Hello everyone, welcome to another Mapinfo Tutorial. Today, we are going to learn how to import Shapefile into MapInfo Professional. As you know, Shapefile (.SHP) is an ESRI native GIS file format. It is widely used and supported by many GIS software including Mapinfo. It is pretty simple to open or import Shapefile into MapInfo. There are several ways to do this. On my previous tutorial, you can learn how to open or import Shapefile into QGIS software.
Import Shapefile into Mapinfo Professional
A. Using Vector Import in Discover
Encom Discover has a special feature, Vector Import. We can do many things with this tool including import the Shapefile into Mapinfo format easily. Additionally, we can also reproject the file on the fly during the import process. We can also transform the coordinate of the shapefile with this tool.
- Open Vector Import menu. Go to Discover | Import and Export | Vector Import.
- Choose ESRI Shapefile (.shp) from the list
- Browse and select the Shapefile you want to import
- Specify the output name and location. You can also specify some additional settings here.
Sometimes, you will need to reproject or transform the coordinate of the shapefile. In this case, simply use the reproject menu and choose the source and destination projection from the list.
B. Open Shapefile Using FME Universal Translator
In case you don’t have Discover software, you still able to open Shapefile in Mapinfo Professional. Usually, Mapinfo installation comes with Universal Translator. You can enable this tool via Tools | Tool Manager
After you load this Universal Translator, this tool will be available under Tools menu. Next, go to Tools >> Universal Translator >> Universal Translator. From the FME Quick Translator, click the Translate Data button. This will open a new window where we can specify the reader and writer format.
Browse your Shapefile and also specify the destination format. In this case, our destination format should be Mapinfo
Hit OK to start the import process.
C. Open ESRI Shapefile using Mapinfo Open Menu
By default, Mapinfo Professional supports ESRI Shapefile. Basically, you don’t need Discover or FME Translator in order to open the Shapefile. Follow these steps to open Shapefile using Mapinfo Open menu.
- Go to File >> Open.
- Change the Files of Types to ESRI Shapefile (.shp).
- Browse the file you want to open. Select the .shp file and click Open
- Specify the location and file name of the Mapinfo Table.
If you are using this method to open the Shapefile, make sure you do not rename, move or remove the original .shp file. Even Mapinfo already created the Mapinfo Table, it still requires the original .shp file.