ArcGIS Server Javascript API Example

February 6th, 2008 · 17 Comments · ArcGIS Server, ESRI

ESRI has posted an example of the Javascript API on their blog:

Today, we just want to talk a bit about the new ArcGIS JavaScript and REST APIs. We built this new JavaScript API because many of you have asked for a simple way to share your GIS data and tools over the internet. Here is an example built on top of the ArcGIS JavaScript API.

Of course you’ll probably “view source” on the page to see what is up as I did. I see they used the Google Chart API for the charting as was noted on their blog page. A simple application for sure, but definitely a step in the right direction from what we are used to using on the ArcGIS Server platform.

Taking orders for HTTP Goodness Thongs for the DevSummit

More: Digging deeper into the example we can see the url to the map layer: SuperTuesdaySample with all its metadata and supported operations. If you click on query you see an HTML form. Pretty slick. If you click on the breadcrumbs at the top you can see the service description as well as its supported interfaces (REST or SOAP) and supported operations (Export Map Image, identify, find and Generate KML. All well thought out and very well done. Alas the help and the API Reference links do not work at the top of the page, but I really like what I see here. We’ll have to wait until they show us more, but I am impressed.

Update 2: Sean appears to have been doing the same thing as me, but as always he sounds smarter when talking about it. Check his thoughts out.

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17 responses so far ↓

1 TedC // Feb 6, 2008 at 4:06 pm

Can’t wait to test it out in beta.
2 jxn // Feb 6, 2008 at 4:53 pm

crashed my firefox when zooming far in with slider
3 James Fee // Feb 6, 2008 at 5:04 pm

Yea, I guess that is why it is a beta. :p
4 Brian Flood // Feb 6, 2008 at 5:54 pm

VE demo
ve demo

i like the whole layout and structure, great stuff so far. The GPServer services could be great, check out the demo ones for Portland
gp demo
5 jxn // Feb 7, 2008 at 9:50 am

Now that is impressive Brian!
6 Jeff G // Feb 7, 2008 at 12:20 pm

Frankly, I am not impressed since Google map APIs have been out there for years and can do way better things in that aspect.

I would think ESRI really need to correct it’s well existing bugs in web ADF and, at least, add minimum meaningful document to make them useful.

I have seen a pattern from esri 8.x - 9.2, each time we were told there will be some new features. But it most likely turns out to be a more buggy stuff, and without the consideration of compatibility to the previous version of buggy stuffs, that have never been cleaned up.

I have seen that a lot customers (with the only exception of tax-funded government agencies ) have turned to other tools, and some of them go to open source tools. ESRI really needs to take this seriously if it wants to keep its users in long term…. but maybe it’s good thing though on the other hand, as it will leave more ground for OS community, I believe it will be the final medicine for ESRI …
7 Tim Maddle // Feb 7, 2008 at 8:09 pm

Consider me underwhelmed. Are people really impressed by this example? Some popup balloons that are uglier than what’s been in Google Maps and Virtual Earth for a year or more? I’m doing better looking stuff than this now in VE - by the time AGS 9.3 is actually out and stable, where will VE and Google Maps be by then? VE already has a fantastic javascript API, and OpenLayers API is probably even better than VE’s.

These popups are the kind of thing that can be handled by people posting submissions on ArcScripts. What I really want from AGS 9.3 is a server that carries a smaller memory footprint and performs like a beast - that can keep up with VE in most cases without requiring me to go through a time-consuming, disk-space consuming tiling process.
8 Chris Schierkolk // Feb 7, 2008 at 8:53 pm

With a price tag that is 1/4 the Google fusion server why can’t we be excited about new features in ArcGIS Server.

http://sampleserver1.arcgisonline.com/ArcGIS/rest/services
9 Pete // Feb 8, 2008 at 12:55 am

I think Jeff and Tim are missing the point here. It’s not the mapping API that’s the key thing here, it’s the data and geoprocessing services behind it, exposed through REST. Afterall their geoprocessing stuff is where I see the real power of ArcGIS Server - something that I haven’t seen any other server product come even close to.
You can choose to mix (dare I say it… mash) these services into a Google Maps or VE application if you prefer one of those API’s.
If you don’t want to be locked into a Mercator projection and a specific tilingscheme, ESRI’s JS API could be one alternative option - it’s all up to you.
If you browse through the services explorer, there are several places where you can click to view the service in GM, GE or VE directly, which proves my point.
10 CuriousGeorge // Feb 8, 2008 at 4:31 am

I agree with the majority on this one, the JavaScript API is not very impressive, however, the REST services are.

@Jeff G: I too, want the ADF to be in a better place and I feel that ESRI is going to do this in 9.3 - from what I have actually seen with the ADF at 9.3, it is.

Not sure if this breaks any confidence I have with ESRI staff, but the ADF now also provides JavaScript capabilities that really make it VERY powerful and more performant including MapTips on Lines and Polygons that can be controlled through JavaScript in addition to their Map Control. All of which is using the ASP.NET AJAX as their base library.

Now that the “cat is out of the bag” , so to speak, with ESRI talking about a 9.3 beta, it would be good for the ADF team to tell us more about what they are doing with 9.3.
11 Jeff G // Feb 8, 2008 at 10:02 am

@Pete
Well, I think you are misguided by the popular terms that ESRI tries to label for the attraction to people, geo-processing service, REST and such. Do you think Google map and Google Earth are not having geo-processing functions, and just serving dumb map images? Try to have a look at Google Map APIs for geo-coding, KML and GeoRSS overlay. .. and if you strip off the costumes a little bit, REST only means URIs or URLs to a developer, nothing else. Google mash up web APIs have been doing this several years ago before somebody coined this term. Trying to follow Google, VE and Yahoo has showed that ESRI has totally lost it’s vision and innovation. Competing with Google on Web sounds like the most stupid thing to do for a company which can not make it’s web ADF useful in a decent degree.

Again, I still believe ESRI needs to invest more effort to get its Web ADF clean up first (I don’t mind which version), release so many developers from the painful experience you are hearing everywhere..
12 Tim Maddle // Feb 9, 2008 at 8:51 am

I agree with Jeff G. With the caveat that I haven’t looked at these podcasts, I think these REST services are getting too much hype. They are like putting a nice coat of wax on a car - it won’t hurt, but if the car itself is not in good shape, the coat of wax isn’t going to make things much better.

As far as my interest in AGS and the Web ADF goes, I really wish ESRI would just sell the rights to the ADF and let some other company develop that product. Let Microsoft, Google, and Open Source fight it out for who can develop the nicest, most-flexible environment for developing GIS apps while ESRI focuses on making AGS itself the most flexible, memory-efficient, highest-performing product that it can be.
13 Alic // Feb 25, 2008 at 11:07 am

I guess ESRI used the DOJO toolkit after all, instead of proceeding with in-house development… http://dojotoolkit.org/

Should’ve used Microsoft’s AJAX

In unrelated news - I want Silverlight support and .NET 3.5 in ArcGIS 9.3!
14 Benton // Feb 25, 2008 at 11:56 am

@ Alic

Check out MapDotNet Server, all of the web controls use ASP.NET AJAX 1.0.

The upcoming MapDotNet 7.0 release will feature a Silverlight and a WPF control. Later this week, we’ll be posting a URL to our new Labs page where you’ll be able to download some cool WPF demos. The Silverlight 2.0 demos will be available with the first public beta coming from Microsoft next month.
15 Dean // Feb 26, 2008 at 10:13 am

Hey nobody’s mentioned this neat trick - point your mouse directly over the starting point of the balloon callout and watch the polygons blink! If you can’t get it to stick, try using the scroll wheel to zoom in or out and the callout automatically start at the cursor point.
16 Dave Smith // Feb 26, 2008 at 10:32 am

Seems this is what separates the “neo” mindset from the “paleo” mindset - it’s not about simply putting points and polygons on a map, it’s about being able to perform complex analytical functions - e.g. dynamic plume modeling, buffering and intersection, image processing, least-cost-path, and so many more things that have been around for years and years in paleo (traditional) GIS and Remote Sensing but which are still largely lacking in the neo world.

Currently the only way these can be done in Google Earth, World Wind, web mapping APIs like Yahoo and the rest is through a lot of development and integration - and typically involving some more serious backend GIS components like… ArcGIS.

The cause for excitement is in finally beginning to realize the intersection between both worlds.
17 egiron // Mar 30, 2008 at 6:05 am

I think this is another copy of Google Maps and Virtual Earth with certain different features with the great advantage you can create your own customize web mapping application more quickly than the others.