Enabling and editing z-values
Problem: You need to load a shapefile that does not have z-values into a feature class that does
Some spatial data will store height information in a normal attribute table field, but others will store it in the feature geometry as a z-value. Using z-values increases the feature geometry from 2D (x and y) to 3D (x,y and z). ArcScene will automatically display 3D data using the z-values, and it will do so more rapidly than draping the data over a surface.
Because z-values are optional, you may run into a situation where you need to merge a layer that does not have them into a layer that does. For example, say you have a geodatabase holding tree locations along neighborhood streets. The height of the trees is stored in z. Your surveyors have gone out and collected the locations of some additional trees in people’s yards, but they didn’t use 3D geometry. You need to load the new yard trees into the street tree feature class.
Right clicking and selecting properties in ArcCatalog confirms that the StreetTreePntZ feature class has z-values but the YardTree shapefile does not.
Trying to load the shapefile as-is will result in the error message.
One solution: you could run ET GeoWizards Point to PointZ conversion on the shapefile.
Another solution: Environment Settings! Import the yard tree shapefile into your geodatabase as a separate feature class. But before you press the OK button, press Environments… right next to it.
Expand General Settings and under Output has Z-Values, change Same as Input (the default) to Enabled.
Now you will be able to load the z-enabled yard tree feature class into the StreetTreePntZ feature class.
The z-values for your newly loaded features will be 0. You can edit z values in ArcMap by starting an edit session, double clicking on each feature (to turn it into a sketch) and then opening the Sketch Properties dialog from the Editor toolbar.
In the future I will write an entry about visualizing these cool 3D features in ArcScene.
Tags: 3D, data loader, settings, z value