That is, one in which our features are linked to tables of information about them. Typically, GIS deals with two dimensional spatial data. Therefore, unlike a CAD drawing, roads, shire boundaries and rubbish collection routes would all be stored in separate files on disk. This concept of layers is represented in the following diagram. In addition to a location, a feature in a theme can have attributes.
Attributes are the measurable characteristics, be they quantitative or qualitative, of features.
For example, attributes which may be recorded for a road could include its name, length, condition and traffic count.