In this paper, a precise description is given to the basic theory as well as the detailed algorithms for the numerical treatment of the method of POD (proper orthogonal decomposition). This method is then applied to analysing the numerical solutions of one-dimensional shallow-water equations to show how the method is affected by various parameters such as the sampling time, sampling numbers, and the spatial resolution for the autocorrelation function. A few curious features associated with this flow model found through the analysis are further explained and discussed.