Introduction to creating Web applications with Manager

ArcGIS Server Manager and ArcIMS Web Manager (Manager) allow you to create and edit Web mapping applications that showcase the geographic information running on your server. Manager's easy-to-use interface is intended for people with little or no Web development experience. You don't need to know how to program with an IDE to create powerful Web mapping applications.

Through Manager, you build your Web application and tailor it to the needs of the people who will use it. Manager lets you choose the data you want to show, select map elements such as North arrows and scale bars, select tools for working with your application, and configure the map layout.

The main steps in creating your Web applications are:

• Choosing layers to be displayed in the map
• Configuring tasks
• Defining the look and feel
• Deploying the application

The above links explain each stage of creating a Web application in Manager. If you want to briefly step through the process of building a simple application, see Tutorial: Creating a Web application. Otherwise, read on for more detailed instructions.

How to start creating a Web application

To start creating your Web application, you'll need to be logged into Manager. The username and password you use depends on which software and platform you are using:

• ArcGIS Server Manager for the Microsoft .NET Framework: The login requires an account from the agsadmin group on the SOM machine and the Administrator group on the Web server machine. This is so Manager has write privileges for creating new Web applications.
• ArcGIS Server Manager for the Java platform: The login requires an account in the agsadmin group on the SOM machine.
• ArcIMS Web Manager for the Microsoft .NET Framework: The login requires an account from the agsadmin group on the SOM machine and the Administrator group on the Web server machine. This is so Manager has write privileges for creating new Web applications.
• ArcIMS Web Manager for the Java Platform: the login requires the same username and password you use when logging into ArcIMS Administrator or Service Administrator.

Once logged into Manager, follow these steps to start creating an application:

1. Click the Applications tab (ArcGIS Server only).
2. If necessary, change the language that the application will be created in (.NET only). By default, the Web applications you create in Manager are written in C#. If you would like them written in Visual Basic .NET, click Settings in the upper-right corner of Manager. Under the Web Application Language heading, select VB from the dropdown box, then click Save.
3. Click Create Web Application.
4. Enter the name of the Web server machine that will host your application (.NET only).
5. Enter a name for your application. The Applications tab in Manager lists all of the Web applications you have deployed on your server. The name that you enter here will be used in that list.
6. Type a more detailed description of the Web application. This description will also be visible from the Applications tab.
7. Click Next to continue to the layer selection panel.

Next topic: Selecting layers to display