STRUCTURED METHODS FOR GIS DESIGN .1. A RELATIONAL SYSTEM FOR PHYSICAL PLAN MONITORING

This is the first of two papers which consider the use of structured m ethods for the specification and design of spatial information systems . A short review of the concepts and approaches to structured systems analysis and design and their application to GIS is followed by a case study in which one particular methodology is used to create a formal specification of a physical plan monitoring information system. The se cond paper goes on to illustrate an alternative and more sophisticated approach to essentially the same system design problem. An important underlying objective is to demonstrate alternatives to the ad hoc, spe culative, and often wasteful approaches commonly taken when developing GIS projects in the urban planning community.