This document discusses the use of Python for geospatial applications. It describes Python as a programming language designed for beginners that has been integrated into ArcGIS and matured in ArcGIS 10. It provides examples of how Python is used with ArcGIS for tasks like standardizing school boundary data, analyzing wildlife photos, and creating spatial data packages. The conclusion encourages the use of Python for working with data and notes how the ArcPy library has matured for fast data access and useful Python toolboxes.

1. Harnessing Python
Blue Raster
@blueraster - blueraster.com/blog
Brendan Collins
@brendancol - bcdcspatial.blogspot.com

2. Gui do van Rossum | Cr eat or of Pyt hon | Benevol ent Di ct at or f or Li f e

3. Pr ogr ammi ng f or ever ybody
• Designed as a teaching language
– Heavily influenced by ABC (dead language)
– “Perfect language for beginners and non-
programmers”
– Adopted by MIT as primary course language
• Integrated into ArcGIS Suite in the 9.x series
• Matured nicely in ArcGIS 10.x series

4. You Al r eady Use Pyt hon…

7. Hello C#
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
namespace hello.world
{
class Hello
{
static void Main()
{
System.Console.WriteLine( “Hello C#!“ );
}
}
}

8. print ‘Hello Python!’

9. open(‘C:fileName.txt’, ‘r’)

10. Visit documentation
help.arcgis.com
docs.python.org/2/using

11. 8. A language for all seasons
• Object-oriented; functional; procedural
• Desktop; Web; Mobile;

12. School Boundaries Geodatabase
US Department of Education
• Effort to collect every school attendance
polygon in the country
• Using Python for:
– Fuzzy joining of attributes (fuzzy wuzzy library)
– Standardizing boundary geometry (arcpy)
– QA/QC (arcpy)

14. Emammal
Smithsonian Institute
• Tool to assist citizen scientists collect and
analyze wildlife photo
• Uses Python to combine:
– EXIF metadata read/write (exiftool)
– Thumbnail generation (PIL)
– Database connections (django)
– Amazon Web Services (boto)

16. Spatial Data Repository
Measure DHS / USAID
• Tool to dynamically create compressed,
downloadable packages of spatial data
• Use Python for:
– Fancy clip, zip, ship (arcpy)
– Automation of ArcGIS tools (arcpy)
– Enrichment with using legacy database. (urllib2)
– Published as Geoprocessing Service (ArcGIS
Server)

17. In conclusion…
• If you work with data, work w/Python
• Esri’s arcpy library has matured:
– data access module is fast
– Python toolboxes rock
• Python Resources:
– Core Python by Wesley Chun
– Follow @pypi on twitter!

18. Thank You.
Visit us at www.blueraster.com!
Blue Raster
@blueraster - blueraster.com/blog
Brendan Collins
@brendancol - bcdcspatial.blogspot.com