Tue, 30 Jan 2007 01:14:31 GMT
Shape2Earth – GIS Data to Google Earth.
One of the more basic outputs of GIS applications is a file type called a shapefile. A shapefile is a geospatial vector data format developed and popularized by GIS software maker ESRI, but used by other GIS software makers as well. For example, it’s possible to use free GIS applications like MapWindow to produce shapefiles. There’s an inexpensive ($29.99) application called Shape2Earth (Windows only) available which will let you convert shapefiles into KML so you can view your GIS data in Google Earth.
For more sophisticated GIS to Google Earth conversions, there are two other tools to consider. Arc2Earth ($99 – $299) is probably the most sophisticated (mentioned at GEB last year) which provides many tools for converting data and visualizations from ESRI’s ArcGIS software. Arc2Earth has been updated substantially since it was first released. Also available is an application called KMLer ($20 – $50) which also has support for ArcGIS (see last year’s GEB write-up).
