Latest Contributions by JeffreySwain

There are many different kinds of rasters that can be used in ArcMap. To better describe and explain these different kinds  of rasters, Esri has created help documentation on technical specifications and supported raster formats.  Included in the documentation is the ESRI GRID format. This is a very flexible format that many users are comfortable using to process and display data. There is a unique aspect to this format that many users are unaware of that is mentioned in the help documentation. A section in the help documentation on bit depth capacity reads, A grid dataset is always stored as 32 bit (either signed, unsigned, or floating point), but ArcGIS shows it above as being the most appropriate bit depth with regard to the cell values it contains. So while the bit depth of the ESRI GRID may say 8 bit unsigned or 16 bit signed, the storage is still 32 bit.  However, the properties in the source tab of the particular ESRI GRID raster may say something different.  This is important when considering the behavior of the GRID compared to other formats like .imgs or .tifs. This does not affect the average user of ESRI GRIDs, but just something to keep in mind and understand about the format.  So fear not if you create a new ESRI GRID and the bit depth does not match your defined bit depth; it is still okay. Once the data is added,it should report the most appropriate bit depth.  ESRI GRIDs are always 32 bit rasters regardless of what the source properties report.Jeff S. - Raster Support Analyst ... View more

Background processing is a new feature that was added at ArcGIS 10. Background processing provides the ability to run a geoprocessing tool and not lose the ability to work within ArcMap.  Instead, the tool progress dialog message has been replaced by a scrolling bar in the lower right corner of the map document. You can now stack up multiple geoprocessing tools to run in order.  The intermediate progress messages can still be seen when background processing is enabled, by expanding the Results Window.  This can be the best of both worlds, as you can continue to work within ArcMap, but still see information about what step the current geoprocessing tool is on. Results Tab Background Processing Completion When the background processing completes, a less obtrusive message will appear in the lower right corner of the map document, indicating it has completed.  You can control the time this message is visible under the Geoprocessing Options and adjusting the slider. I know what you are thinking,  "but where did my captivating progress dialog message go that is usually center stage on the map document?" Foreground Processing Message Well fear not fellow users! You too can return the progress dialog message to its former glory with these steps: 1. In ArcMap, open up Geoprocessing tab. 2. Select the Geoprocessing Options. 3. Uncheck the 'Enable Background Processing' radio button. Now the next time you run a geoprocessing tool, you will see the familiar message and be captivated again. There is more information about the background processing here.Jeff S. - Raster Support Analyst ... View more