Importing LandView Data and LandView User Files

Importing Data
LandView^® User Files

In a very limited way, LandView 6, as did LandView 5, returns to a feature that was available in the LandView III release and which was missing in LandView IV-user created or user modified data files where records in the database link to related objects in the MARPLOT^® mapping application. LandView 6 is a runtime version of the underlying support application-FileMaker^® Pro. As a runtime version, only data files included as part of formatting the runtime version are available for viewing.

LandView programmers have included five generic data files available for user customizing-file_01.lv6, file_02.lv6, etc. Each file is structured so as to receive (or not receive, as best suits a user's need) information into generically named fields. Additionally, there is a core group of named fields which, again, can either be used or ignored. These are:

Name An object identifier field

Description Allows as extended text description of the object

Latitude Allows for the creation of related MARPLOT point objects

Longitude Allows for the creation of related MARPLOT point objects

IDMARPLOT Unique identifier common to both MARPLOT and the data record

Each User file contains four sets of generically named fields with five fields to each set, of type: character, numerical, data and logic. These are named as follows: Text Field 1 thru 5, Number Field 1 thru 5, Data Field 1 thru 5 and Check Box Field 1 thru 5. A customizing option allows display of user assigned descriptive labels for each fields when displaying entered data. An unused field, while remaining in the Form View, would best be displayed with neither its generic name nor the user assigned descriptive label.

Communication, or linking, between a LandView data file record and its related MARPLOT map object requires that the LandView file identifies the exact Map name and the exact Layer name containing the map object and that the unique identifier of the MARPLOT map objects, its MARPLOT ID, either be known to LandView or be assigned by LandView.

If the latitude/longitude fields in a User File are populated, a LandView export file can be created, as C:\lv6\export.txt, which can be imported into MARPLOT ¹ so as to place Point map objects on the named Map and the named Layer. A User file can force population of its Idmarplot field and MARPLOT will use these identifiers in creating the Point objects. Linkage between a record and its map object is thus established.

Refer to Converting Latitude / Longitude data to Map Points for an example of the procedure.

Bringing Internet Data into LandView User Files [PDF], an article by E. J. McFaul of the U.S. Geological Survey and one of several Help articles presented as Unique Solutions, is a more comprehensive exploration of the same subject. Additionally, the article explores the use of the Internet as a source of GIS data for display in LandView/MARPLOT.

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¹ MARPLOT has two import-export options-a MARPLOT Import-Export format with files identified as name.mie and a Simple Point format with files identified as name.txt.

[PDF] or

denotes a file in Adobe’s Portable Document Format. To view the file, you will need the Adobe® Acrobat® Reader

available free from Adobe.

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Importing Data LandView® User Files

Importing Data
LandView^® User Files