There have been some very nice apps released over the last few years which allow ArcGIS users to collect data using a phone or tablet while in the field. Initially built for online only use, these apps have been extended to provide offline capabilities. But these apps are for organizations with either ArcGIS Online or Portal only. In short they require named users.
Now that is bad for those who use ArcGIS Server and are unable or unwilling to adopt the ArcGIS named user model. It has meant these new offline data collection apps and others, are not available for use. That was a disadvantage. It became an area of focus for our development team.
The challenge was, can we build an offline-enabled ArcGIS data collection app which works against ArcGIS Online, Portal AND ArcGIS server? So a mobile app which could be used with any ArcGIS technology. Our lead developer threw one additional requirement at the team, can the app which is built be super flexible, so based on COTS+ principals?
The team went to work.They started with a widget-based framework similar to Web AppBuilder for ArcGIS, but more flexible. Next they spent time breaking down the ArcGIS web map, the foundation of how maps are packaged in both ArcGIS Online and Portal. They also dug deeper into the named user model. With the knowledge gained from their research, they began development.
Offline Editing Widget
Extending both the core of the framework, and building custom editing widgets, the alpha version of the app was ready in 3 months. Next came a period of ironing out bugs, and testing against ArcGIS Online, Portal and Server.
Offline Data Collection
We are all rather pleased with the end result. See a video of the app in our asset management focused solutions page.
The work has helped us build focused solutions, both online and offline-enabled, against all flavors of ArcGIS. Contact us on 801.410.2532 for more information.
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