Determining layers when plotting to dwg

[Julie March]

Is there a way of controlling what layer files will plot to when using the longsection or drainage ppf editor. At the moment the file produced usually puts all information into one layer, plot. I give these files to draftspeople who have to change the layering so I wondered if I could simplify this, particularly if the model name is the same as the desired layer name.

[Mark Clews]

Yes, you use the acadplot.amf file. It is a text file where the lines of text control how the colours are translated into layers.

for instance:

23____*___L25____bylayer___bylayer__*___* //colourbond
514 __ *___L35____bylayer___bylayer__*__* //sand2
511___*___L50____bylayer___bylayer__*___* //dirt1
13____*___L70____bylayer___bylayer__*___* //darkblue

Column one is the colour number (given as text in the comments at the end), column three is the Acad Layer name, Column four is the acad colour of the data, Column five is the acad linetype.

[Lucien West]

You will need to edit.

1. Create a *.amf file
2. Edit your Plotters.4d to use the *.amf file.
3. Create a dwg template file for the plots to use (will need to have layers already defined with colour and linetype)
4. Set your plotting dwt file in the env.4d file - Project->management->env.4d - Plotting A Tab->DWT plot template.


Here's some responses to a simialr question in the main forums.

Owen Thornton
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Erik,

There is:

1) an AutoCAD Plot Map File (*.amf), via Plot=>Plotting setups=>ACAD plot map file, for use when plotting to DWG via a PPF.

2) an AutoCAD Export Map File (*.acadmf), via File I/O=>Acad output map file, for use when exporting to DWG via the File I/O menu.

They are 2 different map files, for two different purposes.

---

But before we go any further, what do you mean by "I'm plotting long sections with the plan plot option"?

Do you mean:

a) you have a plot model of long-sections, and are plotting them to DWG with the Plot Frame PPF Editor?
or
b) you are plotting long-sections directly to DWG with the Section Long Plot PPF Editor?
or
c) you have a plot model of long-sections, and are exporting them to DWG via the File I/O menu?

If a) or b), then you can only use the *.amf map file, and this is only based on colour (because there generally aren't any 12d string names to base it on -- even in the unusual case of plotting a plot model created by a PPF, because the string names in the plot model are typically blank).

If c), then you can only use the *.acadmf map file, and this is only based on 12d string name, which may not be very useful for plot models created by a PPF (because they typically have blank string names).

Hope this helps,
Owen.


Owen Thornton
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okay, I think I misunderstood the problem before ...

In your plotters.4d file, within the particular DWG plotter you are using, add the line:

map_file "mymapfile.amf"

or similar. You may wish to create your own special DWG plotter for this map file.

To get the long-section and plan components of the plot into separate Acad layers, consider creating a Plan View in 12d, just for your plotting purposes. That is, copy the data in your current Plan View to a new model, and give it all a special colour that is suitable for mapping.

[Mark Clews]

Hmmmm.... It also does depend on how you are plotting the long sections. If you are plotting directly to the plotter then you use the .pmf file, if plotting to acad you use the amf file. I believe there are files for microstation etc but I've never looked.

[Lucien West]

whoops typo *.pmf should have been *.amf. edited original post.

[Julie March]

Thanks so far... to throw a spanner in the works, I cannot edit Plotters.4d.

Since reading your replies I've tried plotting to a model then exporting to cad while applying a .amf/acadmf file (without the dwt - which may be why it hasn't worked so far). But can the amf be incorporated into the ppf editor to plot directly out to acad?
Thanks

[Lucien West]

Yes, editing the plotters.4d file is what achieves this.
In your PPF you can then speceify the Plotter Type that is using the required amf file.

ie we edited the "DWG 2007 ACD colours" plotter type.

I think if you change the Bylayer parts in the amf file to your required colour and linetype, you can get away with not using a dwt file.
Objects will be on separate layers but will not use the layer properties.

[Ning Zhang]

How to edit the Plotters.4d file?

[Sam Cech]

simple text editor like Notepad should do the trick

[Jacqueline anna]

Thanks for the help. I have tried writing a chain to copy the models from each job and then output a 12d ascii file but it seems not to want to work (or more likely that I don't know what I am doing). Does anyone have any idea on how I can write the chain so that I can run it in the parent project and have it copy all the data from the sub projects into it?
r would this work? If I wrote a chain in each sub project that writes out a 12da and stores it somewhere and then reads those 12da's into the parent project? I know its possible for a chain to write and import 12da's but can I have a chain in the parent project that runs the chains in the sub projects?
__________________
You can easily check out our high quality braindumps - ccna exam which prepares you well http:calarts.edu real testking. You can also get success in hodges with the University of Hawaii and selftestengine.

[Owen Thornton]

Thanks for the help. I have tried writing a chain to copy the models from each job and then output a 12d ascii file but it seems not to want to work (or more likely that I don't know what I am doing). Does anyone have any idea on how I can write the chain so that I can run it in the parent project and have it copy all the data from the sub projects into it?
r would this work? If I wrote a chain in each sub project that writes out a 12da and stores it somewhere and then reads those 12da's into the parent project? I know its possible for a chain to write and import 12da's but can I have a chain in the parent project that runs the chains in the sub projects?

Not sure how this is related to the rest of the topic.

If I understand your question correctly, you don't need to bother with 12da files at all. You simply need to share your models and tins from your collection of "sub" projects, into a "master" project. From the master project, you will not be able to modify the data shared in, but you will be able to review it, make editable copies if necessary, and control outputs and plots, etc.

What is your intention for the "master" project?

[paul hardwick]

Owen when you see a random post like the one above, have a look at when they joined and where they are from.
There has been a few hacks on the user forum, they usually grab a comment from somewhere else on the forum then post it in another topic.

[Owen Thornton]

Oops. I'd better go and make another pot of coffee.

I'm with stupid

[alfred soo]

Need to know if there is a simple function, to label a point with the co-ords , y for that particular point