This repository contains python and javascript code to set up a web map with a custom time slider that uses different labels and date fields than the actual dates. This is intended for cases where the actual date range is not compatible with Esri's time sliders, for example where the dates include geological time scales or dates BCE.
You can see the completed example map here.
The python code assumes the layer of interest is a feature class in an ArcGIS Pro project; similar code could be used to update a feature layer in ArcGIS Online. Scaled date columns are added and calculated to map the original dates on to dates ranging from 1900-2150 (or a suitable scale for your date range). The updated data is then published to ArcGIS Online, (optionally) shared publicly, and time enabled using the newly created scaled date fields as the time fields. The JavaScript code illustrates how to use the original date fields to label a time slider based on the scaled time fields.
To use this code, do the following:
- Add the Python notebook to an ArcGIS Pro project containing the feature layer of interest.
- Update the variables in the code as described and run the entire notebook. This will add a field or fields to your featuer layer and upload the feature layer to be shared in ArcGIS Online. It will also time-enable the online feature layer using the newly added field or fields.
- Edit the time_sliders_v1.html file to refer to this newly created layer, and update the variables in the html file as described for your use case.
- To publish, load the updated .html file on your server or hosting platform of choice.
The data used in this example is a subset of the ASCSA Corinth Excavation data. I'm not an archaeologist or historian and chose this dataset only for its span of date ranges, so I make no claims about the accuracy of this data--it's intended for illustration purposes only.
Developed by Abbey Roelofs
aheinlei@umich.edu
University of Michigan
June 2021