James recently posted something that got me thinking: “Hmm? ArcReader? Who uses it?”
I sure as heck don’t. My company doesn’t. I’m interested how it really gets used by a large or small organization.
It’s not like ArcReader hasn’t been around for, oh say, about six years now. So, why didn’t it catch on like Google Earth has to view geographic data? I mean, no one’s clammoring to share .pmf’s, right?
So, what gives? And why is ESRI continuing down this path? Wouldn’t it be easier for ESRI to give into Adobe and TerraGo to just publish GeoPDF’s from ArcMap? Intergraph and Bentley do this now with their platforms. (That wasn’t a paid advertisement.)
Of course, I highly recommend that providing web services is much better than becoming a file distributor.
Other than demonstration of capability, I don’t know anyone who has used ArcReader either. With the focus on GIS standards these days maybe Adobe could work with the whole GIS community on developing a standard GIS pdf file format that all vendors can publish and make that capability native in its product. Is Terrago GeoPDF a standard or just the only/best GIS pdf option right now? Don’t you have to install it on your computer in addition to Acrobat Reader? It sounds like having pdf GIS files would be a great and wonderful thing but the reality is you have to install something else other than just Adobe Acrobat Reader. Another peice of software to install is a nightmare for enterprises who are already burdened by too complex of a software load on their PC’s. I don’t think GeoPDF will be a solution that will sweep the world and be found on every instance of Acrobat Reader. Folks are trying to solve the file based problem too late. Web based solutions are where its at.
Comment by Scott — December 2, 2006 @ 3:28 pm
I played around with ArcReader thinking it might be good low cost way to allow non-GIS people in my office to access our data. In the end we decided a web based solution would be better in the long run, even if it cost quite a bit more. Now with AGX released, I can’t see why anyone would be interested in ArcReader.
Comment by BenSlater — December 2, 2006 @ 3:46 pm
Can’t print from AGX just yet. With ArcReader you can setup your layout just like ArcMap and your users can print.
I have to say even though our company does use GeoPDF, it isn’t any better than ArcReader as you still have to install something to use it.
I asked back when I was first demo’d AGX over a year ago about AGX replacing ArcReader and was told that wasn’t going to happen.
Comment by James Fee — December 2, 2006 @ 4:08 pm
Like James, I also have asked about the future of ArcReader, and was basically given the same answer. But I remember multiple instances in the past when ESRI folks (often the same individuals) have had to do an about-face when the higher-ups abruptly shift gears.
ESRI simply has too many products, and an all-too-often shifting development strategy, IMHO, and I consider ArcReader to be evidence of that statement.
A few months ago I wrote a piece for Directions Magazine addressing the glut of half-baked end-user GIS interface solutions.
“The second void, on which I will elaborate more, is the glaring lack of a solution for the populace at the base of the GIS pyramid. Since ESRI pulled the plug of ArcView 1, a product I loved, there hasn’t been an adequate replacement for the hundreds of thousands of casual GIS users who just want to look at a map once in a while.”
http://entchev.com/PDFs/GIS_Nostalgia_at_the_Base_of_the_GIS_Pyramid.pdf
http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=2213&trv=1
Comment by Atanas Entchev — December 2, 2006 @ 4:51 pm
We do. ArcReader is installed by default on any PC in my company. We thought about a web-based solution for our intranet too, but people prefer the client over a web-interface (send map layout to printer), they can take maps with them for presentations and we can provide client/partners with result data and maps (encrypted if some copyright issues need to be handled). We are happier with ArcReader, but we have many very individual maps too, which you just can’t handle by one or two standardized layouts or interfaces.
Comment by Christian — December 2, 2006 @ 4:55 pm
I’ve heard talk that Adobe might just incorporate GeoPDF natively in Reader, but I’m not going to hold my breath. Adobe will either have to buy TerraGo to do it or shell out a ton of cash to TerraGo. Still, would be best if Adobe just made it part of the Reader app.
Comment by GeoMullah — December 2, 2006 @ 7:02 pm
Having used both web and desktop based GIS apps, there are pros and cons either way. Web apps are easier to deploy for the masses but lack the functionality, and often the performance, of desktop apps. Even Google Earth requires the user to install a client. Speaking of ArcReader, this company, MapSync (www.mapsync.com) appears to have built an ArcReader based solution, Geosync, which can do some nifty things.
Comment by dplex — February 8, 2008 @ 5:51 pm
MapSync has created a wrap for Arcreader that has alot of functionality. You can perform geocode, intersection, and quick searches based on GIS data that you publish out. There are some graphic tools to add redlines, points with attributes and photos, and extensions for Pictometry data and edit linked external datasets.
There is a 60 day trial version and a enterprise license of XG for communities with less than 50K population, the base cost is $5,000.
http://www.mapsync.com or 859-278-6277
Comment by Eric M — May 2, 2008 @ 12:30 pm