For this week’s lab, I used ArcGIS Online to create an interactive map of five buildings on Carleton’s campus that I visit regularly. I started by uploading a CSV spreadsheet containing the buildings’ coordinates and information about how frequently I visit each location. I chose a basic grey basemap because I thought it would make the outlines of the buildings pop, and it did. I also adjusted the size of the points, which identify the buildings, based on the number of days I visit each building per week, making it easier to visualize which locations are most important to my daily routine.
It sounds silly, but one challenge I encountered was getting the spreadsheet data to display correctly. Some of my coordinates were improperly formatted after copying and pasting from google maps, which prevented certain buildings from appearing on the map. After correcting these errors, I was able to customize the map with relatve ease and publish it using ArcGIS Instant Apps.
I think web mapping has significant potential for digital humanities projects because it allows researchers to connect geographic locations with historical, cultural, and personal information. ArcGIS Online makes this especially accessible through its interactive layers, customizable symbology, and sharing capabilities. Rather than simply displaying locations, these tools allow users to communicate spatial patterns and relationships in an engaging way.
Myles, I also ran into similar issues at first. It can definitely be a challenge to navigate the attribute tables to make sure everything is displaying properly. I do agree that you can use ArcGIS in very engaging ways that traditional mapping often lacks. It is helpful that you can cycle through a number of different base maps or symbol types to figure out what best suits your map.
I liked how you changed the point sizes based on how often you visit each building because that makes the map show more than just location. Your point about web mapping connecting geographic places with personal or historical information also stood out to me. I think that is what makes tools like ArcGIS especially useful for digital humanities, since they can show patterns and relationships that might be harder to notice in a spreadsheet or written description alone.