All New 3D Viewing Capabilities includes interactive capabilities, such as freehand tilt and rotate. Users can create a 3D view of any map that contains a continuous thematic grid layer and drape the image of any other layers over the 3D surface. In the box ArcIMS includes HTML and Java clients plus supports a full suite of other ESRI software such as ArcExplorer, ArcPad, and other devices. ArcIMS also features the ArcIMS Manager, a suite of Web pages to access all ArcIMS serverside functions and tools. Through the ArcIMS Manager, users follow simple instructions to author, design, publish, and administer Internet map services.
Users can also develop custom desktop applications using the ArcIMS connector interface.
According to Product Manager Bernie Szukalski, ArcIMS is more than just an Internet mapping solution it is a framework for distributing GIS capabilities via the Internet. On the serverside, ArcIMS includes a wide variety of functionality, and future extensions will deliver even more GIS capabilities. The popular freeware GIS is now beta testing release 5.