So you’ve made or are making the move to QGIS. Congratulations! But you’ve still got a pricey copy of ArcGIS just sitting there collecting dust. Well blow those discs off baby, because I have a new use for you.
Now one thing you may have noticed about QGIS is its excessive use of SVGs for point symbols as opposed to those beloved font-based icons that required eight extra scrolls in all your other programs if you wanted a font that started with something after the letter E. But that aside… So you learn that if you want some snazzy icons, in addition to learning QGIS, you’ll have to wrestle with learning InkScape (if you’re sticking with FOSS) as well. Or do you?
You probably already know ArcMap like the back of your hand. And if you were paying attention in class, you know that half the time, GIS is a vector game. The V in SVG stands for Vector. And ArcMap can export to SVG format! By now I’m sure you’re catching on, but to put it neatly: Use ArcMap to draw up your own personalized SVGs to use as icons in QGIS! That, plus a teensy bit a code, and you’re off to the races.
A little demonstration:
<ol>Open a blank ArcMap session.
Using a dummy shapefile or just the Drawing tools, create your masterpiece.*
When finished, zoom in tightly to your drawing.
File
أكثر...
Now one thing you may have noticed about QGIS is its excessive use of SVGs for point symbols as opposed to those beloved font-based icons that required eight extra scrolls in all your other programs if you wanted a font that started with something after the letter E. But that aside… So you learn that if you want some snazzy icons, in addition to learning QGIS, you’ll have to wrestle with learning InkScape (if you’re sticking with FOSS) as well. Or do you?
You probably already know ArcMap like the back of your hand. And if you were paying attention in class, you know that half the time, GIS is a vector game. The V in SVG stands for Vector. And ArcMap can export to SVG format! By now I’m sure you’re catching on, but to put it neatly: Use ArcMap to draw up your own personalized SVGs to use as icons in QGIS! That, plus a teensy bit a code, and you’re off to the races.
A little demonstration:
<ol>Open a blank ArcMap session.
Using a dummy shapefile or just the Drawing tools, create your masterpiece.*
When finished, zoom in tightly to your drawing.
File
أكثر...