GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM MAPPING

is a conceptualized framework that provides the ability to capture and analyze spatial and geographic data

Installing GIS

GIS Support at the University of Michigan

Frank Romo (recent alum) gave a tutorial for U-M PDC where he taught students how to use ArcGIS, QGIS and Google Maps.

Look for Shapefiles and GIS information. Open Data works for most US cities, you can try similar keywords for other countries.

Texas Topographic Maps

USGS DEM Data

Earth Explorer

Clark Library