Table of Contents for
QGIS: Becoming a GIS Power User

Version ebook / Retour

Cover image for bash Cookbook, 2nd Edition QGIS: Becoming a GIS Power User by Alexander Bruy Published by Packt Publishing, 2017
  1. Cover
  2. Table of Contents
  3. QGIS: Becoming a GIS Power User
  4. QGIS: Becoming a GIS Power User
  5. QGIS: Becoming a GIS Power User
  6. Credits
  7. Preface
  8. What you need for this learning path
  9. Who this learning path is for
  10. Reader feedback
  11. Customer support
  12. 1. Module 1
  13. 1. Getting Started with QGIS
  14. Running QGIS for the first time
  15. Introducing the QGIS user interface
  16. Finding help and reporting issues
  17. Summary
  18. 2. Viewing Spatial Data
  19. Dealing with coordinate reference systems
  20. Loading raster files
  21. Loading data from databases
  22. Loading data from OGC web services
  23. Styling raster layers
  24. Styling vector layers
  25. Loading background maps
  26. Dealing with project files
  27. Summary
  28. 3. Data Creation and Editing
  29. Working with feature selection tools
  30. Editing vector geometries
  31. Using measuring tools
  32. Editing attributes
  33. Reprojecting and converting vector and raster data
  34. Joining tabular data
  35. Using temporary scratch layers
  36. Checking for topological errors and fixing them
  37. Adding data to spatial databases
  38. Summary
  39. 4. Spatial Analysis
  40. Combining raster and vector data
  41. Vector and raster analysis with Processing
  42. Leveraging the power of spatial databases
  43. Summary
  44. 5. Creating Great Maps
  45. Labeling
  46. Designing print maps
  47. Presenting your maps online
  48. Summary
  49. 6. Extending QGIS with Python
  50. Getting to know the Python Console
  51. Creating custom geoprocessing scripts using Python
  52. Developing your first plugin
  53. Summary
  54. 2. Module 2
  55. 1. Exploring Places – from Concept to Interface
  56. Acquiring data for geospatial applications
  57. Visualizing GIS data
  58. The basemap
  59. Summary
  60. 2. Identifying the Best Places
  61. Raster analysis
  62. Publishing the results as a web application
  63. Summary
  64. 3. Discovering Physical Relationships
  65. Spatial join for a performant operational layer interaction
  66. The CartoDB platform
  67. Leaflet and an external API: CartoDB SQL
  68. Summary
  69. 4. Finding the Best Way to Get There
  70. OpenStreetMap data for topology
  71. Database importing and topological relationships
  72. Creating the travel time isochron polygons
  73. Generating the shortest paths for all students
  74. Web applications – creating safe corridors
  75. Summary
  76. 5. Demonstrating Change
  77. TopoJSON
  78. The D3 data visualization library
  79. Summary
  80. 6. Estimating Unknown Values
  81. Interpolated model values
  82. A dynamic web application – OpenLayers AJAX with Python and SpatiaLite
  83. Summary
  84. 7. Mapping for Enterprises and Communities
  85. The cartographic rendering of geospatial data – MBTiles and UTFGrid
  86. Interacting with Mapbox services
  87. Putting it all together
  88. Going further – local MBTiles hosting with TileStream
  89. Summary
  90. 3. Module 3
  91. 1. Data Input and Output
  92. Finding geospatial data on your computer
  93. Describing data sources
  94. Importing data from text files
  95. Importing KML/KMZ files
  96. Importing DXF/DWG files
  97. Opening a NetCDF file
  98. Saving a vector layer
  99. Saving a raster layer
  100. Reprojecting a layer
  101. Batch format conversion
  102. Batch reprojection
  103. Loading vector layers into SpatiaLite
  104. Loading vector layers into PostGIS
  105. 2. Data Management
  106. Joining layer data
  107. Cleaning up the attribute table
  108. Configuring relations
  109. Joining tables in databases
  110. Creating views in SpatiaLite
  111. Creating views in PostGIS
  112. Creating spatial indexes
  113. Georeferencing rasters
  114. Georeferencing vector layers
  115. Creating raster overviews (pyramids)
  116. Building virtual rasters (catalogs)
  117. 3. Common Data Preprocessing Steps
  118. Converting points to lines to polygons and back – QGIS
  119. Converting points to lines to polygons and back – SpatiaLite
  120. Converting points to lines to polygons and back – PostGIS
  121. Cropping rasters
  122. Clipping vectors
  123. Extracting vectors
  124. Converting rasters to vectors
  125. Converting vectors to rasters
  126. Building DateTime strings
  127. Geotagging photos
  128. 4. Data Exploration
  129. Listing unique values in a column
  130. Exploring numeric value distribution in a column
  131. Exploring spatiotemporal vector data using Time Manager
  132. Creating animations using Time Manager
  133. Designing time-dependent styles
  134. Loading BaseMaps with the QuickMapServices plugin
  135. Loading BaseMaps with the OpenLayers plugin
  136. Viewing geotagged photos
  137. 5. Classic Vector Analysis
  138. Selecting optimum sites
  139. Dasymetric mapping
  140. Calculating regional statistics
  141. Estimating density heatmaps
  142. Estimating values based on samples
  143. 6. Network Analysis
  144. Creating a simple routing network
  145. Calculating the shortest paths using the Road graph plugin
  146. Routing with one-way streets in the Road graph plugin
  147. Calculating the shortest paths with the QGIS network analysis library
  148. Routing point sequences
  149. Automating multiple route computation using batch processing
  150. Matching points to the nearest line
  151. Creating a routing network for pgRouting
  152. Visualizing the pgRouting results in QGIS
  153. Using the pgRoutingLayer plugin for convenience
  154. Getting network data from the OSM
  155. 7. Raster Analysis I
  156. Using the raster calculator
  157. Preparing elevation data
  158. Calculating a slope
  159. Calculating a hillshade layer
  160. Analyzing hydrology
  161. Calculating a topographic index
  162. Automating analysis tasks using the graphical modeler
  163. 8. Raster Analysis II
  164. Calculating NDVI
  165. Handling null values
  166. Setting extents with masks
  167. Sampling a raster layer
  168. Visualizing multispectral layers
  169. Modifying and reclassifying values in raster layers
  170. Performing supervised classification of raster layers
  171. 9. QGIS and the Web
  172. Using web services
  173. Using WFS and WFS-T
  174. Searching CSW
  175. Using WMS and WMS Tiles
  176. Using WCS
  177. Using GDAL
  178. Serving web maps with the QGIS server
  179. Scale-dependent rendering
  180. Hooking up web clients
  181. Managing GeoServer from QGIS
  182. 10. Cartography Tips
  183. Using Rule Based Rendering
  184. Handling transparencies
  185. Understanding the feature and layer blending modes
  186. Saving and loading styles
  187. Configuring data-defined labels
  188. Creating custom SVG graphics
  189. Making pretty graticules in any projection
  190. Making useful graticules in printed maps
  191. Creating a map series using Atlas
  192. 11. Extending QGIS
  193. Defining custom projections
  194. Working near the dateline
  195. Working offline
  196. Using the QspatiaLite plugin
  197. Adding plugins with Python dependencies
  198. Using the Python console
  199. Writing Processing algorithms
  200. Writing QGIS plugins
  201. Using external tools
  202. 12. Up and Coming
  203. Preparing LiDAR data
  204. Opening File Geodatabases with the OpenFileGDB driver
  205. Using Geopackages
  206. The PostGIS Topology Editor plugin
  207. The Topology Checker plugin
  208. GRASS Topology tools
  209. Hunting for bugs
  210. Reporting bugs
  211. Bibliography
  212. Index

Cleaning up the attribute table

There are many reasons why we need to clean up attribute tables every now and then. These may be because we receive badly structured or named data from external sources, or because data processing, such as the layer joins that we performed in the previous exercise, require some post processing. This recipe shows us how to use attribute table and the Table Manager plugin to rename, delete, and reorder columns, as well as how to convert between different data types using Field Calculator.

Getting ready

If you performed the previous recipe, just save the joined layer to a new shapefile; otherwise, load census_wake2000_pop.shp. In any case, you will notice that the dataset contains a lot of duplicate information, and the column names could use some love as well. To follow this recipe, you should also install and enable the Table Manager plugin by navigating to Plugins | Manage and Install Plugins.

How to do it…

  1. Our first step to clean up this dataset is to delete duplicated information. From all available columns, we only want to keep _STATE, _COUNTY, _TRACT, FIPSSTCO, TRT2000, STFID, _POP2000, AREA, and PERIMETER.
  2. To delete the other columns, enable editing using the Toggle editing mode button in the upper-left corner of the attribute table or by pressing Ctrl + E. This activates the Delete column button.
  3. Alternatively, you can also press Ctrl + L to open the Delete attributes dialog. This dialog allows us to delete multiple columns at once. Just select all the columns that you want to be deleted, press OK, and QGIS will display the reduced attribute table.

    Tip

    It's worth noting that the changes will only be permanent once you use the Save edits button or disable the editing mode and confirm that you want to save the changes.

  4. Next, we will rename columns to remove the leading underscores in some of the column names. This can be done using the Table Manager plugin.
  5. When you start the plugin (edit mode should be disabled), you will see a list of the layer columns. The plugin allows you to change the order of columns, as well as rename, insert, clone, and delete columns.
  6. To rename a column, just select it in the list and press the Rename button. You'll then be asked to provide a new name. Go ahead and remove the leading underscores from _STATE, _COUNTY, _TRACT, and _POP2000.
  7. Finally, using the Move up and Move down buttons, you can also rearrange the column order to something more intuitive. We'd suggest moving STFID to the first position and AREA and PERIMETER to the last.
  8. If you press Save, the changes will be saved back to the layer source file. Alternatively, you can also create a new file using Save as....

How it works…

The steps provided in this exercise are mostly limited to layers with shapefile sources. If you use other input data formats, such as MIF, GML, or GeoJSON files, you will notice that the Toggle editing button is grayed out because these files cannot be edited in QGIS. Whether a certain format can be edited in QGIS or not depends on which functionality has been implemented in the respective GDAL/OGR driver.

Note

The GDAL/OGR version that is used by QGIS is either part of the QGIS package (as in the case of the Windows installers) or QGIS uses the GDAL library existing in your system (on Linux and Mac). To get access to specific drivers that are not supported by the provided GDAL/OGR version, it is possible to compile custom versions of GDAL/OGR, but the details of doing this are out of the scope of this cookbook.

There's more…

Another common task while dealing with attribute table management is changing column data types. Currently, it is not possible to simply change the data type directly. Instead, we have to use Field Calculator (which is directly accessible through the corresponding button in the Attributes toolbar or from the attribute table dialog) to perform conversions and create a new column for the result.

In our census_wake2000_pop.shp file, for example, the tract ID, TRACT, is stored in a REAL type column with a precision of 15 digits even though it may be preferable to simply have it in a STRING column and formatted to two digits after the decimal separator. To create such a column using Field Calculator, we can use the following expression:

format_number("TRACT",2)

Compared to a simple conversion (which would be simple, use tostring("TRACT"), format_number("TRACT",2) offers the advantage that all values will be formatted to display two digits after the decimal separator, while a simple conversion would drop these digits if they are zeros.

Of course, it's also common to convert from text to numerical. In this case, you can chose between toint() and toreal().

See also

  • Have a look through the conversion functions in the Field Calculator Function list to see the other available functions that can deal with date and time data types. Usage of all these functions is explained in Selected function help directly in the calculator dialog.