Tell me more ×
Geographic Information Systems Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for cartographers, geographers and GIS professionals. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 2 down vote favorite

I would like to be able to move features by small (preferably predefined) increments using the keyboard arrow keys? Can this be done?

share|improve this question
Is arcobjects an acceptable solution? – Kirk Kuykendall Feb 14 '12 at 17:41
I was hoping for an out of the box solution but yes, ArcObjects is acceptable. (VB.Net) – Jakub Feb 14 '12 at 17:44
I'm not sure about using the keyboard, but you can move a feature based on the XY by going to Editor -> Start Editing. Select your feature you would like to move, then click on Editor -> Move. Enter in your Delta XY in map units and this will move your feature without using the mouse. – Mintx Feb 14 '12 at 18:29

1 Answer

up vote 2 down vote accepted

There is no way of doing it with the arrow keys.

But you can do precise movement by specifying a delta offset as Mintx suggests. The one problem with the delta movement is that it leaves your feature's origin un changed and that might be undesireable.

However, a left-of-field quick-and-dirty solution that would not require any programming could be to create a fine mesh over your data (you can get ESRI to do it with 'Create Fishnet' or Hawth's Tools) and then use snapping. Obviously this is VERY 'Heath Robinson' and would be unworkable for huge areas but could be serviceable.

share|improve this answer
Specifying delta offset is not what i am looking for because i want to to move the polygons many time in small increments and I want to do it visually without having to enter numbers. The fishnet sounds like an interesting solution. I will try that but the problem with moving a polygon is that I will snap to vertices on the polygon perimeter whereas i want to snap the centroid along either X or Y. – Jakub Feb 17 '12 at 14:16
That's OK. when you are moving the whole feature, it will snap to the centroid – MappaGnosis Feb 17 '12 at 15:22

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.