Using geoprocessing services from arcgis.com
ArcGIS.com is an online website for working with maps and other types of geographic information. ArcGIS Online includes maps, data, applications, and tools from Esri, its partners, and the GIS community at large. Anyone can access, contribute and share maps, tools (tasks), and applications via ArcGIS Online. The quick tour topic provides information on getting started by sharing content through arcgis.com.
Geoprocessing services in ArcGIS.com
A geoprocessing service is categorized as a tool in arcgis.com. You can share your geoprocessing services while publishing or add the service to your arcgis.com content by providing the REST endpoint of the service. Also, you can search for geoprocessing services shared by the community. The Geoprocessing Service item in arcgis.com provides a brief description and the REST URL for the service. Using the REST URL, you can use the geoprocessing service in ArcGIS for Desktop, ArcGIS Viewer for Flex, Silverlight, and other web applications, and take advantage of it.
Adding services in ArcGIS for Desktop
In ArcGIS for Desktop, you can add geoprocessing services and execute tasks by connecting to an ArcGIS Server. You must specify a SOAP endpoint (URL) to create an ArcGIS Server connection in Desktop. You can derive SOAP URL from the REST URL provided in the description of the service in arcgis.com. For example, if the REST URL is:
http://sampleserver.esri.com/arcgis/rest/services/<mygpservice>/gpserver
the corresponding SOAP URL for creating server connections is:
http://sampleserver.esri.com/arcgis/services
Use the SOAP URL to create a user connection to the server. Once you have created the connection, browse through the server catalog to find geoprocessing services and tasks.
Learn more about using geoprocessing services in ArcGIS for Desktop
Adding services in ArcGIS Viewers
Esri offers ArcGIS Viewer for Flex and ArcGIS Viewer for Silverlight to create web mapping applications through an interactive configuration experience. If you are unfamiliar with the viewers, you can learn more about them in ArcGIS Resource Center. The viewers provide a configurable widget to add geoprocessing services and execute them. Use the REST URL specified in arcgis.com to configure the geoprocessing service in viewer. The following help topics will provide a step-by-step guide to configure the geoprocessing service in viewer.
Adding services in web applications
Web applications are applications that run on a web browser. You can add GIS functionality in web applications using ArcGIS Web APIs. Using the REST URL specified in arcgis.com, you can incorporate geoprocessing functionality in your web applications. The web API help on the resource center provides a number of samples and help topics that shows how to add geoprocessing services to web applications. Refer to one of the topics below for more information.