PC/Web Based Software Application Definitions (Attachment J-1)
COMMITS Nexgen Task #T1-0004
Definitions Address - the house number and street or road name or other designation assigned to a housing unit, special place, business establishment, or other structure for purposes of mail delivery and/or to enable emergency services, delivery people, and visitors to find the structure. Administrator – designated staff in the Census Bureau. AFF - American FactFinder - an electronic system for access and dissemination of Census Bureau data on the Internet. The system offers prepackaged data products and the ability to build user-selected tables and maps. The system serves as the vehicle for accessing and disseminating data from Census 2000 (as well as the 1990 census, the 1997 Economic Census, and the American Community Survey). The system was formerly known as the Data Access and Dissemination System (DADS). Attribute - information about a geographic feature linked to the feature by a unique identifier. BOC - Bureau of the Census Boundary - a line that identifies the extent or limit of a geographic entity, such as a census block, census tract, county, or place. The legal boundaries the Census Bureau recognizes for a census are those in effect on January 1 of the census year. Census address list - an extract of the Census Bureau’s Master Address File. Census block - an area bounded by visible and/or invisible features shown on Census Bureau maps. A census block is the smallest geographic entity for which the Census Bureau collects and tabulates 100-percent decennial census data. Census block count - the total number of housing units or other living quarters in a census block based on the Master Address File. There are separate totals for other living quarters and for housing units plus other living quarters. Census block summary list - a list of the census blocks for an entity, by census tract, and the housing unit count and other living quarters count for each census block based on the Master Address File for that census block. Census tract - Census tracts are small, relatively permanent statistical subdivisions of a county delineated by local participants as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program. The Census Bureau delineated census tracts in situations where no local participant existed or where local or tribal governments declined to participate. The primary purpose of census tracts is to provide a stable set of geographic units for the presentation of decennial census data. Census tracts generally have between 1,500 and 8,000 people, with an optimum size of 4,000 people.
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PC/Web Based Software Application Definitions (Attachment J-1)
COMMITS Nexgen Task #T1-0004
Edge - (a.k.a. 1-cell, line, arc) a one-dimensional object. An edge is bounded by two nodes: its start node and end node. The geometry of an edge is defined by the coordinates of its two nodes, plus possible additional coordinates that are ordered and serve as vertices (or "shape" points) between the two nodes. Face - (a.k.a. 2-cell, polygon) a two-dimensional object. It is bounded by one or more edges. Its boundary includes not only the edges that separate it from other faces, but also any interior edges contained with the area of the face. Feature - any part of the landscape that is portrayed on a map as a point, line, or area, including invisible boundaries of legal entities, such as city limits or county lines. Feature class - a grouping of features in TIGER that share basic characteristics. There are nine feature classes: roads, railroads, miscellaneous transportation features, landmarks (military installation, hospital, bus, airport, etc.), miscellaneous physical features, nonvisible boundaries, statistical areas, water features, and unclassified features. Within each feature class are the specific features (e.g., interstates, driveways, and county highways are specific types of roads). Geographic area - a geographic unit of any type: legal, administrative, or statistical. Geographic program - includes the following BOC-sponsored programs, and any future statistical, political, and administrative programs. Similar programs that the Census Bureau implements, such as Public Use Microdata Areas and Traffic Analysis Zones, may also be administered by this application. Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) Redistricting Data Program: Voting District/Block Boundary Suggestion Project Statistical Areas Program School District Review Program Housing unit - a type of address maintained in the MAF. A single-family house, townhouse, mobile home or trailer, apartment, group of rooms, or single room that is occupied as a separate living quarters or, if vacant, is intended for occupancy as a separate living quarters. Housing unit count - a tally of the housing units for a specified geographic area. Label - an attribute text placed on, along, or next to a feature on the map to identify or describe it. Local address list - a list of addresses within a geographic area provided by the local government. Master Address File (MAF) - the Census Bureau's computer-readable file of all addresses and location descriptions know to it (residential and others), including mailing addresses and ZIP+4 The MAF also may contain latitude/longitude coordinates for the location of the structure points.
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PC/Web Based Software Application Definitions (Attachment J-1)
COMMITS Nexgen Task #T1-0004
MAF extract - a portion of the MAF based on certain criteria, such as the addresses for a specific governmental unit. Map view - the extent of a map displayed on the screen. Modify - to edit or move. Other living quarters (OLQ) - a type of address maintained in the MAF. Other living quarters are a place where people live or stay, that are normally owned or managed by an entity or organization providing services and care for the residents. Participant - a state, local, or tribal government or a community group. Point feature - a node, such as a point or zero-cell. Population and Housing Unit Data - population or housing unit count for a given geographic area. The count is determined from the 2000 Census data or from the census estimates programs, depending on which geographic program the application supports. Program - see geographic program Reshape - to modify the curve points of an edge. Seamless map - a concept that allows for geospatial features which may span partitions in a partitioned database to be accessed and/or displayed in their entirety, without the appearance of any partition edge artifacts. Statistical area - a specially defined and delineated geographic entity, such as a metropolitan area, urbanized area, tribal designated statistical area, census county division, census designated place, census tract, census block group, or census block, for which the Census Bureau tabulates data. Statistical entity boundaries generally are not legally defined and designation as a statistical entity neither conveys nor confers legal ownership, entitlement, or jurisdictional authority. Structure point - a type of point feature. A designation on a Census Bureau map that marks the location of one or more living quarters, such as a map spot. Each structure point within a census block is assigned a unique number, which corresponds to an address in the MAF. A structure point may have an associated set of latitude/longitude coordinates. TIGER System- Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing system - The TIGER® database plus the specifications, procedures, computer programs, and related source (input) files and materials required to build, use, and maintain it. TIGER Database - Digital (computer-readable) geographic database that automates the mapping and related geographic activities required to support the Census Bureau's census and survey programs. The database contains a digital representation of all census-required map features (streets and roads; railroads; hydrographic features, such as rivers and lakes; boundaries
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PC/Web Based Software Application Definitions (Attachment J-1)
COMMITS Nexgen Task #T1-0004
of legal, statistical, and data collection entities; etc.) and the attributes associated with each feature and geographic entity (name, city-style address ranges, map spots and map spot numbers, appropriate codes, etc.). It is stored in multiple partitions (counties or portions of counties), which together represent all the territory covered by the decennial census - the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas - as a single seamless data inventory. User - a participant in a local government, and a Census Bureau employee. Workspace - an administrator-defined geographic extent for a given user.
References Census Glossary (DMD) http://www.census.gov/dmd/www/glossary.html Geographic Glossary (Census 2000 Geographic Terms and Concepts) http://www.census.gov/geo/www/tiger/glossry2.pdf GARM http://www.census.gov/geo/www/garm.html Census 2000 Geographic Definitions http://www.census.gov/geo/www/geo_defn.html
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