The responses you collected with Maptionnaire can be brought into ArcGIS Pro to enrich your other datasets. By using simple table connections, such as Joins or Relates, you can connect responses to other GIS data.
In GIS, tables or feature classes can be connected through a common field. This field, which is present in both files, is called key field or join field. The process allows attribute information to be linked to features from another table.
The layer or table you are joining data to is usually called the destination layer and the table you are bringing information from is the join table.
Example: Let’s say we have a polygon layer with parcels (as destination layer), and a separate table with owner information (as join table), the two can be linked together for example through the owner ID attribute.
There are different types of data connections that can be made in a GIS software. Which one you choose depends on your needs or whether it is a one-to-one (1:1), a many-to-one (M:1), a one-to-many (1:M) or a many-to-many (N:M) connection.
1:1 (one-to-one): Each record in Table A matches exactly one record in Table B.
M:1 (many-to-one): Multiple records in Table A match a single record in Table B.
1:M (one-to-many): One record in Table A matches multiple records in Table B.
M:N (many-to-many): Multiple records in Table A match multiple records in Table B.
When using a Join or Relate between two files, the field names do not need to match, but the data types should. For example, string to string and number to number.
Join
When a Join is created, the joined fields will be presented in the destination file’s attribute table. A Join is usually recommended when there is one-to-one (1:1) or M:1 (many-to-one) relation between the tables.
Relate
When you are connecting files through relate, the related fields will not appear in the destination files attribute table, but it enables navigation between the related records. Relate is recommended for one-to-many (1:M) or many-to-many (N:M).
In this example we are seeing the attribute table of buildings on one side and the attributes of tenants on the other. This is a typical 1:M relation, because multiple tenants can live in the same building. So if you want to create a connection like this, a Relate is a good option.
Another example: A park polygon can be connected to multiple reported maintenance issues from a survey. This is another 1:M relations, so Relate is a good way to make table connection.
Important Note: In ArcGIS Pro, Joins and Relates are stored in the layer properties in your project. They are only active within that specific project file. If you need to create a table connection which is valid on geodatabase level (outside a specific project file) you should explore how to create a Relationship Class.