forum.datacad.com

My wish is for a 'Layer Translator' that we could run an Acad import through which would change the layer names FROM the Acad file TO what we have for our normal layers; in addition, I wish that the translator would allow us to translate a DWG export FROM our layers TO a set of Acad layers.

This would facilitate getting drawings FROM our engineers/consultants and giving them TO our engineers/consultants.

The way that this would work is to spend a little time up-front with telling the translator what the import layer should be set to in our Dcad layer. This could also be an inverse for the exporting to the DWG for the engineer/consultant.

There used to be an Acad app called "Layer Translator" that was written as a third-party app that was VERY slick - it worked fast, it worked well, and it worked the way that we (as the architect) needed it to. Autodesk saw it's potential, hired the author (a Fresno, CA engineer), bought the intellectual rights and melded it into Architectural Desktop, and then bloated it up.

I think ... no, I KNOW ... that Dave can do it better, faster and more intuitively. Please?

I think this might be possible now via a toolbar macro. I'll see if I can get the base format setup for ya MntMan. If you don't here back from me in a few days, PM me and remind me

But to get from DataCAD layers to AutoCAD layers, wouldn’t a translator also have to break a few simple DataCAD layers into about 30 AutoCAD layers with names that no one else can understand then scatter the entities across those layers with no rhyme or reason?

Brian Engebretson wrote:But to get from DataCAD layers to AutoCAD layers, wouldn’t a translator also have to break a few simple DataCAD layers into about 30 AutoCAD layers with names that no one else can understand then scatter the entities across those layers with no rhyme or reason?

Haha nice Maybe I can work that in there somewhere.

Brian Engebretson wrote:But to get from DataCAD layers to AutoCAD layers, wouldn’t a translator also have to break a few simple DataCAD layers into about 30 AutoCAD layers with names that no one else can understand then scatter the entities across those layers with no rhyme or reason?

Even the Acad translator couldn't scatter stuff around like lazy cadd techs!!

BIG bump!

I have a project that I could REALLY use this on right now!!! As it is it's going to be a MAJOR pain hand-translating between my layers and my client's layers.

How many layers do you have to translate Alan?

Probably somewhere between 20 to 30 layers would be my guess at this point.

You can make a toolbar button using the code below. Just fill in / add layer names following the example below where
Layer001 Bob
Layer002 Bob2
You may need to make multiple buttons if the layer names get real long and you reach the toolbar command buffer limits. Also in the dcadwin.ini file the following line needs to be set to FALSE in order to get the Command Line to work.

If the layering name is consistant, maybe the Rename Macro would work for you were you can do a wildcard rename.