Adding new points to a feature layer via Update/Add

Question

I am developing our first map project in ArcGIS online, and I am struggling to create a process for updating and adding new points.

For ease of explanation, our project is a map of about 13,000 cemeteries worldwide where Canadian veterans are known to be buried. As there are new burials every day and many existing burials as yet unrecorded, this data will require regular updating to add new cemeteries and update the data attached to existing points.

I am struggling to figure out how to add new cemetery sites to the feature layer, and have them plotted on the map. Add/Update does add them to the attribute table, but does not create the point geometry to plot them. The same issue comes up when we find an error in the x,y coords and need to update those. It's clear that updating the attribute table isn't enough to update the geometry and see the changes on the map, but I can't figure out how to bridge that gap.

I have looked for solutions in these communities but found only references to tools available in ArcGIS Pro (such as XY Table to Point).

How can we add new points to our existing feature layer and update geometry for existing points, in ArcGIS Online? Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

bbollin · Answer

@MichelleK_NSLAalthough you can do a field calculation, if sounds like you might need a longer term solution for continual editing and maintenance of your coordinates. There are a few solutions here.

1) If you want to enter the specific coordinates for the point while you are editing and then have the table update after the fact, you can use tooltips. See this blog to walk through the explanation and example: https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-online/mapping/map-a-point-tooltips/

2) If you want to place a point using the edit tool and then have your table automatically updated to whatever the coordinates are anytime you edit/update the feature, you can create a calculated expression in your form. See item #5 in this blog https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/field-maps/field-mobility/common-calculated-expressions-for-arcgis-field-maps/

clt_cabq · Answer

I understand a better - coordinates stored in your table are NOT what drives the location on the map and generally are for 'information' use only. Because table coordinates aren't updated automatically when you change the location of a point, I generally don't consider this a 'best practice' for precisely the same reasons you are describing. If you are going to have those coordinates for some kind of reporting purpose you have to make sure your update workflow includes a process to update the x,y coordinates in the table. This is why I never 'trust' table coordinates when I look at or receive data that includes those. The method suggested by @RyanBohan works if your workflow includes working in Pro. You can implement some Arcade to calculate geometry in ArcGIS Online, but there are some challenges there depending on how your hosted feature class is setup. If you creating a popup that displays those values works for your use case then that is feasible as well, and maybe the better solution since the displayed coordinates will not be out of sync.

RyanBohan · Answer

If you adjust the x/y in the attribute table, do you want the point geometry location to move to match that location?

You can do this as a field calculation within Pro

UpdatePoint( !Location_Latitude!,!Location_Longitude!)

def UpdatePoint(Location_Latitude, Location_Longitude):

# Spatial reference set to GCS_WGS_1984

spatialReference = arcpy.SpatialReference(4326)

myPoint = arcpy.Point(Location_Latitude, Location_Longitude)

myPointGeometry = arcpy.PointGeometry(myPoint, spatialReference)

return myPointGeometry