idea Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label in ArcGIS Pro Ideas

Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

StephenLead — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 15:15:59 GMT

In Graduated Color or Graduated Symbol symbology, ArcMap allows you to set the Label to read whatever you want, rather than exactly what is shown in the Values column.

The problem is that the slightest change to ANY value in the Range column completely obliterates all of the other labels, potentially wasting a huge amount of time.

Eg, if I change the first Range value to be 250001 this is the result:

The logic should be that the Label is set to the Range when the Classification is first set (including on layer creation) but thereafter, any changes to the Label field are made by the user only, not automatically.

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

WatsonHarding — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:34:03 GMT

This drove me crazy with my senior geography project and representing signifigant population growth between 7 Censuses!

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

CameronWallace — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 02:05:04 GMT

Would also be nice to be able to script against the label values (i.e. round([value],1)... or have some other way to round the values... I don't know anyone who wants 6 sig figs after the decimal place in their legend (no matter how "correct" it is)

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

StephenLead — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 03:51:47 GMT

Cameron, there's an easy fix for that already. Click on the Label heading and choose Format Labels, and choose 1 decimal place

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

SusanZwillinger — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:02:33 GMT

I think we need to have an option to either have the Label update or not have it update. (Maybe a checkbox?) I can think of times when I want all of the Labels to update when I change the range or classification. Making the program never update the Labels area unless the user makes the change is not always practical.

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

StephenLead — Thu, 31 Jul 2014 01:36:24 GMT

Hellooooooooooo Esri. Please stop auto-updating my symbology labels. It's (still) driving me crazy

Re: ArcMap symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

MichaelVolz — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 18:43:26 GMT

The thread says that this idea is under consideration. Does anyone know how long this idea has been in this state?

If this idea is implemented, will it be done in both ArcMap and ArcPro. Since the idea was created in 2011, it seems only fair that it should be implemented in ArcMap as well as ArcPro.

Graduated Colour Symbology - Keep Labels "as Is" when editing the upper value

Marie_Ducharme — Sat, 04 Mar 2023 00:47:47 GMT

This is driving me bananas...maybe I am missing something, if so, please set the record straight!

To start, I have a feature class that is symbolized using graduated colors, with labels I formatted to look good in the legend of my map. See left-hand side of the screenshot below)

I re-use this symbology often (using the very awesome "import symbology" function. When I use the same symbology with a different dataset, I sometimes need to change the upper values...when I do so, Arc automatically changes ALL my labels.....see the labels in the right hand side of the screenshot....ALL the lables have changed! 😞

I'm really hoping this is easily fixable because it's REALLY annoying to have to reformat the labels for all the ranges.

Please ask me to explain further if need be. Sometimes its hard to describe an issue clearly.

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

Cmurchie — Wed, 01 May 2024 16:37:24 GMT

Y'know It's been a good 15 years or so, but beginning to think now it's time to fix this heavily upvoted bug.

Symbology: Add a button to opt out of automatically regenerating "label" for graduated colors symbols when editing classes

AllenDailey1 — Thu, 09 May 2024 16:21:36 GMT

My idea is to have a button to give the user the choice of whether Pro should automatically regenerate "Label" for symbol classes when using graduated colors or other symbology with classes.

Currently, at least in Pro 3.0.3, the lack of this ability causes me to do extra work - Pro automatically rewrites the "Label" text whenever I change an "upper value" or anything, and Pro gets rid of the formatting I had previously manually typed for the labels, like the percent symbol and one or no decimal places. Pro adds in 6 decimal places. So I have to manually delete all those and manually enter in the other formatting I want, like the percent sign. I've had to retype all this many times, as I think I'm done with deciding on the breaks/intervals for the classes but later decide to tweak them.

I have this symbology, representing a percentage - this is what it should look like in the legend:

Here is what it looks like after I have typed the Label just how I want, in the symbology configuration pane:

I realized the 19.2 Upper Value (which was inherited from another feature class whose symbology I imported for this feature class) meant that a couple features with higher values than this were not being symbolized on the map. When I changed the highest upper value from 19.2 to 100, all the labels regenerated to this:

Dang.

My idea is that Pro doesn't need to eliminate this capability to automatically regenerate the labels. Just have a button or checkbox, right there in the symbology pane, that would give me the choice to opt out.

Thanks for reading!

Re: Symbology: Add a button to opt out of automatically regenerating "label" for graduated colors symbols when editing classes

AllenDailey1 — Thu, 09 May 2024 16:27:35 GMT

I discovered there is another "Idea" for this, posted 13 years ago in 2011:

https://community.esri.com/t5/arcgis-pro-ideas/symbology-changing-the-value-should-not-update-the/idi-p/928055

It has a lot of votes. It's also marked as "under consideration."

Esri people, do you know if anything is happening with this?

Thanks!

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

AllenDailey1 — Thu, 09 May 2024 16:30:41 GMT

It's interesting to see that this post was written in 2011!! I'm really curious as to whether any action is happening related to this? I hope so.

Before I came across this post, I had already posted my own "Idea" about this issue, which is here, just FYI:

https://community.esri.com/t5/arcgis-pro-ideas/symbology-add-a-button-to-opt-out-of-automatically/idc-p/1423394#M30001

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label - Status changed to: In Product Plan

EdiePunt — Thu, 09 May 2024 16:40:11 GMT

Don't set to default the entire classified symbology when changing interval values

RTPL_AU — Wed, 24 Jul 2024 00:19:02 GMT

When you have created a complex manual interval with custom label entries symbology and you change one interval value, Pro resets every label back to defaults and not just the changed interval.

Simple example

Custom symbology:

Dare to change one value:

Now I have to redo all the legend labels.

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label - Status changed to: Implemented

EdiePunt — Thu, 07 Nov 2024 22:47:04 GMT

This has been implemented in ArcGIS Pro 3.4. In graduated symbols or graduated colors symbology, you can now choose whether the symbol class labels are updated when the upper value is changed.

Go to Your Ideas in ArcGIS Pro 3.4 to see other ideas implemented this release and check out the What's New help to learn about everything that is new and improved in ArcGIS Pro 3.4.

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

RTPL_AU — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 01:00:07 GMT

@EdiePunt @KoryKramer Can you please remove the confusing "Implemented" label from this Idea?

This has not been fully (properly?) implemented. I've just wasted time running up a machine with Pro 3.4.3 specifically to use this so I don't have to re-create the Labels every time a client wants a tweak in the increments. Silly me eh?

The expectation from the Idea is that in Symbology - everywhere where a user may want to change increment values, and / or have custom labels, Pro SHOULD NOT CHANGE THE CUSTOM LABELS for any lines/rows that are not affected by an update.

If you are so keen to have users redo work, place a button in the Symbology UI that reads "Reset all labels".

For brownie points expose it via python, also link it to the useless license check counter to automatically get pressed every 200 useless license checks. I can then run a script with OpenCV or something that goes "IF License check counter >200 press button ELSE IF user looks happy press button; wait 10 minutes...."

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

RTPL_AU — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 01:42:22 GMT

For anyone looking for a workaround until this Idea gets properly implemented.

Save the symbolised layer as a .lyrx

Edit the lyrx in something like Notepad++ (it's just a text file with a loose xml format).

Pull the new symbology back into Pro.

You can change increments, labels, and colours easily:

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

RoseF — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 15:59:28 GMT

Yes, the "implement" button makes it impossible for more people to add Kudos.

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

EdiePunt — Sun, 20 Apr 2025 18:10:51 GMT

@RTPL_AU You are correct that I mistakenly marked this as fully implemented in ArcGIS Pro 3.4. This was implemented for feature layers in ArcGIS Pro 3.4. From your example, it looks like you are working with raster layers. This has been implemented for raster layers in ArcGIS Pro 3.5, which is to be released soon.

Starting at version 3.4, when working with feature layers, in the More menu, uncheck Always update class labels to get this behavior:

Starting at version 3.5, when working with raster layers, in the More menu, uncheck Always update class labels to get this behavior:

Re: Symbology - changing the Value should NOT update the Label

RTPL_AU — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 00:28:32 GMT

Hi @EdiePunt @KoryKramer
Thank you for that.
Is it possible for Esri to add the version to the 'Implemented' tag?
For all intents & purposes Ideas are not implemented if it is not a version paying customers can actually access.

Are these settings available as a global option or will I have to go and uncheck them every single time I use that style of symbology?