Purdue News

March 10, 2000 Questions on GIS data? Answers at purdue.gis WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Land-use planners, farmers – any Hoosiers learning to use geographic information systems – now can subscribe to a free Internet forum for their questions at "purdue.gis," a newsgroup on the news.cc.purdue.edu server. "We've aimed the newsgroup at people using GIS software in Indiana," said Purdue University GIS specialist Larry Theller. "Our main goal is to help them get access to public data formatted for GIS programs. We want the newsgroup to answer questions we get over and over, like 'Where do I find scanned topographic maps for Indiana?' Since newsgroups are archived, they become a permanent resource." Some of Indiana's GIS data is housed in Purdue's Center for Advanced Applications in Geographic Information Systems (CAAGIS), a group that applies GIS tools to education, outreach and research efforts. Center Director Bernie Engel already has used GIS to create a World Wide Web tool that allows anyone in the United States to evaluate the effects of urban sprawl on local stream flow and water quality. CONTACT: Theller, (765) 494-5954, theller@ecn.purdue.edu Compiled by Beth Forbes, (765) 494-2722, bforbes@aes.purdue.edu Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu To the Purdue News and Photos Page