From MO to AE – An Application Conversion

Adventure

Anne Payne, GISP

Wake County GIS

April 15, 2008

Presentation Overview

Background on Wake County and GIS in Wake CountyHistory of the MAPS applicationThe application replacement processLessons learnedA couple of caveats – personal limitations

12 municipalities, including Raleigh

Population – 850,000 (+ over 100 per day)

1.2 million population in Triangle Area

330,000 parcels864 square miles

What is MAPS, anyway?MAPS (Multi-Access Parcel System)

– Parcel-based general map viewing, querying, analysis, reporting, and plotting tool

– Used by approximately 175 users at Wake and the City of Raleigh

– Combines Wake layers, Raleigh layers and CAMA (Land records) data

Wake County GIS

Independent, CentralizedStaff of 20 includes Customer Service, Property Mapping, Addressing and Street Naming, and Systems/Programming (6)Partners with Raleigh and other municipalitiesESRI Products on Windows & Linux using Oracle

The Long (and sometimes sad) History of the MAPS Application

GDS software selected by Wake County 1988Property mapping conversion completed 1990Began serving view-only data via workstations early 1990’s Began pushing GIS data to PC’s via terminal emulation 93-94 timeframe

The Long (and sometimes sad) History of the MAPS Application

Developed a PC VB Client application that communicated with VAX-based GDS system in 96-97In 1999, GDS announced that development and support of product would be ending Conversion to ESRI products including Map Objects development of MAPSConversion to Arc Engine beginning late 2005

Having said all of that….

It’s important to realize:

The users LOVED this application….

They DID NOT want to give it up….

High Level AssumptionsLimit Version 1 to existing application functionality (but we added more when it was easy!)Application would be replaced with a combination of ArcGIS/ArcIMS/Arc Engine solutions, depending on user needDevelopment and implementation in-house (with a little help from our friends)Ease the transition for ArcGIS Users as well ArcGIS Server not used for initial implementation

Initial Steps

Used “semi-formal” project management –created a Scope & Approach DocumentBegan rigorous logging of use of features in existing application by individual usersMet with mid-level managers of existing usersEngaged Raleigh development staff in processTeam approach to development and deployment

Administrative Tools

Functionality MatrixUser Needs RecommendationsCalendarsStatus ReportsRegular Team Meetings

Focus Groups

Met with every planned user in functional groups Early exposure to applicationEmphasis on improvementsFeedback request including template requirementsIdentification of Release 2 Needs

MAPS Overview

Advantages of new application: Orthos don’t crash & are faster Export to PDF or JPG (ex: Email PDF, PDF on website, use JPG in PowerPoint or Word) Site Address (Parcel Attribute Table) Table of Contents – Only the data that you need More user friendly way to get the attributes of Non Parcel data layers More coding has been done in house Application is industry standard End of massive data conversions (retrofitting)

Overview of Application

Toolbars, TOC, Overview Map Reorganization & streamlining of the toolbars based on feedback Open Save (Works just like Saved Views used to work)

Table Of Contents:

Turn layers on and off Move layers up/down to change drawing order Label features Add/remove layers

Finding Parcels:

Find Feature Tool (Select PIN, Owner Name, REID, Street Address, & Map Sheet) Getting Parcel Attribute Information (Attribute Table = Found Feature List in old MAPS)

Find Feature Tool, Append & Selection Tool Building Photo Tool Web Real Estate Info Tool

Development Approach

VB.Net and Arc ObjectsMaximum use of out-of-box toolsUse of Existing ToolsIn-house tools in separate project to allow deployment to both MAPS and ArcGIS clients (“MAPS Toolbar”)Separate project for Crystal Reports

Technical Choices

Structural change – dictionary-based to MXD templates Visual SourceSafeCrystal ReportsVirtual workstation environment for development and testingpcAnywhere for deployment and support

Add Data

(OOB)

Create Polygon (custom)

Buffer Feature (custom)

Select By Location (custom)

Delete Selected Polygon (custom)

Select By Location (custom)

Real Estate Report

(custom) Also in

ArcMAP

Bldg. Photo (custom)

Also in ArcMAP

Set Map Scale

(custom)

Delete Selected Polygon (custom)

Polygon Intersection

(custom)

Find Feature (custom)

Also in ArcMAP

Measure: Click on this tool and the Measure Tool pops up. Draw a line or polygon to get length or Area.

Identify: Click on this tool and then click on a feature to see all attributes (fields stored in the GIS layer)

Refresh View: Refreshes the map. Used if a layer is incompletely drawn (because the user clicked somewhere or hit Escape)

Clear Selected Features: Clears all selected features

Zoom to Selected Features: If a feature (like a parcel) is Selected, clicking on this tool will zoom the map to it

Select Features: First click on the layer you want to Select from in the Table of Contents. Then click feature (ex: parcel)

Go to Next Extent: Click on this too to go forward to a zoom extent

Go Back to Previous Extent: Click on this tool to go to the last zoom extent

Full Extent: Click on this tool to go to the full extent of the county

Pan: Click on the tool and then drag the map to move it

Zoom Out: Click on the tool & then click on the map or draw a box on the map

Zoom In: Click on the tool & then click on the map or draw a box on the map

Vertical Toolbar

The Team

The Developer – original application developer, .Net whiz, Mr. Customer ServiceThe User Caretaker – organizer, record-keeper, trainer, documenter, sanity checkerThe Handyman – ArcGIS expert, researcher, template-maker, report writerAll three collaborated on Interface design

Supporting Cast

The supervisor (minimal role – allowed team to grow)The System Manager – help with all things hardware, install instructions, etc.The trainer – became head of supportFunctional group supporters – template support

Training and Support

Formal training agendaGood training materialsWeb-Based application HELPSupport distribution after initial deploymentSeparate general support from template (function-specific) support

How is MAPS different from iMAPS and ArcGIS?

iMAPS

iMAPS is Wake County and the City of Raleigh's browser mapping application. It was designed to give the public access to GIS andReal Estate data.

iMAPS is also used internally by Wake County employees who want a simple way to search for information about a parcel. iMAPS contains 77 of the County’s GIS data layers, including the most recent Orthophotography (2005 Countywide, 2006 Raleigh ETJ) and updated Floodplain data from FEMA. The data in iMAPS is the same data accessed by MAPS or ArcGIS users (data for all three applications is served from our production SDE database).MAPSThe MAPS application is between iMAPS and ArcGIS in terms of functionality. It is faster than iMAPS because it is a desktop application. The MAPS application also offers more flexibility than iMAPS in terms of data layer access, printing and tools. MAPS has the same look and feel (and much of the same programming logic) as ArcGIS. MAPS is less expensive and easier to use than ArcGIS.ArcGIS ArcGIS is a powerful mapping application designed for users with GIS training and technical expertise. ArcGIS contains hundreds of powerful geospatial analysis tools for GIS professionals and others who are willing to undertake a commitment to learning the software.

A few examples of tools available in ArcGIS are:Geocoding: (the ability to turn a table of addresses in a particular format into points (approximate location) on a map.Complex Queries: Example: Determine the number of parcels which are 5 acres or greater and have a building value greater than or equal to $200,000.Hotspot Mapping: Ability to convert a dataset to a grid that shows hotspots of an activity (requires the Spatial Analyst Extension at an additional cost)

Other Information in Web Help Section

MAPS

“Find Feature” Tool in Old & New MAPS

Custom Tools – Web Real Estate Interface

LINKS TO

LINKS TO

Lessons Learned

Focus Groups were key for acceptance-early involvementearly enthusiasm (“I think I’m going to cry!”)early feedbackusers felt they were a part of the process“bucket” for Version 2 started right away

More Lessons Learned

Templates by divisionTeam deployment approach with good doc.ArcGIS look and feel (support, upgrades)Tools furnished to ArcMap usersUser installs during trainingTraining by functional groupLook and feel of primary tool retained

More Lessons Learned –cont.

Defined releasesGood testers (but they don’t find everything –there will always be point releases!)Sometimes the “cheapest” improvements were the most popular (orthos, Real Estate screensNew users attracted by new energy and exposureUsers are able to do more of their own projects, freeing up GIS staff

Future Plans

Version 2 is in developmentComplete deployment of Wake users waiting for new hardwareComplete deployment of Raleigh usersDatabase structure improvements