Collapse all Welcome to ArcGIS Desktop Help Copyright information Acknowledgements GIS Dictionary

What's new in ArcGIS

What's new in ArcGIS 9.3 What's new in ArcGIS 9.3.1 Migration guides

Getting started

Map projections and coordinate systems

Getting started with map projections An overview of map projections Projection basics the GIS professional needs to know About the geoid, ellipsoid, spheroid and datum, and how they are related Identifying an unknown coordinate system Converting Degrees Minutes Seconds values to Decimal Degree values Geographic coordinate systems About geographic coordinate systems Spheroids and spheres Datums North American datums What happens to features at +/-180 (dateline)? GCS_Assumed_Geographic_1 Projected coordinate systems About projected coordinate systems About map projections Projection types Planar projections Conic projections Cylindrical projections Other projections Projection parameters Geographic transformations Geographic transformation methods Equation-based methods Grid-based methods Supported map projections Vertical coordinate systems

Mapping and visualization

An overview of mapping and visualization Using ArcMap Layers, data frames, and the table of contents Starting ArcMap Creating a new map Opening a map Using the table of contents About coordinate systems and map projections Specifying a coordinate system Referencing data in the map Working with data frames Pausing the map's drawing Saving a map and exiting ArcMap Saving to previous versions of ArcGIS Keyboard shortcuts in ArcMap Working with layers Navigating and interacting with maps Navigating maps and layout pages Interacting with maps Adding graphics and text to maps Working with graphics Working with text Symbolizing data Animation Using cartographic representations Getting started with representations Representation concepts Working with representations Editing feature representations Page layout and map composition Getting started with laying out and printing maps Map elements Grids and graticules Rulers and guides Working with data frames in layout view Creating interactive and paperless maps Map output Map series Designing maps for optimal performance Working with graphs and reports Looking at data with graphs (Pre-ArcGIS 9.2) Looking at data with graphs Creating reports Working with web maps in ArcGIS An overview of GIS Web map layers Working with ArcGIS Server in ArcGIS Desktop Using services from ArcGIS Server Using services from ArcIMS Using OGC Services Using KML Using ArcGIS Online Using image service layers Working with service layers in the table of contents Printing and exporting maps containing service layers Publishing optimized map services in ArcGIS

Editing and data compilation

An overview of editing and data compilation Getting started with editing About editing your geodatabase in ArcMap Adding the data you want to edit Editing ArcSDE geodatabases The structure of vector datasets Adding the editing toolbars Starting and stopping an edit session The sketch construction tools Using the snapping environment About setting distance units Setting direction measuring systems and units Editing features that have z-values Shortcut keys for editing in ArcMap Frequently asked questions about editing Common editing tasks Creating new features Editing existing features Editing attributes Editing annotation An overview of editing annotation Creating new annotation features Creating and editing annotation that follows features Editing the size and position of annotation features Editing annotation in the Attributes dialog box Editing the appearance of annotation features Editing feature-linked annotation Editing dimension features Using a digitizer Spatial adjustment Editing topology Editing relationships and related objects COGO An overview of COGO Common COGO workflows About COGO descriptions Adding COGO fields to a feature class Traverse file format Offset points file format Applying a ground to grid correction Reporting COGO descriptions Using the Curve Calculator command Using the COGO Area command Splitting features into COGO lines

Tables and attribute information

Understanding tables and attribute information Creating tables and managing attribute information Displaying tables and attribute information

Geoprocessing

What is geoprocessing? A whirlwind tour of geoprocessing Geoprocessing tools Geoprocessing framework Frequently Asked Questions about geoprocessing Fundamental tool concepts Using geoprocessing tools An overview of using tools Using the tool dialog Managing toolboxes Managing tools and toolsets Batch processing Using tools in the command line Tool layers Automating your work with models Automating your work with scripts Geoprocessing environments Documenting tools and toolboxes An overview of documenting tools and toolboxes An overview of the Documentation Editor Entering topics in the Documentation Editor Using the page editor Documenting models Documenting scripts Viewing documentation for tools Changing tool dialog appearance Referencing a compiled help file Exporting tool documentation to an HTML file Sharing tools and toolboxes Geoprocessing with ArcGIS Server Keeping track of geoprocessing history Advanced modeling through simulations

Geoprocessing tool reference

Geodatabases and ArcSDE

An overview of the geodatabase Architecture of a geodatabase Architecture of a geodatabase Geodatabase storage is based on relational principles Where does the application logic belong? The geodatabase is object-relational Geodatabase storage in relational databases Geodatabase transaction management Geodatabase XML Designing a geodatabase An overview of geodatabase design Geodatabase design steps Using ArcGIS Data Model designs Documenting your geodatabase design Modeling feature classes A note about the use of UML for geodatabase design Design Tips Building a geodatabase Creating a geodatabase Defining the properties of a geodatabase Adding datasets and other geodatabase elements Working with geodatabase datasets Data management workflows, transactions, and versioning Getting started with editing and maintaining data Working with non-versioned data Working with versioned data Managing Distributed Data Archiving data Geodatabase data storage and schema Administering ArcSDE geodatabases Administering File and Personal geodatabases An overview of administering file and personal geodatabases File geodatabases: compressing vs. compacting Compacting file and personal geodatabases About compressing file geodatabase data Upgrading file and personal geodatabases File geodatabases and Windows Explorer File geodatabase size and name limits File geodatabases and locking Working with geodatabases using SQL An overview of working with ST_Geometry storage using SQL Spatial relationships Spatial operations Geometry properties SQL implementation differences for the ST_Geometry type Using spatial types with SQL SQL functions reference

Data management with ArcCatalog

An overview of ArcCatalog About workspaces Getting started with ArcCatalog Starting ArcCatalog Browsing through the Catalog What's in the Catalog Repositioning the Catalog tree Stopping ArcCatalog Building the Catalog About folders and file types Managing folder connections Creating and accessing geodatabases Creating spatial database connections Adding OLE DB connections About database server connections About GIS servers and services Connecting to GIS servers Working with database connections Hiding folders and items Altering the data formats read by ArcCatalog Working with file types Accessing delimited text file data Managing the Catalog's contents The Contents tab Working in Details view Changing the columns in Details view Modifying the default settings for exploring contents Exploring an item's properties Organizing your data Converting data to a different format Exploring an item's geography Searching for items About search results Finding items using the Search tool Searching with geographic criteria Searching with temporal criteria Searching with keywords Working with search results Working with metadata

Image and raster data management

Understanding raster data What is raster data? Raster bands Cell size of raster data Representing features in a raster dataset Discrete and continuous data Raster dataset zones and regions Raster dataset attribute tables Raster data organization Gathering basic raster dataset information Supported raster data Supported raster dataset file formats Technical specifications for raster dataset formats About the ESRI Grid format About MrSID rasters BIL, BIP, and BSQ raster files Raster data with subdatasets Building a customized raster format Properties of raster data About raster dataset properties Raster pyramids Raster dataset statistics Raster compression About reduced resolution dataset files About auxiliary files About proxy files Defining a raster's coordinate system Raster dataset colormaps Bit depth capacity for raster dataset cells NoData in raster datasets World files for raster datasets Designing a raster database Building and managing a raster database Raster display and visualization Displaying rasters Adding a raster dataset to a map Adding a raster catalog to a map Saving a raster dataset or catalog layer file About setting default raster display options Choosing which raster formats can be viewed Setting the default bands to display multiband rasters Displaying the raster's spatial resolution Georeferencing a raster dataset Georeferencing video sample Orthorectifying a raster dataset About projecting raster datasets on the fly Improving the display of raster data Color correcting using raster data Working with the histogram when displaying raster data Changing the appearance of background values Symbolizing values of NoData in raster datasets Interactively viewing pixel values using the Pixel Inspector Interactively reveal rasters using the Swipe Layer tool Panchromatic sharpening Performance tuning for displaying raster data Raster analysis and geoprocessing Serving raster data

Data support in ArcGIS

Extensions

Geocoding and address management

Getting started with geocoding Understanding geocoding Preparing for geocoding Building an address locator Locating addresses Additional geocoding techniques Alternative searches The Alternate Name table tab The Alias Table dialog box Building an address locator for alternative searches Searching for an intersection Building a composite address locator Keeping an address locator current Distributing your address locator Adjusting your address locator file Exploring the address locator file Why change your address locator file? Changing default settings Changing default settings in the address locator template file Table schema and the locator file Accommodating alternative reference table schema Modifying the query Accommodating changes in the geocoding rule base files Address Locator Properties dialog box About StreetMap data About StreetMap data

Linear referencing

Network analysis

Mobile GIS

Interoperability and standards support

Customizing and developing with ArcGIS

Guide to data that comes with ArcGIS

Licensing and desktop administration

GIS Servers and services

An overview of GIS servers used with ArcGIS Using ArcIMS with ArcGIS Desktop An overview to using ArcIMS with ArcGIS Desktop Types of ArcIMS services Publishing GIS contents for use with ArcIMS Using ArcGIS Server with ArcGIS Desktop An overview to using ArcGIS Server with ArcGIS Desktop About the roles of GIS end users, authors, developers, and administrators Types of services in ArcGIS Server Authoring and publishing services for ArcGIS Server Administering ArcGIS Server with ArcCatalog Creating and publishing web maps for ArcGIS Server