?
>
> Could someone compare Maptitude to SAS's GIS analysis capabilities for
me?

Maptitude, like all standard GIS programs, can do the sorts of spatial
tasks that GIS users need.  Map out all stores within 400 yards of a
county
school.  Examine the orography and find areas which will have poor
cellphone
communiction due to lack of line-of-sight from any cell tower.  These
kinds
of things.  There are even more complex spatial tasks that some users
need.
But [as far as I have been able to find out] you can't do these in
SAS/GIS.
You can import maps and overlay coverages and produce output in sAS/GIS,
but
that's not enough for serious GIS apps.

Does that answer your question?

P.S.  If any birdie wants to let me know how wrong I am, and fill me in
on
new abilities of the product...

David
--
David Cassell, CSC
Cassell.David@epa.gov
Senior computing specialist
mathematical statistician