Ad Hoc / Offline Use

[DavidCoulter]

ArcGIS works fine on my iPad when connected to 3G or WiFI.  However, I do 99% of my field work in remote areas with no connectivity.  Can I put my base images on my iPad and work offline?  How do I do that?  When I put my iPad into "airline" mode, ArcGIS refuses to run. Cartographica is promising offline capability in their mobile version....

Thanks!

[DiveshGoyal]

Thanks for your feedback.

While we are considering the "offline" use-case very seriously, the API as it stands today relies on having a connection to the GIS server.

Could you please elaborate on the type of offline capabilities you might require. Is it simply browsing or map, or does it go beyond that?

_
Divesh

[DavidCoulter]

Thank you for your interest Divesh,

Copied in part from my post to another thread......

Many people use mobile GIS in remote areas with no connectivity (geologists, foresters, biologists, etc.). This may be due to remoteness or overseas projects (most research budgets or companies will not cover the roaming costs; and access to map servers is blocked in some countries).

The standard right now is an HP Ipaq running ArcPad. It has been noted in reviews of the iPad 3GS that mapping is the future "killer app" for the iPad. The screen size, brightness, weight, native GPS and COST are all in the right range.

Ideally we need the ability to download proprietary base imagery and shapefiles onto an iPad from a PC, edit the shapefile in the field, and upload the shapefile back to a PC. You may not have connectivity at your hotel or basecamp so direct PC connectivity (cable or Bluetooth) is needed rather than a server-client model.

[MichaelMason]

I'd like to double this request.  My users are out of service when in the field.
It'd be easier to motivate field personal with iPhones than Garmins.

-Mike

[JeffShaner]

This is great feedback. Thank you. We will be bringing both editing capabilities and offline capabilities to the iOS and Android platforms (both in API and application).

Can you list for us the top 10 features of ArcPad that you need in this platform? Also your thoughts on what not to bring from ArcPad?

If you prefer, you can email me direct at jshaner@esri.com

Thanks

[AHay]

this is exactly what we need to do arcpad will quickly price itself out of the market as PDA's disappear due to increasing power in smart phones, cheapest PDA you can now purchase to successfully run arcpad is ~ $2000 AUD.
some functions definately needed (just off top of my head fri arvo)
1 connect to pc and upload / download shapefiles
2 ability to create forms in arcstudio and deploy to devices.
3 ability to create and edit spatial data( points / lines and polygons)
4 ability to use features of Rel Databasees such as domains and relationships
5 abilty to view ECW files or if not to use an image catalog similar to raster catalog


this is a  begining

[WeiChen]

Jeff,

When will you be able to bring both editing and offline capabilities to the iOS and Android platforms?
Thanks

[GrantT]

Has offline capability been introduced yet?

[RickJones]

Have a look at the OnlineOfflineEditingSample.
It shows how to use an offline basemap, and offline feature layers.

[DavidWeiss]

I just downloaded the beta and there is no sample for offline editing. Any thoughts?