Listers,

The original problem was that UT was unable to translate ArcView shape files
created in State Plane Coordinates (which use Survey Feet), to MapInfo .tab
files. It seems that UT, which is a subset of Safe Software's FME product,
will not recognize Survey Feet as a unit. The problem has apparently been
corrected in current versions of FME, but UT has not yet been updated.

The simplest workaround I found was to set the output file in UT to .mif
rather than .tab, and then import the .mif file. The problem with Survey
Feet doesn't seem to occur in the .shp to .mif routine. There were several
other suggestions to edit the projection files in MI, converting Survey Feet
to Feet, but this would introduce errors on large maps, as the two units are
not equivalent.

"The foot originally adopted in the U.S. was based on 39.37 inches being
equal exactly to 1 meter, and thus 1 foot equal to 0.3048006 m.  In 1959,
however, the US officially adopted the inch as equal to exactly 2.54 cm, so
under this standard 1 ft equals 0.3048000 m.  This difference amounts to one
part in 500,000 or 1 ft in 99.6969... miles.  Since all surveying done prior
to 1959 was done on the original standard, it would have been confusing to
change.  Therefore the original basis, now called the US Survey Foot, has
been officially adopted for surveying."

Then International Foot is the 1959 standard.

Thanks to all who replied.

_____________________________
Tim Warman
Geologist & GIS Specialist
Richard C. Slade & Associates
North Hollywood, CA
(818) 506-0418

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