Creating a centered extent adjoining sheet diagram

Centered extent overview diagrams can also be used to create an adjoining sheet diagram. An adjoining sheet diagram is an overview diagram that centers the selected area of interest surrounded by adjoining map sheets.

Steps:

1. Start ArcMap.
2. On the main menu, click Customize > Toolbars > MPS Atlas.
3. After using the initial setup to set up your overview diagram, access the data frame manager properties by clicking the Show Data Frame Manager Properties button on the MPS Atlas toolbar.

   The Properties dialog box appears.

4. Click Add.

   The Select Data Frame dialog box appears.

5. Click the Select Data Frame to Manage drop-down arrow and choose the data frame you have set up for your overview diagram.

   A new data frame manager appears in the Properties dialog box.

6. Click to choose the data frame manager and click Properties.

   The Data Frame Manager Properties dialog box appears.

7. Click the Data Frame Manager tab.
8. If necessary, check the Recenter Map on Area Of Interest? check box.

   This is checked by default.

9. Click the Buffer tab and choose the Fixed Buffer option.
10. In the Distance text box, type the size of your map sheet areas of interest.
11. Click the Map Units option.
12. Click the Map Units drop-down arrow and choose the units you want to use to set the distance.

    For example, if you are making 30-minute-by-30-minute maps, you would set the distance to .5 decimal degrees.

13. Click Apply.
14. Click the Scale and Extent tab.

    For an adjoining sheet diagram, it is useful to approximate the size of your map sheets within the overview diagram data frame first to determine the scale that will make the adjoining sheet guide the right size. Use this scale as a fixed scale in your adjoining sheet diagram and resize the data frame to fit the resulting area of interest.

15. Choose the Fixed Scale option.
16. In the Scale text box, type the scale you determined to size the data frame to the correct size.

    See also Setting up the scale and extent for the map series for a complete discussion of scale and extent.

17. In the Extent area, choose the Resize Data Frame to Fit Area of Interest option.
18. Click Apply.
19. Click OK.

    The Properties dialog box appears.

20. Click Sync to refresh your overview diagram with the Data Frame Manager changes you have just made.
21. Click OK.