Frequently asked question

What are some teaching tools and resources while learning to program with ArcObjects?

Last Published: April 25, 2020

Answer

Training & learning ArcObjects

- "Getting to Know ArcObjects" - a book for novice programmers. It is organized into lessons that flow from one to the next. The first half of the book teaches basic programming in VBA. The second half of the book teaches some simple ArcObjects programming.

This book is available at the GIS Bookstore at ESRI.com. See the link below in Related Information.



- ESRI offers Instructor-Led Training courses on how to program in ArcObjects.

Introduction to Programming ArcObjects with VBA
Extending ArcGIS Desktop Applications
Developing Applications with ArcGIS Engine
Developing Applications with ArcGIS Server (.NET)
Developing Applications with ArcGIS Server (Java)
Developing Applications with ArcWeb Services for the Microsoft® .NET Framework



- ESRI Virtual Campus offers ArcObjects seminars and workshops.

Getting Started with ArcObjects in ArcGIS
Introduction to ArcGIS for Developers
Migrating to VB .NET
Understanding Branching and Looping in VBA



Resource materials and sites

- ArcObjects Developer Help contains sample code, technical documents, Object Model Diagrams, and the language reference.

In ArcGIS 8.3, click Start > Programs > ArcGIS > ArcObjects Developer Help.

In ArcGIS 9.x, click Start > Programs > ArcGIS > Developer Help.



- ESRI Developer Network (EDN) provides access to many forms of information:

Documentation Library
Discussion Forums
Technical Documents
Downloads
Code Samples
Diagrams
ESRI Developer-Related Videos
And More...


See the link to EDN in the Related Information section, below.

- ArcScripts is a Web site that contains user developed or third party applications, extensions, code samples, and other custom functions for GIS users.

- "Exploring ArcObjects" is a book that shipped with ArcGIS 8.x in PDF format. It discusses ArcObjects classes and interfaces in detail and provides many useful code samples. Much of the exploring ArcObjects book has been included in the 9.x help.

'Exploring ArcObjects' is shipped with ArcGIS Desktop 8.1 in pdf format and can be found on the 'Digital Books and Sample Maps' CD. A hard copy version of this book is no longer available at the GIS Bookstore, but can be purchased at many online stores on the web.



- Context Sensitive Help displays the help topics for the selected item.

In the Visual Basic Editor select the object and press F1.



- The Object Browser displays the properties, methods, and events for all the objects in your project.
In the Visual Basic Editor press F2 or the Object Browser icon.

[O] Open the Visual Basic Object Browser
- The ESRI User Forum is a excellent resource for finding code samples. You can also post questions and search for information.

Problems & troubleshooting tips

- ESRI Support Center contains many Knowledge Base articles that contain helpful information and code samples for ArcObjects.

- Technical Support may assist you in problems dealing with interfaces, properties, methods, and events for working with ArcObjects within ArcGIS in VBA.

- Developer Support may assist you in problems dealing with interfaces, properties, methods, and events for ArcObjects in development environments outside of ArcGIS.

Article ID:000003467

Software:
  • ArcMap 8 x
  • ArcMap 9 x

Get help from ArcGIS experts

Contact technical support

Download the Esri Support App

Go to download options

Related Information

Discover more on this topic