- DBMS - typical MIS database contains implicit but not explicit locational information
- city, country, zip code, etc. but no geographical coordinates
- is 100 N. High around the corner or across town from 200 E Main?
- Automated Mapping (AM) - primary to dimensional display davice
- thematic mapping (choropleth, etc such as SAS/GRAPH, DIDS, business mapping software) unable to relate different geographical layers (e.g zip codes and countries)
- automated cartography - graphical design oriented; limited database ability
- Facility Management (FM) System - lack spatial analysis tools
- CAD/CAM (computer aid design/drafting) - primarily 3 - D graphic creation (engineering design) and display systems
- don't reference via geographic location
- limited (if any) database ability (especially for non-spatial data)
- Graphic Software (Photoshop, Corel Draw) - sophisticated multi - dimensional graphics, but:
- lack database support
- lack two - dimensional spatial analysis tools