I’m not much of a foodie I have to admit. As a vegetarian, I would be happy eating black bean burritos each night. That said, Mr L and I extended our conversation around our ArcGIS Solutions Pyramid. Our focus question: “How can we express the 5 levels of the pyramid in a more understandable way?” I include the pyramid below:

Is your map problem like a frozen dinner?

As a reminder, we see the ArcGIS Solutions Pyramid as a way to categorise a ‘where’ question: from the very basic to the very advanced. You’ll see in the diagram, the base level is ‘Basic Map Publishing’. Very generic. But how might that be better described in more layman’s terms? Mr L and I (somehow) turned to food. Thus the title of this post: Is your map problem like a frozen dinner? We see the base level of the pyramid as super simple. Rather like preparing your frozen dinner. Place it it the microwave, select a heat time, and hit start. Easy. Revolutionary in many ways.

Intelligent maps and GIS are now mirroring this simplicity. Today adding your data to a map has become super easy. As simple as dragging and dropping a spreadsheet (CSV) onto a base-map (satellite, roads etc). In a similar way to microwaved dinners (Buy it. Heat it. Eat it). This simplicity is empowering. You need no expert help. And that is truly the key.

We’ll keep working through each level of the  ArcGIS Solutions Pyramid in this weeks blog. Using food analogies. As ever we are always interested in your comments.

Tomorrow we cover the next level in the pyramid or Map Building in our article: Map problem: DIY or Subway approach?

Want to get keep track of new developments in the world of maps and GIS?  Download a free copy of our white paper ‘From Where to There’, which provides a road map for solving problems with intelligent maps and GIS.