Customizing ArcPad

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There are many ways you can customize ArcPad, including the following:

  • Starting with configuring toolbars within ArcPad, you can quickly change the number of tools that are presented in your project, to simplify the user interface.
  • Save your project as an ArcPad App, and launching your project can be reduced to a single click.
  • Take a little time to modify your data entry forms to look exactly how you like, or add some extra data validation to improve your workflow.
  • With some scripting you can add powerful analysis to your ArcPad project or automate either geographic or attribute data collection.
  • You can also add to ArcPads capabilities by building an extension to support peripherals and data formats not supported out of the box.

The skills needed to customize ArcPad range from basic computer familiarity, up to complex programming. However, the most common customization is achieved with some familiarity with XML and a little scripting prowess.

Customization Scale

Configure toolbars and create ArcPad Apps

You can start customizing ArcPad right from inside the application itself. Create a favorites toolbar to organise the tools you use most often, onto one toolbar.

Modify the custom toolbars to remove tools you don't use or reorder them to make better sense to you. You can also create custom toolbars that contain out of the box tools.

For more information read about Customizing Toolbars in ArcPad.

ArcPad Apps are shortcuts that launch ArcPad with selected configurations and settings. ArcPad Apps are automatically added to the ArcPad Today Panel on Windows Mobile devices so you can launch yor apps with a single click.

For more information read What are ArcPad Apps?

Modify forms

Open your ArcPad project layers in ArcPad Studio and you have the ability to customize both the look and behavior of your data entry forms. Start by changing the layout of fields or the text displayed for field labels. Add additional data validation rules that speed up data entry or enforce requirements for field workers.

For more information read about customizing forms in ArcPad Studio.

Create custom tools and forms

With some scripting your can significantly alter the behaviour of forms, toolbars and the ArcPad application itself. Create custom tools that combine multiple actions into a single button press. Remove the need for a button at all and automate actions on a timer.

For more information read about custom tool buttons in ArcPad Studio.

Build standalone forms to collect information about your field worker, and use the information during your in feature data collection to automate your work.

For more information read about general forms in ArcPad Studio.

Build extensions

Build a native Dynamic Link Library (DLL) to extend ArcPads functionality. Extensions can expand the range of data formats supported by ArcPad or can add support for peripherals like cameras and sensors.

For more information read about ArcPad Extensions.