Why Can't I Configure My Search Bar? Why Can't I Move the Measure Widget? Map Tools vs. Widgets
You just opened up Experience Builder for the first time. Naturally, the first thing you did was add a map. You want your search bar connected to a specific locator source, so you click on it, but you don't see an option to change it. Isn't everything in Experience Builder supposed to be fully configurable? That measure button is in the wrong place you click on it and try to drag it to an new spot. The whole map moves. Isn't everything in Experience Builder supposed to be drag and drop?
This is a common experience for people new to Experience Builder. Let's clarify the difference between Map Tools and Widgets.
When you add a Map Widget to Experience Builder, it comes with a set of baked in tools. These tools have no options other than on or off. (Technically, some of these options can be changed by altering organization-wide settings in your ArcGIS Enterprise/Online Portal.) They also have frustratingly few placement options. These tools are designed for people who want to use the defaults for these tools and more on to designing something else.
Some of these Map Tools have their functionality replicated in fully built-out Widgets. The Widget versions can be found from the Insert Widget Pane on the left side of the screen. In Widget form, they have many more configuration options and can be placed wherever you want them. Map Tools with a Widget form are:
- Search
- Layers (Split into the Map Layers and Legend Widgets.)
- Basemap
- Measure
- Select
