Feature Manager basics

There is basic functionality available with Feature Manager that includes keyboard shortcuts and commands that allow you to manage the tree view on the Update tab and the way attribute fields appear on the Feature Attributes window.

Keyboard shortcuts

When you are working with Feature Manager, you can use keyboard shortcuts to navigate through fields and their respective values.

Update tab shortcuts

• The Up arrow and Down arrow keys navigate through the rows.
• The Left arrow key expands a node in the tree view.
• The Right arrow key collapses a node in the tree view.

Create Attributes and Update Attributes window shortcuts

• The F2 key displays field information in the ArcMap status bar.
• The F3 key displays field-level help in the status bar, if it has been configured in the field configuration table.
• The F4 key displays more field-level help in a pop-up window, if it has been configured in the field configuration table.

Searching for templates

On the Manage Features window, you can search for templates when you have several layers loaded in the map. The search allows you to find the templates that are relevant to the editing task you want to perform. You can also clear the search results, which removes the filter and displays all the layers or templates.

Managing the feature templates for selected features

On the Update tab on the Manage Features window, you can expand and collapse the tree view that is displayed. You can also choose the way templates are displayed and change the primary feature display field.

Collapsing the tree view

When you have several layers loaded in the map, it can be helpful to collapse the tree view on the Update tab so you can see which layers currently have features selected in the map. You can right-click the tree view on the Update tab and choose Collapse All to compress all the nodes.

Expanding the tree view

When the tree view on the Update tab is collapsed, you cannot see which features are selected from a feature class or interact with the features you have selected. To see the features that are selected, by feature class, you can right-click the tree view on the Update tab and click Expand All.

Viewing selected features

On the Update tab, there are two options for viewing selected features: based on the schema or based on the layers currently loaded in the table of contents.

The Data Schema view displays the selected features based on the database schema. This means that if a layer is loaded in the table of contents more than once, it only appears once on the Update tab. The subtypes for the features are also displayed.

With the Layers view, the feature templates are displayed based on what is loaded in the table of contents. That is, if you have the RoadL layer listed in the table of contents twice, it appears on the Update tab twice. The selected features are also the same for both instances of the RoadL layer.

Changing the primary display field

In Production Mapping, the default display field for features is GFID. This is the field value that is used to identify the features on the Update tab on the Manage Features window. You can change the field that is used to identify the selected features on the Display tab on the Layer Properties dialog box.

When you change the display expression for the layer, the field you choose is used to identify the selected features. Below is an example that identifies the features using the ObjectIDs and names.

Managing the way feature attributes are displayed

On the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, and Metadata Attributes windows, you can manage the way attribute names are displayed. You can sort columns in ascending or descending order, choose to display the field alias instead of the name, and choose to display only the attribute value instead of the value and description.

Sorting columns

You can sort the Field Name and Field Value columns in descending or ascending order on the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, and Metadata Attributes windows. For example, if there are several attribute fields for a feature class, it may be easier to view them alphabetically than in the order presented in the schema.

Once you are finished sorting the attributes, you can restore the order set in the data schema or field configuration table.

Viewing the field alias

If an alias has been defined for the field in the schema, you can choose to display it instead of the actual field name. The alias is a more user-friendly name for the attribute field. For example, if the field name is LTN, the alias could be Lane/Track Number to explain what sorts of values are expected for the field. By default, the field names are displayed on the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, or Metadata Attributes window.

To display the alias, right-click in the Feature Attributes window and click Field Alias Names.

Viewing attribute value information

When an attribute is populated using domain values, you can choose to only display the attribute value rather than the value and the description. For example, if the domain value for Unknown is 0 (zero), you can choose to only display the value or the value with the description. In this instance, the Create Attributes or Update Attributes window would display 0 - Unknown. By default, the attribute value and description are displayed.

To only show the value for feature attributes, right-click in the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, or Metadata Attributes window, then click Attribute Value.

Viewing domain values

By default, domain values are listed based on the order defined by the schema. However, if you want to sort the domain values in ascending order, you can right-click in the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, or Metadata Attributes window and click Sort Domains By Value. This allows you to choose the value based on its alphabetical order, which can be useful when there are several values in a domain; for example, if you have a domain that lists every country in the world or every state in a country. If the values have numeric values, the values are sorted in ascending order by number.

If needed, you can revert to the schema order by right-clicking in the Create Attributes, Update Attributes, or Metadata Attributes window and clicking List Domain Values as Defined.