LandXML files in Map3D

With 2010 Version of Map 3D we now have a way to import Land XML files using the survey tab of the task pane. However it only brings in points. What if that file contains line features or even yet a pipe network with structures from a Civil 3D project? Autodesk reply is use SDF, Civil 3D can export to SDF and then we can connect to it using the data connect. Well great if how ever creates that project uses Civil 3D but what about all those other Civil design applications that export to LandXML format?  So what’s your’ opintion on it? Should Map3D users have more functions in the Survey tab for line work and the points or how about a data provider (FDO) for LandXML.

Take the poll and vote, I’ll pass the results on to those that I can at the Map3D team of Autodesk.

Surface Creation Tools – 2010 Version

For those users that used the survey extension in AutoCAD MAP3D 2009 and were using the Surface Creation tool you might of been a little disappointed with 2010 version lack of that tool. The rest of the survey tools were incorporated into the Survey Tab on the map task pane but the surface tool was left out.

Well not to worry Autodesk heard us complaining and did something about it. Actually back in the beta stages the complains and question about the surface tool where first brought up to the Map3D team. Although it was too late to get in the release versions Autodesk Map3D team has the solution.

Up on your subscription site under the product download section there is the 2010 version of the Surface Creation Extension, both a 32bit and a 64 bit version. Download and install and you will have the same tool that was in the 2009 version with one little missing function. The missing function is the export the points to drawing points, which you can now use the (map) import tools to accomplish that.

If you had not used the 2009 version Survey Extension or the Surface Creation tool you may want to take a look at my post here to get an idea of what it can do.  That’s only one of the task you can use it for, the main function of it was to allow users to import a topo survey in ASCII format and create a Geo-TIFF raster file.

Where is the Standard AutoCAD Ribbon?

One thing that’s is missing from AutoCAD Map3D 2010 is the Ribbon interface for standard AutoCAD functions. Sure we have the Map Classic Workspace still, but do you see the new parametric tools under any of the menus? How about the Constraint tools or the the tools that let you drive the design by the dimensions? Looks like the developers on the Geospatial team forgot that most  Map users or the GIS guy still have to do some drafting now and then.  I remember in my days of being  the “Map” guy at a electric utility co. that once or twice a month I would have to draft up some new piece of equipment or something. Either a concrete pad for a UG transformer or doing simple one line drawings for the substations. The new features in AutoCAD 2010 would of make it a lot easier back then. So why was a quick and easy access to those tools left out of Map3D 2010?  Who knows? To fix it is an easy little task that you can take on. All you need to do is create a new workspace and add the correct ribbon panels to the ribbon. Here’s how I did it. Start by opening up the Customize User Interface, entering CUI on the command line will do that part. Now if you hear all the horror stories about the CUI and workspaces from others rest assure it has improved since it was introduced in 2006.

Now that you have the CUI open go ahead and resize it to where you can see both sides, the left and right panes. In the left pane highlight Workspaces and right click then select New Workspace. Provide a name for the new workspace, I used “Standard AutoCAD 2D” for mine.

Now over on the right pane of the CUI it should be listed under the Workspace Contents. Click on the Customize Workspace button.

Now all we need to do is go back to the left pane and select the Ribbon Tabs we want in the workspace. Expand the Ribbon and Tab tree then start checking the tabs to place on the ribbon, as you check them on the left pane they will appear in the right pane under your new workspace.

The tabs you choose is up to you the ones I selected are in line with Standard AutoCAD. Once you select the tabs click on the Done button then the apply button at the bottom.

Now you should have all the tools in standard AutoCAD with in quick reach by switching to that workspace. You can also create another workspace for 3D AutoCAD commands if you do 3D designs and rendering.

Map3D 2010 "What’s new?"

The new version is on it’s way to a desk near you. So lets look what is new. First it has all the features of AutoCAD 2010, that includes the new freeform modeling tools and the parametric tools. Using them in a Map/GIS environment is another story but if you want to “design” 3D models you can.

The first thing you may notice is Map3D 2010 is ribbon based with two new workspaces. A tool base ribbon and a task based ribbon.

Now if you have not used the ribbons in any other application or used them in AutoCAD before it takes a little extra work to get used to them over menu driven interfaces. The big change to these in 2010 version is a new context-sensitive ribbon.

With the context-sensitivity ribbons a new tab will display depending on the object(s) you may have selected. It makes it easier with most of the tools/commands right there instead of trying to hunt down the location on the ribbon.

Next item you may notice is the Survey tab on the task pane.

 

The Survey Extension from 2009 is now part of the task pane and allows you to import survey points from a number of different ASCII point data files and supports LandXML data. You will be able to import points and create different point groups from the data based on the attributes. 

The next new feature is creating an overlay with feature data. Prior to this if we needed to do an overlay it had to be with standard AutoCAD objects then  create a topology, which always took some drawing cleanup to complete a correct topology. Now users can do 7 different types of overlays with data from FDO sources.

With the new overlay feature and the existing buffer feature Map3D users can do just about any type of analysis they need to on a regular day to day operation.

Speaking of day to day operations, the next new feature may be of use. The new Windows Work Flow Framework may be an answer to all those repetitive tasks.

Any one that tried to use the Macro-recorder in 2009 found out that it did not work with FDO features, this not only works on FDO but use the Window Workflow Foundation to include tasks or activities that can be done outside AutoCAD. So far there is little documentation on using it but the nerds that like to get under the hood and tinker should be able to get some nice little activities created with it.

Another new feature is one that a lot of CAD users have been wishing for since the data connect days. A simple way to view the attributes from the connected features with out opening the data tables.  It’s included in the property palette now. That’s right, instead of getting just “Mapbulkfeature” in the property palette when you have a feature selected you get all the attributes with that feature.

Not only is it viewable you can edit the values also. Select multiple features and change the attributes value at one time is now a possible task.

Those are a few of the new features that a lot of users can take to the boss and say it was worth the upgrade. A few others improvements are the bulk copy has been enhanced and improved on, a few new options with the COGO tools, a couple new data providers, a better raster reprojection, support for 64 bit systems and Citrix XenApp 5.0. The last new feature I will post about it the Geographic location tool. In 2009 version you most likely seen the GeoMarker or what some call the “wagon wheel” or “pizza” when you assigned a coordinate system to your map. That is a standard AutoCAD feature the allows non-map users to get a geographical location  from a number of places like Google Earth or just by entering a Lat/Lon, well now we can use that location to insert the drawings into our map with out having to move or scale it. In other words if you get a drawing of a building from an standard AutoCAD user and they provided the geo location in the drawing then when we bring that building into our map it falls right into place instead of at 0,0,0.

Raster Images problems?

Are you having trouble printing with images files inserted into you maps? There are a few things that may help that are not documented very well. First there’s two system variables you may want to change. The first one is “RASTERPERCENT” (Sets the maximum percentage of available virtual memory that is allowed for plotting a raster image.) That’s all the Help file tells you about it. The second one is “RASTERTHRESHOLD” and the only help info is; “Specifies a raster threshold in megabytes. If the plotted raster image exceeds this threshold, the availability of system memory is checked. The plot is aborted if the image is too big for the available memory.” Now that last statement sounds like what a lot of users are reporting, the plot cancels out when they have a large image in the drawing. So just how can these two variables be fined tuned? Up the value for both of them , I heard replies from others that setting them to 90 and 100 respectively works wonders. However keep in mind they set or reserve a percentage of your virtual memory for images locking up that memory for other objects. You may want to try 30-40 for the settings then if you need to go up from there until you get the plot right.  The values are stored in the registry so once set they are retained until you set them to a different value.

Another area to check is in the plotter property settings for the plotter you are sending the drawing to. Most plotter/printers have the Raster Graphics settings that you allow you to set the resolution down a little to get the plot size down to a manageable size by moving the slider to the left.

In the settings for my HP PSC 1200 printer if I move the slider to the left a few clicks it makes the plot size smaller thereby not requiring that much memory, yet the quality of the plot is not effected to a noticeable degree once it is plotted on a sheet. Each plotter’s model and brand will be a little different with the drivers used having a part in this as well, so there’s no way to have a one size fits all here. All you need to do is experiment with all of these settings and do a little trial and error.

Update 2 for Map3D 2009

The Update 2 or what may be know as SP2 has been released for AutoCAD Map3D 2009. So what has been fixed or what issues has it resolved? Well there is a long list of them in the readme that address things from query save backs to the display manager issue that some users have been reporting. A quick read also looks like it fixed a lot of the memory leaks that caused a lot of fatal errors. You can download it here. The Readme is also on that page. The only thing I noticed for this update is it is for Map3D 2009 on a 32bit OS, those that are running Map3D on a 64 bit system will have to wait a while for an update or wait for 2010 version to be released.

It’s on it’s Way

AutoCAD 2010 that is. Yes the next version is just around the corner and should be shipping to customers in two weeks. That means AutoCAD Map3D 2010 should be right around the bend if history repeats itself on past releases. So what in new in Map3D 2010? I can’t say yet but I can tell you what is in Vanilla AutoCAD 2010 and everyone knows that Map3D is built on top on the vanilla favor of AutoCAD. First there has been some 3D modeling improvements or what is called Organic Modeling. If you do a lot of 3D work the new free form modeling is a lot easier to create some nice 3D designs. Ok they may not be of much use in Map3D unless you are trying to create a 3D surface for your map but there is also a new feature to set Geometric Constrains. Here’s a link to Lynn Allen’s Blog posting on that. Think of creating lot lines or parcels when looking at that posting or keeping utilities lines parallel to a road center line.

For more on the vanilla new features take a look at Shaan’s posting here. There is even a link to download the preview guide so take a look.

As for AutoCAD Map3D, well you have to wait a little longer to see or read about those but I can bet there will be a few new features in it some of you may like and have been asking for.

Rotation of Blocks or Text

Do you need to export text or blocks to a GIS format and then try to data connect to that exported data and fine that if the blocks or text features are rotated that the rotated value you used on the export does not match the rotation for the features in the original drawing? The reason is when you export with the rotation property it is in Radians not Degrees. So if you need to rotate the symbols in the data connect to  the original rotation angle the rotation value in the data table needs to be converted.

Here is a dwg with the text as AutoCAD text objects.

Here what happens when you label those features with no expression in the style editor for the data connect.

Here they are using the default “ROTATION” property from the data table.

Not what we expected, is it?
So how can you convert them from the radians to degrees? Simple an expression in the expression builder will do it.

( 180.0 * ( ROTATION  /  3.14))

Now when they get labeled the rotation is the same as the original drawing objects was.

This also works with blocks you have rotated in a drawing that you later connect to with data connect. If you find yourself with a lot of features from different files that need this expression, don’t forget about the option to export that expression allowing you to later import it to use for any feature file that has the “ROTATION” property.

Your Input ? or Help Design the Next Versions Layout

Have you ever wondered why a command or function is on that toolbar but not on that another? Do you find yourself having to click here, then there before you get access to a certain command you use all the time?  If you are like me I create my own tool bar or menus with the commands I use most often, so they are one click away.  Why not let Autodesk know about the commands you use most and how you access them? I’m not talking about emailing or calling them and voicing your preference but another way to pass that info on.

It’s call the Customer Involvement Program or CIP for short. If you did the install of the product the first time it’s fired up you get asked to participate but most of the time we click “No Thanks” and forget about it. Maybe you were told it tracks everything you do in AutoCAD and you want to keep your privacy.  Well you can participate  anonymously and not have to worry.

So what is the CIP and why should you joined in. First it lets Autodesk know what operating systems and hardware everyone uses. This can be helpful when they develop the next version knowing if most users are still using XP Pro 16 bit. The other thing is the information they track are the commands you use and how you access those commands.   So if you  use the Widget command 20 times an hour then it might get placed right in the middle of the UI but if the CIP reports no one uses it then it stays hidden in some command line version instead on a toolbar or on a menu.

Granted the toolbars and menus are slowing being replaced by the ribbon but what goes on the ribbon and where, is determined by the information  Autodesk gets from the CIP.  Yes you can still create your own toolbar and menu and not worry about it but what happens when there is no menu or toolbars? OK so you will learn to make your own ribbon tabs and panels and use those. But why not make it a little easier and let Autodesk make them the way “you” use them. 

So if you want a say on what the future versions will look like, turn on the CIP, just go to the help menu and click on the Customer Involvement Program, click Participate Anonymous if you want but click OK.  

For more info on the program and their Privacy Policy click here.

Exporting to SHP with Civil 3D and Errors

A few Civil 3D users are getting errors and the quick exit  out of Civil 3D when they try to export to ESRI shp format with Civil3D 2009. One thing they need to check is the mapexport.ini file located in the C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Autodesk\C3D 2009 folder. The ini file can be opened and edited in Notepad or any text editor. Look for a section called [SHP]

[SHP]
File=True
Rootname=False
EntTypes=All
FeatureClass=Single
CreateClassBy=None
SupportsAppend=False

If it looks like the above then edit the value for EntType to Type instead of all.

So that it looks like this:

[SHP]
File=True
Rootname=False
EntTypes=Type
FeatureClass=Single
CreateClassBy=None
SupportsAppend=False

Save the changes and close the file. Now when you call the mapexport command in Civil 3D you will get the old dialog back that allows you to select the object types. You will need to select the object types (point, lines, polygon,  or text)  to export.

The reason the ALL value is causing errors is ALL = ALL to include the Civil 3d objects, and as we all know Civil3D objects do not play nice with Map3D. If you are still getting errors on the export review the post here  and watch the file names or here for a little tip about exporting text. 

Update for 2010 Civil 3D : Looks like the issue is in the 2010 version also.