ArcIMS Help

What is ArcIMS?
 
ArcIMS is an internet map server that renders maps on your request. You can decide the layers and the scale for viewing. It also provides some basic GIS (Geographic Information Systems) tools that allow you to create new data sets based on spatial relations or retrieve existing data sets from the map's graphical interface.
 
Using the ArcIMS html Viewer
 
map title = Displays the name of the map project.
overview map = Displays the position of the view map.
map display = The map display view window.
layer list & legend = Lists all data layers available to use and view. For a detail description on how to use the Layer List functions, see below.
scale bar = Displays the mapping scale of the Map Display.

data display = Displays any data information of a layer when you use the identify tool or make a query. Some features may be asociated with multiple records.
selected tool display = Displays which tool you have selected in the tool bar area.
links = Go to other linked webpages.
tool bar = Displays various buttons that allow you to interact with the map, such as zooming in and out or pan around the map. For a detail description into each one of the tool's functions, see below.

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Tool Bar (Left Side of Window):

If you hold your cursor over a tool for a few seconds a name will pop up for that tool. The information, find, and query buttons can be used to find information in the database for the active layer. The other tools present are for navigating and measuring the maps. To use these tools it is necessary to make the layer you are interested in active. To activate a layer simply click on the radio button in the layer list on the right side of the screen. A message should appear in the text box on the bottom left hand side of the page.

 
Legend/Layer list button
Toggle overview map
Zooms in by clicking on or dragging a box on the map
Zooms out by clicking or dragging a box on the map
Zooms to full extent of the map
Zooms to the Active Layer in the Layer List area
Zooms to the previous extent
Pans as the user drags the pointer across the map
Pans the map to the North
Pans the map to the South
Pans the map to the West
Pans the map to the East
Display linked webpages by clicking feature
View attribute information from an active layer
Query builder - constructs queries on the data
Finds map features based on data attributes
Measure distances on the map
Sets map units for measuring distances
Select features by clicking or dragging a box on the map
Select features by either a line or polygon intersection
Clears all selected map features
Prints a map of the current Map Display

 

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Layers (Right Side of Window):
Map layers are listed on the right side of the screen. Some layers are scale dependent. If you zoom in or zoom out to a certain scale, these layers will be displayed automatically.

The Legend/Layer List button allows you to toggle between the layer list(Left) or a legend(Right), which shows the symbology for each layer.

Each layer has two interactive modes: Visible and Active. (Image types like satellite images do not have attributes, and therefore do not have an active mode.) Most layers are initially turned off to keep the download time reasonable. To view layers, simply click on the Visible check box and then refresh the map with the button found on the bottom of the list.

The Active circle column allows you to make a specific layer active to work with certain tools in the tool bar area. For example, if you wanted to find out when webpages are hotlinked to the "Vibracore" layer, you would need to click on the circle to the left of "Vibracore", click on the lightening bolt tool in the tool bar, and then click on the Vibracore feature in the map to view the hotlinked webpage associated with the feature.

Some Layers are scale dependent. They are not viewable until you zoom in or out to a mapping scale threshold.

Refresh Map Button: This is very important! For the map display, to reflect your command when you change the visibility of a layer, you MUST use the Refresh Map button. For example, if you click the Visible box for the "Sieve" layer, you MUST click the Refresh Map button to display the "Sieve" layer. Likewise, if you want to make a Layer not visible.

 

Contact:

If you have questions of a technical nature or need additional help using this page contact haiyan@mail.utexas.edu.