How To Add Custom Shapefiles into Spotfire

Shapefiles are a popular way to display geographical information in maps. Spotfire visualizations includes maps at the city, state and world levels. Clients sometimes want customized shapefiles at any of these levels.

When I need to include a customized world map shapefile in a report, here’s how I do it.

1. Find a world map shapefile online in a shapefile source and add it into Spotfire as a data table.

2. Add a default map visualization to the report and remove the default map layer.

3. Join the shapefile to the existing dataset in the report by their respective and similar geographic values.

4. Add a feature layer to the map, and point the layer to the shapefile, which makes it visible.

5. Color the map with any column from the existing dataset.

Do you have any good ideas of your own? If so, be sure to share them. We want to hear from you.

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About the Author

Mario performs statistical analysis and reporting for Energy, Manufacturing, and Medical sectors. He is focused on analysing and visualising business logic to allow the discovery of systemic flaws. Prior to Syntelli, Mario was a Research Assistant at the Public Policy Center. While at PPC, Mario worked on social science research for evidence-based policymaking at the state, regional, and local levels for public, private, and nonprofit partners. Mario received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts. While at UMass, Mario was International Orientation Leader, International Student Conversation Partner, and IT Assistant, gaining broad systems thinking at the technological and social level.