GIS in Public Policy: Using Geographic Information for More Effective Government

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating but Fluffy
Review: Since I was just getting into GIS at my work place at a government agency, I was curious when I saw this book from Amazon's search engine. It has many fascinating accounts of various widely diverse applications of GIS systems being used all over the world to solve previously intractable problems. Anything from mapping mine fields in the Balkans to coordinating ride services for seniors in Portland. While the stories themselves are quite interesting, the writing style and quality is a bit uneven between the 15 or so stories. My only other complaint is that it uses a liberal amount of white space and fluffy fillers (i.e., big font quotes, etc.) to make the book seem longer than it really is. I'm not quite sure it's really worth the price for what you get, but it is a good idea book for what GIS could possibly be used for.