Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Below are listed a variety of questions often asked of WinGIS. If you have additional questions, please feel free to inquire at info@wingis.org or 815-961-3848.

Data Questions

1: What data is available and do you have a description of the data layers?

2: Do you have old aerial photographs of Winnebago County?

3: Does WinGIS provide the public information for areas other than Winnebago County?

4: How do I buy data and how much does it cost?

5: How current is the data on your website?

6: In what projection is your data stored?

7: Do you offer any data for free?

8: How do you store your data?

General Questions

9: How do I navigate your site? There is no menu system.

10: What browser should I use?

11: Does your site work with AOL?

12: Why do we have to pay to participate? We already pay County taxes.

GIS Questions

13: What is a GIS?

14: How does GIS help me?

15: How will a GIS benefit us?

16: Isn`t GIS and GPS the same thing?

Map Questions

17: How can I get a copy of a recorded plat of my property?

18: How do I obtain a custom map?

19: May I use a map image from this website in my own documents?

20: How do I print a property search map?

21: How do I save a property search map?

22: Can I zoom or pan on the property search map?

Organization Questions

23: How can I become a WinGIS Member?

24: What are the various WinGIS Committees and how do I get involved?

Data Questions

1: What data is available and do you have a description of the data layers?

A: Examples of data layers available include: orthophotos, contours, street centerlines and a land parcel database. A full list of data layers is available under the Resources menu.

2: Do you have old aerial photographs of Winnebago County?

A: WinGIS does not house any high-resolution digital aerial photography prior to 2001. WinGIS houses 1-meter resolution 1998/99 US Geological Survey Digital Orthophoto Quarter-Quadrangles (DOQs). The U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Illinois State Geological Survey, and the U.S. Geological Survey archive historical aerial photographs.

3: Does WinGIS provide the public information for areas other than Winnebago County?

A: No.

4: How do I buy data and how much does it cost?

A: All data is distributed in digital format only; hardcopy production is limited to products generated as a result of a professional service provided. If you would like a hardcopy of a map you can either print it directly from your Internet browser or visit any one of the WinGIS member agency locations. A Data Request Form must be completed and submitted to the WinGIS Office. WinGIS staff will provide you with a price estimate based on your data request. A copy of the Data License Agreement will also need to be reviewed and signed.

5: How current is the data on your website?

A: Update cycles for data vary. Parcel data is maintained on a daily basis. The contours are valid as of April 8, 2001. Orthophoto are current as of spring of 2006.

6: In what projection is your data stored?

A: Most data is stored in the Illinois State Plane West Coordinate System using the North American Datum of 1983. Data is stored in feet, with a minimum resolution of 0.01 feet.

7: Do you offer any data for free?

A: A limited amount of data is available to the public at no cost.

8: How do you store your data?

A: WinGIS data is stored and managed in the ESRI geodatabase format using ArcSDE.

General Questions

9: How do I navigate your site? There is no menu system.

A: The menu system uses JavaScript. Be sure JavaScript is turned on in your browser settings.

10: What browser should I use?

A: Our site is best viewed with the latest version of Internet Explorer (6.0 or higher), Mozilla Firefox, Netscape (6.0 or higher)

11: Does your site work with AOL?

A: Our site has been tested using the latest version of AOL (9.0)

12: Why do we have to pay to participate? We already pay County taxes.

A: An excellent amount of information is available at no cost on our public site. However, a project of this type is a benefit to any agency using it and a project of this magnitude is also expensive. By sharing the cost among all the potential users, the cost to implement such a beneficial project becomes bearable and can be implemented earlier.

GIS Questions

13: What is a GIS?

A: A Geographic Information System, or GIS is a computerized system for managing large amounts of information that is geographically referenced or related to a location. The word ‘geography’ means, “earth description”. Geographic data is information used to describe the earth. It may be gathered using various sophisticated techniques (e.g., ground survey, air photo interpretation, GPS, remote sensing, image analysis, population census). The result is geographic data. Geographic Information Systems accept, store, and analyze all types of geographic data to produce information for decision-making purposes.

14: How does GIS help me?

A: GIS provides users the ability to make informed decisions with improved efficiency by combining location and tabular information using a variety of data sources. GIS is used in many arenas including emergency management and response, property appraisal, public works, health services, and economic development.

15: How will a GIS benefit us?

A: There are many benefits for using GIS: - Maintain information in digital format, easier to update, manage query -Opportunity to examine existing data/information management systems - Easier method of facility inventory: Water, Sewer, Streets - Ability to link maps to perform analysis - Analyze features to promote Economic Development - Analyze features to plan development - Analyze effects of `what if` scenarios - Promote regional planning and correspondence

16: Isn`t GIS and GPS the same thing?

A: A GIS is an information management system using geographic information (address, zip code, tax ID no., voter district, etc;) to link digital maps to other digital maps, digital maps to data, and data to other data. A GPS (Global Positioning System) is a method of surveying by using satellites instead of levels and transits.

Map Questions

17: How can I get a copy of a recorded plat of my property?

A: Plats are available in the Winnebago County Recorder's office in the County Administration Building at 404 Elm Street, Rockford.

18: How do I obtain a custom map?

A: WinGIS staff is available to provide customized mapping solutions for member agencies, government jurisdictions, and area not-for-profits. A Professional Services Request Form must accompany all service requests. The Technical Committee shall approve all professional services requiring more than 20 hours of labor.

19: May I use a map image from this website in my own documents?

A: Yes, you may reproduce our maps and data in your own documents. However, you must cite WinGIS as the source of your data. Please be sure to read the Terms of Use.

20: How do I print a property search map?

	Print Map - Microsoft Browser IE (Internet Explorer)
1.	Click on the Printer icon in top left corner, and the Print dialog box will appear.
2.	Click on the Options tab at the top of the dialog box.
3.	In the Print frames box, select the "As laid out on screen" button.
	(Tip: "As laid out on screen" is the recommended option)
4.	Click on the Print button.

21: How do I save a property search map?

	Save Picture - Microsoft Browser IE (Internet Explorer)
	Method One: save with options
1.	Right Click on the map picture, and the Options dialog box will appear.
2.	Select "Save Picture As...", and the Save Picture dialog box will appear.
3.	In the Save Picture dialog box select where you want the picture to be saved.
	(Tip: The easiest place to save is to your "Desktop" or "My Pictures" folder.)
4.	Click on the "Save" button.
	(NOTE: You now have a JPG file you can use in any Microsoft or other application.)
	Method Two: drag-n-drop
1.	Make sure you can see a part of your computer screen desktop without closing the map window.
2.	Then simply Left Click on the map picture and hold down the mouse button.
3.	Drag the cursor to a free area on the desktop.
4.	Release the mouse button and the map picture will be automatically saved to the desktop.
	(NOTE: You now have a JPG file you can use in any Microsoft or other application.)

22: Can I zoom or pan on the property search map?

A: The zoom and pan tools are only available when you access a property map by clicking on the binocular icon. When you click on parcel details and access a property map by clicking on the map icon the zoom and pan tools are not available.

Organization Questions

23: How can I become a WinGIS Member?

A: There are four membership tiers available: Founding Membership, Supporting Membership, Limited Membership and Subscription Membership. Each membership type has specific benefits including discounted pricing on WinGIS staff services and training plus access to a wide variety of data layers and information. If you are interested in becoming a WinGIS member, please contact the WinGIS Office at (815) 961-3848 or go to the Joining Our Consortium brochure.

24: What are the various WinGIS Committees and how do I get involved?

A: WinGIS Committees and Subcommittees were formed to address a variety of issues and tasks necessary to operate the WinGIS consortium. Public participation is allowed at the Policy Committee meetings, which are scheduled at various locations throughout the area.

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