Latest Contributions by Mark_Hotz

I remember years ago (before spatial databases were readily available) that one could not perform any geoprocessing on spatial data stored in a database that was using ArcSDE.  All spatial operations had to be performed only using the GIS (in our case ArcGIS Pro).  However, with newer versions of Oracle Spatial and SQL Server Spatial has this since changed?  Can one perform geoprocessing functions within SQL Server now, or does one still need to use ArcGIS? What is one restricted to do solely in SQL Server, and what should be the sole domain of ArcGIS?  I know we can go into SQL Server and update tabular data that is in a geodatabase, but what happens if one deletes a GDB record in SQL Server?  Does the point/line/polygon also delete?  Or is one's data now corrupted like it was in the old days? SQL Server Spatial can store spatial data better than it could in the past (actually I don't think it could store spatial data in the past), but where does data storage end and data manipulation begin with spatial data being stored in SQL Server?  I'm just trying to set up ground-rules for our spatial data stored in SQL Server to hopefully prevent the wrong people from making regrettable edits in spatial data...to avoid all of the usual headaches that will undoubtedly occur. Thanks ... View more

We would like to move forward with our drone technology but because we were burned trying to post-process drone images collected with a DJI Phantom IV and found that the camera was not compatible with ArcGIS Pro we are being quite cautious now. How does one determine in advance if the camera in a particular drone model is compatible with ArcGIS Pro, and consequently readable in Drone2Map?  A drone that caught our attention is the Skydio 2 that comes with a Sony IMX577 1/2.3” 12.3MP CMOS camera.  How do I know in advance if this camera will work with ESRI?  ESRI won't tell us, probably for a variety of reasons. Thanks ... View more

I'm using ArcGIS Pro 2.4 and am trying to replicate an inset map that I had created using ArcGIS Desktop 10.6.1.  I have made several of these using ArcMap, but never (yet) in ArcGIS Pro. I don't seem to be able to find a way of doing this in ArcGIS Pro though...can this be done?  How does one add an inset map to one's layout in a ArcGIS Pro mapping project?  What is the workflow in ArcGIS Pro? Thanks ... View more

I have created a few web applications for general staff to use through our Portal for ArcGIS.  So far it works very well.  However, an issue I can see that will cause users to hesitate to use the application is when they want to print a map (i.e. create a JPG or PDF for sharing to external parties). When one creates a JPG or PDF using the Portal print services one either has the option of letting it default to whatever scale the current scale of the map is in (which isn't desirable because no one wants to see 1:71,396.002439 in their legend).  However, there is an option to force the scale too, which does work...but in order for a user to get it right quickly they currently have to reset the scale 2-3 times before they get it right, and this creates an issue for staff (i.e. time). What would be ideal is being able to see the current scale in the web app itself, and the user can then centre their map and then round the scale up or down to make it a number that makes sense (i.e. 1:50,000), and then create their PDF. Being able to quickly determine the scale within the web app would be perfect.  The question is, "can this be achieved?". So far all I have been able to do is add a scale bar and coordinates to my web apps, which although looks nice, doesn't really solve this issue.  The scale does show up nicely in the printed map though :-). Thanks ... View more

I have been struggling with this for quite a while, so a quick solution would be awesome. When I build a web-app using Portal for ArcGIS there are quite a few color options from which to choose.  However, I find that if I need to use a light color then it becomes very difficult to see the icons.  Here is an example when the web-app colors are dark: However, if I choose a light color the icons do not adjust accordingly...they remain light: We have new corporate colors and I'm currently making changes to our web apps to reflect this, but being able to use dark icons in some cases would really help. Suggestions? ... View more

We are collecting AIS (Automatic Identification System) ship data to create heat maps in Portal for ArcGIS, and for the most part this has been successful.  However, we are also quickly running into an issue of too many points.  We have considered to reset the AIS feed to only collect points ever 60 seconds (or even greater)...right now it's collecting points more frequently than that.  So for about 1 month's worth of collected data we are acquiring between 3.5 and 5.5 million points.  I can get away with publishing that to our Portal, but when publishing more than one month's worth of data it becomes very restrictive and challenging. So rather than alter the AIS feed to only collect data every minute (or longer), which cannot really be done because our AIS feed is being used by other services, the thinking is to statistically filter the points we have already collected using ArcGIS Pro, and then publish that to Portal. What would be the best tool for this?  If I want to reduce the number of points from say 4-million to less than 250,000, and still maintain enough data integrity to be able to produce meaningful heat maps, is there an optimal way of doing this?  I'm guessing that this might be something akin to generalization, but with points. Ideally, we would like to be able to create heat maps on demand using Portal for ArcGIS, and keeping our point total for the year to be under 4 million would be fine.  But is generalizing points possible?  Thanks ... View more

We find ourselves in dire need of using something like Drone2Map to rapidly get georeferenced drone captured imagery into an orthophoto and distributed to the right people that same day.  I have tried using just ArcGIS Pro to demonstrate how difficult it is to import such drone imagery, and then have it georeferenced (which because of bugs I had to do manually) where it can be used immediately in a GIS.  It took days to go through 50-100 images to create a mosaic to use in the GIS, and the accuracy was horrendously poor; hence, our use case does strongly support a need for the software. I need to learn (and then explain to managers) though how Drone2Map actually works (i.e. the workflow).  If there is any manual adjustment in the GIS needed for this imagery it will not be an easy sell: Are the captured images from a drone's camera georeferenced using Drone2Map?  (i.e. will they simply drop right into one's GIS and into their correct location once loaded as a layer?). Does one still need to manually shift the captured images (or tiled images) to "fit" once they are in the GIS? What sort of post-processing (if any) can one expect to perform after the images have been captured (i.e. after using Drone2Map), or does Drone2Map simply take care of all steps in the workflow? If one does the appropriate flight planning, is there a limit to how many images can be stitched together to make one large image (we have elevation restrictions in place here because of two aerodromes)? Does Drone2Map take into consideration the pitch, yaw and elevation of the drone, plus the direction the camera was facing at the time images were captured (is the scale, image rotation and precise location correct when brought into the GIS)? I'm pretty well sold on the technology, but I do still need to properly inform senior managers here just how much this software will improve our drone image capabilities. Thanks ... View more