Tips & Tools Weekly (Vol. 13, No. 41)
2 Nov, 2008This Week's Software Tips Congratulations October Drawing Winner Text Edits at the Command Line
;;txcl.lsp NOTES FROM CADALYST TIP PATROL: Trace Command NOTES FROM CADALYST TIP PATROL: AutoCAD 2009 Tips Note: Follow-up tips have not been tested by the Cadalyst Tip Patrol. Follow-Up: Disappearing Dynamic Block Properties in AutoCAD 2009 Follow-Up: Reload Missing Xrefs On a related note, Shawn Evjen wrote to remind us that some xrefs may contain a lower-level xref that has been set to overlay instead of attach. In this case, it will not show up in a drawing when expected. To change the type of xref from overlay to attach, open the file that contains the overlaid xref. Then in AutoCAD 2000-2008, open the Xref Manager (Insert / Xref Manager), select the name of the xref, and double click the word Overlay to change it to Attach. In AutoCAD 2009 you can find the Xref Manager under Insert / External Reference. Ronald Maneja offered yet another way to reload missing xrefs: "Copy all the xrefs to the same folder where your final drawing is located. When you open the final drawing, all the xrefs will be automatically loaded, and you do not have to do it one by one. By default, when an xref is not found, AutoCAD searches the xrefed drawing in the same folder where it is located. "If all your xrefs are in a separate folder and you do not want to mix the final drawings with the xrefed drawings, another workaround is to add the directory of the xref folder to the support path of AutoCAD. Once a final drawing is opened and AutoCAD has found that an xref is missing, then it will also search the supported paths." Finally, our own Cadalyst Tip Patrol member Kevin Sawyer shared AutoCAD's built-in method for finding errant xrefs and images, which hinges on the PROJECTNAME system variable. "This variable is stored in the drawing, so it can be set to values to suit each individual drawing on the same project. Go to Options / Files Tab / Project Files Search Path and Add a new entry. Give this entry a definitive name, maybe the name of the supplier of the missing xrefs or your own project number. Next, expand the branch just created, highlight the Empty and browse to a folder where the missing xrefs reside. You can create as many entries as you like as these are saved in your registry. Now when you open a drawing where the xrefs are missing, as long as you have carried out the procedures above, you only need to change the system variable PROJECTNAME to the name of the corresponding entry as entered. Any missing xrefs in that folder can then be reloaded. If they are not found in that folder, AutoCAD then searches the support file search path in the usual fashion." MicroStation Tip: Capture an Image Today's MicroStation tip courtesy of The Envision Group.
Submit Your Tip for your favorite CAD software. If we publish your tip, we'll send you a Cadalyst T-shirt, and each month Cadalyst editors will randomly select one published tip and send a $100 gift card to its author. Please remember:
Tips & Tools Weekly software tips for AutoCAD are reviewed by Cadalyst staff and the Tip Patrol before publication. Use all tips at your own discretion, please, and watch later editions of this newsletter for updates and corrections. We're sorry, but editors and Tip Patrol members cannot provide assistance with technical problems; please refer to Cadalyst's Hot Tip Harry-Help discussion forum. Sincere thanks to our volunteer Tip Patrol members: Brian Benton, Don Boyer, Mitchell Hirschklau, R.K. McSwain, Kevin Sawyer, and Billy Wooten.Back to Top | |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Resources New Whitepapers on Cadalyst's Whitepaper Library Longview Advisors Publish New Whitepaper First Trace Releases First Installment of its Whitepaper Management Series Back to Top | |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Deals & Freebies HP Offers Big Savings on Bundled Hardware and Software Back to Top | |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Opportunities & Honors Survey Participants Needed Call for Speakers for 2009 Collaboration and Interoperability Conference Siemens Employee Erica Simmons Receives All Star Award Vectorworks Firm Shook Kelley wins AIA North Carolina Firm of the Year Oce Wins Several Honors at GRAPH EXPO Back to Top | |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Week's New CAD and Related Products Visualization: Genetica v3 CAM: GibbsCAM 2009 PLM: webFolio and webView Back to Top | |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mark Your Calendar Daylighting Workflow from SketchUp or Revit Plan-Build-Operate Technology Summit RAPID 2009 Conference and Exposition For a complete list of CAD meetings, conferences, training sessions, and more, check out our calendar of events on Cadalyst.com. |