Adding WMS Services to ArcGIS 9.1

ESRI ArcGIS Version 9.1 allows for access to WMS services without downloading any special extensions. The following is a step-by-step guide to add these services.

STEP 1: Click the "Add Data" button on the ArcMap toolbar. From the "Look in" drop down box, choose "GIS Servers", select "Add WMS Server", and click ADD.

STEP 2: In the Add WMS Service window that opens, type in the URL of the desired service (eg. http://maps.sco.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/scowms.dnr?) and click the "Get Layers" button. If a connection is made, a list of the available layers in the service appears, with some metadata in the right hand window. Click the OK button, and you will be returned to the Add Data window. The service you just entered will now be listed.

Step 3: Select the new service and click Add. The service name will appear again, so select it and click Add once again. The service will now be added to the Layers window. If there is no map image, you may be beyond the scale threshold for the layers. Try zooming in a couple of times.

Step 4: By right clicking on the service name and selecting "properties", some more options become available. Under the Layers tab you can select which layers to display. The Advanced tab contains options to set the transparency and background color of the service.

Step 5: The image of Wisconsin shown in the graphic for step 3 looks "squashed" because it is not in a projected coordinate system. If the services offers more than one possible projection, it can be changed by right clicking on the service name and choosing "Change Coordinate Systems."