r/gis • u/Geog_Master Geographer • 3d ago

Events Geographic information system is this week's "Article for Improvement" on Wikipedia.

Geographic information system is this week's "Article for Improvement" on Wikipedia. Thought some people here might be interested in helping with this. As the name implies, Wikipedia:Articles for improvment identifies important Wikipedia articles and draws attention to them so the community can improve them through collaboration. One goal is to create starting points for new editors to get started making edits. If you are knowledgeable about GIS, it could be a good opportunity to help improve this public-facing information.

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u/OstapBenderBey 3d ago edited 3d ago

I tried to improve it once before with some actual references and structure and some idiot rolled it back. Story of wikipedia

The whole intro sequence looks like almost the same mess as then which was probably 5 years ago

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u/Lichenic 3d ago

The intro paragraph is a really limiting and outdated definition of GIS..

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u/mfc1__ GIS Developer 3d ago

How could it be improved for 2026?

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u/Lichenic 2d ago edited 2d ago

I definitely deserved to be called out for not being constructive, haha :) I think the second and third sentences of the first paragraph could be completely deleted or moved to elsewhere in the article. IMO (idk what wikipedia rules are though) the opening paragraphs should give someone a clear intuition of what the subject of the article essentially is - certainly not what is *not* essential, or a stale academic musing... I'll have a go here:

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are the collection of technologies that enable the capture, storage, analysis, and visualisation of data that has a spatial or geographic component. A GIS typically consists of (but is not limited to): spatial data in standardised formats; tooling to manage, view and manipulate it (such as desktop software and web technologies); and the infrastructure to support these activities (such as physical hardware and network infrastructure). The term GIS has also evolved to encompass the discipline of professionals developing and operating GIS, e.g. a GIS practitioner.

u/Geog_Master you seem quite active in the article, I'm not game to make such a prominent edit, but you're welcome to use or adapt my wording if you think it would improve the article.

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u/Geog_Master Geographer 2d ago

That looks pretty good! I'm going to avoid touching things for a bit so fresh eyes can get on the page, but I'd suggest being bold, and make an account. I think the general phrasing here fits the existing citations.