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| FAQ
Below is a collection of some of the most frequently asked questions, and their answers, regarding the Feature Analyst® software. If you have additional questions feel free to contact VLS via email at vls_support@overwatch.textron.com.
General Questions: Q: Is Feature Analyst functional as stand alone software? Q: What types of imagery can I use Feature Analyst on? Q: Am I able to use DEM information with Feature Analyst? Q: What is the difference between Standard and Professional Editions? Q: Will I receive software updates from VLS for as long as I own a license and current maintenance? Q: Does Feature Analyst allow license transfers between computers, and if so how is this performed? Q: Can I keep Feature Analyst 3.5 installed when I upgrade to version 4.1, and later versions? Q: Is the developer’s API included in the Pro release of 4.1, or does it cost extra? Q: Are there any additional instructions for installing Feature Analyst for ArcGIS? Q: What are the hardware requirements for Feature Analyst? Q: Will Feature Analyst run on my operating system?
Technical Questions: Q: How much free space should there be on the “C” drive? Q: What are the system requirements for machines running Feature Analyst? Q: Will a dual processor speed up my Feature Analyst processes? Q: How is the Feature Analyst “on-the-fly” texture band created? Q: How can I allow ArcCatalog to recognize the .afe file extension? Q: When should the discrete values data type be used for an image? Q: Will Feature Analyst extract from multiple images at the same time? Q: Can I resample images using whole numbers only?
General Questions: Q: Is Feature Analyst functional as stand alone software? A: No. One of the following GIS platforms is required in order to use the Feature Analyst extension: ArcView/ArcGIS, ERDAS IMAGINE, SOCET SET or GeoMedia.
Q: What types of imagery can I use Feature Analyst on? A: Feature Analyst can be used on all image types: GeoTIFF, NITF, CIB, ADRG, JPEG, DTED, TIFF, etc. The only limitation is in the ability of the GIS platform (ArcGIS, etc.) which may or may not be able to use certain image types. Feature Analyst works with any type of GIS image data, including aerial photography, satellite imagery, panchromatic images and more. If you are using MrSID images Feature Analyst will decompress the image automatically before extracting features.
Q: Am I able to use DEM information with Feature Analyst? A: You can use DEM information in the Input Bands for 3D feature extraction from stereo imagery using Sensor Model approaches and generate true 3D Shapefiles.
Q: When I use a low resolution DEM with a high resolution orthophoto, does Feature Analyst resample my high-resolution orthophoto to match the resolution of the DEM? A: No – it supersamples the low resolution image to match the high-resolution image. If you want to create a standalone DEM that has the same resolution as the ortho, here’s an easy way to do it:
Q: What are the differences between Standard and Professional Editions? A: Along with the features listed below, Feature Analyst Professional Edition includes the following advanced features: change detection, 3D feature extraction, DEM Data Fusion (ancillary data), unsupervised classification leveraging spatial context, advanced batch (multiple images and learning models at one time), image fusion and learning with discrete class data. Both editions, Standard and Professional, include accelerated feature extraction (AFE), spatial context extraction, clutter removal, combine features into a single layer, aggregate/smooth basic batch classification and clean up tools such as convert to line and convert to point.
Q: Will I receive software updates from VLS for as long as I own a license and current maintenance? A: Of course! As part of our commitment to customer satisfaction, VLS will update your software any time a new version is ready for release, as long as you have current maintenance. Updates will be available via our website, and users will be notified via email when these updates become available.
Q: Does Feature Analyst allow license transfers between computers, and if so how is this performed? A: In some cases, an existing License Authorization for Feature Analyst 3.5 and older can be transferred between computers. If you want to transfer licenses between computers, please contact vls_support@overwatch.textron.com.
Q: Can I keep Feature Analyst 3.5 installed when I upgrade to version 4.1, and later versions? A: Yes. With the exception of ERDAS IMAGINE, it is possible to have both Feature Analyst 3.5 and Feature Analyst 4.1 installed on the same machine. There is at least one good reason for doing so. Feature Analyst 4.1 uses .afe files to store the settings and processes used to create extraction layers, while Feature Analyst 3.5 uses .lrn files. Feature Analyst 4.1 is not backwards compatible; it cannot read the .lrn files associated with 3.5 extraction layers. Therefore, if you envision working with or referencing .lrn files created with Feature Analyst 3.5, then you should probably not remove version 3.5 from your computer.
Q: Is the developer’s API included in the Pro release of 4.1, or does it cost extra? A: There is no extra charge. When you install 4.1, there is a folder with the developer’s api. The path is C:\Program Files\Visual Learning Systems\Feature Analyst\DeveloperAPIs.
Q: Are there any additional instructions for installing Feature Analyst 4.1 for ArcGIS? A: Yes. Before installing Feature Analyst 4.1 for ArcGIS, please read these special instructions for the .NET framework:
Q: What are the hardware requirements for Feature Analyst? A: Feature Analyst has the same minimum hardware requirements that ArcGIS has. However, we recommend at least a 1.8 Ghz or better processor, 1 GB of RAM, a Microsoft .Net 2.0 framework and free space that is at least three times the size of the image being processed for adequate performance.
Q: Will Feature Analyst run on my operating system? A: Feature Analyst runs on Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000, NT, and XP.
Technical Questions: Q: How much free space should there be on the “C” drive? A: You should have free space on your computer’s C drive that is equivalent to about 3X the size of the image you are processing. This is because Feature Analyst creates temporary rasters that it uses during the extractions. Also, if your GIS platform crashes during a Feature Analyst process, the files in the Temp folder from that session are not cleaned out, so you should check the size of the VLS folder to make sure it isn’t taking up too much space on your C drive. To clean out the temp folder, do the following:
Q: What are the system requirements for machines running Feature Analyst? A: The minimum requirements for Feature Analyst are as follows:
The list below shows optimum specifications:
Q: Will a dual processor speed up my Feature Analyst processes? A: It will not significantly speed up an extraction, but it will be useful if the machine is performing other tasks while Feature Analyst processes are running.
Q: How is the Feature Analyst “on-the-fly” texture band created? A: Feature Analyst creates the texture band on the fly using a moving window. The variance in the pixels underlying the pattern are analyzed and the target pixel (the one in the center of the window) is assigned that variance value.
Q: If I create my own stand-alone texture band, should I mark the band type as texture in the set up learning window? A: No. A stand alone texture band should be marked as a reflectance band.
Q: How can I allow ArcCatalog to recognize the .afe file extension? A: In ArcCatalog/Tools/Options you will see a tab File Types. Add a New Type with the Description of Accelerated Feature Extraction File and the Extension AFE.
Q: How much text or how many characters can I enter in the model description field in the Feature Model Library? A: 255 characters. Model names are limited to 50 characters.
Q: When should the discrete values data type be used for an image? A: You should use the discrete values data type only when your image values are not uniformly distributed. This usually occurs with scanned maps. For instance, let’s say that you have 4 values: 0, 1, 2, and 191. If this image band was used as a reflectance band and the values stretched, then the values that are very close together (0, 1, and 2) would be lumped into one category and 191 would be lumped into another category. Instead, if discrete values were used, we would get four separate categories: (a) 0 --> 0; (b) 1 --> 0.33; (c) 2 --> 0.67; and (d) 191 --> 1. Note: You cannot use discrete values with floating point (decimal values) raster images. Instead, you can only use discrete values with whole numbers, such as a 0-255 range of values.
Q: Will Feature Analyst extract from multiple images at the same time? A: Yes, but only on the overlap of those images. If your images have very little overlap (such as successive aerial photos that overlap only on the margins) then you will need to mosaic the images together using a GIS program.
Q: When using the aggregation feature, I am required to give the system a number of pixels to aggregate. What does this number mean? A: The aggregation number tells Feature Analyst to close any holes in polygons that are smaller than that number. So if you use an aggregation size of 200 pixels, then polygons smaller than 200 pixels will be absorbed into the larger surrounding polygon.
Q: Can I resample images using whole numbers only? A: No – you can resample from .25 to 10 in .25 increments; for example, .25, .50, .75, 1.0, 1.25, etc.
Q: Can post processing actions (such as Convert to Line) be applied as a batch process to the extraction results from many images? A: The batch process has to include an image classification process. In other words, it is not possible to just run a smoothing process on one shapefile and then batch that one smoothing process to 20 other shapefiles.
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