datacad.com -- Prodcuts: What's new in DataCAD LT 11?

What's new in DataCAD LT 11?
< See what was new in DataCAD LT 10 See what's new in DataCAD LT 12 >
DATACAD LLC Software for AEC Professionals Since 1984 www.datacad.com 20 Tower Lane Avon, CT 06001 USA Sales (860) 677-4004 Main (800) 394-2231 Sales (860) 677-2610 Sales Fax info@datacad.com Technical Support (860) 677-2829 Technical Support (860) 677-2883 Technical Support Fax techsupport@datacad.com Free DataCAD Forum forum.datacad.com Dear Valued Customer: Thank you for your interest in DataCAD LT 11. As part of our dedication to continuous improvement and to deliver the highest quality CADD products possible, this latest upgrade includes your most requested enhancements. Foundational changes incorporated into DataCAD LT 11 provide you with greater precision, comprehensive network awareness, dependable backup and recovery, a modern interface, improved DXF/DWG compatibility, and productivity enhancements. These major new features will help you share drawing information with other Windows applications, work simultaneously with other designers, and save time. To get the most from DataCAD LT 11, please refer to the overview below. If you have any questions about DataCAD LT 11, contact our technical support staff at techsupport@datacad.com. Thank you for supporting DATACAD, Mark F. Madura President/CEO mark@datacad.com

DataCAD LT 11 New Feature Highlights
How to access the new feature Helpful hints and tips

Backward Compatibility
DataCAD LT 11 is compatible with the same drawing files, symbols, templates, line types, hatch patterns, fonts, and DCAL^? macros, as DataCAD versions 4 through 10, and DataCAD LT versions 9 and 10.

Double-precision Database
12345678901234... DataCAD LT 11 uses double-precision floating point math to calculate and store values in the drawing database. Prior versions of DataCAD LT had an effective accuracy of ~7 decimal places. DataCAD LT 11 has an effective accuracy of ~14 decimal places. That means DataCAD LT 11 is now as accurate as AutoCAD^? and you can work on much larger projects without running into rounding issues, especially when importing large drawings.

Network Awareness
DataCAD LT can query other instances of DataCAD and DataCAD LT running on a network to determine whether or not a file is ?in-use.? Every time you open a drawing, DataCAD LT records the date, time, username, and workstation name in a corresponding user (.U$R) file. If you try to open a drawing file that is ?in-use,? DataCAD LT will only allow you to open a copy of the file.

Backup and Recovery
We revamped DataCAD LT?s backup and recover process to be more reliable and less confusing. Whenever you exit a drawing abnormally, DataCAD LT will automatically try to recover the most recent version of your file without prompting you with unnecessary warnings and options.

Program Interface
DataCAD LT 11 features an updated program interface that provides Windows 2000-style properties and support for Windows XP Themes and "Skins". You can position toolbars and menus where you want by tearing them off and docking them to the top, bottom, left, or right side of the application window. You can also place toolbars and menus outside of DataCAD to "float" on the desktop, allowing you to resize the drawing area without adversely affecting the user interface and to take advantage of dual monitor displays. In addition, all of the interface elements in DataCAD LT 11 will inherit the visual style of your current desktop theme. For more information about Windows XP Themes, go to http://www.themexp.org.
Symbol Browser
DataCAD LT 11 introduces an easier way to browse, select, and manage symbols. The new Symbol Browser allows you to rapidly find, place, customize, and manage symbols that you use in your drawings. Inserting a symbol into your drawing involves little more than selecting it from the Symbol Browser and dropping it where you want it. With just a few mouse clicks, you can open the appropriate folder, display the symbols in the browser, and select the ones you want to use into your drawing. If you developed custom templates with older versions of DataCAD and DataCAD LT, you can open them in the Symbol Browser, too. In effect, the Symbol Browser treats file folders as templates that contain collections of symbols. To access the Symbol Browser, go to the View pull-down menu and select Symbol Browser. You can use the [CTRL] + [T] shortcut to open and close the Symbol Browser.

Symbol Fields
It's now possible to assign an unlimited number of user-defined fields to symbols for enhanced reporting. You're no longer limited to the five default fields. Symbol Field Editor It's now possible to assign an unlimited number of user-defined fields to symbols for enhanced reporting. You're no longer limited to the five default fields. To edit symbol fields, select Edit Fields from the Symbol Browser Options menu.

Symbol Field Reporting
We've enhanced symbol reporting so you can run reports on all symbols in the drawing instead of just the symbols in the active template. A new dialog gives you access to report forms and displays an on-the-fly preview of the results. To access symbol reports, select Reports from the Symbol Browser Options menu. You can run reports on any symbol you've placed in the drawing, not just the symbols displayed in the Symbol Browser.

Symbol Text Attributes
Text attributes can be defined and added to symbols. This lets you use the same symbol multiple times, supplying a unique text string for each one. For example, you could use one desk symbol several times and label them Jim's desk, Nancy's desk, and Bob's desk. To create a symbol attribute, go to the Text menu and select Sym Attrib. A symbol can contain an unlimited number of attributes.

Symbol Text Attribute Reporting
Text attributes can be defined and added to symbols. This lets you use the same symbol multiple times, supplying a unique text string for each one. For example, you could use one desk symbol several times and label them Jim's desk, Nancy's desk, and Bob's desk. To access symbol text attribute reports, select the Extract Attributes option from the Symbol Browser Options menu.

Drop Symbols On Polygons
A new option available for inserting symbols allows you to drop any item such as a tree directly on the surface of a polygon. To insert a symbol directly on to a polygon mesh, select Z Offset, On Polygon from the insert symbol menu. Note: Z Offset settings Z-Base, Z-User 1, Z-User 2, and Z-Height are now toggles. So you can easily insert symbols at the current Z-Base without having to change the Z Offset value each time.

Multi-View Windows
All-new multi-view windows provide up to 10 tear-off, resizable windows you can use to store and display various views of your project. To access multi-view windows, go to the View pull-down menu and select Toolbars... You can use the [CTRL] + [W] shortcut to quickly turn multi-view windows on and off.

Expanded Bitmap Support
The number of supported image formats has been increased to include BMP, JPG, GIF, TIF, TGA, PNG, PCX, EPS, and PCD files. To insert a bitmap into your drawing, go to the Insert pull-down menu and select Bitmap...

o2c Rendering
We've enhanced the interface for assigning materials to o2c objects so you can control the origin of any bitmap texture. In addition, you are no longer limited to 32,768 polygons per material.

Context-sensitive Toolbar
A user-definable, context-sensitive toolbar automatically changes to present related icons based on the menu you choose. A configuration dialog allows you to easily set which toolbar is related to a particular menu selection. To associate a toolbar with a DataCAD LT command, go to the View pull-down menu, select Toolbars..., then Context.

Classic-style Menu Window
Classic Menu Window, Navigation Pad, Projection Pad, and Status Panel are available. To enable these classic-style elements, go to View, Toolbars. If you would also like to have the classic look of raised buttons, go to the Interface tab in Program Preferences and check Classic Buttons.

Bitmap Orphans Manager
A new bitmap orphans manager allows you to redefine paths for bitmaps you've already inserted into your drawing.

Nested XREF Display Toggle
A new option allows you to disable the display of nested external references via the context-sensitive pop-up menu. The display of nested references can be disabled globally with the Display Nested XREFs option in the Nested XREFs section of the Misc. tab of Program Preferences.

Duplicate XREFs Use Same Memory Space
Multiple XREFs of the same file now use a single memory space. Used in combination with the Display Nested XREFs toggle, you can significantly reduce the amount of memory required to open your drawings that contain XREFs.

Self-referencing XREFs Use Same Memory Space
Multiple self-referencing XREFs now use the same memory space so DataCAD LT no longer creates a new swap file every time you reference a drawing into itself.

Global Line Overshoots
You can now set the line overshoot value globally so that it applies to all entities equally. The global line overshoot is scale-independent and is defined as a real-world, plotted distance. You can access the Overshoots menu from the Line Type menu. Note: Overshoot must be toggled on in the Display menu in order to view/plot line overshoots.

2-Line Trim Supports Line/Arc and Arc/Arc
The two line trim command has been updated to handle line/arc and arc/arc conditions that were not supported previously.

Embedded Line Types
Line Types (up to 255) are now stored in your drawing file. Now, you don't have to worry about providing custom line type definitions to your colleagues when you give them copies of your drawings. DataCAD LT automatically converts your line type definitions from DCADWIN.LIN to individual .DLT files stored in \DataCAD LT\Support Files\Line Types.

Embedded Hatch Patterns (Optimized)
Embedded hatch patterns have been optimized to require less memory. DataCAD LT automatically converts your hatch pattern definitions from DCADWIN.PAT to individual .DHP files stored in \DataCAD LT\Support Files\Hatch Patterns.

Screen Calibration
Using the Screen Calibration dialog, accessible from the Interface Settings tab of Program Preferences, you can measure the test pattern in either decimal inches or millimeters in order to adjust both the screen scaling and aspect ratio. Screen Calibration Dialog

Enhanced Context-sensitive Menu
An Identify section has been added to the context-sensitive ([Ctrl] + Right-click) menu for quick access to Identify options and XREF-related options have been grouped together in an XREF Tools fly-out menu.

< See what was new in DataCAD LT 10 See what's new in DataCAD LT 12 >
Revision History
More information about the improvement history of DataCAD LT

EOF