ArcInfo (formerly called ARC/INFO) is a full-featured geographic information system produced by ESRI, and is the highest level of licensing (and therefore functionality) in the ArcGIS Desktop product line. It was originally a command-line based system. The command-line processing abilities are now available through the GUI of the ArcGIS Desktop product.

History

ARC/INFO

The first version of ARC/INFO was launched in 1982 on minicomputers, as ESRI claims, the very first modern GIS. As computing shifted to Unix and Windows, ESRI followed launching ARC/INFO on both platforms. (A subset of ARC/INFO functionality was released as PC ARC/INFO for DOS in 1987 (see ad in PE&RS April 1988, p. 455) and released later for Windows). The program still exists in command-line form in ArcGIS.

As well as offering a suite of GIS tools and techniques, ARC/INFO came with its own macro language ? ARC Macro Language (AML). This allows users to string together longer sections of code, allowing the construction of complex modeling tools and automation.

Command line heritage

Due to its history of being a command line based product, and following the introduction of ESRI's first GUI-based GIS (ArcView) in 1992, there is often a distinct age split for command line users of the ArcInfo tools. Many users who were "brought up" on the command line version still make use of it for its speed and large tool-set, using it in conjunction with the GUI offered by ArcGIS. Many of the younger users, however, have never seen it or even realise it is there. In addition, some users find that AML offers quicker processing and scripting times than similar code in the GUI part of ArcGIS using Visual Basic.

ArcInfo

With ARC/INFO version 7, ESRI underwent a major change in its GIS product family when it released ArcGIS version 8.0 late in 1999. With this, the main ARC/INFO product line was discontinued as a standalone product, and was renamed to ArcInfo. All of its functionality is still found in the ArcInfo license version of ArcGIS, and a workstation version of ArcInfo is still developed for Unix-like platforms.

Product Information

The current version of ArcInfo (9.3) is only available with the purchase of ArcGIS Desktop. The title ArcInfo refers to the level of functionality and licensing within the ArcGIS suite. ArcInfo allows users the most flexibility and control in "all aspects of data building, modeling, analysis, and map display"^[1].

ArcInfo includes increased capability in the areas of spatial analysis, geoprocessing, data management, and others.

See also

• ESRI
• ArcGIS
• ESRI grid

References

• ESRI, 1999. Understanding GIS?The ARC/INFO method. Environmental System Research Institute, Inc., 602 p. ISBN 978-1879102019

External links

• ESRI's Current ArcInfo page

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