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Use a custom dictionary style created from a web style or local style file (.stylx) to symbolize features using a variety of attribute values.

Image of style features with custom dictionary

Use case

When symbolizing geoelements in your map, you may need to convey several pieces of information with a single symbol. You could try to symbolize such data using a unique value renderer, but as the number of fields and values increases, that approach becomes impractical. With a dictionary renderer you can build each symbol on-the-fly, driven by one or more attribute values, and handle a nearly infinite number of unique combinations.

How to use the sample

Use the radio buttons to toggle between the dictionary symbols from the web style and style file. Pan and zoom around the map to see the symbology from the chosen dictionary symbol style. The web style and style file are slightly different to each other to give a visual indication of the switch between the two.

How it works

  1. Create a PortalItem, referring to a Portal and the item ID of the web style.
  2. Based on the style selected:
  • If the web style toggle has been selected, create a new DictionarySymbolStyle from the portal item using DictionarySymbolStyle(portalItem), and load it
  • If the file style toggle has been selected, create a new DictionarySymbolStyle using DictionarySymbolStyle.createFromFile(stylxFile.getAbsolutePath())
  1. Create a new DictionaryRenderer, providing the dictionary symbol style.
  2. Apply the dictionary renderer to a feature layer using featureLayer.renderer = dictionaryRenderer.
  3. Add the feature layer to the map's operational layers using getOperationalLayers().add(featureLayer).

Relevant API

  • DictionaryRenderer
  • DictionarySymbolStyle
  • Portal
  • PortalItem

About the data

The data used in this sample is from a feature layer showing a subset of restaurants in Redlands, CA hosted as a feature service with attributes for rating, style, health score, and open hours.

The feature layer is symbolized using a dictionary renderer that displays a single symbol for all of these variables. The renderer uses symbols from a custom restaurant dictionary style created from a stylx file and a web style, available as items from ArcGIS Online, to show unique symbols based on several feature attributes. The symbols it contains were created using ArcGIS Pro. The logic used to apply the symbols comes from an Arcade script embedded in the stylx file (which is a SQLite database), along with a JSON string that defines expected attribute names and configuration properties.

Additional information

For information about creating your own custom dictionary style, see the open source dictionary renderer toolkit on GitHub.

Tags

dictionary, military, portal, portal item, renderer, style, stylx, unique value, visualization

Sample Code

StyleFeaturesWithCustomDictionaryViewModel.ktStyleFeaturesWithCustomDictionaryViewModel.ktMainActivity.ktDownloadActivity.ktStyleFeaturesWithCustomDictionaryScreen.kt
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/* Copyright 2025 Esri
 *
 * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
 * You may obtain a copy of the License at
 *
 *    http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
 *
 * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
 * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
 * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
 * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
 * limitations under the License.
 *
 */

package com.esri.arcgismaps.sample.stylefeatureswithcustomdictionary.components

import android.app.Application
import androidx.lifecycle.AndroidViewModel
import androidx.lifecycle.viewModelScope
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.ArcGISMap
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.BasemapStyle
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.Viewpoint
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.layers.FeatureLayer
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.symbology.DictionaryRenderer
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.symbology.DictionarySymbolStyle
import com.arcgismaps.portal.Portal
import com.arcgismaps.mapping.PortalItem
import com.arcgismaps.data.ServiceFeatureTable
import com.esri.arcgismaps.sample.sampleslib.components.MessageDialogViewModel
import com.esri.arcgismaps.sample.stylefeatureswithcustomdictionary.R
import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
import java.io.File

private const val RESTAURANTS_SERVICE_URL =
    "https://services2.arcgis.com/ZQgQTuoyBrtmoGdP/arcgis/rest/services/Redlands_Restaurants/FeatureServer/0"
private const val WEB_STYLE_ITEM_ID = "adee951477014ec68d7cf0ea0579c800"

class StyleFeaturesWithCustomDictionaryViewModel(app: Application) : AndroidViewModel(app) {

    // Feature layer showing restaurant data in Redlands, CA
    private val restaurantFeatureLayer = FeatureLayer.createWithFeatureTable(
        featureTable = ServiceFeatureTable(uri = RESTAURANTS_SERVICE_URL)
    )
    var arcGISMap = ArcGISMap(BasemapStyle.ArcGISTopographic).apply {
        initialViewpoint = Viewpoint(
            latitude = 34.0543,
            longitude = -117.1963,
            scale = 1e4
        )
    }
    private var dictionaryRendererFromStyleFile: DictionaryRenderer? = null
    private var dictionaryRendererFromWebStyle: DictionaryRenderer? = null

    private val _selectedStyle = MutableStateFlow(CustomDictionaryStyle.StyleFile)

    val messageDialogVM = MessageDialogViewModel()
    private val provisionPath: String by lazy {
        app.getExternalFilesDir(null)?.path.toString() + File.separator + app.getString(R.string.style_features_with_custom_dictionary_app_name)
    }

    init {
        viewModelScope.launch {
            // Prepare the dictionary renderer from the style file
            dictionaryRendererFromStyleFile = createDictionaryRendererFromStyleFile()
            // Prepare the dictionary renderer from the web style
            dictionaryRendererFromWebStyle = createDictionaryRendererFromWebStyle().getOrElse {
                messageDialogVM.showMessageDialog(it)
                return@launch
            }

            // Apply the renderer for the initially selected style
            applyRendererForSelectedStyle()

            // Add the restaurant layer to the map and load the map
            arcGISMap.apply {
                operationalLayers.add(restaurantFeatureLayer)
            }.load().onFailure {
                messageDialogVM.showMessageDialog(it)
            }
        }
    }

    /**
     * Update the current dictionary style selection and apply the renderer to the feature layer.
     */
    fun updateSelectedStyle(style: CustomDictionaryStyle) {
        _selectedStyle.value = style
        applyRendererForSelectedStyle()
    }

    /**
     * Apply the dictionary renderer to the restaurants layer.
     */
    private fun applyRendererForSelectedStyle() {
        restaurantFeatureLayer.renderer = when (_selectedStyle.value) {
            CustomDictionaryStyle.StyleFile -> dictionaryRendererFromStyleFile
            CustomDictionaryStyle.WebStyle -> dictionaryRendererFromWebStyle
        }
    }

    /**
     * Create a dictionary renderer from the style file included in the app's assets.
     */
    private fun createDictionaryRendererFromStyleFile(): DictionaryRenderer {
        val restaurantsStyleFile = File(provisionPath, "Restaurant.stylx")
        check(restaurantsStyleFile.exists()) {
            "Style file not found. Expected at: ${restaurantsStyleFile.canonicalPath}"
        }
        val restaurantStyle = DictionarySymbolStyle.createFromFile(restaurantsStyleFile.path)

        return DictionaryRenderer(dictionarySymbolStyle = restaurantStyle)
    }

    /**
     * Create a dictionary renderer from the web style hosted as a Portal item.
     * Maps the feature layer's field "healthgrade" to the dictionary style's expected field "Inspection".
     */
    private suspend fun createDictionaryRendererFromWebStyle(): Result<DictionaryRenderer> {
        val portal = Portal(url = "https://www.arcgis.com")
        val portalItem = PortalItem(portal = portal, itemId = WEB_STYLE_ITEM_ID)
        val restaurantSymbolStyle = DictionarySymbolStyle(portalItem).apply {
            load().getOrElse {
                return Result.failure(it)
            }
        }

        return Result.success(
            DictionaryRenderer(
                dictionarySymbolStyle = restaurantSymbolStyle,
                symbologyFieldOverrides = mapOf("healthgrade" to "Inspection")
            )
        )
    }
}

/**
 * Enum representing the two custom dictionary styles available in this sample.
 */
enum class CustomDictionaryStyle {
    StyleFile,
    WebStyle
}

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