AutoCAD Dynamic Blocks :: Annotative Text - Drawing Scale
Jul 14, 2011
I have a dynamic block that contains both geometry as well as text. I don't want the geometry to scale up based on the drawing scale but I do want the text to scle according to the drawing scale. I have tried making the text both annotative and non-annotative in the block and get the same result. I can get the text to scale properly if I make the entire block annotative but that also scales the geometry which is not accurate.
I have a line and would like one line of text above and MTEXT below.
Problem is the annotation scaling part where I can't seem to position the text so it scales to the line correctly.
It's ok at 1:100. I can't work out a way of doing it so that the line is central between the first two lines of text and the three lines have equal spacing.
I've made annotative blocks and I've made dynamic blocks... My intent is to integrate both but I can't find a way to move dynamic block parameters separately at different annotative scales.
In other words, if I insert an annotative dimension and add multiple scales I can move the dimension grips independently at each scale. If I insert a dynamic block I want to be able to use the dynamic block's action "grips" to do the same. However, with a dynamic block, if I move a stretch action at one annotation scale it moves the action at all annotation scales.
Is there any trick that bring in an annotative block into a drawing at the annotative scale you are working in, not the scale the block was created in?
I have a block that I want to show on a vertical exaggeration of 10x. How do I make it so that a block has a Y scale of 10 without the attribute text inside the block being stretched in the Y direction 10x?
I would like to use a Y scale of 10 rather than a block with 10x the length because I have a field that returns a length parameter and I don't want that value to be 10x what it's supposed to be, and it would make things much easier to not have to multiply my values by 10x each time I use the block.
I've just started to learn how to use Annotative Blocks and i'm running into what is probably a very simple problem. I'm creating a block and want to assign annotative scales to it. Once created, I insert the block into the drawing I need to use it in, and the only scale that shows up is the scale that is active when inserted.
All the other scales I added when creating the block are gone and I then have to assign the scales to the block again. I would prefer not to have to manually assign the scales every time the block in inserted into a drawing.
Any way to get a scale bar/title block text to reflect plotting at half size?
We use the common (24x36) sheet size for all projects, but when plotting we send out half size (12x18) as well. This means the scale bar reading 1"=40' is no longer correct. It should read 1"=20'. I would like to automate this.
When I worked for my previous firm, they had a library full or blocks that would change scale by picking from a small pull down menu on the block itself. I could automatically change a section of a 4" CMU to an 8" CMU just by picking from the options. I am trying to create some of those now. Are those dynamic or annotative blocks. What is the parameter I would use.
I'm fairly new to using annotative objects, and I am having a lot of trouble with blocks and annotative multileaders.
I made a custom block (_ValveCallout) to be used in an annotative multileader, which was working perfectly, until I needed to edit the block I was using in the multileader. After I redefined the block, the attributes in the block seem to be displayed at the wrong scale, and the border around them isn't even showing at all. I have to redraw every multileader if I have to make a change to the block.
I "work in both worlds" It's somewhat important. (Windows at my "day job", Mac Student Ed for my University teaching.
I have an Annotative Associative block with attributes (TTFs). The Title attribute is multi-line. When the block used in a file that is opened in Windows, obvkously everything is fine. If that same drawing is opened in ACAD Mac, the position of the top attribute shifts and can't be corrected until the block is edited in Windows. (It has to be Windows because ACADmac can't edit associative blocks in this release.)
Process I used (MacBookPro 7,1): Start ACAD12win (Parallels 7 w/WinXP), used default ACAD.DWT.inserted block "Tag Drawing Title", accepted all attribute value defaults, accepted default annotation scale of 1:1save fileopened file in ACAD12mac (multi-line attribute in wrong position)save fileOpened again in ACAD12win, and multi-line attribute is still in wrong position. Save fileOpened again in ACAD12mac, and multi-line attribute is in a greater incorrect position.
I made a post in the autoCAD LT section, URL...And to save you the jump (though there's none of the fixes I've tried)I'm having issues with annotative symbols jumping around the page. As far as I can tell, it happens on certain symbols when I add a second(or more) annotative scale to that symbol. I can reset the symbols so that they're all aligned and sitting 'on top' of each other, but when I switch to different viewports/plot or save/open the drawing again they've reverted to the position they jump too. In the past I thought it might be something to do with where the basepoint was within the block, but having changed that, I still had the problem.
Both the blocks I've had it happen with are reasonably simple (one's an 'Auto Air Valve' symbol with a mask behind the lines, the other is a custom 'Section line' symbol although that also has some properties to allow me to extend the section line) objects. With the section line symbol I mirror it to get the second half, which is the half it's having the problem on. I wouldn't expect mirroring an object would do it though. The odd thing is, it's only happened in some drawings that I've done, and only with some symbols (which were all created at a similar time, so should have the same issues?),
I am rather new to AutoCAD 2010, and have observed issues with Annotative Scale. I have tried to avoid that function like the plague, but now I have some time to learn of it and its power.
I've been tasked with creating/updating Electrical Department symbol blocks. Right now, I am working on lighting fixture blocks, and I have this particularly odd scenario when i'm making the Block Attributes. My new block is for a 2 foot by 4' lighting fixture. When this block is to be inserted in Model Space, the size will always remain constant (2'x4'), but I need the Attributes (one for the Fixture Type, and one to denote the Circuit Number and Switch leg) to change sizes per the plan scale on Paper Space.
How, and in which space, should I construct my light fixture block & attributes? And, which parts of the block or attributes should be Annotative? Also, the light fixture can be either oriented vertically or horizontally. Will I still be able to relocate the attribute using -EATTEDIT or -ATTEDIT?
Im trying to keep annotative blocks in the same spot on different scale viewports. The main issue Im having is, when i have a lets say house plan in viewport #1 and have all my blocks in place that I moved copyed from my template. When I open another viewport at a diffrent scale the blocks move. Im useing a large number of blocks for electrical symbols we use at work that I need to be in every viewport so we can copy them and place them where needed on the plan.
I am looking to create a dynamic block that changes in scale, ex. If I have two (2) viewports in paper space, one 1/4"=1'-0" the other 1/8"=1'-0" I want my blocks to appear to be the same size in paper space.
Also, I would like my blocks to change attributes/features ex. If I have a "light switch block" I would like to have the option of switching the block from a 3-way switch, 4-way switch etc.
I am attempting to create an AutoLISP that removes all un-used drawing scales from a file, then adds the standard scales used in civil engineering. This is what I tried using:
Now, I am only a beginner to writing LISP, but I know that my problem is that it is reading the inch marks after the one in the scale name as a enter, but I don't know how to get around this. Also, I don't know how to get it to skip scales that are still in the drawing.
How do I manipulate a height parameter all of the dynamic blocks in the drawing from one single field? Say a field located in the drawing properties or on the drawing itself.
For example: Multiple blocks of different walls of same height with other blocks of things on located on those walls, dependant on the wall height, all linked to and changed by a single field. Possibly a Wall Height field located in the custom tab of the drawing properties.
I can pickout each of the blocks and change them at the same time in properites menu because they all share the same parameter name. I would just like to have that height parameter of every block in the drawing, that has that specific parameter controled by a single field. Which I could enter a new height at anytime that would change every block in the drawing to that height.
I have a drawing with some annotative blocks. ie Block name "BAR'.
If I insert another drawing (mostly old v2000 files) as a block which also contains blocks named "BAR" (which of course are non-annotative) the Blocks do not show up.
Is there any way to get arround this? Idealy I would like the old file inserted and have the annotion scale of the blocks in the inserted dbg set to the current scale.
I created the attached block to add spot elevations to a drawing. The block has attributes allowing elevations to be manually typed in, but also includes many dynamic features for rotation, lengthening, mirroring, etc. The block was created as an annotative block.
The block and all of its features work perfect as long as the dynamic features (rotation, etc) are not used after additional annotative scales are added. I often times have a drawing set at 1:10 or 1:20 scale and need to do an enlarged detail at 1:5.
What I would like to do is have this block set at 1:10 scale and 1:5 scale and manually rotate it (ideally using the dynamic features) at different angles for each scale. Is this possible and if so, why is it not working with this block? This works flawlessly when using annotative multileaders, so why shouldn't it work with blocks or is this just too labor intensive for the software?
I have also tried attsync, etc. and often times when rotating at different annotative scales, the text attributes go "bonkers" for the opposing scale when applying attsync.
I am hoping to link text items between pages and items in the drawing such as elevations?
So, ideally, I would have a front page to my drawing set, and this would have a 'Contents' type table on it, with the title name of each drawing in one column, then the drawing number in the next column. This is the tricky bit, someone must know: If i was to change the name / number of any item in this table, could it change also (linked to) the following items:
Drawing title (as a text idem on the layout sheet that that drawing relates to)
Drawing number (as a text idem on the layout sheet that that drawing relates to)
Elevation call-out (on the plan view)
And possibly:
Excel reference cell
Drawing layout tab title (this might be pushing it!!)
Perhaps this could be done by linking to an external Excel spreadsheet with these titles modified in there? I'm not sure. This would be ideal as typing into excel is a lot easier than the triple click text modify method required currently.
I waste a lot of time renaming and updating sheet names / titles / numbers. Are there standard templates for drawing sets that may have this built in available anywhere that I could try?
I have successfully created one drawing using annotative dims and text - I have set my text to 1:1 scale, height = 30 in paperspace (although I don't get what this refers to when it automatically says it's 30 in modelspace too) and my viewport is 1:20 scale. It's all good, the dims and text look great, which is what I want at the end of the day, however I got there.
But, when I want to set up another detail at 1:40 scale, I can't for the life of me figure out how to make the same dim and text style appear the same size as it was for the 1:20 detail.
I just called up a drawing I haven't worked on in a while. All the text is annotative with 2 scales, 1/8 & 1/4 and worked just fine. Now I see both scales at once, I can't get "grips" on it, it won't edit, and when I list it, it comes up as object type block "*uxxx", not text. If I explode it, it becomes text again, but as two separate notes of different sizes, and both remain visible, even though the anno scale is set for 1/8. Drawings that reference this also show both scales at once.
I have a drawing that contains texts that are annotative. But I would like to change the scale of the drawing with the floating model space viewport in Paper Space. I know I can individually right click on the text and Add Current Scale to them but is there a way to do so globally?
I have a base plan. The text scale is set to 1"=40' I xref the base plan into a strucural bridge plan sheet and scale the base map x 12 so that i can work in architetural scale. How do I get the text to scale correctly in the xref'd base map that has been scaled by 12 for a 1/8" scale?
Im pretty new to annotative text. I was wondering how I can make text show in two viewports at two diffrent scales? Also how to I remove scales from text?
Exploring a new field in LT here, was wondering if it's possible to use a flip-grip kind of parameter to control the scale of an object, kind of like an on/off switch.
In this case I have a straight line that is about 15mm. What I want is to be able to click a grip and it disappears ( scales down ) and when I click it again it reappears ( scales up ).
I know that this is possible through a lookup parameter or just a similar effect with a stretch grip, But I want to be able to just click a grip like the one for Flip and it re/appears.
I have 3 circles, randomly spaced. They will always be the same size. I want to resize them all about there centre points using just one parameter in the properties fly out. I've created individual linear/stretch for each circle, but I can't work out how to combine them.
My annotative text moves from its original place when I change my viewport scale. I tried to add the PS scale to my original xref, but when I click on the text, I can't change the "no" to "yes" on the options menu where it says annotative.
My company is in the process of updating the entire block library to be annotative or dynamic (depending on the usage) and it's been wonderful for new projects.
The problem comes in when we have to update an existing dwg. When we try to "blockreplace" the new annotative tags for the old non-annotative tags. These tags have attributes, but we have literally not changed anything about the blocks except the "annotativedwg" property within the root block file. When we run block replace, the old blocks disappear completely! they're not at a teeny scale or a gigantic scale, they're not on an "off" or "frozen" layer, they just fully go away even if you say "don't purge the old block that is being replaced".
I usually don't have a problem "doing my job" and just going through and replacing them individually on the smaller sized projects, but most of our projects have upwards of 700 - 1000 tags per dwg. Slightly tedious as you can imagine, especially since I am addicted to finding newer faster better ways to draw.
I am running Autocad arch 2011 (as Autocad 2011) and a co worker is using Autocad electrical 2012 and when he works in a drawing of mine the every annotative scale that is used in the file is attached to every annotative object. Which means I have to go through every object and delete scales that should be be there....all my annotative objects appear in every view port because every annotative object has every scale..
