Overview of Maptitude Version 2012
Maptitude Version 2012 is a desktop geographic information system developed by Caliper Corporation, designed to deliver professional-grade mapping and spatial analysis tools at an accessible price point. Reviewed by Paul Amos, GIS Manager at the Wharton School of Business, this release emphasizes ease of use for beginners while offering powerful analytical depth for experienced GIS professionals.
The software includes comprehensive U.S. geographic data sourced from NAVTEQ, incorporating detailed street networks, points of interest, census geographies, railroads, highways, and building footprints for many urban areas. Demographic variables from the 2010 Census and the 2009 American Community Survey allow users to visualize population and socioeconomic patterns from the state level down to census tracts.
Getting Started and User Interface
Upon launching Maptitude 2012, users are greeted with a Quick Start dialog that streamlines map creation. New users can rapidly generate maps by selecting predefined templates, geographic areas, and base layers. The interface follows familiar Windows design conventions, with intuitive toolbars, clearly labeled icons, and a Display Manager that organizes layers and symbology automatically.
The Map Librarian feature further simplifies thematic map creation by allowing users to select variables from organized libraries. Once chosen, Maptitude automatically generates shaded thematic maps with legends that dynamically update as users zoom or toggle layers.
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Data Compatibility and Integration
Maptitude supports a wide range of spatial data formats without requiring complex imports. Users can directly open Esri Shapefiles, ArcView projects, Personal Geodatabases, MapInfo TAB files, Oracle Spatial layers, and Microsoft SQL Server Spatial data. Additional formats—including TIGER/Line files, AutoCAD DXF, DEMs, and MapInfo MIF files—can be imported with ease, making the software suitable for integrating diverse datasets from multiple sources.
Mapping, Analysis, and Visualization Tools
The Map menu provides extensive control over layer properties, styles, labels, and display order. Users can create a variety of thematic maps, including color themes, dot density, scaled symbols, charts, and 3D prism maps. Spatial bookmarks and synchronized map windows improve navigation and comparative analysis.
Maptitude’s Dataview functionality allows users to interact directly with attribute tables. Built-in tools support sorting, grouping, field calculations, and summary statistics. Advanced users benefit from the Model Estimation feature, which enables regression and binary logit modeling directly within the GIS environment—an uncommon capability among desktop GIS platforms.
Selection, Routing, and Spatial Utilities
Powerful selection tools allow users to query data by condition, location, adjacency, or thematic criteria, with selected records visually highlighted and added as Selection Sets. Routing tools compute shortest paths across transportation networks and generate service areas based on time or distance.
Additional utilities include surface analysis, density grids, overlays, service area modeling, GPS data handling, and geographic transformations. The integrated GISDK scripting environment enables automation, custom workflows, and application development through macros and COM-based integration.
Conclusion
Maptitude Version 2012 successfully balances usability and analytical sophistication. Beginners can quickly produce presentation-quality maps using automated tools like Quick Start and Map Librarian, while advanced users gain access to robust statistical modeling, routing, and spatial analysis capabilities. Combined with its extensive bundled data and affordable pricing, Maptitude 2012 stands out as a versatile and cost-effective desktop GIS solution for business, academic, and professional users.
