Provide documentation on Arcade evaluation in Field Maps vs Map Viewer

[BlakeMorrison]

I've been in contact with Tech Support and we've discovered that there is no documentation regarding the difference in how Arcade is evaluated between Field Maps and Map Viewer.

It was suggested to me that the more people upvote the idea of documentation, the more likely Esri is to provide it.

[LindsayRaabe_FPCWA]

Yes! And I wish that the Arcade windows woudn't give you functions that aren't compatible in Field Maps when you're writing the code in Field Maps Designer, or at least highlighted when a selected function won't work in Field Maps. 

[ChrisDunn1]

Hi @BlakeMorrison ,

What sort of differences are you seeing? There are a few specific ways where Field Maps and the Map Viewer/Designer differentiate but for the most part they should be virtually identical.

In general the differences come down to three things:

- Support for new functions. Field Maps is built on the ArcGIS Maps SDK, which doesn't always support the newest Arcade functions. There is a version matrix available here. Field Maps is typically one or two versions behind, currently it supports functions up to Arcade 1.35.

- Form calculations. In complex forms that involve a lot of fields, multiple calculations, and functions that call things like Random() or Now(), Field Maps needs to evaluate the calculations in a less declarative way than the map viewer, so it can take longer or get locked into logical loops. Improvements will be coming in this area in a future release.

- Bugs. There are sometimes bugs in how Arcade is treated in Field Maps or the Maps SDK when compared to the map viewer. If you run into anything that does not seem correct we do want to hear about it, either through a support ticket or [email protected].

If there is a specific scenario you are trying to work through please let us know.

Chris

[BlakeMorrison]

I want documentation on the parts that are different. You (esri) seem to be aware of them. Can we have documentation for the product, please? I shouldn't have to define your product before you will.

When I share Arcade with a colleague, I shouldn't have to tell them "Esri's products evaluate differently, that's why the Arcade appears over-written. I can't give you any specifics, nor can Esri. Good luck!"

Map Viewer evaluates on clicking out of a text input, I think. Field Maps is always evaluating. I think that's the main problem I have.

I dont think this problem has anything to do with Profiles, but for what it's worth that matrix is so confusing as to be next to useless.

You say Field Maps uses "ArcGIS Maps SDK" there's two versions of that on the pages you linked, as well as Field Maps itself. This is not clarification. This is how confusion is caused. I was under the impression Field Maps specifically did not use ArcGIS Maps SDK.

EDIT: I think the following is what I want documentation on. It's not complex forms though. It's very basic and simple stuff that doesn't translate.

"- Form calculations. In complex forms that involve a lot of fields, multiple calculations, and functions that call things like Random() or Now(), Field Maps needs to evaluate the calculations in a less declarative way than the map viewer, so it can take longer or get locked into logical loops. Improvements will be coming in this area in a future release."