Data Types

GOAT supports various data types to handle different kinds of information in your datasets. Understanding these data types helps you work more effectively with your data and ensures optimal performance.

Spatial Data Storage

GOAT uses a powerful combination of PostgreSQ database with the PostGIS extension to handle spatial data. Here's how it works:

• Geometry Storage: All spatial features (points, lines, polygons) are stored using the PostGIS geometry type in the EPSG:4326 coordinate reference system
• Accurate Calculations: For precise distance and area measurements, GOAT uses the PostGIS geography type, which provides meter-based calculations with higher accuracy

Supported Data Types

GOAT organizes data into specific types to optimize database performance and ensure scalability. Each data type has a maximum number of columns to maintain efficient processing:

Data Type	Description	Examples	Max Columns
integer	Whole numbers without decimal points	1, 100, -5	15
bigint	Very large whole numbers	Population counts, large IDs	5
float	Numbers with decimal points	3.14, -0.001, 45.67	10
text	Text and character data	Street names, categories, descriptions	20
timestamp	Date and time information	2024-01-15 14:30:00	3
arrfloat	Array of decimal numbers	[1.5, 2.7, 3.9]	3
arrint	Array of whole numbers	[1, 5, 10, 15]	3
arrtext	Array of text values	["red", "green", "blue"]	3
jsonb	Structured data in JSON format	{"name": "value", "count": 42}	3
boolean	True/false values	true, false	3

Why These Limits?

The column limits ensure optimal database performance and prevent system overload. If you need more columns of a specific type, consider splitting your data across multiple datasets or using array types for related values.

How to view Data Types

You can easily check the data types of your layer attributes:

1

Click on More Options button on your layer

2

Select View Data from the menu

3

In the data table, you'll see the data type displayed above each column header

Accessing the View Data option

Data table displaying attribute types above each column