Ask questions about DataCAD 20, DataCAD LT 20, or previous versions here.
#70357 by greenbergman
Tue Dec 06, 2016 7:50 pm
(I posted this in the DBUG forum as well. I'm not sure which way to post a topic is better, but here it seems specific to v19 where the DBUG forum is not. If anyone wants to set me straight, that'd be great.)

In my continuing string of re-newbie question, I’m creating a new set of drawing symbols so they are the ones I want and they scale correctly: section marks, elevations, etc. I started this (in case this info is relevant) by making a copy of an existing symbols folder and then deleting the old symbols before saving the new ones because I couldn’t figure out how to create a wholly new symbols folder. But I’m encountering two problems:

1. Some symbols are repeating the previous one when I save them. At first, I thought they were mirroring, but the text is not mirrored. This only seems to happen when I’m saving the mirrored version of the symbol. For example, I’ve created section marks for left and right sides of sections looking “up” by mirroring with copy on. When I save them as symbols, the first saves correctly, but the second one repeats the first.

2. Some symbols are saving and therefore placing at a previous size. For instance, for my basic detail bug – I “enlarged” it down to a new size and saved it as symbol, but it keeps placing at the previous size.

Using my brand spanking new v 19.

David
#70358 by Neil Blanchard
Wed Dec 07, 2016 9:12 am
Hi David,

I just replied on the DBUG email group, and I am posting this here, as well.

You can edit the original symbols to make them work with Symbol Scale, by using Enlarge to make them the actual size you want them to appear on paper. In other words, if they were sized for a particular scale, say 1/8" = 1', then you reduce them to 1/96th of what they are originally.

In the Symbol Browser when you are saving a symbol, the dialog box has the standard Windows New Folder button.

After you have selected a symbol in the SB, you will see F4 Plot Scale, F5 Dynamic Rotate, S5 Symbol Scale, S6 Dynamic Flip among others, on the menu. All these let you generally have just 1 (or maybe 2) versions of most drawing symbols.

When you use Text Attributes, you can show different text within an unexploded symbol.

If you Control-Right Click on a symbol in a drawing, there is an option on the menu to toggle Fix Text on/off.

KEY THING when you are editing symbols: the edited version only exists in the drawing you are editing them in - SO YOU NEED TO SAVE THEM TO THE HARD DRIVE. This is easy to do, if you switch the SB to Drawing, you can Right Click on the edited symbol, select Save As from the menu, and it will default to the existing folder and symbol name.

Again, you have to do this Save As in the Drawing mode in the Symbol Browser in order to save the revised version of the symbol to the hard drive. AND you need to Reload the symbol in OTHER DRAWINGS that use it IF you want the new version to be used in those other drawings.
#70480 by greenbergman
Tue Dec 20, 2016 6:03 pm
I'm still having trouble getting symbols to do what I want them to do. My current issue, among others, is getting text to stay put so it faces up no matter the angle of the symbol. (I'm placing Lighting symbols at the moment.) I've tried Fix Text on and off in the menu that appears after clicking on the symbol, but they both seem to yield the same result.

(I still can't get symbol scale to work, but I want to put that aside for the moment.)

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 35 guests

About DataCAD Forum

The DataCAD Forum is a FREE online community we provide to enhance your experience with DataCAD.

We hope you'll visit often to get answers, share ideas, and interact with other DataCAD users around the world.

DataCAD

Software for Architects Since 1984