1. Is there an ESRI ontology that we can use for phrasing questions ?

[KevinCrichlow1]

Example if i have a question about "image clipping" - i could also use the words "image chip" or "image subset", depending on my training, background and other software packages that i have used. 

Can ESRI extract or make an ESRI #tag list or "Arc-ish" ontology that can be released to all arcgis users such that if we ask a question we would be better able to search this forum and / or make it easier for you to respond ? 

It would also give you the ability to apply analytics to questions asked about a particular topic so that you can better gauge which section of the help file needs improvement or gauge increased interest in a particular capability that is missing or underdeveloped. 

[DanPatterson_Retired]

a slipper slope... to me an image is nothing more than a  raster... it contains no information measured on an interval/ratio scale.  You will be hard pressed to get any consensus on this given the diverse backgrounds of people that use this site.  Images used to be derived via remote sensing... even that definition is fuzzy when one considers what do you now mean by 'remote'.  The tags float to the top.... image clip ... wasn't even on the list of previously used ones ... raster ... was

ps.  I will toss the word 'array' out there.  It pretty well covers the vast majority of data structures and contents that can be used in gis from tables through to imagery

[JoshuaBixby]

To a great extent, Esri's GIS vocabulary is embedded within their documentation.  The more you read their documentation, the more you learn which terms they use and how they apply them.

Another option is the Esri Support GIS Dictionary.  Esri has gotten better about providing multiple definitions when there is a non-Esri meaning as well as an Esri meaning.

image

1. [data capture] A representation or description of a scene, typically produced by an optical or electronic device, such as a camera or a scanning radiometer. Common examples include remotely sensed data (for example, satellite data), scanned data, and photographs.

2. [ESRI software] In ArcGIS, a raster dataset.

[KevinCrichlow1]

Thanks. That is a very good idea. Its actually exactly what i was getting at.

The GIS Dictionary represents a curated list of preferred terms by ESRI that we can now use to properly phrase questions to them using a lexicon that they use all the time.