• digitizing points, polylines, and polygons, such as oil and gas wells, monitoring wells, wireline logs, graphs, contour lines, aerial photographs, satellite images, seismic lines, roads, property boundaries, buildings, sample locations, faults, rock formations, vegetation boundaries, and animal habitats
• calculating areas of polygons, such as watershed or lake areas
• calculating lengths of polylines, such as shorelines, roads, streams, or migratory routes
• georeferencing and/or mosaicking aerial photos or scanned images
• converting the projection of scanned images, vector files, data files, or Surfer GRD or DEM files
• overlaying vector, data, and image files to create a complete map
• and much more!

Didger makes it easy to quickly extract the data you need from images. Import an image, such as a USGS Digital Raster Graphic, and Didger can automatically pick out and digitize the contour lines in seconds (digitized in yellow above). Assign elevations to the contours and with just a few clicks import the contour data directly into Surfer as a colorful and customizable contour map, ready to overlay or combine with other data.

Digitize any map, graph, aerial photo, site map, or printed image regardless of size using any Wintab compatible tablet, or scan it in and digitize it onscreen! For example, import and calibrate a scanned image of a well log and digitize the log information, including any wrapped portions of the log! Easily export the digitized data to an LAS file.

Mosaic multiple large USGS Digital Ortho Quarter Quads (DOQQs) and overlay them with other imported information, such as hydrography (blue) and road (orange) data. Reproject files on import so all your data is in one cohesive coordinate system.

Georeference images in Didger and digitize information directly on the image. Change the projection of the entire project and add graticule lines to ensure your data is presented at its best. Digitized data can be exported to all industry standard vector files such as SHP, MIF and DXF.

A georeferenced USGS Digital Raster Graphic was imported into Didger 4 (left).
The contour lines were detected and automatically vectorized to red polylines (right).

In this example, the boundary of the Modoc Plateau
in Northern California being digitized in blue from a 
calibrated raster image of the geology of California.

You can digitize paper documents with a
digitizing tablet and a puck or stylus.

Digitize points, polylines, and polygons with your GPS unit! View your current elevation, see the current position of the satellites that are being used for a lock, display the raw data being sent from the GPS, and set the GPS input datum in the GPS Commander dialog box.

Organize your data easily by separating components onto different layers. The Layer Manager makes accessing and editing layer properties easy!

Two adjacent USGS DRG files were imported into Didger and a polygon outlining the area of 
interest was digitized on top in blue (left). The collars were clipped from the DRGs 
and the images were clipped again to the polygon (right).

Import high resolution MrSID files seamlessly into Didger! In this example, four 1-meter resolution MrSID files were imported. Utilization of the image includes identifying areas obscured by trees or vegetation that require additional field survey, digitizing the centerlines of roads, property boundaries, etc., and exporting to a DXF or geo-referenced image file to be used by other software for flight planning and target placement.

Create and export large image coverages easily!
In this example, seventeen USGS Digital Ortho Quarter Quads (DOQQs) were overlaid, ready to be digitized or overlaid with other vector data.

Easy Image Georeferencing

Didger’s fast and easy georeferencing process makes it possible to rapidly convert un-referenced images and scanned paper documents to real world coordinate systems (e.g., UTM, State Plane, Latitude/Longitude) for use in Didger or other GIS programs. 

Use a set of control points or point locations in your existing project to georeference a new image. Simply pick three or more points on the image, assign coordinates to those points, assign a projection and datum if applicable, and import! If you don’t know the coordinates of any points on the image but you know where in the project the image is supposed to be, you can simply choose points on the image and tie them to the corresponding locations in your existing project! It’s that simple! 

Registering an image has never been easier! Simply enter the calibration points, 
click on the image and it is ready to load into your project!

Didger also gives you more options than ever to make sure the georeferencing of your image is of the highest quality! You can choose one of 10 spatial transformation methods to give you the most precise georereferencing possible. Didger automatically calculates and reports the root-mean-square (RMS) error value for immediate evaluation of the georeferencing accuracy. When the georeferenced image is loaded into your project, the image is warped to eliminate any distortion, so that the georeferencing matches the calibration exactly! There’s no better way to georeference your images!

Spatial Transformation Methods

Once an image is georeferenced and loaded into Didger, you can overlay it with other spatial data, digitize information from it, tile it with other georeferenced images, or export it to a georeferenced image format for use in other programs. Didger imports and exports industry standard GeoTIFF, Blue Marble RSF, Golden Software GSR, ESRI PRJ, and ESRI World (TFW, JGW) referencing files.

Vector Based Maps and Data Files

With Didger you can import a variety of vector based maps and data files in many formats. Create large coverages easily by importing several vector or data files into one project. The files will align according to their coordinate systems. Digitize new features onto an existing vector plot from your digitizing tablet and map, or digitize onscreen. Change line styles, object IDs, and add labels to objects with ease. Even import different files onto separate layers!

If the files are projected and contain different projection information, they will be converted to the projection of the first imported file using a datum transformation. You can also convert vector or data files from one projection to another. 

This graphic shows three vector files and a data file imported into Didger in the Lambert Azimuthal Equal Area projection.

Map Projections, Datums and Coordinate Conversion Options

Didger makes it easy to assign or change the projection and/or datum of your data, vector, or image files from one coordinate system to another. For example, in a few simple steps you can convert latitude/longitude data to State Plane data, State Plane data to UTM data, or convert your data from NAD27 to NAD83.

You can import multiple data sets into your current Didger project and Didger converts the projection of the files automatically during import to match that of the current project; or, you can convert the projection of data sets individually, save them in the new projection, and use them in other applications. It has never been this easy to seamlessly combine all your information. 

Didger supports 29 popular projections and allows you to specify settings for each projection appropriate to your data set. Didger’s datum dictionary contains the definitions of over 250 datums used around the world. You can even create your own custom datum and add it to the datum list! When defining a custom datum, you can select one of 56 ellipsoid definitions or define your own ellipsoid, and choose between Molodensky and Bursa Wolfe datum transformation methods. Save projection parameters and custom datum settings to a file and load it the next time you want to use the same settings! This saves you time so you don’t have to keep manually entering the same settings for each project.

In addition to projection and datum transformations, Didger can also convert coordinates of vector and data files by utilizing either a math or georeference operation. If you just want to shift your data coordinates by 50 meters, simply use the math operation to add 50 meters to all the coordinates in your project. You can add, subtract, multiple, and divide your X and/or Y coordinates using any constant value. Alternatively, if you know real world coordinates of specific points in your vector files, you can use the advanced georeferencing operation. Simply click on the source location, enter the destination coordinates, and Didger’s georeferencing methods will convert the current project into the new coordinate system. It’s that easy!

Surfer Compatible

Now it is easy to see your maps the way you want them! Automatically digitize contour or other 3D data in Didger and send them directly into Surfer with a click of a button to change contour properties, overlay with 3D terrain surfaces, DEM files, or other 3D imagery.

Didger also makes it easy to directly convert the projection Surfer GRD or DEM files, so you can have all your maps in the same coordinate system in Surfer!

Digitize your information, recording the Z value and automatically create colorful contour, 
image, or shaded relief maps in Surfer!

Advanced Editing Features

Didger is packed full of advanced editing features designed to make your job faster and easier.

• Convert the coordinates of your entire project.
• Set individual objects to be visible/invisible.
• Thin and smooth objects.
• Reshape objects by adjusting individual nodes.
• Resample, connect, break or trim polylines.
• Convert polygons to polylines and vice versa.
• Convert points to polylines and vice versa.
• Break polylines at intersections.
• Create points at each polyline and/or polygon intersection.
• Convert a polyline to a polygon with a shared border.
• Create a polygon by automatically tracing around the outside of a group of overlapping or adjacent polygons.
• Create a polygon from the common area of selected polygons.
• Subtract the overlapping portions of selected polygons.
• Divide a polygon with a polyline.
• Create a new polygon that surrounds all selected objects.
• Create polygons by locator or by ID.
• Snap polylines together.
• Snap undershoot or trim overshoot polylines.
• Remove duplicate objects or polylines by length.
• Combine, split, and/or reverse islands and lakes.
• Customize objects with full line, symbol, fill and font libraries.
• Rotate objects.

Supported FilesFormats

Many sophisticated import and export filters come with Didger, simplifying the transfer of your data and images to and from your other applications.

Spatially Referenced formats: GeoTIFF, TFW, PRJ, GSR, RSF

Import formats: BLN, BMP, BNA, CLP, CSV, DAT, DCX, DXF, 3D DXF, DDF, DEM, DLG, DTED, E00, ECW, EMF, EPS, Georeferenced TIF, GIF, GRD, GSB, GSI, HDR, JPG, LAS, LGO, LGS, MIF, PCT, PCX, PLT, PNG, SID, SHP, SLK, TIF, TGA, TXT, W??, WMF, WPG, XLS

Export formats: BLN, BMP, BNA, CLP, CGM, DAT, DCX, DXF, 3D DXF, EMF, EPS, Georeferenced TIF, GIF, GSB, GSI, HTM, JPG, LAS, MIF, PCT, PCX, PDF, PNG, SHP, TGA, TIF, WMF, WPG

Note on Digitizing Tablets

Nearly all digitizing tablets work with Didger. If you already have a tablet, Didger requires a 32-bit WinTab compliant digitizing tablet driver, available from most tablet manufactures (for no charge) or from third party vendors. 

If you don’t currently own a tablet, you shouldn’t be discouraged. The price of new, high-resolution digitizing tablets is astonishingly low. And with Didger’s capabilities, large maps are easily digitized in a single project so even smaller tablets work quite well.