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List of geometric effects(ArcInfo and ArcEditor only)

Release 9.3
Last modified April 24, 2009
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Click on the links to see a detailed description of each paramter for the geometric effect.
Input geometry Output geometry Geometric effect Description Example
Point Line Radial from point

Creates a dynamic line of a specified length and angle originating from a point feature
Radial from Point geometric effect

Polygon Buffer

Creates a dynamic polygon with a specified diameter around a point feature
Buffer geometric effect


Polygon Regular polygon Creates a dynamic polygon around a point feature with a specified number of edges. All edges are equal in length and all angles are equal.
Regular polygon geometric effect

Line Line Add control points Dynamically adds representation control points to a line feature to dictate the placement of marker placement styles or geometric effects that use a template

Line Cut Creates a dynamic line that is shorter on one or both ends than a line feature Cut geometric effect

Line Dashes Creates dynamic multipart line geometry from a line feature based on a template
Dashes geometric effect


Line Move Creates a dynamic line offset a specified distance in x and y ; often used to mimic a drop shadow Move geometric effect

Line Offset Creates a dynamic line offset at a specified distance perpendicularly from a line feature Offset geometric effect

Line Reverse Flips the dynamic output of another geometric effect

Line Rotate Creates a dynamic line rotated a specified angle from a line feature Rotate geometric effect

Line Scale Creates a dynamic line scaled by a specified factor from a line feature. Vertices are moved in relation to the center point of the feature envelope. Values greater than 1 move vertices away from the center point; values between 0 and 1 move vertices toward the center point; a zero value creates a null dynamic line; values less than zero draw an inverse dynamic line where the vertices have crossed to the other side of the center point. Scale geometric effect

Line Simplify Creates a dynamic generalized line from a line feature using the Douglas-Peucker algorithm Simplify geometric effect

Line Smooth Creates a dynamic bezier curve from a line feature by setting a flat tolerance Smooth geometric effect

Line Wave Creates a dynamic line along a line feature with a repeating wave pattern that is either sinusoidal, square, triangular, or irregular
Geometric effect wave


Polygon Buffer Creates a dynamic polygon with a specified diameter around a line feature
Buffer geometric effect


Polygon Enclosing polygon Creates a dynamic polygon from the spatial extent of a line feature Enclosing Polygon geometric effect


Polygon Tapered polygon Creates a dynamic polygon along a line feature, whose width varies by two specified amounts along its length, as defined by a percentage of the line feature's length Tapered polygon geometric effect
Polygon Line Cut Creates a dynamic line that is shorter on one or both ends than the outline of a polygon feature Cut geometric effect

Line Dashes Creates dynamic multipart line geometry from the outline of a polygon feature based on a template Dashes geometric effect

Polygon Add control points Dynamically adds representation control points to the outline of a polygon feature to dictate the placement of marker placement styles or geometric effects that use a template

Polygon Buffer Creates a dynamic polygon with a specified distance around the outline of a polygon feature Buffer geometric effect

Polygon Donut Creates a dynamic polygon ring of a specified width in relation to the outline of a polygon feature Donut geometric effect

Polygon Enclosing polygon Creates a dynamic polygon from the spatial extent of a polygon feature Enclosing polygon geometric effect

Polygon Move Creates a dynamic polygon whose outline is offset a specified distance in x and y from the outline of a polygon feature; often used to mimic a drop shadow Move geometric effect

Polygon Offset Creates a dynamic polygon whose outline is offset a specified distance from the outline of a polygon feature Offset geometric effect

Polygon Rotate Creates a dynamic polygon rotated a specified angle from a polygon feature Rotate geometric effect

Polygon Scale Creates a dynamic polygon scaled by a specified factor from a polygon feature. Vertices are moved in relation to the center point of the feature envelope. Values greater than 1 move vertices away from the center point; values between 0 and 1 move vertices toward the center point; a zero value creates a null dynamic polygon; values less than zero draw an inverse dynamic polygon where the vertices have crossed to the other side of the center point. Scale geometric effect

Polygon Simplify Creates a dynamic generalized line from the outline of a polygon feature using the Douglas-Peucker algorithm Simplify geometric effect

Polygon Smooth Creates a dynamic generalized line from the outline of a polygon feature by setting a flat tolerance Smooth geometric effect

Polygon Wave Creates a dynamic polygon outline along a polygon feature's outline with a repeating wave pattern that is either sinusoidal, square, triangular, or irregular Wave geometric effect


Parameter Definitions



Input Geometry Output Geometry Geometric Effect Definitions
Point Line
Radial from point geometric effect
Angle: The orientation of the line from the marker. The default value is 0 (zero) degrees (due East). The angle is calculated in a counter-clockwise manner.
Length: The distance of the line from end to end. The default value is 5 pt. Adjusting this value will change the length of the dynamic line.

Polygon
Buffer geometric effect
Size: The distance from the edge of the marker. The default value is 1 pt. Specifying values greater than 1 will create a larger dynamic polygon around the marker.

Polygon
Regular polygon geometric effect
Radius: The distance from the center of the polygon. The default value is 2.5 pt. Specifying values greater than 1 will create a larger dynamic polygon around the marker.
Edges: The number of sides for the polygon. The default number is 4. Specifying a value of 3 will produce a triangle. Specifiying a value less than 3 will produce a circle.
Angle: The amount of rotation for the polygon. The default value is 0 (zero) degrees.
Line Line
Add control points geometric effect
Angle tolerance: The maximum amount of deflection from one segment to another at a vertex. The default value is 120 degrees. Angle values between 180 and 360 are interpreted the same as values between 0 and 180. Angle values of 180 and 360 are the same as 0 (zero).

Line
Cut geometric effect
Begin cut: Indicates the distance from the beginning of a line that the stroke will start to be displayed. The beginning of a line is determined by the direction in which the line was digitized. The distance is applied along the line. The default value is 1 pt.
End cut: Indicates the distance from the end of a line that the stroke will start to be displayed. The ending of a line is determined by the direction in which the line was digitized. The distance is applied along the line. The default value is 1 pt.
Invert: Indicates the effect should be applied in the opposite manner. This will display the stroke symbol only at the ends of the line and leave the rest of the line unsymbolized. The default value is unchecked.

Line
Dashes geometric effect
Pattern: Indicates the distance for each dash and gap. There can be multiple dash and gap values to form a complex pattern. A dash is the symbolized part of the stroke and a gap is the un-symbolized part of the stroke. When the length of the line does not support the display of the entire pattern, the pattern will be compressed to fit.
Using an odd number of values will cause the pattern to double itself in overall length. The second half of the pattern will be the reverse of the first half. Using a value of 0 (zero) will is acceptable. These options allow for more complex dash patterns to be created.
The default values are 10pt and 10pt.
Endings: Indicates how the stroke symbol will be displayed at the ends of lines. The choices are No constraint, With half pattern, With full pattern, With half gap and With half gap. No constraint will draw the full pattern at the beginning of the line and as much of the pattern as remains at the end of the line. With half pattern will display half of the dash value at both ends of the line. With full pattern will display the full dash value at both ends of the line. With half gap will display half of the gap value at both ends of the line. With full gap will display the full gap value at both ends of the line. The first dash value and first gap value are used by default. The default value is With half pattern.

Line
Move geometric effect
X Offset: The distance to move the symbol along the X-axis from the feature geometry. The default value is 1 pt.
Y Offset: The distance to move the symbol along the Y-axis from the feature geometry. The default value is -1 pt.

Line
Offset geometric effect
Offset: The distance of the stroke perpendicular to the lines geometry. The default value is 1 pt.
Method: Indicates the way the strokes will display at corners. The choices are Mitered, Bevelled, Rounded and Square. Mitered will match the exact shape around a corner of the line. Bevelled will follow the shortest straight path across a corner of the line. Rounded will follow a path of equal distance around a corner of the line. Square will follow a straight path across the corner of a line. The default value is Square.
Option: indicates the way strokes will handle complex geometries. The choices are Fast and Accurate. Fast will ignore complex geometries and apply a best fit to the stroke symbol. Accurate will accommodate complex geometries and apply a true fit to the stroke symbol. The default value is Fast.
Count: The number of times the stroke should be offset. The default value is 1.

Line
Reverse geometric effect
Reverse: Indicates whether or not the dynamic output of a previous geometric effect will be flipped or not. The default value is checked.

Line
Rotate geometric effect
Angle: Indicates the amount of rotation for the stroke symbol. The default value is 15 degrees.

Line
Scale geometric effect
X Factor: Indicates the amount of change in size of a stroke symbol in the X-axis. The value is expressed in terms of a ratio/percentage. The default value is 1.15, or 115%.
Y Factor: Indicates the amount of change in size of a stroke symbol in the Y-axis. The value is expressed in terms of a ratio/percentage. The default value is 1.15, or 115%.

Line
Simplify geometric effect
Tolerance: Indicates the distance along a polygon outline to remove vertices from the stroke symbol. The default value is 10 pt.
A value of less than 10 will maintain more of the original shape of the stroke. A value of greater than 10 will maintain less of the original shape of the stroke.

Line
Smooth geometric effect
Flat tolerance: Indicates the distance along a line to include segments for a dynamic bezier curve. The default value is 1 pt.
A value greater than 1 will consider less segments for a dynamic bezier curve of the polygon outline.

Line
Wave geometric effect
Period: Indicates the distance along a line to display the curve for the stroke symbol. The default value is 3 pt.
Width: Indicates the distance perpendicular to a line to display the curve for the stroke symbol. The default value is 2 pt.
Style: Indicates the shape of the curve to be displayed. The choices are Sinus, Square, Triangle and Random. Sinus will display a sinusoidal curve or half moon shape. Square will display a three sided rectangular shaped curve. Triangle will display a two sided triangular shaped curve. Random will display a Sinus curve with random variation in the Period and Width of the curve. The default value is Sinus.
Seed: Indicates the starting value for generating a random number. This random number is used by the Style type Random to determine which size a marker will receive. The default value is 1.

polygon
Buffer geometric effect
Size: The distance from the edge of the stroke. The default value is 1 pt.

Polygon
Enclosing polygon geometric effect
Method: Indicates the way in which the polygon geometry will be generated around the stroke. The choices are Close path, Convex hull and Rectangular box. Close path will generate a polygon which connects both ends of the line together. Convex hull will generate a polygon which approximates the shape of the line. Rectangle box will generate a polygon equal to the spatial envelope of the line. The default value is Rectangle box.

Polygon
Tapered polygon geometric effect
From width: Indicates the width at the start of the line to be used to generate a polygon. The default value is 0 pt (zero).
To width: Indicates the width at the end of the line to be used to generate a polygon. The default value is 1 pt.
Length: Indicates the distance along the line to be used to generate the polygon. The default value is 0 pt (zero).
polygon Line
Cut geometric effect
Begin cut: Indicates the distance from the closing point of a polygon that the stroke will start to be displayed. The distance is applied along the polygon outline. The default value is 1 pt.
End cut: Indicates the distance from the closing point of a polygon that the stroke will start to be displayed. The distance is applied along the polygon outline. The default value is 1 pt.
Invert: Indicates the effect should be applied in the opposite manner. This will display the stroke symbol only at the closing point of a polygon and the rest of the polygon outline un-symbolized. The default value is unchecked.

Line
Dashes geometric effect
Pattern: Indicates the distance for each dash and gap. There can be multiple dash and gap values to form a complex pattern. A dash is the symbolized part of the stroke and a gap is the un-symbolized part of the stroke. When the length of the line does not support the display of the entire pattern, the pattern will be compressed to fit.
Using an odd number of values will cause the pattern to double itself in overall length. The second half of the pattern will be the reverse of the first half. Using a value of 0 (zero) will is acceptable. These options allow for more complex dash patterns to be created.
The default values are 10pt and 10pt.
Endings: Indicates how the stroke symbol will be displayed at the closing point of the polygon. The choices are No constraint, With half pattern, With full pattern, With half gap and With half gap. No constraint will draw the full pattern at the closing point of the polygon going clockwise and as much of the pattern as remains at the closing point of the polygon going counter-clockwise. With half pattern will display half of the dash value at both sides of the closing point of the polygon. With full pattern will display the full dash value at both sides of the closing point of the polygon. With half gap will display half of the gap value at both sides of the closing point of the polygon. With full gap will display the full gap value at both sides of the closing point of the polygon. The first dash value and first gap value are used by default. The default value is With half pattern.

Polygon
Add control points geometric effect
Angle tolerance: The maximum amount of deflection from one segment to another at a vertex. The default value is 120 degrees.
Angle values between 180 and 360 are interpreted the same as values between 0 and 180. Angle values of 180 and 360 are the same as 0 (zero).

Polygon
Buffer geometric effect
Size: The distance from the edge of the polygon outline. The default value is 1 pt.

Polygon
Donut geometric effect
Width: Indicates the distance from the edge of the polygon which will display the fill symbol. The default value is 2 pt.
Method: Indicates the way the strokes will display at convex corners of the polygon. The choices are Mitered, Bevelled, Rounded and True buffer. Mitered will match the exact shape around a convex corner of the polygon. Bevelled will follow the shortest straight path across a convex corner of the polygon. Rounded will follow a path of equal distance around a convex corner of the polygon. True buffer will use the buffer algorithm to follow a path around convex corners. The default value is Mitered.
Simple: Indicates whether or not complex geometries will be dynamically simplified in order to generate a donut. The default value is checked.

Polygon
Enclosing polygon geometric effect
Method: Indicates the way in which the polygon geometry will be generated around the polygon feature. The choices are Close path, Convex hull and Rectangular box. Close path will generate a polygon which matches the geometry of the polygon feature. Convex hull will generate a polygon with a minimum number of sides to surround the polygon feature. Rectangle box will generate a polygon equal to the spatial envelope of the polygonal feature. The default value is Rectangle box.

Polygon
Move geometric effect
X Offset: The distance to move the symbol along the X-axis from the feature geometry. The default value is 1 pt.
Y Offset: The distance to move the symbol along the Y-axis from the feature geometry. The default value is -1 pt.

Polygon
Offset geometric effect
Offset: The distance of the polygon outline perpendicular to the polygons geometry. The default value is 1 pt.
Method: Indicates the way the fill will display at corners. The choices are Mitered, Bevelled, Rounded and Square. Mitered will match the exact shape around a corner of the polygon. Bevelled will follow the shortest straight path across a corner of the polygon. Rounded will follow a path of equal distance around a corner of the polygon. Square will follow a straight path across the corner of a polygon. The default value is Square.
Option: indicates the way the polygon outline will handle complex geometries. The choices are Fast and Accurate. Fast will ignore complex geometries and apply a best fit to the polygon outline. Accurate will accommodate complex geometries and apply a true fit to the polygon outline. The default value is Fast.
Count: The number of times the stroke should be offset. The default value is 1.

Polygon
Rotate geometric effect
Angle: Indicates the amount of rotation for the fill symbol. The default value is 15 degrees.

Polygon
Scale geometric effect
X Factor: Indicates the amount of change in size of a fill symbol in the X-axis. The value is expressed in terms of a ratio/percentage. The default value is 1.15, or 115%.
Y Factor: Indicates the amount of change in size of a fill symbol in the Y-axis. The value is expressed in terms of a ratio/percentage. The default value is 1.15, or 115%.

Polygon
Simplify geometric effect
Tolerance: Indicates the distance along a polygon outline to remove vertices from the stroke symbol. The default value is 10 pt.
A value of less than 10 will maintain more of the original shape of the polygon outline. A value of greater than 10 will maintain less of the original shape of the polygon outline.

Polygon
Smooth geometric effect
Flat tolerance: Indicates the distance along a polygon outline to consider segments for a dynamic bezier curve of the polygon outline. The default value is 1 pt.
A value greater than 1 will consider less segments for a dynamic bezier curve of the polygon outline.

Polygon
Wave geometric effect
Period: Indicates the distance along a polygon outline to display the curves for the fill symbol. The default value is 3 pt.
Width: Indicates the distance perpendicular to a polygon outline to display the curves for the fill symbol. The default value is 2 pt.
Style: Indicates the shape of the curves to be displayed along the polygon outline. The choices are Sinus, Square, Triangle and Random. Sinus will display a sinusoidal curve or half moon shape. Square will display a four sided rectangular shape. Triangle will display a three sided triangular shape. Random will display a Sinus curve with random variation in the Period and Width of the outline and the interior of the polygon will remain fully symbolized. The default value is Sinus.
Seed: Indicates the starting value for generating a random number. This random number is used by the Style type Random to determine which size a marker will receive. The default value is 1.

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