Quick rant on joins in ArcMap

Working with some tabular data and some point feature classes in ArcMap. I want to do a one point feature to many row join but I could also settle for a definition query where I would end up with 1 feature to 1 row

Step 1 – export the Query to a table in my personal geodb and then try to join on the appropriate fields – join works (after I follow all the rules) but it doesn’t respect the Definition query I put on the table…grrrr

Step 2 – go to the support find and that this is a known issue

Step 3 – go talk to some of the GIS analysts and they reccomend a relate rather than a join. Trouble is you can’t symbolize by a relate, it just looks like it is intended for editing.

Right now I am looking at generating 1 DBF or table per definition query I would have used above and then joining. This stinks… Does anyone have better suggestions to this issue.

Let me get in on the SP action

Alright I am really steamed about this latest Service Pack fiasco. Why am I being so extreme and calling it a fiasco? Well sit right down and I will tell ya a story.

We use AirPhoto USA for some of our aerial photographs and they have a proprietary format for thier images, like MrSID or ECW. They also make a plugin for ArcGIS so you can look at the images directly in ArcMAP. Well wouldn’t you know there is a bug in 9.2 that prevents the plugin from working (silly us for thinking it might be AirPhoto USA’s fault). ESRI claims the bug will be fixed in SP1. Therefore I can not use 9.2 until SP1 comes out.

Now when this page was posted, oooh say about a week and a half ago, I figured I could plan on getting work done during the lull between Christmas (a non-event for me) and New Years. I arranged my schedule so I could work on some projects that would really benefit from 9.2 during that time. It is at this point in the tale when you say to yourself – WTF was he thinking making work plans based upon a date published by ESRI. And you know in hindsight you are correct but I, being the eternal optomist, wanted to believe, I really did.

And now you know why I am so upset. I mean how hard would it have been to update the page with the list of things fixed like the pages said it would. DO you think they woke up this morning and realized they weren’t going to make their SP date? If not then why not update the page as soon as you realize you are missing the target?

C’mon treat me with more respect than that. If you know you are going to be late for an appt then call ahead and let the people know. Why should I really even think it will be out next week. I say I should say sometime next quarter to be on teh safe side. Didn’t ESRI at one point promise quarterly service packs?

And to top it all of, as of this post they still haven’t updated the original SP announcement page. So I have to find out second hand through a blog post.

[UPDATE: The page has now been officially updated and I can see why it might have taken longer than expected. And you know missing the date could be fine, but my main complaint is that as soon as you know it is going to be late then let people know.]