This information is provided for Temple’s Spring 2020 shift to online instruction in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is, however, of more general use.
GUS 3062/5062 exercises are written for ArcGIS, a Windows-only software. Students are able to access this software in Temple computer labs, and instructors can provide licenses so that students can install the software on a personal laptop or desktop computer. However, there is no native Mac version of ArcGIS. These solutions are offered for Mac owners who want to complete the lab exercises off campus. (As of March 16, the campus remains open, so students with Mac computers who are able and willing to come to campus are still free to complete lab exercises on Windows computers in the Temple computer labs.)
There are two alternatives for Mac users:
- Install and use QGIS, a free and open source software that has many of the same capabilities as ArcGIS. It is cross-platform and has a native Mac version.
- Install a Windows virtual machine on your Mac computer, then install ArcGIS in the virtual machine.
You only need to do one of these things. Which one you choose probably depends more on what you should avoid than what you want. Installing QGIS (#1) will be far easier to get going, but if you personally feel that you find learning new software difficult or frustrating, you may not want to select this option. Working with ArcGIS in a Windows virtual machine (#2) means not having to change software, but setting up a the virtual machine will be a much heavier lift at the outset. If you find installing and configuring complex software difficult or frustrating, you may not want to select this option. Moreover, some old or low-powered hardware may not be able to run a Windows virtual machine. You absolutely cannot attempt this with less than 20 GB of free hard drive space and 4 GB RAM, and you may find the performance unusably bad with less than 8 GB RAM. In this case you have no choice other than #1.
Installing QGIS
A Mac installer for QGIS is available from the download page: https://qgis.org/en/site/forusers/download.html
The TECH Center should be able to help you with software installation, and is currently providing virtual support as well as in person support. Note that if you are unable to install this, there is a limited amount I can do to help, as I am not familiar with macOS.
Installing Windows in a Virtual Machine
I have instructions for how to set up a Windows in a VirtualBox virtual machine at https://sites.temple.edu/geodev/software/setting-up-virtualbox/.
If you have trouble following these instructions, the TECH Center should be able to help you with software installation, and is currently providing virtual support as well as in person support.
I am able to provide support for this if you are unable to get assistance at the TECH Center. Another faculty member has reported to me that they have in the past assisted students with VM installation, but I don’t know what their workload is like right now (probably quite high), so don’t hesitate to contact me for assistance.
Whether you go to the TECH Center or contact me for assistance, please download all necessary software before meeting with them/me! These are large packages which will take time to download, and everyone’s time is at a premium right now. The software packages you need for this are:
- VirtualBox for Mac: https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads
- Windows 10 Education, available for free to current Temple students from https://temple.onthehub.com
Additionally you will need to download the installer for ArcGIS, but don’t do this yet. For users new to virtualization the easiest thing to do will be to set up the virtual machine first, then download the installer while running the virtual machine.