I have users who've started generating spatial data by adding "notes" using ArcGIS Explorer Online and ArcGIS Explorer Desktop. I need to find ways (preferably with some automation) to pull this data into our corporate GIS.
Unless I'm missing something, getting notes out of ArcGIS Explorer Online is currently impossible. Here's what I've tried, and what the results have been:
1. Add Content - ArcGIS Online in ArcGIS Desktop (build 1700) brings up a map's basemap and bookmarks, but not the layers created within that map.
2. I can't find any web maps from the Add Data from ArcGIS Online tool in ArcMap (v10 SP2).
3. Open in ArcGIS Desktop 10 from a web map's page under My Content on ArcGIS.com results in a "could not open the specified file" error message in ArcMap.
Getting notes out of ArcGIS Explorer Desktop (build 1700), is possible, although not exactly easy.
Initially, I converted each notes "layer" in AGX to a layer package using the right-click-Share-Layer Package-File functionality. The Add Data button in ArcMap can't bring up Layer Packages, but thankfully there's a work-around - you can drag and drop from ArcCatalog. However, the data only has two attribute fields, Popup and Visible, and the Popup field starts with around 925 characters of HTML style tag. So I try to use Python to pull all of that out to leave only the data typed by the user - unfortunately, roughly half of the features generate mysterious "EOL" (end-of-line) errors. So I look at the notes in AGX and sure enough, the user had a carriage return at the end of those features. This isn't clear when the text is copy-pasted from ArcMap's attribute table into Notepad. I wasn't able to figure out a way to get around the error in Python.
So back to the drawing board. I spit out KMLs instead of Layer Packages, using the same right-click-Share functionality in AGX. KMLs can't be added by the Add Data button in ArcMap, either - you have to use the KML to layer tool (I plan to use ArcToolbox's batch option to make this a bit quicker). Thank heavens all this trouble is worth it, because the same Python tool that failed before now works and I have a field with only the user's text that I can then massage and import into my corporate data.
Are there easier ways to accomplish this with current software?