Esri continues to expand what ArcGIS Online offers, providing current and useful content to the ArcGIS user community. In addition to the new sharing application, new services and content have been added to the existing 2D and 3D map services.
The latest changes include a new imagery service based on Landsat imagery and a price reduction for the premium USA Prime Imagery map service (from $500 to $200 for an annual subscription). Also new are the ArcGIS Web Mapping APIs for JavaScript, Flex, and Microsoft Silverlight, which assist users in rapid Web application development.
With the 9.3.1 release, ArcGIS users now have the ability to easily access and consume Microsoft Virtual Earth services. ArcGIS Desktop users who are current on maintenance have free access to Virtual Earth during their maintenance year with a large allotment of transactions per year. However, users can also purchase an annual subscription with unlimited transactions. ArcGIS Server users will be able to access a built-in 90-day evaluation of Virtual Earth, after which they can purchase annual subscriptions that include blocks of 100,000 transactions.
ArcGIS Explorer users who also have an existing ArcGIS Desktop license can share the free transactions allotted to the ArcGIS Desktop license. Those who do not have an existing ArcGIS Desktop license can evaluate Virtual Earth for 90 days, after which they can purchase an annual subscription with unlimited transactions. Virtual Earth services include imagery, streets, and imagery with street labeling. Bird's-eye imagery is not included in this service. However, ArcGIS Server and ArcGIS Web Mapping APIs include access to Virtual Earth geocoding.
ArcGIS Online 9.3.1 now also provides location services comprised of World Geocoding, World Routing, and World Drive Time. World Geocoding is a set of standard, no-cost services that provide address, reverse, and limited batch geocoding for North America (U.S. and Canada) and Europe and world place-finding capabilities. Users who need to batch geocodes-save geocodes for more than 1,000 addresses per year-or would like to use this service for commercial purposes can purchase annual subscriptions that include blocks of 25,000 batch geocodes.
World Routing supports point-to-point and optimized routing for North America and Europe. This service is available as a standard, no-cost service with a limit of 5,000 routes per year and as a fee-based service with no limitations that can be used for commercial purposes. World Drive Time is available as a premium, fee-based service and calculates drive-time polygons using an input location and drive-time values. World Routing and World Drive Time require ArcGIS 9.3.1. World Geocoding can be used with ArcGIS 9.3 or 9.3.1.
Learn more about ArcGIS Online.
