Take a look below to see what's new and improved in ArcGIS Pro 1.3.
Highlights
The highlights section includes major functionality updates at this release.
KML layers
KML data is used to visualize geographic content by identifying and labeling specific locations.
- You can add KML layers to your maps and scenes.
- In scenes, you can find and add KML layers from the KML Layers category in the Contents pane.
- KML data sources are read-only, but some properties can be overridden while viewed from ArcGIS Pro.
- KML layers can be labeled, and they draw in 3D.
- In the Conversion tools, the KML To Layer tool supports KML layers as input.
- The following time-lapse animation was created from live air traffic and noise level data using a KML network link:
Geodatabase topology
Geodatabase topology is a rules-based methodology that requires setup in the source geodatabase for a specific dataset. After you create or edit features, you validate—against one or more topology rules—the features in the area affected by your changes. Then you correct the errors using specific editing tools.
- Geodatabase topology is set up as rules in the source geodatabase for features in the same dataset. When you Validate
a topology in a map, features that violate a rule are identified and symbolized as errors on separate topology layers in the Contents pane. The status of the errors is stored in the source geodatabase. - Geodatabase topology can be validated and fixed using Error Inspector or topology tools in the Modify Features pane.
Image classification
Remote sensing image classification is a workflow that results in a thematically classified map of imagery. There are many stages of processing that are necessary to create an accurate classification map.
- The Image Classification Wizard is a new tool composed of image classification best practices to guide you through the classification process efficiently.
- The Classification Wizard is found in the Classification group on the Data tab. Select a raster in the Contents pane to enable the Data tab.
Locate features
- You can now use the Locate pane to search for features in layers based on locally hosted or remotely hosted (web) data.
- To find features, first configure layers using the Locate pane, and then use the search box to locate a feature.
Get started
- Two new quick-start tutorials, Introducing ArcGIS Pro and Use geoprocessing tools, are now available.
- Preview videos are available for many of the quick-start tutorials.
- For ArcMap users is a new topic to help guide existing users to ArcGIS Pro.
Mapping and visualization
General
- As described in the highlights section above, you can add KML layers to your maps and scenes.
- The automatic selection of related data has been improved.
- You can add a dataset directly from a path to create a new map layer in a map or scene. File-based data, portal items, and data from an enterprise database can all be added directly from a path.
Graphics
- You can now specify a local path or UNC path to store the visualization cache, as an alternative to the default path. The visualization cache is a display option that improves rendering performance.
Vector tiles
- Vector tile layers can be added to maps and scenes. In scenes, they can only be included in the 2D Layers category as a draped layer.
- You can reference vector tile layers as any of the following:
- Vector tile layer (.lyrx)
- Vector tile package (.vtpk)
- Layer package (.lpkx)
- Portal item
Symbology
- Symbol classes of unique value symbology can now be configured to show different symbols at different scales, which supports multiscale mapping.
- You can now draw feature layers with proportional symbology to represent quantitative values as unclassed, proportionally sized symbols. The symbols in the image below represent trees drawn proportionally to their trunk diameters.
- Procedural symbology is now supported for point features.
- When feature layers are added to a map or drawn with different symbology, default colors are applied to work better with the current basemap.
Layout
- The extent of the map inside the map frame can now be controlled by customizing the map frame's display constraints.
- By default, after you add a graphic shape, picture, or text to the layout, the application switches to selection mode to allow for resizing and placement.
- There is now an option to keep the most recent tool active to allow for continued use of the respective tool instead of clicking it again. To enable this option, click the Project tab and click Options. On the Options dialog box, click Layout, select the check box to keep the tool active, and click OK.
Text
- An alpha value has been added to the <clr> text formatting tag to allow transparent text.
- KML layers added to maps and scenes can be labeled.
- HarfBuzz, which improves text rendering with complex scripts, is now used for text shaping.
Animation
- The Animation Timeline pane is now available to enhance animation editing. Capabilities of the Animation Timeline pane include the following:
- Thumbnails help you visualize animation keyframes and their place along the full duration of your animation.
- Focus on keyframe selections. You can click to select keyframes and rearrange (drag), cut or copy, delete, play back, or update.
- Change the transition type by clicking
the icon in the keyframe gallery (
, 
, 
, or 
). - Jump to an instance along the animation timeline by double-clicking it.
- Insert or update keyframes, and see the updates on the fly.
- Interactive editing in the timeline, with the path and keyframes displayed in the map view, is more intuitive.
- The Keyframe Properties pane is now available to enhance animation editing. Capabilities of the Keyframe Properties pane include the following:
- Create any combination of properties you want enabled for any keyframe.
- Type new values for the start time or length of a keyframe.
- Edit specific details for camera, range, time, and layer properties.
- When you select a keyframe from the Animation Timeline or Keyframe List, the Keyframe Properties pane matches that selection.
Range
- The range slider now supports integer values and the use of integer-only workflows. If all active ranges are based on an integer field range, the slider will accommodate an integer-friendly mode.
- If using integer values, you can view the range slider in a collapsed style to see a single value. On the Range tab, in the Active Range group, choose Single Value mode. This will replace the range slider with a simplified mode for clicking through or entering integer values only.
Analysis and geoprocessing
General
- Geoprocessing tools with an input features parameter can now use feature service layers as input without adding the feature service to the map. You can copy a feature service layer URL into the parameter text box, or use the URL path as a string input to tools in Python (for example, http://<serverurl.com>/<server>/rest/services/Hosted/myroads_featureservice/FeatureServer/0).
- You can browse to feature service layers by clicking the parameter browse button and using the dialog box's Portal section to browse for the feature service layer.
Portal analysis
- You can now run tools on a remote server to distribute computational load across servers.
- A new Portal group is available on the Analysis ribbon tab and the Geoprocessing pane.
- Tools in the Portal group run remotely using an ArcGIS Server associated with your active portal. These tools can be used like other geoprocessing tools. The tools create an output dataset on your server and can create new portal items that are added to the map.
Charts
- You can make line charts that visualize change over a continuous range such as time or distance.
- When you make interactive changes to your layer's time or range filter using the time slider or range slider, these filters will also apply to the charts associated with these layers.
Network Analyst
- Network analysis layer properties now show details about the travel mode used by that layer. These details show the impedance attribute and the set of restrictions and associated parameter values that will be used when solving that network analysis layer. These settings can be changed and saved to the layer for use with the next solve.
- Network analysis layers can now be shared. They can be packaged as part of a project template, project package, or map package, or individually as a layer package.
3D Analyst tools
- 3D Analyst now has interactive LAS classification code editing.
- In the Data Management toolbox, the following tools are now available in the LAS Dataset toolset:
- In the Data Management toolbox, the Multipart to Singlepart tool now supports multipatches.
Analysis tools
- In the Extract toolset, the new Split By Attributes tool is now available.
- In the Pairwise Overlay toolset, the new Pairwise Buffer tool is now available. Pairwise Buffer can use multiple computer cores in parallel to generate buffers, and is an alternative to the Buffer tool.
Cartography tools
- The Cartographic Refinement toolset is available with the following tools:
- The following tools have been added to the Generalization toolset:
- The Masking toolset is available with the following tools:
Conversion tools
- For the Features to JSON tool, a new geoJSON parameter is now available.
- The new KML To Layer tool supports KML layers as input.
- In the To Geodatabase toolset, a CAD to Geodatabase tool is now available.
- A new environment, Maintain Attachments, allows you to enable and disable the transfer of attachments to the output table or feature class. Maintain Attachments is supported by the following tools:
Data Management tools
- For the Create Map Tile Package tool, a new extent parameter is available.
- The following tools have been added to the Raster toolset:
- The new tool, Create Scene Layer Package, is now available in the Packaging toolset.
- A new environment, Maintain Attachments, allows you to enable and disable transfer of attachments to the output tale or feature class. Maintain Attachments is supported by the following tools:
- The Topology toolset is now available to use via Python.
Geostatistical Analyst tools
- The EBK Regression Prediction tool now supports the Subset polygon features parameter, which allows you to define your own regions for the local models. In the previous version, the regions of these local models were automatically created by the software and could only be partially controlled.
- Geostatistical layers now support pop-ups.
- The Empirical Bayesian Kriging and EBK Regression Prediction models have four new model diagnostics when performing validation or cross-validation. They are also created in the Output diagnostic feature class in the Empirical Bayesian Kriging tool. The model diagnostics include the following:
- Continuous Ranked Probability Scores (CRPS)
- Validation Quantile
- Inside 90 Percent Interval
- Inside 95 Percent Interval
Spatial Analyst tools
- In the Distance toolset, performance and accuracy improvements have been made to the Cost and Path distance tools. These changes increase processing speeds, especially for larger datasets. The internal algorithms used for distance accumulation, horizontal and vertical factors, and source characteristics are now more precise, and the resampling of the cost surface input that was previously done by nearest neighbor is now done with bilinear interpolation.
- In the Distance toolset, a new source characteristic parameter, Direction of Travel, is available for the following tools:
- In the Math toolset, the Conditional toolset, and the Local toolset, all tools (except for Combine) have been updated to use Raster Functions internally. This update yields performance improvements when the output is to raster formats other than Esri Grid, such as TIFF or geodatabase raster format.
Spatial Statistics tools
- The tools in the Measuring Geographic Distributions toolset have been enhanced to honor 3D data. This added functionality will calculate results taking into consideration the z-values (such as elevation) associated with each feature and produce a 3D result that can be visualized in a 3D scene. The enhanced tools include Central Feature, Directional Distribution, Median Center, and Standard Distance.
- The ability to use permutations has been added to the Cluster and Outlier Analysis tool. This method allows you to create a reference distribution (instead of assuming a normal distribution) and produces a better result.
Space Time Pattern Mining tools
- The ability to aggregate input features into hexagon bins has been added to the Create Space Time Cube tool in the Space Time Pattern Mining toolbox.
- A Space Time Cube Explorer plug-in is available for download, that allows you to explore and visualize space-time cube variables and results for the following tools:
- For the Create Space Time Cube tool, a new Aggregation Shape Type parameter is available.
Python
- Python in ArcGIS Pro 1.3 has been updated to use conda for packaging Python and Python third-party libraries that are included with ArcGIS Pro. This change allows support of multiple Python environments. Additional benefits include an isolated and consistent Python environment that can be easily extended.
Legacy:
With ArcGIS Pro 1.3, the separate Python download that was used by ArcGIS Pro 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2 is no longer required. To avoid confusion and errors importing arcpy, uninstalling past versions of Python for ArcGIS Pro is recommended.
- Python toolboxes can now be encrypted and decrypted by right-clicking a toolbox. Equivalent ArcPy functions EncryptPYT and DecryptPYT have also been added.
- A GetPortalDescription function has been added to ArcPy that returns a JSON string of portal information.
Edit data
- In the Modify Features pane, the new Buffer
creates polyline or polygon buffer features around selected features at a specified offset distance. - In the Manage Templates pane, Preset templates are now available to create features based on a snapshot selection of features when the template is authored.
- In Template Properties for group templates, a new builder is available for polyline (Primary) templates when a map contains at least one point feature layer and a corresponding feature template. Offset
creates a gap at a specified radial distance between the first point feature in the group and the first vertex of the primary polyline feature. - Geodatabase topology can be validated and fixed using Error Inspector or topology tools in the Modify Features pane.
Manage data and geodatabases
General
- You can browse into portal web layers and ArcGIS Server services in the Project pane, Project view, and Browse dialog box.
- Browse into a web feature layer to see the layers and tables it contains.
- Browse into a web map image layer or a web scene layer to see the layers it contains.
- Browse into a web imagery layer or an ArcGIS Server image service to see an image catalog and the images it contains if they are available.
- Browse into an ArcGIS Server map service or feature service to see the layers it contains.
- Individual layers and tables in web layers and ArcGIS Server services can be added to a map.
- You can use geoprocessing tools to analyze layers within a web feature layer.
- You can preview spatial datasets in the Project view.
Geocoding
- As described in the highlights section above, you can now use the Locate pane to configure layers for search in order to find features. This functionality is available for both local layers and for layers imported from web maps.
Geodatabases
- You can view relationship class rules on the Relationship Class Properties page. On the Project pane, right-click Relationship class, click Properties, and click the Rules tab.
- Use the Version Changes viewer and Conflict Display to view the changes made to a version since it was created or last reconciled with a previous version. To open the Version Changes dialog box, on the Versioning tab, click Version Changes.
- You can view connected users and locks from the Connections sections on the Database Properties page.
Raster
- As described in the highlights section, image classification includes a wizard to walk you through the steps to create thematic classified renderings of imagery. Each step in the wizard can also be run as an individual tool, if you only need to run certain steps.
- Mosaic dataset and image server item explorer is now supported, so you can inspect individual items within a mosaic dataset.
- Custom functions have a new user experience in the Raster Functions pane.
- Sharing datasets as a web tile cache is now supported.
Work more efficiently
Tasks
- A step can enable view linking on the Views tab in the Task Designer pane. When view linking is enabled, all open views in the step automatically link to the active view.
- A step can turn on snapping for the active view on the Contents tab in the Task Designer pane. When snapping is turned on, the step can toggle different snap modes on or off.
- Steps can be created as palette steps. A palette step allows a task user to switch back and forth between different tools and commands within the same step. A palette step loads a palette of tools.
Workflow Manager
- The job query results can be exported to a CSV file, which can be used to generate charts and reports, and shared with others.
- One or more jobs can be deleted from the Workflow Manager database when they are no longer required.
- User and group configuration can be done in a new Workflow Manager database from within ArcGIS Pro.
- The name of the connected Workflow Manager user and the name of the database the user is connected to are displayed at the bottom of the workflow view, along with the number of jobs returned by the query.
- The text in the job list can be made larger by zooming in using the zoom bar at the bottom of the workflow view.
- The step descriptions for the workflow steps can be viewed in the job view workflow canvas.
- Using the Workflow Manager Python API, a job can be created with a point of interest, it can be set for existing jobs, and dependencies can be added to the existing jobs.
- Holds and dependencies can be created and managed in the job view.
- Extended Properties coming from a domain are now supported.
- In Extended Properties, values in a table can be displayed as a list of values to choose from.
Share your work
- Web tile layers can be cached locally instead of on the server.
- Web elevation layers can be published from ArcGIS Pro when sharing a web scene.
- Web elevation layers and web scene layers can be published to ArcGIS Online through packages created in ArcGIS Pro. For more information, see Tile package and Scene layer packages.
- 3D Model marker files are supported when sharing to ArcGIS Online.
Extend ArcGIS Pro
- The ArcGIS Pro SDK for Microsoft .NET is available. You can use it to extend the ArcGIS Pro application.