Topic: Layout tab Variables

[ronjonp]

Any of you have a good reference (or know them off the top of your head) for variables that are saved per layout tab per drawing? PSLTSCALE is one that I coulld think of.

Thanks,

Ron

[whdjr]

ctab, cvport, and pucsbase are a few.  What's this for anyway?

[ronjonp]

I made a popup dialogue that reminds the user to log their plot and wanted to include some variables that may have an effect on how the drawing plotted out.

Thanks,

Ron

[whdjr]

I don't think PSLTSCALE changes per paperspace tab, but each viewport could have a different scale factor.  We set all xrefs ltscale to 1 in the original file beacuse all of our stuff is xrefed in at full size in modelspace.  Then in the sheet file we set ltscale to .5, psltscale to 1, and each viewport takes on the scale you asign it when you zoom the view.  Everything works out nice here. (except for when the rogue user which gets a hold of the dwg which I know none of you guys have because they all work here)

[sinc]

We set all xrefs ltscale to 1 in the original file beacuse all of our stuff is xrefed in at full size in modelspace.  Then in the sheet file we set ltscale to .5, psltscale to 1, and each viewport takes on the scale you asign it when you zoom the view.

Just as a note, it doesn't matter how you have ltscale set in your original file.  It is superceded by the setting in the master drawing.  Since your master drawing has ltscale .5 and psltscale 1, you get the behavior you describe.  You could change the ltscale in your XREF drawing to 100000 and it wouldn't change the plot from the parent drawing.

[whdjr]

You could change the ltscale in your XREF drawing to 100000 and it wouldn't change the plot from the parent drawing.

Not in A2K.  We go over this issue every time we get a new employee.  They plot out their dwgs and all the lines are solid.  They change the ltscale in the original file and it works properly.

[CAB]

I don't think PSLTSCALE changes per paperspace tab

In ACAD2000 it does. Switch tabs & try it.

[whdjr]

Good catch CAB.  We use a template that sets PSLTSCALE 0 so it really hasn't been an issue here.

Thanks

[CAB]

Here is a lisp to set them all. Thanks Keith.
http://theswamp.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=6725#6725

[Keith™]

You are quite welcome ...

[ronjonp]

*deleted double post*

[ronjonp]

All of our linework is done in an xref that is referenced into our plot sheet drawing. With this system, psltscale and ltscale are always set to 1 in the plot sheet drawing. We build our drawings like this: All the basefiles from the client are referenced into the B-, we do our work in the I-, and plot out of the P-.

Code: [Select]

B-dwg
   |
   |______I-Dwg
             |
             |_____P-dwg

Ron

[Dinosaur]

I have been watching this thread hoping to find the solution to my ltscale problem with viewports, but things always stop short.

A typical drawing for me is set up as follows:

A subdivision base map in model space that may fit on one sheet at  1"=200' scale.  The program consitantly resets the ltscale to 50 as dictated by the project settings.  In some cases this may be or include an xref.

There are usually several layout tabs with viewports having scales that usually include 20, 50 and 100.

I also have a tab with a viewport where I do all of my editing.  Its scale varies depending on my current zoom factor.

I can set my drawing ltscale to 1 with the tabs psltscale set to 1 and everything plots correctly, but I have no linetypes while editing.  If I set ltscale to 50 and keep the program happy, someone forgets to change it at plot time and everyone gets chewed out.

I can set the ltscale to 50 with tabs psltscale at 0 and the plots look funky unless someone remembers to change the ltscale with each tab's plot, my edit window is wigged out all the time as I zoom in and out and nobody is happy but the program.

Is there any combination of these settings that will let me see linetypes while editing and have properly displayed linetypes when plotted without constantly changing these variables?

[ronjonp]

Are you plotting out of the same drawing that you do your work in?

[Dinosaur]

Yes, I may have any combination of 20, 50 and 100 scale viewports in several tabs with titleblocks at 1:1.  One tab has a single viewport sized to my monitor where I edit the drawing.  I do this to take advantage of the freeze/thaw in current viewport option leaving all of the layers to be used in any of the drawing tabs on at all times.  I set a layer state for each drawing tab to imitate it in the edit window.  Most of my construction drawings  can be accomplished by an xref, but the plats and surveys need to be in the base drawing for annotation purposes.

[CAB]

I run this before each plot. You could have one to run when you are working too.
Requires Keith's routine posted above.

Code: [Select]

(defun C:PrePlot()
  ;;Set Variables needed for ploting
  (SETVAR 'TEXTFILL' 1)
  (setvar 'FILLMODE' 1)
  (SETVAR 'DIMSCALE' 48)
  (setvar 'LtScale' 48)
  (setvar 'TextQlty' 100)
  (setvar 'PsLtScale' 0)
  (LLS) ; set PSLTSCALE to 0 in all layouts
  (prompt "\n***  Ready to PLot  ***")
  (princ)
 )

[whdjr]

Dinosaur,

We have the same problem as you with setting the base file to an ltscale that the linetypes show properly, and then when printed they show improperly because the user didn't set it back to 1.  Not sure how to fix this one , maybe a close reactor to set the ltscale to 1. Not sure if you would really want that though.

[Dinosaur]

Thanks Will, I was beginning to think it was just "operator error" on my part.

I actually did find sort of a solution last year but it was quite a pain to work with as well.  I decided to shelve that idea and keep looking but I may bring it back.  It involved having all the linework and platwork annotation in a modelspace drawing with no drawing tabs attached which I would then xref as needed.  That worked great for plats and surveys, but having the xref in my project design drawing was difficult as many of the design functions required selection sets of entites within the xref.  I was constantly tracing over and wblocking things onto no-plot layers and just gave up after one project.

[CADaver]

Somewhere on this board is a routine that toggles ltscale & psltscale based on a "tab" reactor.  I don't remember who wrote it or where I got it cuz' the machine crashed and I had to re-create it, but here's what I use.  Some guru here could probably make it a lot slicker.

Code: [Select]

(defun ChangedLayout (reactor layout / )
  (if (/= (nth 0 layout) "Model")
   (progn
      (setvar "ltscale" 0.3333)
      (setvar "psltscale" 1)
    )
  (progn
    (if (> (getvar "dimscale") 12)
      (setvar "ltscale" (/ (getvar "dimscale")3.0))
      (setvar "ltscale" 40)
    )
      (setvar "psltscale" 1)
    )
  )
)
(if (not *LayoutLTS*)
 (setq *LayoutLTS* (VLR-Miscellaneous-Reactor nil '((:VLR-layoutSwitched . ChangedLayout))))
)

What it does is when going to a layout tab, it sets the PSLTSCALE to 1 and the LTSCALE to 0.333333.  When going to the model tab it sets the LTSCALE to 40, unless dimscale is less than 12.  40 was an arbitrary number, that would nearly always display some kind of linetype regardless of scale.

Does anybody here know where the original routine came from?  I'd like to give credit.

[CAB]

Maybe Here
http://theswamp.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=17081#17081

[Dinosaur]

Thanks CADaver, I was suspecting I would have to go with something like that.  I have never tried tinkering with reactors, does it run all of the time?  If so, how might it impact a prelimnary drawing with only a LTScale set?  The boss man feeds us preliminary layouts with at most the LTScale set.  He is firmly entrenched into r9 autocad procedures, has no concept of paper space or viewports and has no intentions of learning them either.  He still wants to plot something himself for clients when he needs it though and would not tolerate anything other than the vanilla plot command to get a plot.  He is also quite likely to sit at any workstation available to initiate said plot so everything must be boss proof and bullet proof.

[CADaver]

Maybe Here
http://theswamp.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=17081#17081

Maybe so.  Should've known Mr. Thomas would have been involved... or you, Mr. CAB, sir.

[CADaver]

Thanks CADaver, I was suspecting I would have to go with something like that.  I have never tried tinkering with reactors, does it run all of the time?  If so, how might it impact a prelimnary drawing with only a LTScale set?  

Yes, I set it in one of my front-end auto-loading routines so that anytime a layout is changed, it runs.

The boss man feeds us preliminary layouts with at most the LTScale set.  He is firmly entrenched into r9 autocad procedures, has no concept of paper space or viewports and has no intentions of learning them either.  He still wants to plot something himself for clients when he needs it though and would not tolerate anything other than the vanilla plot command to get a plot.  He is also quite likely to sit at any workstation available to initiate said plot so everything must be boss proof and bullet proof.

It's pretty bullet-proof, it may well be boss-proof.  It doesn't care about initial settings, but sets them how I want 'em, no matter what.  PLOT remains a simple plot, because the linetype settings are controlled during the change in tab.

[Dinosaur]

Thanks for the help.  That sounds like just what I need it to do then.  Perhaps I can return the favor sometime.

[CADaver]

Thanks for the help.  That sounds like just what I need it to do then.  Perhaps I can return the favor sometime.

You're quite welcome.  Be sure to tweak it for your setup.  Our ltscale is always 1/3 of dimscale (old habit), yours may be different.

[Andrea]

LASTANGLE....

[CADaver]

LASTANGLE....

ummmm.... huh?

[ronjonp]

I think Andrea is saying lastangle is a variable stored per tab.

[CADaver]

I think Andrea is saying lastangle is a variable stored per tab.

Ahh, okay

[Andrea]

Here is a lisp to set them all. Thanks Keith.
http://theswamp.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=6725#6725

Hi CAB,
I have found this post...

Interesting...but the link not working..
can you post the Keith routine ?

thanks.

[CAB]

I can't get the link restored.

You need to ask Keith to post Keith's Routine.

[Andrea]

I think I found it..

http://www.theswamp.org/index.php?topic=534.0

thanks.