TUTORIAL NO.

01

NAME OF TUTORIAL: INTRODUCTION TO QGIS SOFTWARE AND IT’S

USER INTERFACE

QGIS is a popular open-source GIS with advanced capabilities. It stands for Quantum-GIS.
GIS stands for Geographic Information System. It's a computer system that helps you
capture, store, and analyse data related to a location on Earth. GIS uses maps and 3D scenes to
organize data into visualizations.

A. How to download and install QGIS?

1. Visit the [Link] Download page. On the page, click on Skip it for the Donate pop-
up and go to download to see the download options.
2. Scroll-down to find the option Download for Windows. Click the OSGeo4W Network
Installer. The OSGeo4W Network Installer is the preferred way to install QGIS
because it ensures you get all the required dependencies for the software.

3. You will see the Installation steps. Click the OSGeo4W Installer link to start the
download.
4. Once downloaded, double-click the [Link] to launch the installer.
5. In the OSGeo4W Setup window, choose Express Install and click Next. If you are
prompted to Choose a Download Site, select [Link] and click Next.
6. Select QGIS LTR and click Next.

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 7. Accept all the terms and conditions and click Next.
8. Download will begin. Once the download gets completed, search for QGIS in the
Windows Start Menu and choose the QGIS Desktop 3.34, click Open.

B. An Overview of QGIS User Interface

The elements identified in the figure above are:

1. Layers List / Browser Panel
2. Toolbars
3. Map canvas
4. Status bar
5. Side Toolbar
6. Locator bar
1. Layers List / Browser Panel:
In the Layers list, you can see a list, at any time, of all the layers available to
you. Expanding collapsed items (by clicking the arrow or plus symbol beside them)
will provide you with more information on the layer’s current appearance. Hovering
over the layer will give you some basic information: layer name, type of geometry,

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 coordinate reference system and the complete path of the location on your device.
Right-clicking on a layer will give you a menu with lots of extra options.
The QGIS Browser is a panel in QGIS that lets you easily navigate in your
database. You can have access to common vector files (e.g. ESRI Shapefile or MapInfo
files). If you have saved a project, the Browser Panel will also give you quick access to
all the layers stored in the same path of the project file under in the Project
Home item. Moreover, you can set one or more folder as Favorites: search under your
path and once you have found the folder, right click on it and click
on Add as a Favorite. You should then be able to see your folder in
the Favorites item.

2. Toolbars:
Your most often used sets of tools can be turned into toolbars for basic access. For
example, the Project toolbar allows you to save, load, print, and start a new project.
You can easily customize the interface to see only the tools you use most often, adding
or removing toolbars as necessary via the View ► Toolbars menu.
Even if they are not visible in a toolbar, all of your tools will remain accessible via the
menus. For example, if you remove the Project toolbar (which contains
the Save button), you can still save your map by clicking on the Project menu and
then clicking on Save .

3. Map Canvas:
This is where the map itself is displayed and where layers are loaded. In the map canvas
you can interact with the visible layers: zoom in/out, move the map, select features and
many other operations that we will deeply see in the next sections.

4. Status Bar:
Shows you information about the current map. Also allows you to adjust the map scale,
the map rotation and see the mouse cursor’s coordinates on the map.

5. Side Toolbar:
By default, the Side toolbar contains the buttons to load the layer and all the buttons to
create a new layer. But remember that you can move all the toolbars wherever it is more
comfortable for you.

6. Locator Bar:

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 Within this bar you can access to almost all the objects of QGIS: layers, layer features,
algorithms, spatial bookmarks, etc.

C. QGIS Supported File & Data Formats

QGS/QGZ - The QGS format is used for storing QGIS projects. QGZ is the zipped format.
QLR - used to store information about a specific layer in QGIS, including its data source and
symbology.
QML - is used for storing layer styling only.

1. .shp file containing the feature geometries

2. .dbf file containing the attributes in dBase format
3. .shx index file
4. .prj projection file (NOT NECESSARY)

D. How to Download and Use Exercise Data

Download the prepared dataset from the Training data repository and unzip the file. All the necessary
data are provided in the exercise_data folder.

How to use data:

Any text that looks like this refers to something that you can see in the QGIS user interface.

Text that looks ► like ► this directs you through menus.

This kind of text refers to something you can type, such as a command.

This/kind/[Link] refers to a path or filename.

This+That refers to a keyboard shortcut comprised of two buttons.

E. Coordinate Reference System (CRS)

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A Coordinate Reference System (CRS) in QGIS is a way to associate numbers with locations
on the Earth's surface. It defines how a map relates to the real world.
How does a CRS work?
• A CRS defines a map projection, which flattens the Earth's surface onto a 2D map
• A CRS uses coordinates to connect the map to real-world locations
• A CRS can be based on a geodetic datum, such as latitude and longitude, or projected
onto a plane, such as meters or feet
To select a Coordinate Reference System (CRS) in QGIS, navigate to your project properties,
then go to the "CRS" tab, where you can search for the desired CRS by name or EPSG code,
allowing you to choose the appropriate projection for your data based on your geographic
location and project needs; you can also quickly check the current CRS displayed in the bottom
right corner of the QGIS window.
Steps to select a CRS in QGIS:
1. Access Project Properties: Open your QGIS project and go to "Project" >
"Properties".
2. Navigate to CRS Tab: In the Project Properties window, select the "CRS" tab.
3. Search for CRS:
o By Name: Type the name of the desired CRS in the search bar (e.g., "WGS
84").
o By EPSG Code: Enter the EPSG code (e.g., "4326" for WGS 84).
4. Select CRS: Browse through the available options and click on the appropriate CRS
from the list.

F. Basics: Prepare A Map (Tutorial)

1. Open QGIS. You will have a new, blank map.

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2. The Data Source Manager dialog allows you to choose the data to load depending on the
Open Data Source Manager
data type. We’ll use it to load our dataset: click the button. If you can’t
find the icon, check that the Data Source Manager toolbar is enabled in the View ►
Toolbars menu.

3. Load the protected_areas.shp vector dataset:

a. Click on the Vector tab.

b. Enable the File source type.

c. Press the … button next to Vector Dataset(s) .

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d. Select the exercise_data/shapefile/protected_areas.shp file in your training directory.
e. Click Open . You will see the original dialog, with the file path filled in.

5. Click Add here as well. The data you specified will now load: you can see
a protected_areas item in the Layers panel (bottom left) with its features shown in
the main map canvas.

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