Cartographic production laboratories produce large volumes of maps for diverse customers. Turnaround time and consistency are key concerns. The Rapid Mapping Tool is an ArcMap based tool that enables rapid creation of maps to meet customer needs. This tool was constructed using VB/VBA, ArcObjects, and ArcGIS templates. The core capability of ArcMap is extended for custom map production by storing specifications associated with a map or template in a companion XML document. These specifications include settings and preferences used to create custom maps. The tool was developed as a component of an enterprise GIS, which enables spatial data management and delivery using ArcSDE, ArcIMS, Oracle, and a web-based request tracking system.

As a contribution to the understanding of the dark energy concept, the Dark energy American French Team (DAFT, in French FADA) has started a large project to characterize statistically high redshift galaxy clusters, infer cosmological constraints from Weak Lensing Tomography, and understand biases relevant for constraining dark energy and cluster physics in future cluster and cosmological experiments. The purpose of this paper is to establish the basis of reference for the photo-z determination used in all our subsequent papers, including weak lensing tomography studies.