Sketch a line feature layer by freehand in ArcGIS Online Map Viewer

Summary

Sketching line features by freehand reduces the number of clicks on a mouse. However, there is no ready tool in ArcGIS Online Map Viewer to draw a line feature by freehand. One alternative is to transform a drawn sketch layer into a feature layer to enable geospatial analysis. This article outlines the workflow to sketch freehand lines and convert the sketch layer to a feature layer using the Merge Layers tool in ArcGIS Online Map Viewer.

Procedure

1. Sketch the lines in ArcGIS Online Map Viewer.
   1. Log in to ArcGIS Online.
   2. Open the map in Map Viewer. Refer to ArcGIS Online: Find and open a map for instructions.
   3. On the Settings (light) toolbar, click Add sketch.
   4. Select Draw a polyline.

1. 5. On the map, click, hold, and draw the feature. When the line is drawn, double-click to complete each line.
   6. Close the Sketch pane on the Settings (light) toolbar to complete the sketch.
2. Use the Merge Layers tool to convert the sketch layer to a feature layer.

Note:    
In ArcGIS Online, using analysis tools in Map Viewer consumes credits, depending on the number of records and the generated output. Click Estimate credits before running an analysis to check credit costs. Refer to ArcGIS Online: Understand credits for more information.

1. 1. On the Settings (light) toolbar, click Analysis.
   2. In the Analysis pane, click Tools. Search for and select the Merge Layers tool.
   3. In the Merge Layers pane, under Input layer, click Layer to add the sketch layer created in Step 1.
   4. Under Layer to merge, click Layer to add the preferred layer to the new sketch, or select the sketch layer as both the input layers if only a conversion is required.
   5. For Result layer, under Output name, specify a name for the result layer.
   6. Click Run.

The map below shows the sketched lines merged as a feature layer in Map Viewer.