Even as most record keeping systems have become digital, there are still some collections of data that are being maintained on paper. We’ve seen plenty of cemeteries with all or some of their records on paper. Paying a third party to convert these to digital can be very costly. Luckily, with readily available software programs, you and your staff can complete the most time consuming tasks on your own time. First let’s talk about why. If you’re successfully keeping your record

Take a trip with me back in time to 1999. Where were you in those pre-Y2K days? I was a student at Illinois State University, a Geography  major with a stack of Zip disks  containing digital maps and files, stored alongside my manual cartographic drafting tools (I located the old drafting tools in my basement, but have not found the old Zip disks…yet). Back in the old days, Zip disks stored ten times more ( 100 MB! ) than a floppy disk. With a bunch of those floppy disks also

The time to upgrade all your layers within your ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise organization has come! ESRI will be enforcing the HTTPS protocol starting on December 8, 2020. This update to ESRI’s security posture means that all resources (layers and all other items) consumed by web maps and other applications in your organization will be unavailable if not registered to a secure URL starting with ‘HTTPS’. This important change in ESRI’s security practices will affect most

We work with a lot of municipal local government clients and have learned over the years that selecting the right GIS asset management solution these days is a critical, time-consuming task. Decision makers can’t afford to make the wrong decision when investing hundreds of thousands of dollars over a period of just a few years. So we thought it would be a good idea to review some basic questions to ask yourself when evaluating which option is best for your organization. As an

Esri provides a vast number of resources and applications that enable their users to collect, update, and analyze their asset management data. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at how we can use those Esri apps and resources available to us on ArcGIS Online to manage our PCI (Pavement Condition Index) ratings on our road centerlines layer. The use of the Collector App will allow users to view the road centerline features in the field and which roads need inspected. The Sur

Of the many deployable solutions that Esri offers, the Citizen Problem Reporter Solution is a Crowdsource Reporting Application that can be configured and leveraged for use across organizations. The solution (once deployed) allows the general public to submit non-emergency problems in the community based on problem categories (Animal Problems, Health Problems, Road Problems, etc.) and certain problem types within those categories (Barking or Loud Dog, Standing Water, Potholes

C.ommercial O.ff T.he S.helf Even though we have all become more technically adept, the idea of customized programming is still out of reach for most users. However, that does not stop us from wanting the shiny buttons and slick applications. Enter COTS software.  This very blog is written on COTS software. Long gone are the days when a solid grasp of HTML and CSS are needed for a great website. Squarespace, Wix, Google Sites along with probably a dozen other site builders ex

Are you a GIS user that has transitioned from ArcMap to ArcGIS Pro? If so, Congratulations! If not, you might want to consider dipping your toes in the ArcGIS Pro waters ( ArcMap is set to be retired by March 2026 ).  For the ArcGIS Pro users, or those thinking about making the move from ArcMap, you now have the capability to manage your land records data using the Parcel Fabric in ArcGIS Pro, with improved workflows and editing capabilities. Here are a few tidbits to know wh

Same Team, Same Expertise, Different Locations We are all working though these confusing and trying times to find a new normal. There is a plethora of advice  for not going crazy and a few tips from other GIS Professionals . I thought I’d share how Cloudpoint Geographics has managed and migrated to a distributed workforce while continuing production on essential projects and even expanding. As a company, we have always stayed nimble. We either use Dropbox or Google Drive to s

With the coronavirus spreading rapidly, its high-time the GIS community invoke its power of location analytics to help fight off the destructive spread. Tools are readily available to locate, track, and even predict when and where the virus will spread. Esri has numerous resources available such as pre-configured web apps, operations dashboards, and solutions deployment tools. One of the major provisions that have made is incorporation of the Coronavirus initiative into ArcGI

Are you a rule follower or a rule breaker? We’ve got both in our office (I won’t mention any names…) but we all agree that Attribute Rules in ArcGIS Pro  are the types of rules we can get behind. There are three rule types you can use to help keep your data in check: Calculation , Constraint , and Validation . Today I’m going to give some examples of creating and applying Calculation rules. If you’re an ArcMap user, this will look a lot like using Attribute Assistant, but bet

The information in this blog post is out of date, with ArcGIS Collector being deprecated at the end of 2021. For updated workflows, check out our blog post Simplifying Inspection Workflows: The Power of Field Maps and Survey123 Integration Of the many applications that Esri has developed, Collector  and Survey123  are two of the most common and widely deployed. They are both designed for field mobility, allowing users to collect, edit, and enter data from out in the field. Co

Are you an occasional Esri software user that is needing to ramp up your game?  Maybe its been a couple of years since you dabbled with the GIS software and you have a project that needs a little geospatial touch.  One of the questions you may find yourself asking is "What is the difference between ArcMap and ArcGIS Pro"?  ArcGIS Pro is the new ArcMap:  As Dave Ramsey likes to say "The paid-off home mortgage is taking the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice", in t

What is ArcGIS Indoors? ArcGIS Indoors is a map-based software application that enables property owners to manage all of their facilities across an entire campus in one, centralized, location. With Esri’s latest release of ArcGIS Indoors, their flagship mapping platform now offers a new solution to deliver improved strategic planning, facility operations, and workplace productivity not to mention a host of other benefits. Property managers and facility operations personnel lo

I am so grateful to have gotten the chance to attend the ESRI User's Conference this year! ESRI knows how to put on a show and San Diego seems tailor-made for conferences.  If you get a chance to go – do it! The sheer number of sessions and demonstrations assures you will walk away having learned something.  The number of people there (18,000+) from around the world guarantees you will meet new people (and not once have to explain what GIS is). At the same time, it is small e

Here are a few brief time-saving tips when performing parcel map maintenance tasks within Esri's parcel fabric.  You can find all of our ArcGIS parcel mapping tips and tricks by signing up at cloudpointgeo.com/parcelfabric .  For more information about migrating your data to the parcel fabric please visit us at cloudpointgeo.com or call 877-377-8124. 1. Merge Courses tool when fixing erroneous vertices. Merge courses is a tool that can be very helpful when eliminating those

Have you ever wondered what drones can do for you?  In this post, we will take a look at some ideas on how your organization can save time and money with drone mapping.  The hype is over and now drone technology is making its way into today's mainstream technical workflows.  Now its time to take a good look at the return on investment to see if it all adds up.  Below are few examples of how drones are helping people in their everyday jobs to make them easier and more efficien

Following suit with our recent numeric theme, today I want to give you three reasons for trying ESRI's Workforce for ArcGIS . In short, Workforce is a tool for creating, assigning and monitoring work orders or assignments that are related to different places or spaces. Still in the beta stages for now, it will be fully released this year and here's why you should give it a run: 1. It's soo easy to deploy.  Whether you are a power user or just getting started with web GIS, thi

A multilayer basemap is a new feature that Esri rolled out in the March 2016 update of ArcGIS Online. Here are 5 steps you can take to create a multilayer basemap for your ArcGIS Online organization.   1. If you have existing basemap content- such as parcels, building footprints, roadways, etc.- in your ArcGIS Online organization, you can skip this step, but I added content from a County's ArcGIS REST Services Directory. In this case, click Add Item on the My Content page,

1. Create a Web Map - Use your GIS to easily communicate pedestrian access routes (temporary & permanent) by displaying them on a web map and share with the public to communicate temporary road closures or construction activities to the traveling public.  The routes can be added as a layer to the GIS and easily updated by office or field personnel to keep the public informed about designated routes or changes.   ArcGIS Desktop can be used to digitize the routes and published