This book is designed for ArcGIS users who want to get a quick start on programming
ArcObjects. Both ArcGIS and ArcObjects are products developed and distributed
by Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc. (ESRI), ArcObjects is the development
platform for ArcGIS, a software package for managing geographic information
systems (GIS). Ideally, users should learn ArcObjects before using ArcGIS,
but that is not the case in reality. Users use ArcGIS first through its toolbars and
commands. It is easier to follow the user interface in ArcGIS than to sort out objects,
properties, and methods in code. The topic of ArcObjects usually emerges when
users realize that programming ArcObjects can actually reduce the amount of repetitive
work, streamline the workflow, and even produce functionalities that are not
easily available in ArcGIS.
How can users learn programming ArcObjects efficiently and quickly? Perhaps
surprising to some, the answer is to apply what users already know about ArcGIS
to programming ArcObjects.