Create and manage Legend directly in the Layout View

[JurajKrumpolec]

Significant improvements are needed in the field of Legend Element creation and management to be more interactive and flexible, to allow for faster and more effective workflow. No wizards or cumbersome dialog boxes necessary. This idea makes use of functionality proposed by https://community.esri.com/ideas/3260.

Fast and easy Legend creation:

• Drag and Drop selected layers from TOC directly to the Layout.
• Context menu in TOC: Add to Legend/Remove from Legend options.
• Legend context menu: Add/Remove Item.

Flexible Legend management and formatting:

• Resizing Legend Element horizontally and vertically distributes Legend Items into columns and wraps legend text, especially labels into multiple rows.
• More different shapes of Legend’s frame (not only rectangle). Wrap Legend’s contents around graphics in the Layout. Change vertical content’s alignment.
• Threading Legend Elements – allow contents to flow between connected Legends in different parts of the Layout. Possibility to rotate Legend Element.
• Edit Legend’s spacing with possibility to parametrically define each size directly in the Layout.
• Change Appearance and Arrangement of all Items directly in Legend’s context menu.
• Access map connection settings directly through Legend context menu. Possibility to define custom reference scale.
• Insert special-purpose formatting objects: Line, Heading, Space, Column Break, etc.
• Introduce overall Legend Style, which would define Legend properties and formatting including: items format, spacing between legend’s parts, title format, etc.
• Legend context menu example

Interactive Legend Items manipulation, formatting and display:

• Reorder, move or copy legend’s items directly in the Layout by drag & drop inside single Legend Element or between different Legends.
• Possibility to replace items by drag &drop while preserving item’s formatting and settings.
• Insert Placeholder or Proxy to temporarily take the place of currently unavailable layer.
• Access Legend Items directly from the Layout. Apply style or custom formatting, patch shape and size to item parts, multiple items selected or the whole legend. Possibility for each item to have custom background.
• Control display of: Item, Name, Heading, Label, Description, Patch for selected/all items.
• Legend Item context menu example:

Provide serious Undo functionality.Related idea: https://community.esri.com/ideas/3660

[JosephMcGehan1]

This is an excellent idea.

[KarlWilson]

This is great. I hope ESRI can implement something like this in a way that is actually quick and responsive to use - rather than making the software slower.

[SusanBrandner]

What an awesome idea! How did you even come up with this idea let alone animate it like that???
The legend has always needed serious work to make it user-friendly.

[CPoynter]

What a brilliant idea and something that would greatly enhance workflows. Come on ESRI, get behind this idea!!!!

[deleted-user-GQE1M5NT-OOh]

This is a completely brilliant idea.

[MichaelRivera]

Brilliant ideas and brilliant animation. You put a lot of time into it and I hpoe ESRI can do everything you suggest.

[RichardBaker]

This would be a tremendous addition. Putting an interactive nature to the legend since there are so many variables and layers to the current dialog. Things are so buried it's almost impossible to fathom what you can and cannot do. Other tools would benefit from this type of idea as well, more interactive menus for labels and annotation. Adding the ability to edit and modify up front instead of three dialog boxes down. Several would benefit. I fear bringing up this aspect but make Arc more "drafter" friendly. Arc is that powerful database program but so many are now using it not only to pull from data storage but to add data directly. Many companies, mine included, are going the way of having the main data stored for global access but also still needing the better map appearance drafting can add. More and more GIS experts are coming from the ranks of what were CAD drafters.

[JayaprakashAthmaram]

Wonderful approach for legend creation. Fantastic!

[claystevens]

Beautiful!!  When will ESRI add this feature?

[LeeDavis1]

Great idea. I have to know how you make those demonstration videos. That must take forever to create.