What is MPS-Atlas?
MPS-Atlas provides the ability to create multiple maps or atlas pages within the same map document. Maps can use both shared dynamic layouts as well as single layouts. MPS-Atlas provides the ability to store multiple layouts within the same map document and provides capabilities for batch printing and exporting maps. It is also possible to save each map out as its own map document. An existing map document can be used as a template from which you can batch generate multiple maps.
The MPS Atlas window allows you to interact with map sheets and map series. A map sheet is a single map layout that can be printed, exported, edited, or otherwise manipulated. A map series is a collection of map sheets that may share a common layout. Within a map series, it is possible to have single map sheets, and modify their layout, providing the ability to have multiple layouts within the same map document. A map sheet is composed of an individual area of interest, a layout, and at least one data frame manager.
Batch functionality with map sheets
MPS-Atlas provides batch functionality for the creation of map sheets, as well as saving, printing and exporting map sheets. Maps are grouped together as a map series in the MPS Atlas window. Within the map series, maps can be saved, printed, or exported individually, or in batch. Within the Print and Export dialog box, there are options to apply the current map sheet, all of the map sheets, or specify a range of map sheets.
Shared versus individual map sheets
Map sheets can be either shared or single. Shared map sheets use a common layout found at the top of the tree view and referred to as the map series' shared map sheet. The properties applied to this map sheet will be applied to all shared map sheets within the map series. Shared maps are denoted with the chain link icon next to them, specifying that they are all linked together. This way, any change made to one map sheet will be made to all the map sheets that share this layout.
Single map sheets can be created within the map series, as well, with the Make Map Sheet Single command. The chain link icon will disappear and a new data frame manager will be created for this single map sheet. A single map sheet can be modified without affecting any of the other map sheets in the series. This way, modifications can be made to the single sheet, and multiple layouts can be maintained all in the same map series and stored in the same map document. If you select a single map sheet and make the map sheet shared again, it will take on all the properties and the layout of the shared map sheets.
Data Driven Pages and MPS-Atlas
Data driven pages share many of the same concepts currently available in MPS-Atlas. These tools provide the ability to use an index layer to drive multiple pages in a single map document. Also provided are the ability to add dynamic text to the layout, and to create overview maps and adjoining sheet diagrams that follow the extents of your index layer. The following are the major differences between the two toolsets:
- Both MPS-Atlas and Data Driven Pages provide functionality to create an index layer to drive page extents, and both provide the ability to calculate rotation angles and coordinate systems. However, MPS-Atlas does these calculations on-the-fly, as you switch from map sheet to map sheet, and Data Driven Pages provides geoprocessing tools to both generate the index layer and calculate these properties prior to enabling your Data Driven Pages.
- Both MPS-Atlas and Data Driven Pages have dynamic text. However, MPS-Atlas has its own text element, while the dynamic text in ArcGIS Desktop is an extension of the existing text element, incorporating dynamic tags for the various map, data frame, and attribute properties. Both forms of dynamic text support many information types and formatting options. However, the dynamic text in MPS-Atlas supports the use of attributes from feature layers in addition to the index layer, while the dynamic text element tags only support the use of attributes from the index layer.
- ArcGIS Desktop includes the ability to export directly from Data Driven Pages to a multi-page PDF file. This functionality is not directly available in a map book created with MPS-Atlas.
- In addition to the basic map book functionality, MPS-Atlas includes a dynamic table tool for creating tables that update with the contents of your current map extent. This tool also makes it possible to create dynamic legends that include only those features in the current map. This functionality is not available in Data Driven Pages.
- MPS-Atlas also includes an indexing tool for creating the tables needed to make a gazetteer. Data Driven Pages does not provide a tool specifically for indexing.
- MPS-Atlas provides the ability to create individual, single map layouts within the same map document. Data Driven Pages creates multiple pages from a single map layout. Each map document contains only one layout. Layouts can be combined into a single multipage product through arcpy.mapping and a Python script.