Attribute Field Properties
Included in this tutorial:
Accessing and Reviewing the Fields View tab
Changing and Saving Field Properties
Software version in examples: ArcGIS Pro 2.8.2
Tutorial Data: The tutorial includes demonstration with sample data available here.
Credits: L. Meisterlin with Erik Strand, Moses Levich, and Thiago Lee (2021).
Attribute fields (columns in an attribute table) have individual properties such as their data type as well as whether and how they are displayed within your software. This tutorial reviews accessing and changing those properties.
Field Properties Menu
Within an open Attribute Table, right-click on a field’s header, then click Fields to bring up the list of field properties. Alternatively, navigating to the Main Menu ribbon and clicking on the contextual tab Data > Fields will bring up the same list of field properties.
The Fields list displays information about each field in the attribute table of a feature class, including its name and data type.
accessing information about attribute fields
Changing Field Properties
Some properties can be altered in the Fields view of a feature class.
Use the Visible checkbox to show or hide a field.
The Read-Only checkbox determines whether the field is editable.
Field Alias sets a descriptive name for the field. (This does not change the field’s name, but the displayed label in the Attribute Table.)
Highlight: Check this box to accentuate a field when displayed.
Number Format: set the display formatting for numeric field types.
Data Type: Check the data type of a field here, though it cannot be edited.
The example below demonstrates changing the field alias (the display name of a field) of CT2010.
changing the name of a field and saving edits in the Fields view
Changes made to properties in the Field view are not immediately saved. To save changes, right-click on any field, then click Save. (This approach is demonstrated above.)
Alternatively, we can save changes in the Main Menu ribbon’s Fields tab, and/or closing the Fields tab will also summon a dialogue prompting us to save changes.
the Fields tab on the Main Menu ribbon