ArcGIS Explorer Blog : Build 440

Using Dynamic Content

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:22:00 GMT

ArcGIS Explorer 440 includes enhancements which make it easier to use and manage dynamic layer content from services that are continually being updated, like weather or active fire perimeters.

When you connect to one of these services you have full control over the refresh interval, and with Explorer 440 the cache for dynamic layers is automatically refreshed on open, so you'll always have the latest information. This now applies to all content sources, including both 2D and 3D services published via ArcGIS Server, 2D services published via ArcIMS, or local vector and raster data.

In this example we're going to use a weather service provided by Meteorlogix, one of ESRI's business partners. The Meteorlogix weather information service that ESRI taps into provides updated information every 15 minutes, and the data is being manipulated and stored in an Oracle-based enterprise geodatabase. As part of the geodatabase input process the data is generalized somewhat (for performance) and cell-based information is aggregated into polygons. As the data is refreshed in the geodatabase it is also being date-stamped, so that historical weather trends can be analyzed using ArcGIS Desktop's Tracking Analyst.

In ArcGIS Explorer we're interested in adding this service as a dynamic layer which refreshes automatically. To do this, we connect to the service in Explorer by choosing File, then Open, and selecting Server as the content type we wish to open.

Below we've clicked ArcGIS Server from the Create New Connection choices along the top, and have provided the necessary connection information to connect to the ESRI internal server that is publishing the weather (sorry, we don't yet publish weather as a publicly accessible service).

Now that we've established a connection to the server, we can scroll down and see the list of published services that are available. Below we've chosen to connect to the Meteorlogix weather service that we described above.

Now that we've chosen the weather service, we're guided by a wizard to specify certain parameters. Note that there is a user option to remember what we've specified the next time around.

First we're asked to specify the raster cell size, for which we accept the default chosen by Explorer. Next we're asked to choose from among the sublayers published in this service. And now to the important part - we're asked to specify the disk caching options. Since the weather data is updated on the server every 15 minutes, we'll choose the option for "Don't create a cache for the layer on disk." This also enables the choice for refreshing cache based on a time interval, and we'll specify 15 minutes as the refresh rate.

Using these settings Explorer will communicate with the server and refresh cache for this layer every 15 minutes. If the map is saved, when opened again it will automatically refresh the layer, then refresh at the specified 15 minute interval, ensuring that what you see is up to date.

You can experiment with this yourself using any service or local data source. For a detailed discussion on cache and various cache management options, refer to the Cache management in ArcGIS Explorer Help topic.

Working with Result Groups

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:45:00 GMT

ArcGIS Explorer 440 includes result management enhancements, making it easier to manipulate and work with results. One of the enhancements is that you can change the properties for a group of selected results.

You can select or unselect contiguous collections of results by using the <SHIFT> key. You can also add or remove results using the <CTRL> key.

Right-click the results to export the selected set to an NMF, remove them from the list, or edit their properties.

See the Help topics Organizing Results and Result Properties for more information.

Exploring New Resource Center Results and Tasks

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 04:59:00 GMT

The Explorer Resource Center has been expanded with the release of Explorer 440, and now includes results and tasks that you can add directly to your map. Choose File > Resource Center to open the Contents tab, and then click Results or Tasks to view them.

Click any of the listed results or tasks, and they'll be added to your map. Here we've chosen to add the Sate Capitals and Facts, which includes links to the USGS Science in Your Backyard Web site with more information on each state.

Launching a Browser via Popup Links

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 04:30:00 GMT

One of the changes to results in Explorer 440 is that links within the result popup will open a new browser window, rather that open within the popup itself. This allows you to use the browser's navigation tools, and other tools you may have in your browser, in conjunction with result popups.

First, let's create a result. For this example we'll do this by using the Find Address task, but you can create results in many other ways. Type an address to create a result, we'll use our favorite 380 New York Street, Redlands, CA:

Click on the result to open its popup. You'll see something like this:

Now right-click the result and choose properties, and take a look at the Popup Content. You'll see the address plus some HTML tags which together create the popup content you saw when you clicked the result.

Let change the Popup Content to include a link to an external Web site, in our example we will use the ESRI web site. We begin by adding the starting HTML tag to the first line of the Popup Content. This isn't required at this latest release, but is good practice, and ensures that even those that haven't updated to the latest Explorer will also see your popup contents as intended. We'll add an extra line break after the address, then add the link, and close the html tag as shown below:

When you open the popup, you'll now see a link, and when you click the link it will open a new browser window.

For more information refer to the Help topics on Results Window item properties and HTML markup for notes, results, and files.

A Note About Graphics Card Drivers

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 20:21:00 GMT

We've noted a couple of complaints about ArcGIS Explorer 440 crashing on startup, when earlier releases worked just fine. We've been able to determine that the cause is the graphics card driver, and have found that a driver update normally solves the problem. If you're experiencing trouble on startup, check for an update for your graphics card.

A thread on the Explorer Discussion Forum, and post by Mark Bockenhauer, provide additional details.

Add Your Own Custom Point Symbols

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 21:40:00 GMT

ArcGIS Explorer 440 includes a new set of cartographic point symbols, with many to choose from. These are billboarded, so will always remain upright and oriented properly, and will grow slightly when you hover over them. Create a Note, then right click the Note to edit its properties. Choose Symbols to see the entire palette:

You can add your own point symbols from local files by clicking Add a Symbol on the Select Symbol dialog. Browse for a local file, or enter a URL pointing to a symbol you want to use that is available on the Internet.

The symbol will automatically be resized and reformatted, and stored in your local symbols file. You can view the contents of your local symbols file by clicking Styles on the Select Symbol dialog.

Your local symbols style file is located at:
C:\Documents and Settings\<user_name>\Application Data\ESRI\ArcGIS Explorer\Styles

Hint: If you want to add custom point symbols to your map, and make them available to anyone you share the map with, put the symbols on an Internet accessible location, and use a URL to add them. When the next user opens your map, the custom symbols will be retrieved via the URL, and automatically added to the user's local symbols.

For more information, refer to the Help topic on adding a new symbol.

Accessing IMS Sub-Layers

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 18:16:00 GMT

Among the new capabilities in Explorer 440 is the ability to choose from sub-layers published in ArcIMS services. In previous versions of Explorer the connection would be to the default IMS service layer, and you were not able to access and control individual sub-layers.

In the example below, we've accessed the ESRI-Soils service from the Geography Network. We've chosen to add all the layers, the only option up until now. Note that we get more than just the soils layers, we also get the oceans, and as we zoom in we see city labels, country boundaries, and other layers that we may not want or need to use:

Now let's use the new capabilities in Explorer 440, and choose just the sub-layers we want. One of the first changes you'll notice is that when you choose File > Open... and then choose Servers, the IMS choice (as well as WMS) is visible along the top, since both map and globe service types are now the default.

Click IMS, and enter the connection information for ESRI's Geography Network as shown:

Click to open the connection, and scroll down the list and choose ESRI_Soil. This is one of many ArcIMS services published at this site. Step through the dialogs to add the IMS service. One of your choices will be the Service Imagery Format:

Here we choose the option for vector, scanned, or thematic maps since the ESRI_Soil service is a thematic map, and we want to choose a subset of its layers.

Advancing to the next dialog, we can now choose from the available sub-layers that are published. In this case we're only interested in the Soils, and don't need or want any of the other sub-layers.

Below is the result. Compare this image with that at the top of this post, or just try it for yourself. You'll find that these new capabilities in Explorer 440 will make IMS services more useful, and enable you to combine and control just the sub-layers you want.

Happy Holidays from the Explorer Team!

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 21:00:00 GMT

We'd like to send you our Season's Greetings in the form of a screenshot showing a snowy Yosemite landscape via a live Web cam from Explorer (which, by the way, is using one of the new symbols included in this latest release, and the new Display Overlay capabilities to show the Season's Greetings message on the map.)

We'll be taking just a day or two off for the holidays, and would like to pause for a moment to thank everyone for helping make it such a great year for ArcGIS Explorer.

Season's Greetings!

- the ArcGIS Explorer Team

ArcGIS Explorer 440 Released

ArcGIS-Explorer-Team — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 20:57:00 GMT

The ArcGIS Explorer Team is pleased to announce that today, at approximately 1:58 p.m. PST, the newest version of ArcGIS Explorer - Explorer 440 - was released.

If the ESRI servers are your home servers, you'll be notified that there is a new version available the next time you start the application. Just follow the instructions to download and install this new release.

For those that deploy Explorer from your own home servers, you'll need to swap your versions and update your version.html to push out the new release to your users.

This release has lots of new features, check out the What's New document for a detailed list of all the enhancements, changes, and fixes. At the top of our list are ArcIMS improvements, including the ability to access sub-layers, and the addition of new point symbols and the ability to add your own custom point symbols. We'll be covering these in more detail here on the blog.

Feel free to send us your feedback, and let us know what you think. We'll also be monitoring the Explorer support forum to help you with any questions that you may have.

- The ArcGIS Explorer Team