Both ArcGIS Server and ArcIMS introduce a new way to build feature rich, Web applications without writing code. ArcGIS Server Manager and ArcIMS Web Manager (Manager) allow you to create and edit Web mapping applications that work with the GIS capabilities of your server.
The process for building Web applications is the same for both products, namely Manager takes you through a series of panels that allows you to:
- Select which layers, or services, you want to show. You have access to ArcIMS, ArcGIS, ArcGIS Online, and WMS Services and you can select one or more services for your application.
- Configure tasks. Tasks provide specific functionality such as querying and searching features which add value to your web map application.
- Select map elements and tools such as a north arrow, table of contents, and overview map.
The output from Manager is a Web Mapping Application, which is a predefined Web application ready for deployment.
You can open the Web application generated by Manager in the either Eclipse or NetBeans and continue to customize it to meet your specific needs. The Web Mapping Application is also integrated within either developer IDE as a template. Whether created in Manager or your developer IDE, a Web Mapping Application contains standard web page design elements, plus web controls. These web controls include both standard JavaEE JSF web controls, as well as ESRI ADF-specific web controls.
There are two general levels of customizing a Web Mapping Application available to you:
- Modifying properties of Web Controls and making basic HTML modifications. If you have customized an ArcIMS HTML Viewer, this level of customization is equivalent to modifying ArcIMSparam.js and making basic HTML modifications. This level of customization requires no programming.
- Programming against different application programming interfaces (API's).
Understanding Manager capabilities
Prior to 9.2, ArcGIS Server required the use of a development environment and an IDE to build Web applications. No complement to Manager was available. The ArcGIS Server 9.3 help system includes discussion concepts and walkthroughs for Manager in the section titled Developing Web Applications with Manager .
On the other hand, ArcIMS offered the Designer application to build HTML or Java based web sites without writing code. Both Designer and Web Manager are included with 9.3.
Comparing ArcIMS Web Manager and ArcIMS Designer
In order to better understand the functionality available in Web Manager, the following table compares functions in Designer and the corresponding function in Web Manager. In many cases, there is a one-to-one correlation between the two, although the format and order is different.
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Action
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Designer
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Web Manager
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| Set Web application name | Type in name. | Same |
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| Set title for application | Type in title. | Same |
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| Add services | ArcIMS services only. The HTML Viewer allows for only one service per viewer. Access to service is through HTTP(S). | ArcIMS, ArcGIS Server, WMS, ArcGIS Online services. Services can be accessed from one or more sites. Access to ArcIMS services is through HTTP or TCP. |
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| Set map extent | Intial Extent based on the extent of the service or by a layer in the service. Extent Limit is the maximum extent allowed by service or layer. | When multiple services are included, select which service extent to use |
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| Select overview map | Any Image or ArcMap Image Service on the same server as the map. | Limited to list of services previously selected for map display. |
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| Select scale bar | Set data source and scale bar units | Set scale bar units and color. |
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| Select toolbar (See below for more details on tools and tasks.) | Select which tools to include in toolbar. | Select whether to include toolbar or not. |
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| Select tasks | N/A | Pick from Search, Query, Find Address, and Find Place tasks. |
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| Select north arrow | Included by default. | Selection provides look and feel for navigation tool. |
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| Select table of contents | Legend and layerlist included by default. | Select whether to include TOC, to include service in TOC, and to include swatches. |
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| Select look and feel | N/A | Part of page elements. |
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| Add Web links in title bar | N/A | Part of page elements. |
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| Choose Web application location | Default is virtual directory established during post-install. | Default is wwwroot directory. |
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| Modify output | No | Yes |
Tools and tasks
Many of the operations in the HTML Viewer handled through the toolbar are also in the Web Mapping Application. However, in some cases, a new approach has been taken to handle some of the operations. One big difference is the use of tasks. The task framework offers a standard way to deliver GIS functionality in your Web Mapping Application. Besides making the out-of-the-box functionality easier to use, you can also use the model to build your own custom tasks. Each task is a unit of work where there is often a dialog requiring user interaction. For example, in the HTML Viewer, when a user clicks the Find tool, a dialog appears where the user can type in a search string. In the Web Mapping Application, there is no equivalent tool in the toolbar. Instead, a Search task can be configured that allows users to type in a search string.
The following table compares the tools available in the HTML Viewer toolbar and the equivalent tool or task in the Web Mapping Application.
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HTML Viewer
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Web Mapping Application
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| Toggle between legend and layerlist | Table of contents (TOC) includes layers and swatches together and are included in a collapsible, dockable panel. |
| Toggle overview map | Included in collapsible, dockable panel. |
| Zoom in, Zoom out, Pan | Included on toolbar. Users can also use the scroll wheel or keyboard strokes. |
| Zoom to full extent | Included on toolbar. |
| Zoom to active layer | N/A. No concept of an active layer. |
| Back to last extent | Included on toolbar (Java only; available to add manually for .NET) |
| Pan north, south, east, west | Navigation tool allows users to pan the map. |
| Identify | Included on toolbar. |
| Query | Included as Query task. |
| Find | Included as Search task. |
| Stored query | Use a Query or Search task. |
| Measure | Included on toolbar. |
| Set units | Included as part of measure dialog. |
| Buffer | See Footnote 1. |
| Select by rectangle, select by line or polygon | See Footnote 1. |
| Find address | Included as Find Address task. |
| Clear features | Features are highlighted by turning on each selected feature individually. They are cleared by turning off each feature. |
| See Footnote 2. | |
| N/A | Magnify tool on toolbar. |
| N/A | Find place task. |
Footnotes:
- Buffer and Select Features are not included on the toolbar. ArcGIS Server users can create a Geoprocessing Task to support these operations. ArcIMS users can customize the Web Mapping Application to add these operations.
- Print functionality is not available as part of Manager. ArcGIS Server has a Layout control that supports printing. ArcIMS users can customize the Web Mapping Application to support printing.
The ArcIMS Java Custom and Java Standard Viewers have the same tools as listed for the HTML Viewer. They also have some additional tools:
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Java Custom or Standard Viewer
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Web Mapping Application
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| Open Project, Save Project, Close Project | No equivalent when using a Web Mapping Appication. However, you can save, close, and open maps using ArcGIS Explorer. |
| MapTips | Not available as part of Manager, but |
| Layer Properties | Not available as part of Manager, but a Web Mapping Application can be customized to support this functionality. |
| EditNotes | An Edit Task is available when using ArcGIS Server Advanced Edition. |
| MapNotes | Not available as part of Manager, but a Web Mapping Application could be customized to support similar functionality. |
Layout of a Web Mapping Application
A Web Mapping Application created by Web Manager or Manager looks similar to the following. For users familiar with the HTML Viewer, this application should be intuitive to use even though the user experience is different.
Each Web Mapping Application includes a help system that provides details on the different components of the application. Click on the Help link to open the help system.
| Development licensing | Deployment licensing |
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| Server | Server |