Feature layers and table views serve as intermediate datasets held in memory specifically for use with tools, such as Select by Location and Select Attributes. Although these temporary datasets can be saved, they are not needed in most cases.
Feature classes are physical representations of geographic data and are stored as files (shapefiles, personal geodatabases, and file geodatabases) or within a geodatabase. Environmental Systems Research Institute (Esri) defines a feature class as "a collection of features that shares a common geometry (point, line, or polygon), attribute table, and spatial reference."
Feature classes can contain default and user-defined fields. Default fields include the SHAPE and OBJECTID fields. These fields are maintained and updated automatically by ArcGIS. The SHAPE field holds the geometric representation of a geographic feature, while the OBJECTID field holds a unique identifier for each feature. Additional default...