This will be a short entry, since I'm brain dead from all of the events over the last couple of days.  I ran into the GIS Director from Greenwood County, SC today.  Brad and I agreed there is too much for one person to absorb, but that's what makes this form of training so effective.  The amount of information, live custom application, and networking available for GIS professionals doesn't exist outside of this forum.

Throughout the day, I jotted down some notes on ArcGIS Pro.  This list is not all inclusive.  It's just a list of the items that stood out to me.

• Participated in the free training class, and I found it to be very intuitive.  Current ArcMap users should become proficient within a couple of days.
• Basic 3D integration.  Must have 3D Analyst extension to perform analysis
• True 64 bit functionality (ArcGIS Pro is a native 64 application, while ArcMap is not)
• Beta version is available now, but the full version will be available in the 10.3 release
• No extra cost, will be part of ArcGIS Desktop
• It's not meant to be a replacement for ArcMap.  Instead, it's meant to combine the key features of ArcMap, ArcScene, and ArcGlobe.
• The users can view data in 2d and 3d mode simultaneously.  Separate windows can be linked, and the same data can be side-by-side.

Amazon Cloud Server

• I talked with ESRI customer support (face-to-face which is remarkable) and they made a new ESRI AMI available on the spot.  From the new AMI an Amazon Cloud Sever instance can be created.
• So, Pickens County can access the new and less expensive Amazon Cloud instances.  Also, the new Amazon instances have better hardware specs as well.

My post ended up being much longer than I intended so I'll wrap it up right here and pick back up tomorrow.

As promised, I'm expanding on the "open data" theme that was mentioned in the previous post.

ESRI has added an "Open Data" tool to ArcGIS Online.  Basically, it streamlines the data sharing process.  For the first time in the history of GIS data can be shared and distributed easily via ESRI software.  Not that it was terribly hard to share data before, but the "open data" tool is a more complete method in my opinion.  Listed below are two items that make the new tools far and away better than anything previously available.

First, the data can be shared in multiple formats simultaneously, so more users can be accommodated with minimal effort.  In other words, the open data portal translates the data semi-automatically.

Second, "permissions" are much easier to manage, which is manged through ArcGIS Online.  The data can be shared with certain groups or with the general public.

Interesting tidbit.  The President and Congress have implemented an "Open Data" policy that all federal agencies are required to follow.  Therefore, non-sensitive data is shared by those agencies.  Justification for the policy includes "Open government" and several other items that are too lengthy to list in this blog.  This coincides similar initiatives that have been implemented within some state and local governments as well.  All counties in the State of North Carolina and York County, SC are just a few that are within the geographic vicinity of Pickens County.

In another session, I also discovered an easier method to update the GIS Amazon Cloud Server.  ESRI has developed an application called ArcGIS Server Cloud Builder.  It simplifies the setup process for the ESRI AMI on Amazon.  It's very intuitive as opposed to creating an ESRI instance on the Amazon's site.  For example, a few months ago, an Amazon Technical support rep had trouble helping me setup a new "more modern" server, so we scrapped it for another day.

The Plenary Session went as expected.  Jack Dangermond touched on each industry of GIS, but it was clear the primary theme of this conference would be the introduction of ArcGIS Pro and the continued expansion of ArcGIS Online.  Jack feels that GIS is about to reach an unprecedented level or in his words a "critical mass".  He may be right.  Only time will tell.  I'm inclined to agree with him, and here's why.

One of the biggest obstacles that has always faced GIS professionals is the distribution of GIS information.  The new tools (ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online) seem to provide an more streamlined solution.  GIS is a mainstream tool for GIS Professionals and intermediate users, but it has eluded some of the lay users.  Now, simple GIS apps and data can be easily shared with the casual user, so they aren't overwhelmed by a full blown GIS application.

One of the underlying themes that Jack briefly touched on is the notion of "Open Data".  I'll expand more on this later in the week after I attend some of the concurrent sessions and technical workshops.

I also attended the evening social which was held in the "user submitted" map gallery.  Most of them were very well done, and the gallery contained maps by gifted cartographers and analysts.  With that said, I realized that the Pickens County GIS Mapping Department is more than capable, and we'll be certain to enter a map in the future.

Registration and Scheduling

This morning (Sunday), I completed the conference check-in process.  I arrived reasonably early in the morning since I'm still on east coast time, so the crowd wasn't bad at all.

After registration, I began working on my agenda of the rest of the week.  I had forgotten how overwhelming it is to choose which sessions to attend.  There's no way to cover everything of interest, so I'm trying to prioritize.  At the moment, I'm focusing on ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online.  I'll also set aside some time for the technical support staff as well.

It's 3:35pm and it'll take at least a couple of more hours to finish my agenda.

San Diego Convention Center

(Location of Comic Con)

Registration area

(Notice ESRI is going with the Comic Con theme)

ESRI International User Conference - test blog

In preparation for the ESRI International User Conference, this site has been created to help chronicle the events of each day and how it pertains to Pickens County.

Jimmy Threatt, GIS Director

Pickens County, SC - GIS Mapping