Visualize data updates using live mode

You can visualize time-enabled data that is updated frequently using live mode on the time slider. For example, you can monitor vehicle positions or weather data as they change. Once you have set the time properties on the layer, you can switch the time slider to live mode and drive the map's time extent with your system clock.

Note:

Live mode is not available for stand-alone tables.

When visualizing data in live mode, the map's time is automatically advanced with your system clock time, and each live data layer is refreshed based on a rate you define. For example, if you have stream gauge data that is updated with new records every minute, you can set the refresh rate for the layer to one minute on the Time tab on the Layer Properties dialog box. To ensure you get to see your data in the map, you need to also define the map's time span, on the Time tab on the ribbon. For constant position data, like stream gauges that update every minute, you would set a matching time span of one minute so one, and only one, feature is being drawn. For moving features, such as vehicles that update every 10 seconds, you can consider a larger map time span; for example, a 30-second span that shows you the last three vehicle position points.

You can also have the attribute table open at the same time live mode is playing and see new data collected and added to the table.

Use live mode on the time slider

After setting the time properties on the layer as a live feed, you can click the Live Mode button on the time slider to start live mode and match the map's time extent with your system clock. Once live mode has started, LIVE appears on the slider to indicate the time slider is automatically progressing by your system clock. Clicking any other control on the time slider, such as the Pause button, ends the live data mode.

1. Open the Layer Properties dialog box for the time-aware layer you want to visualize in live mode.
2. Click the Time tab and set the Layer Time property to enable time.
3. Check the Data is a live feed check box.
4. Click the General tab and check the Layer should be refreshed periodically check box.
5. Set the rate at which you want to receive updates.
The default is one second, but the rate can also be defined in minutes, hours, days, months, and years.
6. Click OK to close the Layer Properties dialog box.
7. On the Time tab, in the Current Time group, set the Span property for the amount of data you want to show. This is the visible duration of time.
8. On the time slider, click the drop-down arrow beside the Live Mode button and choose from one of the following three options to show updates:
   • Past—The leading edge of the time slider control is attached to your system clock. For example, show the last two minutes of data. This is the default.
   • Future—The trailing edge of the time slider control is attached to your system clock. For example, show the next two (future) minutes of data.
   • Past and future—The center of the time slider span is attached to your system clock. For example, show one minute of future and one minute of past data.

   These options are described further in the section below.

9. Click the Live Mode button on the time slider.

   LIVE appears on the time slider. The slider control, and therefore the map time, are now being driven by the current system time. Each layer with live data feeds in the map automatically refreshes at the rate you defined.

10. To stop visualizing in live mode, you can either click the Live Mode button again, or click any other control on the time slider. Once live mode is turned off, the time-enabled data in the past can be visualized and no new data will be displayed.

Note:

• If the project is saved with live mode on, the next time you open the project, the time of the map will reflect the most current time of the time-enabled data.
• When using live mode, if a time zone is specified on the time slider, the current time of the map is set to the current time in the time zone that is specified. For example, if the current time on your computer is 08:00:00 a.m. in Pacific time (United States and Canada) (GMT -08:00), and the time zone on the slider is set to Eastern time (United States and Canada) (GMT -05:00), clicking Live Mode on the time slider in this case sets the map to 11:00:00 a.m., which is the current time in Eastern time (United States and Canada ) (GMT -05:00).

Live mode display options

Click the drop-down arrow next to the Enable Live Mode button on the time slider to see the three options available for how your system clock time is applied to the time slider: Past, Future, and Past and future. All of these options work in conjunction with the time span you set on the Time tab to show a specific duration of time in your map.

Past is the most common and is the default setting. Use Past when you want the features to continue displaying for some amount of time after they were captured. It also works for data that takes some time to process before it becomes available. For example, if the new features are about an hour old by the time you receive them, you may use the Past option with a span of more than one hour to continuously see the recent data.

Future is used when looking at predictive data, such as weather forecasts. This mode will only show data that has a time set beyond your current machine clock.

Past and future can be set if you have predictive data but you also want to continue seeing historic data information, such as military aircraft positions.