{"id":67761,"date":"2015-06-02T23:01:49","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T23:01:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/product\/uncategorized\/moving-beyond-the-arcgis-app-for-smartphones-and-tablets\/"},"modified":"2018-04-10T20:33:02","modified_gmt":"2018-04-10T20:33:02","slug":"moving-beyond-the-arcgis-app-for-smartphones-and-tablets","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/apps\/announcements\/moving-beyond-the-arcgis-app-for-smartphones-and-tablets","title":{"rendered":"Moving Beyond the ArcGIS App for Smartphones and Tablets"},"author":5871,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[37101],"tags":[26551],"industry":[],"product":[36591],"class_list":["post-67761","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-announcements","tag-crowdsourcing","product-apps"],"acf":{"short_description":"The ArcGIS app will be retired from the App Stores (Google, Apple, Windows and Amazon) in 2016.","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

\"\"<\/a>Back in 2010 Esri released its first native app for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone…the ArcGIS app. \u00a0This app has also been referred to as the \u201cArcGIS app for smartphones and tablets\u201d and sometimes as the “Green App” (because of the green app icon). \u00a0The app has served many of our users well over these years, but with the advent of new capabilities in ArcGIS and the overall evolution and updates to mobile platforms, the time has come to retire the ArcGIS app.<\/p>\n

The ArcGIS app will be retired from the App Stores (Google, Apple, Windows and Amazon) in 2016. Once retired the app will no longer be available for download, although it will continue working normally on any device where it has been installed previously.<\/p>\n

So, you might ask… What do I use when the ArcGIS app is gone? \u00a0That really depends on your needs and how you have been using the app in the past. \u00a0The three primary uses we have seen with the app are\u00a01) Sharing Maps<\/span> with the public and within the enterprise, 2) Crowdsourcing,<\/span> and 3) Data editing<\/span> within an organization. \u00a0Esri has a number of solutions to fulfill these workflows, and improve on the functionality and user experience.<\/p>\n

1) Sharing Public Maps:<\/strong>
\nMany users have leveraged the ArcGIS app as the means to share maps with the general public. Some of you have added links in your web sites so citizens could easily download the app from the app stores and then load maps from the organization.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Explorer for ArcGIS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The best native ArcGIS app for sharing maps with the public is Explorer for ArcGIS<\/a>. It provides an improved user experience over the ArcGIS app and significantly better support for web maps. Explorer for ArcGIS can be used by anyone; it does not require a ArcGIS account to search, open, and view public maps from ArcGIS.<\/p>\n

TIP: You can create a URL (to post on your website or send via email) that will open your map in Explorer for ArcGIS on an iOS or Android device. If the recipient does not have either of those installed the map will open in a browser. To do this just use this URL as a template and insert your Web map ID. http:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/home\/mobileviewer\/appsharer.html?id=YourMapIdHere<\/em><\/span>
\n Here is an example: http:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/home\/mobileviewer\/appsharer.html?id=ac7e0840c3444ccbb69082ad99d18eeb<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Another alternative for a native map to share maps with the public is AppStudio for ArcGIS<\/a>. AppStudio for ArcGIS will allow ArcGIS users to create their own branded mapping native apps, and publish them to the Apple and Google app stores for public access. The AppStudio for ArcGIS beta program is currently open and its release is planned prior to the retirement of the ArcGIS app.<\/p>\n

Also it is important to note that a dedicated native app is not required to use web maps on \u00a0smartphones and tablets. Both the ArcGIS map viewer as well as web apps built with the Web AppBuilder\u00a0for ArcGIS<\/a>\u00a0are built using response design, so they work great on mobile devices and provide an excellent alternative to the ArcGIS app. \u00a0The Esri Story Map apps<\/a> are also popular ways to share maps with the public, along with additional narrative or multi-media content and they are also responsive.<\/p>\n

When sharing maps within an organization the use of Explorer for ArcGIS<\/a> instead of the ArcGIS app should be a no brainer. Explorer for ArcGIS delivers an updated user experience and provides additional capabilities such as Favorites, Sketching, Sharing and more.<\/p>\n

2) Crowdsourcing:<\/strong>A handful of users have used the ArcGIS app to enable citizens to<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Crowdsource Reporter<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

collect geographic data. We recently released a new set of configurable app templates focused on crowdsourcing geographic data from the public.<\/p>\n