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Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

This Subject Guide provides you with many GIS resources which can enable you to successfully use GIS for your research and coursework.

ESRI ArcGIS

The Kelvin Smith Library purchases an annual Educational Site License for university wide usage of ESRI ArcGIS software for teaching and research purposes. This software may be installed from the CWRU Software Center onto Windows computers only for use by our faculty, staff, and students. 

ArcGIS is also available on computers located in the Freedman Center (FC) at the Kelvin Smith Library.  The advantage to working on your project on FC computers is that you will have direct access to geospatial data stored on the library's data server which can be used in your GIS project.

Students who wish to use the software on their personal computing device without access to the Case VPN or network can request a 12 month license, or contact the Freedman Center for further options.

There are two primary software packages from ESRI that CWRU supports: ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap), and Arc GIS Pro.

  • ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap) is the older, standard mapping program. It works together with other programs like ArcGIS Administrator and ArcCatalog to provide a full suite of mapping, analysis, and visualization functions.
  • ArcGIS Pro is a newer program that offers all the same functionality of ArcMap and bundles it together with other programs like ArcGIS Administrator and ArcScene to provide a more user friendly, seamless interface. ArcGIS Pro also integrates smoothly with your content on ArcGIS Online.

Please note: ArcGIS software can only run on Windows OS.

Installing and licensing ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap):

To use ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap) software on a Windows computer for the first time, you must set up a license or the software will not work.  To do this, follow these instructions on your Windows machine:

  1. Begin by downloading and installing the software from softwarecenter.case.edu
  2. Ensure that you are connected to the CWRU campus network or VPN.
  3. On your machine, run the program  “ArcGIS Administrator.”
  4. In ArcGIS Administrator window that opens, select the “Desktop” folder on the left.  
  5. In the box to the right, make sure the button next to "Advanced (ArcInfo) Concurrent Use" is selected.  
  6. The license address will need to be entered into the box below “License Manager (for Concurrent Use software products).” To do this, click the “Change” button. In the pop-up window that appears, type the following text:  esri.oar.net
  7. Next, click ”OK,” and “OK,” and finish out the authorization process.  You should now be able to successfully launch the ArcGIS software while connected to the CWRU network or VPN.

Installing and licensing ArcGIS Pro:

To use ArcGIS Pro software on a Windows computer for the first time, you must set up a license or the software will not work.  To do this, follow these instructions on your Windows machine:

  1. Begin by downloading and installing the software from softwarecenter.case.edu
  2. Once installed on your machine, run the program  “ArcGIS Pro."
  3. If needed, click the settings/gear icon and navigate to "Licensing."
  4. At the bottom/left of the screen, click "Configure your licensing options."  If this option is not visible, go to Settings>Licensing>Configure your licensing options.
  5. In the licensing dialog box that appears, choose "Named User License" from the dropdown.
  6. Choose to sign in via ArcGIS Online and click "OK."
  7. In the prompts that follow, sign into our ArcGIS Online organization using your CWRU Network ID and passphrase.
    1. Choose to sign into ArcGIS Online via your ArcGIS Organization's URL.
    2. Enter "cwru" into the url so that the full address reads "cwru.maps.arcgis.com", click the "Remember this URL" box,  and proceed.
    3. Click the "CWRU SSO Login" option, and complete signing in with your CWRU Network ID and passphrase.
    4. If this is your first time signing into ArcGIS Online, your account will automatically be created using these credentials.
  8. This should complete the authorization process. If needed, restart ArcGIS Pro to ensure the licensing changes have taken effect.
  9. Make some maps!

Standalone License Files

If you are unable to use the concurrent license via the VPN or CWRU campus network, standalone licensing files can be found online in this Google Drive folder, accessible only to CWRU students, staff, faculty, and researchers.

You can choose to download either the ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap) license file, or the ArcGIS Pro license file, and save it to your machine.

During the licensing process, choose the "Single Use" option that corresponds to the file you saved and then follow the onscreen instructions to license your software for use when not connected to the CWRU VPN or campus network.

QGIS

A popular, free, and open-source alternative to ESRI ArcGIS is QGIS. Unlike ESRI's products, QGIS is designed to run on Windows, Mac, and Linux. It may be freely downloaded at www.qgis.org.

Training

If you are uncertain which GIS product to use or what training path to follow, please email freedmancenter@case.edu so that we may discuss what is best suited to your needs.

​Esri offers web-based training classes. Please refer to the ESRI Course Catalog for the complete list of courses and course descriptions.  If you are new to GIS, we recommend starting with Getting Started with GIS and Using ArcMap in ArcGIS Desktop 10.

Visit Esri's E-Learning site to learn more and to access the training.  You will need to create an Esri Account first (use your CWRU email), and then connect your Esri Account to CWRU's organization.  CWRU's Esri customer number is 40042.  Please note, it may take up to 24 hours before you are "connected" and will be permitted to access the training.

QGIS offers a free training manual through QGIS.org.

Two books, Learning QGIS and Becoming a QGIS Power User, are also recommended.