Here in an interesting user review from Patterson Graydon of the
Ottawa-Carlelton Police Department. It was posted on the crimemap
list server in response to a request for persons who had used both
MapInfo and ARCView
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We made a similar move from MapInfo to ArcView last spring (1998).
Pro's to making switch
* ESRI products seem to much more robust in terms of add-ins, scripts,
useful tools etc
* Most. if not all, government generated data seems to be in Arc
formats
* ArcView is easily programmed (if you have a knowledgeable
programmer) to make the product look customized and do all sorts of neat
stuff.
* ESRI's SDE product makes data serving very slick
* Layering is nicer in that attributes are attached via a project
(a.k.a. workspace in MapInfo), not attached to a map layer.
* Most of ArcView's projects, scripts are text-editable to assist in
recovering damaged files.
* Printed maps look very professional
* ESRI support is outstanding, they are very responsive and nice to
work with. MapInfo was difficult to work out problems with, unless you
happened upon the right support person.
Con's
* About 2-3 times the cost (MapInfo & Vertical Mapper are about $2000,
while ArcView and Spatial Analyst are $6000)
* Not as intuitive as MapInfo, MapInfo is a GUI desktop product with
ease of use. ArcView is built up from a DOS background with a GUI add-on,
not everything works smoothly.
* Printed maps are very easy to produce with MapInfo layouts,
ArcView's is very time consuming to design - but look better when done.
As an end-user of the product, I like ArcView's functionality better.
However I used to actually use MapInfo more than I use ArcView now. I found
it very easy to get in and use MapInfo and do much of the mapping myself.
Now, I ask someone else to do it because I don't have the time and patience
to work in ArcView.
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Tetrad Computer Applications Inc.
internet site http://www.tetrad.com
call toll-free 1-800-663-1334
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