Pacific Coastal Resources Atlas

For

British Columbia

By

Jacqueline Booth and Associates

Brad Mason, Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Michael Berry ICNRC / CMN

Mark Zacharias MSRM

Suzanne Richer

The PCRA database should ideally be as up to date as possible.  Habitat, fishery resources and fishing activity can change in location and intensity over time.  It can be important to know both the current conditions and the way in which these features have changed over time.  It is hoped that Fisheries and Oceans’ staff and knowledgeable people living in coastal communities will utilize tools developed for online data entry.  This will help ensure that important coastal resource information will be kept up to date and relevant. 

Step1: Install the Autodesk Mapguide Viewer:

If you haven't already done so, download the Mapguide Viewer from Autodesk.

• Go to http://www.mapguide.com/Downloads/

• Fill-in the user information

• You must use Microsoft Internet Explorer AND ActiveX Control Viewer

• Download the file MGControl60.EXE onto a temp directory on your computer

• Once downloaded, locate the file on your computer and double-click on it to start the installation. 

• You might have to close and re-open your browser after the installation is completed.

• You must set your browser security to Medium (Under “Tools, -> Internet Options, Security tab).

• If you are not familiar with the MapGuide Viewer, there is a comprehensive HELP library available, just click the right mouse button (while the mouse is over the map) and select About->Help Contents

• If you are using a computer behind a firewall, you might have trouble accessing the functions of the atlas.  Ask your System Administrator for assistance.

Step 2: Go to the Community Mapping Network:

Go to:  www.shim.bc.ca:

Select “Maps and Data Entry”, then select the “Pacific Coastal Resources Atlas”: The PCRA system will be available through a map showing the coast of British Columbia as seen below providing the Autodesk Mapguide Viewer was installed correctly.  When the PCRA system is running you will be able to view all the spatial and attribute data by using the tools and functions described below. 

LAYERS:

• In the left hand margin beside the map window (gray area), map layers are organized into layer groups.  Layer groups can be collapsed or extended by double-clicking on the layer group’s heading OR by right clicking on any layer and selecting Expand or Collapse from the drop down menu. 

• Layers and layer groups can be turned on and off by toggling the square in front of them.  Right-click on the layer’s heading or the layer group’s heading for more options (turn on and off, collapse, etc)

• More layers become available as you zoom in.  To see the list of layers available, click on the “Metadata” tab. 

• Contrary to the “base map” layers, the "Online Data Entry" layers are “updateable” -> new features can be added, updated, or deleted directly on the web. 

STATUS BAR:

Refer to the bottom off the viewer for additional information such as coordinates of the mouse location, number of features currently selected, the current scale and the size of the map area.  If you don’t see this information, right-click anywhere on the map and select About -> Preferences.  You can toggle on and off the various elements on the status bar.

• Print and Page Setup
• Copy (A very useful tool to copy the map image to the clipboard and then pasting the image into a Word or a Power Point presentation.) or Copy the URL and send it via e-mail to a colleague to direct him/her directly to the area of interest (like a bookmark)
• Bookmarks: add a bookmark so that you can return to the same area without having to zoom, pan etc.
• Select: Select elements on the map
• View: A report (you must select a feature on the map first), Distance (measure a distance from one point to another)
• Zoom: Zoom to a specific scale, to a specific feature on the map
• About: Preferences: This allows you to choose whether you want the mouse position coordinates displayed in the bottom left corner of the screen, and whether you want your mouse position to appear as latitude and longitude or U(niversal) T(ransverse) M(ercator) coordinates.

Note: “Zoom Go To” is a very useful command.  You can zoom to the following categories:

• 1:250,000 grid number

• 1:50,000 grid number

• 1:20,000 grid number

• Place Name

• Stream Name

• Stream Alias Name

• Watershed Code

• Watershed Group (4 letter code)

• Hatchery and Releases Sites

• Example (zoom to the mouth of the Serpentine River):
  
  

VIEW FEATURES:

• Once zoomed in below 1:200,000 scale, the mouse cursor will display BC watershed codes and stream names as it is placed over the stream line. 

• At the 1:500,000 scale the habitat feature points appear.  The mouse cursor provides some information on the point but a more complete report can be viewed by invoking a report (see next item for instructions). 

VIEW A REPORT:

• Some features on the maps have reports attached to them (for example: the on-line data entry layers and all the Fisheries and Habitats layers). 

• There are three ways to invoke the reports:
  1) Double-click on the feature
  2) Highlight the feature and click on the report button:
  3) Right-click anywhere on the map and select View -> Reports

• Once zoomed in below 1:200,000 scale, the rivers, lakes, wetlands etc are linked to the Fisheries Data Warehouse.  Note: you can turn on the layer called “Rivers with FISS reports” under the “Hydrology” layer group.  Those streams that have reports will display a magenta line.  Switch off the magenta line “Rivers with FISS reports” function after you have reviewed or printed the selected reports. 

1:20,000 FEATURES:

• Once you are zoomed in to at least 1:50,000 scale, a number of useful map display features become available.  You can switch on 1:20k features such as contours, streamlines, roads, and other layers.  These additional layers are being obtained on-line from another server at a different location in Vancouver, British Columbia. 

• The thin blue stream line that is visible on the base maps is the BC Watershed Atlas stream line.  In many cases this line does not accurately represent the stream course.  It is, however, the line that all the various reports are connected to.  The 1:20k rivers lines appear as thicker blue lines when you switch on this feature.  Although there are some inaccuracies, these lines depict the stream course more accurately.  They cannot be highlighted and no reports are attached to them.  They can be used to more accurately pin point your new data entry locations. 
  

VIEW ORTHOPHOTOS:

·       Once zoomed in you may also view orthophotos for selected areas and turn on and off coastal features as an overlay.

If you have a username and password you may also turn on the bathymetric information.

• Set up the map display as you wish by zooming, panning and turning layers on and off.

• Right-click anywhere on the map and select “File -> Page Setup”.  The page setup box will appear and you can enter a title, print just the map frame, print both map frame and legend frame etc.  The printer setup tool should be used to make sure your paper size, orientation, colour choices etc. are set properly.

• Click on the Print Setup button and click OK on the next dialog box

• You can by-pass the Page Set-up by right-clicking and selecting File -> Print
  

To learn how to use the ActiveX Control:

• Right-click anywhere on the map

• Select Help-> Contents
  or

• Click on the yellow Question Mark in the toolbar. 

INITIAL MENU:

THE “DATA ENTRY BUTTON:

Note that you must be logged on to have access to the data entry menu.  Also, upon entering that menu, you will see a message stating that you must enter the source of your data before digitizing new features.   Once the source is entered in the system, you can link any new features to it (see data entry form).

Data entry menu:

ENTERING A SOURCE IN THE PCRA DATABASE:

• Login

• Press the “Data Entry” button

• Press the “Enter a Source” button

• The following data entry form will appear:

•  Make sure that you enter a meaningful name for the field “Source (short form)” as you will be required to select your source based on that field when you digitize new data.  For example a source could be named: “Hay et al. 1989”.  When you fill in the data for your new features, you would select Hay et al. 1989 from the pick-list as below:

DIGITIZE A FEATURE (login required):

• Login

• If the source of your data is not in the system yet, enter your source (see heading : “Enter a Source” above).

• Zoom in below 1:100,000 scale around the area of your choice

• Press the “Data Entry” button

• Select a Feature Type from the drop down menu

• Press the “Map It” button, you are now in digitizing mode.

• A message with instructions will pop up:

·       Example of data entry form:

• Many of the fields in the form have “pull-down” lists – please fill in all the fields as completely as possible. 

• Click “Submit” and your information will be included in the PCRA database. 

• Click the “Refresh layer” tab in the top right corner.  The map will be re-drawn with your new feature displayed. 

• To review the information you just entered, click on your new feature to highlight it and then click on the view report button (or right click “view reports”, or double-click on it). 

EDIT A FEATURE (login required):

Change the attribute information about a feature (not its geographic location).  Note that you can ONLY make changes to the features that you have entered and nobody else can change your data (except the Administrator). 

• Select the feature on the map (will be highlighted)

• Click on “Update” button . 

• The same fields as the Data Entry Form are available and the existing values can be changed. 

• Submit

• Refresh Layer

• View report with updated values.  

DELETE A FEATURE (login required):

• Delete a feature and its attribute information. Note that you can ONLY delete features that you have entered and nobody else can delete your data (except the Administrator).

• IMPORTANT!!!! There is no UNDO command so use this function with caution. 

• Select the feature on the map (will be highlighted)

• Click on “Delete” button .  

• A confirmation message will let you know that the point has been deleted. 

• Refresh Layer