About developing with ArcGIS Web APIs
For a fully customized mapping experience, you can build what you need with an ArcGIS Web Mapping API for JavaScript, Flex, or Silverlight. With the APIs, you can customize the templates to perform queries, run geoprocessing operations, select and highlight map locations, and much more. The APIs also contain several out-of-the-box widgets that you can include in the application to add functionality. These include a basemap picker, similar to the one in the ArcGIS.com map viewer; map components (legend, scale bar, and overview map); a time slider for visualizing temporal changes; and an editor widget that allows users to edit GIS data in the map.
Using ArcGIS, developers can access and work with a series of APIs for JavaScript, Adobe Flex, and Microsoft Silverlight to build custom web apps for use with ArcGIS services. These web app frameworks connect to and leverage map services and other related GIS services published using ArcGIS Server, ArcGIS Online, and open consumer mapping services on the web. These APIs use an open, industry-standard REST-based architecture, which enables ArcGIS content and services to be used both as an integral part of ArcGIS and also outside of ArcGIS.
Getting started
You can get started using samples, conceptual help, API references, code galleries, and live interactive maps. See the following resources for more information.