What is a polygon shapefile?
A shapefile is a simple, nontopological format for storing the geometric location and attribute information of geographic features. Geographic features in a shapefile can be represented by points, lines, or polygons (areas). You can also see the dBASE file (that may be associated with a shapefile).
What opens a shapefile?
Esri’s ArcGIS Explorer Desktop is the most popular desktop shapefile viewer. The software can be downloaded for free and integrates with ArcGIS Online. ArcGIS Explorer only works on Windows OS environments.
How do I create polygons in a shapefile?
In the Analysis tab, click the Tools icon in the Geoprocessing group to activate the Geoprocessing pane. Navigate to Toolboxes > Data Management Tools > Feature Class > Create Feature Class. Under the Feature Class Location field in the Create Feature Class box, specify the output geodatabase or folder for the polygon feature class.
How to convert a shapefile to a Polyline in ESRI?
In the Paste Special dialog box, choose Template, and select the polyline shapefile created. Check the Keep source attribute values box to transfer the source attribute from the polygon shapefile and click OK. The polygon shapefile is converted to a polyline shapefile, and all the attributes are maintained. ArcMap: Create Feature Class
How are geographic features represented in a shapefile?
Geographic features in a shapefile can be represented by points, lines, or polygons (areas). The workspace containing shapefiles may also contain dBASE tables, which can store additional attributes that can be joined to a shapefile’s features.
How do I create a shapefile in ArcToolbox?
In ArcMap: Add the polygon shapefile to the map. In ArcToolbox, navigate to Data Management Tools > Feature Class > Create Feature Class. Under the Feature Class Location field in the Create Feature Class box, specify the output geodatabase or folder for the polygon feature class.