Five Steps to Better Performance Continued from page 45 For more information on designing basemap and operational layers in ArcMap, see the ArcGIS Desktop help topics "How to build online basemaps" and "Building operational map layers" located in GIS servers and services > Creating and publishing Web maps for ArcGIS Server. Step Three Tune maps to optimize request performance The next step is analyzing the performance of the layers in the map document using the Map Service Publishing toolbar. This toolbar, introduced with the ArcGIS 9.3.1 release, adds new functionality. The general workflow for optimizing request performance is 1. Analyzing the document and identifying performance improvements 2. Implementing the recommended changes 3. Saving the map document (.mxd) file and publishing it to ArcGIS Server or saving a new optimized map service definition (.msd) file and publishing the .msd file to ArcGIS Server Examine the Map Service Publishing toolbar Before optimizing map layers, start ArcMap and open the Map Service Publishing toolbar. The tools in this toolbar are described in the accompanying table. An example of an optimized operational layer served dynamically. The water district operational layers are updated daily so users can access current information and toggle the visibility of layers. Name Analyze Map Function Examines the map contents, provides suggestions for improving performance, and returns errors for layers and properties incompatible with the optimized drawing engine Draws the map using the new ArcGIS 9.3.1 optimized drawing engine; provides an idea of how fast the map will draw and whether the new drawing engine has changed the look of any layers Saves map document (.mxd) as an optimized map service definition (.msd) file Creates map service definition file (.msd) on the server (arcgisserver\arcgisinput folder) and publishes the .msd file to ArcGIS Server; requires the same administrative privileges as other publishing methods Options for improving the quality of text and line work in the map Preview Save Map Service Definition Publish To ArcGIS Server Options The Map Service Publishing toolbar Tools on the Map Service Publishing toolbar 46 ArcUser Summer 2009 r www.esri.com