Topic: Here is a Free Cogo Labeling program (no curve/line table)

[sourdough]

Here is a Cogo Annotation routine that I have used and still find
useful in labeling lines and curves by point or line with a Text Style
option and a decimal option. Also has a osnap that is somewhat intuitive.
I was given permission to give this away if I improved it, and did that.
The author, William Giel, L.S. also said to not sell it... So, here is a
favorite of mine to all.

What it won't do is use any xdata or any assoiciation to entities.
Something I believe is a breathe of fresh air after years of
reconfiguring Softdesk/LDD/LDT fomatting for labels. I want something
that just point and get a label. This does that.

http://doggarncad.com/WGlisp.zip

This routine will Not do Line and Curve Tables…but another other type of bearing label in
any combination it does do. Loading is setup by using the Startup Suitcase and adding it to the list.

  The command entry for this is only one lisp routine (LBL2.lsp) also you have to point to the Folder.

  The command line for this lisp routine is (Y) "you can change it to your
preference".

Enjoy
Mike

[Mark]

Sounds very similar to the one I wrote. Although I believe C3D is going to make these type programs obsolete. I hope someone proves me wrong.

[Dent Cermak]

I like the way you can write your own formats fot the line and curve tables. (been able to do this since R12.....hope they don't pull the plug on that feature.)

[Dinosaur]

I have abandoned trying to label plats and surveys with Civil 3D until they find a way to give back some control of the output.  For now, i am taking the basic layout down to r13 where I can label it in EaglePoint and xref the labels into the plat.
I annotated one plat with C3D - a little leftover piece with 15 lots.  I had to make five seperate sites in order to accomodate getting the labels to come out the way they have to be for a legal plat and it took two full days.  In addition, there were two places where rounding caused the summation of segments to be different from the overall span and there was no convincing the program it needed to over-ride one of its labels.  Our only recourse was to change a number by hnd on the plot.
It appears that any personal customiztion gems such as sourdoug's are going to involve some very heavy duty VBA, C++ and .NET programming if they are going to work as Civil 3D labeling and tie into the design dynamically.
It is unfortunate that Civil 3D pulls up short at this point.  Labels can be composed to include virtually any bit of information about any given element but it is far to complicated to get everyting in the correct format.  Even the highly touted ability to have labels appear the same size in any scale viewport causes some problems.  Unless you are working through a locked viewport the labels and point nodes are constantly resizing while you are editing the drawing and if you have used the option to drag a label from its position for clarity in say a 50 scale view, the label will remain the same paperspace distance from the object in a 20 scale viewport.  this leaves a tiny orphaned label arrwed in some inches away from a line that could easily be labeled normally at that scale.  Conversely labels made for a 20 scale view do not fit in the alltoted space in 50 scale.
in summary, keep your old labeling routines handy and be prepared to use something outside of C3D for quality annotation.

[sourdough]

I agree, I would also ad that using map and this program to do labels would be an alternative that could work for you. I also found that we think that civil 3d ought to have a lawsuit called against it for intringing on the profitablity of companies to be competitive. This is bold, but I have seen way to much of complaints with people who have tried to use it and found they are put into a corner with forceably left to go to dealers that just don't have the expertise to teach and then insult to injury have to pay for a subcription service that is one of the highest of any software. So, as I doddle with my thoughts of am going to look at Carlson software with alot more interest than ever before. But, I did talk with Dotsoft and they have said in there website that they are producing a nice survey/cogo program. Perhaps they are looking thru the same rose colored glasses many people here are also to finding an alternative to some basic solutions to doing civil/survey that just don't need to be that complicated, but now are with Civil3d. So, let the flake come forth.... but I do believe that the subscription to nothing gets nothing in the long run. I say, to arms, to arms the British are ... oops wrong war.... well point taken.

Rambling aside, I hope some find this little program written over 6 years ago to still have a place in the real world.

Mike

[Dinosaur]

I have looked at map a few times, but have not really had the time to become familiar with it.  The C3D sessions I had spent a few hours introducing it, but the labeling part seemed like it would take considerably longer to do fewer things less effectively than I can do in EaglePoint even factoring in the conversion time.
I have made a compromise of sorts by preparing a block that is nothing but a no-plot node with an attribute that I can make into any label I choose.  With the enhanced attribute editor I can even change the style and various properties of the text on any given label.  The insert point is on the object so the label offset is scaled along with the text heightI have one each for above, under and along the object.  I have to calculate the values for the label and place it manually but the results are better than anything LDDT, C3D or Carlson has given me.

[Dinosaur]

I have evaluated it and this is indeed a very good anotation routine.  I will be attempting to modify a few features and add some more.  I know it works in r13 and r2005 products (including Civil 3D) and it should work in r12 along with all releases in between.  Thanks sourdoug

[Dinosaur]

quote from Sourdoug (for some reason I can't reply with a quote to this one)
  " . . . I was given permission to give this away if I improved it, and did that . . . "
Was one of your improvements to make this work from paperspace?  I ask because this thing does what LDD 2005 can NOT do . . . return the model space distance between two endpoints picked from paper space and place it in paper space.  In fact, it can be used in paperspace for everything except the bearings within a rotated viewport.

[sourdough]

quote from Sourdoug (for some reason I can't reply with a quote to this one)
  " . . . I was given permission to give this away if I improved it, and did that . . . "
Was one of your improvements to make this work from paperspace?  I ask because this thing does what LDD 2005 can NOT do . . . return the model space distance between two endpoints picked from paper space and place it in paper space.  In fact, it can be used in paperspace for everything except the bearings within a rotated viewport.

Well, I do know that you can I do bearing/distance with a rotated viewport if you us viewtwist instead of ucs rotate. I use the viewtwist in Toolpac 7 thru 9 and it allows that. I stopped using ucs rotated viewports. I did find also that LDT also will label correctly under those circumstances. But I do warn:
For those Surveyors that insist on using Orientate a drawing other than Zero.... Shame on you. It will make my program go to hell. But, LDT will still work.
This is about the only warning to be aware of with this program. I credit what you found with the good programmer surveyor that wrote this gem.

Mike