How do you "identify" multiple features in a layer in ArcGIS Pro?

[RoySP]

In ArcMap you can use the Identify tool and

1. Draw a rectangle to identify attributes of several features in a layer all at once.
2. You also view features of multiple stacked layers.
3. You could change options to switch between viewing Field Aliases vs Field Names in the identify dialog box

Does ArcGIS Pro include any of this functionality? I am not seeing it.

Thanks.

[DuncanHornby]

Can some one from ESRI please confirm this? I've just been experimenting with ArcGIS Pro your new flagship software and I can't believe there is no Identify tool? Has it been given a new name and icon, some sort of re-branding?

Since the dawn of time all GIS software have had a button with a classic "i" icon and I cannot find anything like it! Is there no way of drawing a box around a set of features on multiple layers like the identify tool in ArcMap?

I hope this is just me being thick and not seeing the "obvious" button staring me in the face?

If we can't query data with an identify tool in the classic manner this would be a definite barrier to anyone thinking about migrating to ArcGIS Pro.

[JoshuaBixby]

Not sure about your 3rd point, but for the first two check out Pop-ups and the Attribute pane (Work with selected features).  I think most of the identify functionality people are used to in ArcGIS Desktop exists in ArcGIS Pro, they just changed the terminology, tools, and workflow a bit.  I am not saying the new way is perfect, but I think the logic of it will start to make more sense as you work with it.

[DuncanHornby]

Joshua,

Thanks for your help. Would not have thought the zoom in/out/pan tool is also an identify tool!

"Pop-up"... yuk! So now you can only click on one thing at a time and you cannot filter such as <visible layer>. The select features allows you to select multiple features in multiple layers and displays it as tree in that attribute panel, kind of like the identify tool in Arcmap. Problem with that is that you have to select stuff... The ability to configure the pop up seems a bit pointless although I could imagine a subset of people may find that helpful.

It's not a work flow that works in my eyes. The identify tool in ArcMap is superior, you identify across multiple layers for multiple features, whilst filtering. You can select and copy the coordinates and see all the fields without the need of imposing a selection.

This is enough for me to not use Pro.

[ChrisFox]

Duncan,

It is true that there is no longer a stand-alone tool for identify. In Pro you can configure whether you want to return a Pop-up for all the top-most, visible layers, selectable layers, etc by clicking the dropdown on the Explore command. This is how you can return multiple features in multiple layers. The pop-up experience in Pro is designed to be similar to other applications in the platform including the arcgis.com viewer where a single click with the navigate tool will show a pop-up. Pop-ups can be configured for each layer to control what fields display, show hyperlinks, embed images, add graphs etc. When I author a pop-up in Pro that definition is carried over when I share it as a WebMap. This makes it really easy to share my map online and ensure that anyone using my WebMap gets a nice pop-up when they identify any features.

For the experience of a tree view and a list of features and their attributes we would recommend using the attributes pane and the feature selection. Some nice features of attributes pane that you didn't have with identify is you can edit the attributes directly. You can also select multiple records in the view and it will show you which fields are identical and it allows you to update the attribute for multiple features at once. This pane now supports selected rows in stand-alone tables. It also provides more information about the feature geometry and easier access to edit the geometry than was available in identify.

-Chris

[DuncanHornby]

Chris,

Thanks for pointing me to that drop down that allows me to identify multiple features. I guess I am showing that I am firmly rooted in desktop and not use to tools doing multiple things.

Another tool that seems to have disappeared is the the zoom to extent but by chance I discovered holding the shift key allows you to draw a box. It feels that these changes in how we interact with the map is similar to the leap from mobile phones with keys to touch screens.

So now I can identify multiple features from multiple maps without the need of selecting them. Just one last question is there a way to draw a box, it seems like I am only able to click a point location when trying to identify something?

Duncan

[ChrisFox · Accepted solution]

Duncan,

The changes are in part to be more consistent with other applications, but also we felt it was a better experience to roll all this common functionality, pan, zoom, identify into a single tool so you didn't have to constantly be switching tools. The other tip to use is if another tool is active, select, measure, etc. you can hold down the 'C' key and this will temporarily activate the Explore tool. So you can easily pan, zoom, identify without having to change the tool.

Currently with the explore tool there is no way to draw a box to identify features. Right now click and drag with the tool does a pan. I think we could look into a keyboard shortcut, much like shift + click-drag does a zoom by rectangle. We could add a similar shortcut that would enter a mode where you could draw a box to perform an identify.

-Chris

[JaredSellers1]

ArcGIS Pro 2.2 enables holding Ctrl to drag a box while Explore is fully active. 

[JosephHowell1]

I'm not sure what the ctrl drag box allows.  It doesn't return identify results.  Is it supposed to do something?

[JaredSellers1]

Hi Joseph, the ctrl drag box opens the Pop-up window with all features that intersected the box.  It honors the choice checked in the Explore tool drop down, which is Topmost Layer by default.