{"id":174831,"date":"2011-04-14T22:44:01","date_gmt":"2011-04-14T22:44:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=174831"},"modified":"2018-12-18T11:54:29","modified_gmt":"2018-12-18T19:54:29","slug":"how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","title":{"rendered":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!"},"author":4331,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[22941],"tags":[26451,38411],"industry":[],"product":[36991],"class_list":["post-174831","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mapping","tag-cartography","tag-mapping-center","product-arcgis-desktop"],"acf":{"short_description":"Question: We\u2019ve been scratching our heads over how to tackle this for some time, and are no more illuminated than when we started.","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Question:<\/strong>\u00a0We\u2019ve been scratching our heads over how to tackle this for some time, and are no more illuminated than when we started. I hope you can help. Our task is thus: how to draw a lake with a solid outer perimeter line and no lines between internal wetlands, shoals and shallows? \u2018Tis a relatively straightforward process with ArcInfo coverages and Regions, but alas, that is no longer a viable option for us. The datasets we use now are too large and the lack coverage editing ability in ArcMap crucial. Can cartographic representations solve our dilemma? Is it possible to create something like the attached without resorting to creating (and managing) duplicating duplicate geometries whose sole purpose is better looking maps?<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/strong>\u00a0You do not have to use Cartographic Representations to do this.\u00a0 There is a\u00a0Knowledge Base article<\/a>on how to symbolize polygon features so that boundary lines between like polygons are dissolved.\u00a0 The solution dissolves all boundaries so for those areas you wish to symbolise with a boundary you need to modify it as follows:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For each class, edit the symbol to give it an outline style and width.\u00a0 Ensure that the outline width is double the final intended width (for reasons given below)<\/p>\n

Now you need to modify the symbol levels.\u00a0 In the solution, all fills are drawn on one level and all outlines are on another level but this has the effect of masking all the outlines whatever symbols you use.<\/p>\n

Instead, you need to set symbol levels so that the fill and outline are alternate for each class.\u00a0 For example, symbol levels 1 and 2 for one class, then 3 and 4 for another and so on.<\/p>\n

The result is to alternate the fill and outline symbol levels so that outlines can be seen \u2013 though only half the width of the outlines will ever be seen which is why it is important to double the thickness.<\/p>\n

Note, if you use a cartographic line symbol then only one half of the width of the symbol will be visible with this workaround and that may have consequences for the line style you choose.\u00a0 The solution will work best for solid or dashed lines.<\/p>\n

Attachment:\u00a0an example of the desired result<\/a><\/p>\n

Formerly a Mapping Center Ask a Cartographer \u00a0Q & A<\/em><\/p>\n"}],"authors":[{"ID":4331,"user_firstname":"Aileen","user_lastname":"Buckley","nickname":"Aileen Buckley","user_nicename":"abuckley","display_name":"Aileen Buckley","user_email":"abuckley@esri.com","user_url":"","user_registered":"2018-03-02 00:15:57","user_description":"Dr. Aileen Buckley is a cartographer researcher and Senior Principal GIS Engineer at Esri. I'm on the ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World Team, making, writing, and talking about maps. I'm also involved in a number of cartographic societies and association, and I'm the chair of the ICA Ethics in Cartography Commission.","user_avatar":""}],"related_articles":"","card_image":false,"wide_image":false},"yoast_head":"\nHow to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"ArcGIS Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ESRI\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Aileen Buckley\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/874953792dea98fe178fbb6a5e8255b0\"},\"headline\":\"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-04-14T22:44:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\"},\"wordCount\":13,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"cartography\",\"Mapping Center\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Mapping\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\",\"name\":\"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-04-14T22:44:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/\",\"name\":\"ArcGIS Blog\",\"description\":\"Get insider info from Esri product teams\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Esri\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Esri.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Esri.png\",\"width\":400,\"height\":400,\"caption\":\"Esri\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/ESRI\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/5311\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/874953792dea98fe178fbb6a5e8255b0\",\"name\":\"Aileen Buckley\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Aileen.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Aileen.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Aileen Buckley\"},\"description\":\"Dr. Aileen Buckley is a cartographer researcher and Senior Principal GIS Engineer at Esri. I'm on the ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World Team, making, writing, and talking about maps. I'm also involved in a number of cartographic societies and association, and I'm the chair of the ICA Ethics in Cartography Commission.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/buckley.aileen\/\",\"linkedin.com\/in\/aileenbuckley\"],\"honorificPrefix\":\"Dr.\",\"honorificSuffix\":\"PhD\",\"gender\":\"female\",\"award\":[\"Chair of the ICA Commission on Ethics in Cartography\"],\"knowsAbout\":[\"Cartography\",\"GIS\"],\"knowsLanguage\":[\"English\"],\"jobTitle\":\"Research Cartographer\",\"worksFor\":\"Esri\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/author\/abuckley\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!","og_url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","og_site_name":"ArcGIS Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/","article_modified_time":"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@ESRI","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":["Article","BlogPosting"],"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you"},"author":{"name":"Aileen Buckley","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/874953792dea98fe178fbb6a5e8255b0"},"headline":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!","datePublished":"2011-04-14T22:44:01+00:00","dateModified":"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you"},"wordCount":13,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization"},"keywords":["cartography","Mapping Center"],"articleSection":["Mapping"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you","name":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2011-04-14T22:44:01+00:00","dateModified":"2018-12-18T19:54:29+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-desktop\/mapping\/how-to-dissolve-internal-polygon-boundaries-or-arcinfo-region-coverages-we-miss-you#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to dissolve \u201cinternal\u201d polygon boundaries, or: arcinfo region coverages we miss you!"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/","name":"ArcGIS Blog","description":"Get insider info from Esri product teams","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#organization","name":"Esri","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Esri.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Esri.png","width":400,"height":400,"caption":"Esri"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/","https:\/\/x.com\/ESRI","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/5311\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/874953792dea98fe178fbb6a5e8255b0","name":"Aileen Buckley","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Aileen.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Aileen.jpg","caption":"Aileen Buckley"},"description":"Dr. Aileen Buckley is a cartographer researcher and Senior Principal GIS Engineer at Esri. I'm on the ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World Team, making, writing, and talking about maps. I'm also involved in a number of cartographic societies and association, and I'm the chair of the ICA Ethics in Cartography Commission.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/buckley.aileen\/","linkedin.com\/in\/aileenbuckley"],"honorificPrefix":"Dr.","honorificSuffix":"PhD","gender":"female","award":["Chair of the ICA Commission on Ethics in Cartography"],"knowsAbout":["Cartography","GIS"],"knowsLanguage":["English"],"jobTitle":"Research Cartographer","worksFor":"Esri","url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/author\/abuckley"}]}},"text_date":"April 14, 2011","author_name":"Aileen Buckley","author_page":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/author\/abuckley","custom_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Newsroom-Keyart-Wide-1920-x-1080.jpg","primary_product":"ArcMap","tag_data":[{"term_id":26451,"name":"cartography","slug":"cartography","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":26451,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":558,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":38411,"name":"Mapping Center","slug":"mapping-center","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":38411,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":35,"filter":"raw"}],"category_data":[{"term_id":22941,"name":"Mapping","slug":"mapping","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":22941,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":2692,"filter":"raw"}],"product_data":[{"term_id":36991,"name":"ArcMap","slug":"arcgis-desktop","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":36991,"taxonomy":"product","description":"","parent":36981,"count":325,"filter":"raw"}],"primary_product_link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?s=#&products=arcgis-desktop","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/174831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/blog"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4331"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=174831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/174831\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=174831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=174831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=174831"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=174831"},{"taxonomy":"product","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product?post=174831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}