topic Re: World Geocode Service Issue in ArcGIS Online Questions

World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 15:36:39 GMT

I am trying to use the World Geocode Service to batch geocode addresses across the U.S. However, whenever I do so, I get the following error message:

"There was an error trying to process this table. ArcGIS Online subscription is required for geocoding the table of addresses."

The problem is that I am actually logged into ArcGIS Online when this happens (see image). Perhaps I have the wrong subscription type?! I can't tell though, despite my efforts to figure this out.

This is especially annoying for multiple reasons, among them. 1. It worked in previous versions of the software; 2. There are free batch geocoders online; and 3. There are other desktop solutions (e.g. QGIS with the Nominatim and Google web services) that are fully functional.

As an educator and an individual who promotes GIS solutions, I am finding it increasingly difficult to promote Esri products, especially when something as basic and near universal as geocoding is not properly functioning. I implore Esri to fix this.

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

TimWitt2 — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 15:37:54 GMT

Todd,

You would need an organizational subscription or a developer subscription to do this, since it will use credits. Maybe you could look into getting a educational account?

Tim

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

StevenGraf1 — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 15:57:03 GMT

There is a 30 day free trial that grants you 200 credits for free.

The credit fee for geocoding is 40 credits per 1,000 geocodes

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

StevenGraf1 — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 15:59:45 GMT

You can log into ArcMap with a global esri account but it won't allow you to use the World Geocoding Service. The ArcGIS Online account is separate. Depending on what state you are in, ArcGIS Online Educational Subscriptions may be free.

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:14:14 GMT

I would assume our educational subscription should be "free" since we have a campus-wide license. This begs the question of how I would check this and how I would go about using this account?

I am still flummoxed as to what Esri hopes to achieve with this business model when such services are freely and readily available elsewhere. I am left shaking my head in disbelief.

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

StevenGraf1 — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:18:35 GMT

When I mentioned educational, I was referring to K-12. You could contact ESRI with your customer number and check on your subscription to see what's all included.

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

StevenGraf1 — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:25:05 GMT

You may also find this list of geocoders useful.

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

Ross_PaulMartin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:31:00 GMT

Todd, I know this might be a bit obvious, but the ArcGIS desktop Geocoding tools do work fine to geocode addresses as well. You may find it that geocoding the addresses with out the use of a service that is based upon a cost recovery model (data and services cost money to support), is the best approach. If you have solid road data or places names data and or property info, you can geocode just fine with out a ArcGIS Server service. The added benefit of doing this is that you can govern the quality control. Many answer machine base geocoders such as Bing and Google are built to give you an answer "no matter what". This is often worst than getting no information back. They all are sourcing their data back to just one or two commercial clearing houses, which charge for access, e.g., NavTec.

Absent this approach, you need to be in an organizational AGOL subscription with the rights to send credits (which are money).

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:37:29 GMT

In a nutshell, this is a problem. Previously, Esri made its default address locator available for free. It was very useful if you were needing a quick answer to a problem. For instance, if you have to geocode in a very large area, it is easier to use a canned geocoding service rather than building your own based on available data. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked.

Esri makes a lot of money off its customers already. This is just another way for it to gauge us. It is getting to the point of being ridiculous.

Todd Fagin

Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory/

Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

Ross_PaulMartin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:45:53 GMT

Todd, this is not the case at all. Many many for profit business give away services and products with the intention of getting the customers accustom to the product or its utility. This was no different. It is called a “loss leader”. There is no gouging on behalf of a company that sells services and supplies (software). Credits are incredible cheap and they are the cost of doing business for those that do not wish to set up their own enterprise GIS services with ArcGIS Server. Think of it this way, they are making it possible for you to have ArcGIS Server experiences for a work breakdown schedule of individual parts as services (software as a service), rather than asking you to buy the entire system. Credits cost only 1% of total costs relative to the costs of setting up an ArcGIS for Server Enterprise system. You are essentially getting something much better than you had before for a very low cost.

Respectfully,

Ross Paul Martin – County GIS Manager

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:50:05 GMT

I have been using Esri products since the late 1990s. I am also aware of many other products on the market, both proprietary and open source.

Believe, I know what I am talking about when I saw Esri is gauging its customers. It could get away with this when it was the only player on the market. That is no longer the case.

It is just another reason I am running, not walking from this company to whom I have been a loyal customer for more than 15 years.

Todd Fagin

Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory/

Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

Ross_PaulMartin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:54:17 GMT

I feel your pain. I wish everything was low cost as well.

Respectfully,

Ross Paul Martin

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 19:56:41 GMT

I, of course, understand that things cost money, that is far from the point I am making.

I am making a point of Esri’s once mighty empire crumbling as it becomes painfully obvious to many that its business model is untenable in this day and age.

Todd Fagin

Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory/

Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

Ross_PaulMartin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 20:03:17 GMT

Have you seen ArcGIS Pro? This is just the nature of a growing market place. Competition breeds better products.

Respectfully,

Ross Paul Martin

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

BradNiemand — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 21:00:07 GMT

Todd,

Please take a look at this page to see how you could potentially qualify for 100 credits:

ArcGIS Online Entitlements

These 100 credits amount to 2500 batch geocodes and in addition to that any single geocode requests through the Find dialog or the geocoding toolbar are free.

In addition to that, 1000 geocodes will use 40 credits and would end up costing $4.

Brad

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

ToddFagin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 21:45:18 GMT

We can go back and forth on this with no resolution because it is all a matter of opinion.

I was able to easily solve my problem by using a freely available, online batch geocoder. For the scale needed, this worked perfectly well, regardless of how annoying the diminished functionality in ArcGIS is.

If I am working at larger geographic scales, I can easily build my own address locator using better source data.

There are also numerous non-Esri tools available that enable me to geocode. There was a time when I could not say that, when GIS professionals were primarily restricted to one software unless they worked in a particular niche market. And for the non-professionals who may need to occasionally geocode. Sure, I can tell them to buy expensive software, then purchase expensive credits to use a particular geocode service or I can tell them there are alternative solutions that, in the end, may be significantly cheaper.

Todd Fagin

Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory/

Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability

Re: World Geocode Service Issue

Ross_PaulMartin — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 23:02:42 GMT

I totally understand. Sometimes cost must be the primary or only consideration.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE semi-smartphone