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i know that there is already one similar question to this one but my problem is different and none of the provided answers did resolve my problem.

i've an excel table with some rows and in each row there is the identification and the xy coordinates of an especific point. the xy coordinates were aquired with a gps and are in wgs84.

the data layer is in wgs84 too.

my problem is that every time and every way i try to import this data to a shapefile, the resulting points are perfect in form but at a ridiculous scale (1:0.89)...

exporting the table to dbf and using it gave the same result...

how can i make the data import in a way that the scale is correct?

thanks in advance =^)

-----EDIT-----

if i use the "go to xy" tool to enter the coordinates of two points manually, using the values of x and y in the excel/dbf file, the two points appear in the right places and at the right distance (which implies a correct scale)...

-----EDIT-----

excel file: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3639616/xls%20to%20shp.xls

the farthest points are codigo=394 and codigo=297, with about 26.3 km between them.

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  • Can you tell us what it is that was measured? I succeeded in importing from dbf and "add XY data", but the result doesn't look like a trail, building or anything, but like a hydra (judging from 1:372,935) - and in short other than the rather peculiar point scattering I can't see anything wrong. What do you consider "perfect in form"? And by stating the scale do you mean you can't zoom out?
    – jonatr
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 23:11
  • this file is just a part of the total information. all together, they don't look like anything, but they represent the stops of various bus routes. the scale problem is that when i import the data, the scale that they appear in arcmap is 1:0.89 and the correct scale that shows all the points is 1:100000. you can see an image of the correct result in here dl.dropbox.com/u/3639616/correct_shape.jpg
    – Marinheiro
    Commented Oct 21, 2010 at 10:15

1 Answer 1

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my problem is that every time and every way i try to import this data to a shapefile

Set your map document coordinate system to WGS84 then use the 'Add XY Data' tool to add the excel spreadsheet to the map; choose the same coordinate system and the X and Y fields. You can add a base map from ArcGIS online for visual reference. If this does not yield correct results you might want to take a closer look at the source data.

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  • that was one of my experiments, but the result was the same... the source data was verified via google earth and, in some points, on the field with another gps...
    – Marinheiro
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 14:42
  • Can you paste a few rows of the source file including the header (field names)? Perhaps this has to do with the coordinate system of your document?
    – Jakub Sisak GeoGraphics
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 15:20
  • you can download the complete file in dl.dropbox.com/u/3639616/xls%20to%20shp.xls
    – Marinheiro
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 22:32
  • when I follow Jakub's instructions with your file and zoom to the extent of the dots the view scale is 1:86,870. Perhaps try saving the .xls as .csv and try that instead. I used ArcMap 9.3.1. See imgur.com/c3NuR.png
    – matt wilkie
    Commented Oct 19, 2010 at 23:09
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    I think you have your latitudes and longitudes around the wrong way I'm afraid - at least in the .xls file...
    – om_henners
    Commented Oct 21, 2010 at 14:35

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