Topic: ( C3D 08 ) Purge Unused Styles

[Guest]

Is there a quick of way purging unused styles from a drawing?  We just received a file from a surveyor and they've got a TON of styles that aren't being used and I'd like to "clean it up" a bit if I could.

[sinc]

No, there isn't.

You may want to try using their file only as an XREF, with maybe a DREF to the surface, if you can.  Working in a drawing "from others" can create a lot of headaches.

[mjfarrell]

yes, open their file, export the data using XML
then open your template and import the XML file
all the unwanted styles are now gone, and you can apply your styles at will

[Guest]

yes, open their file, export the data using XML
then open your template and import the XML file
all the unwanted styles are now gone, and you can apply your styles at will

Well ain't that slicker than dog poop on wet leaves!


Thanks!!

[sinc]

yes, open their file, export the data using XML
then open your template and import the XML file
all the unwanted styles are now gone, and you can apply your styles at will

Well ain't that slicker than dog poop on wet leaves!


Thanks!!

Note that, with this method, all you get out of the drawing is the C3D elements.  All ancillary labels will be left behind.  In that sense, it is much like creating a DREF.

That's why I also recommended XREF'ing the drawing in - you can at least see the labels in the background as you work.  However, you are working in a new drawing created from your template, so you have all your familiar styles available, and none of "the others".

EXCEPT...  it seems like it's easy to get "corrupt" drawings from others, that have "issues" Audit doesn't fix.  Even using one of these drawings as an XREF may cause problems.  For one case, I was able to get around something like this by going into the C3D drawing "from others" and doing an "Export to Autocad" on it.  This destroyed it as a C3D drawing, but it dumped everything into a fresh drawing I was able to use as an XREF.  That way, I was still able to see all the text and labels created by "the others" while doing my work.

(Note that you cannot copy/paste, WBLOCK/INSERT, or otherwise transfer labels with Text Overrides between drawings.  Any attempt to do so resets the text.  So this appears to be the only way to retain the labels from "the others", yet work in a new drawing from your template.)

[Guest]

yes, open their file, export the data using XML
then open your template and import the XML file
all the unwanted styles are now gone, and you can apply your styles at will

Well ain't that slicker than dog poop on wet leaves!


Thanks!!

Note that, with this method, all you get out of the drawing is the C3D elements.  All ancillary labels will be left behind.  In that sense, it is much like creating a DREF.

That's why I also recommended XREF'ing the drawing in - you can at least see the labels in the background as you work.  However, you are working in a new drawing created from your template, so you have all your familiar styles available, and none of "the others".

EXCEPT...  it seems like it's easy to get "corrupt" drawings from others, that have "issues" Audit doesn't fix.  Even using one of these drawings as an XREF may cause problems.  For one case, I was able to get around something like this by going into the C3D drawing "from others" and doing an "Export to Autocad" on it.  This destroyed it as a C3D drawing, but it dumped everything into a fresh drawing I was able to use as an XREF.  That way, I was still able to see all the text and labels created by "the others" while doing my work.

(Note that you cannot copy/paste, WBLOCK/INSERT, or otherwise transfer labels with Text Overrides between drawings.  Any attempt to do so resets the text.  So this appears to be the only way to retain the labels from "the others", yet work in a new drawing from your template.)

Since your talking about referencing...  (I hope I can explain this correctly) When I create a data shortcut of a TIN, does that XML reference BACK to the file from which it was created?  I know it's essentially "static", but if I were to move or delete the original file, will I have any problems importing the data shortcut?  What I'm thinking is.... since the TIN from the surveyor is an "exsiting conditions" TIN, that's not going to change, so I can export the TIN to an XML, delete the TIN from the drawing (leaving everything else) and xref the survey dwg (minus the TIN) and import the XML for the TIN into a new drawing which would help keep the file sizes smaller.  Or is this not a good way of approaching this?

[Lin-Z]

A little rusty on the topic, so someone correct me if I'm wrong:

The XML file contains all of the data for the surface.  You just need to make sure that unless you change the way the data is referenced (can't quite remember the details but it involves changing the XML file) you keep the XML file in the same place when you created the new surface from it.

[Guest]

A little rusty on the topic, so someone correct me if I'm wrong:

The XML file contains all of the data for the surface.  You just need to make sure that unless you change the way the data is referenced (can't quite remember the details but it involves changing the XML file) you keep the XML file in the same place when you created the new surface from it.

In my example, it would just be an existing surface and wouldn't be altered.

[mjfarrell]

I just ran this test, and it suggest that the DWG from which the XML DREF surface should not be moved, renamed, or deleted.

I had a TOPO.xml DREF
I renamed the TOPO.DWG, DREF no longer works at all


I removed the 'project' information from the XML, the DREF doesn't work.


This suggest that EXPORTING the data as XML is going to be more reliable and less hassle to attempt to maintain than a DREF, as the DREF seems to fail IF it can't find the source of the DREF