AutoCAD 2010/2011/2012 DWG Format

[#1]

Hello - I have inherited some drawings that have around 42 layout tabs (yikes!).  I have never worked with a drawing that has as many tabs as this.

I'm looking for an easy way to bounce between tabs without having to hit the arrow buttons to scroll through them all.

I'd like to redo the files to not have as many tabs, but I do not have the option to do this right now.

Thanks for any ideas anyone has.

Don

[#2]

Would the Quick View Layouts button, at the bottom of the UI, be better?

Jon

[#3 · Accepted solution]

You can also switch and sort layouts using a dialog but try it yourself - if it is more convenient. See the layout manager - LOMAN:

http://www.cadforum.cz/cadforum_en/ana-alternative-way-of-switching-layouts-tip6910

Vladimir Michl, http://www.cadstudio.cz

[#4]

Jon - that does help but it still requires scrolling through the tabs.  The UI is faster at scrolling than it is going through the arrow buttons.  But thanks for the reminder on using the UI.

Don

[#5]

Vladimir - this is exactly what I was hoping I could find!

Thanks for the link - this is perfect!

Don

[#6 · Accepted solution]

What I do is name a View for each Layout Tab. For example, my Layouts are A.1, A.2, A.3, ...to A.50. While in the first Layout, A.1, I name the View "A.1", and so on for each Layout Tab.  While in Paperspace, I can recall any of the Named Views and it will go to that View immediately. Try it, you'll like it. -KLYPH

[#7]

Great idea KLYPHY - and once it is set up, it provides a nice listing of all the layout tabs inside of the VIEW dialog box.

In the case I have now, I have been given these drawings done by someone else and they did not set up views for each tab.  So the LOMAN routine worked great and I also used the LAYOUT command followed by a "?" to give me a listing of all the tabs which I copy pasted in to a Word Doc.

But this is a great tip to remember because it does not require any external lisp routine, it utilizes AutoCAD's own commands.

Thanks for the tip.

Don

[#8]

Before I name a View for a Layout, I set the display to be the whole sheet, not less, not more. That way, even if I leave a Layout zoomed way in to some detail, when I restore the View back to that Layout, it goes to the full sheet. Save a lot of time. Read Ya Later -KLYPH

[#9]

An even better idea than named views is to use the Sheet Set Manager. One sheet per layout. Very easy to navigate and you don't have to deal with pesky views.

[#10]

Of course the Sheet Set Manager is the way to go. But it does take moving the cursor, scrolling down, selecting, and often a time delay before the Sheet comes up. In the case that started this discussion, there were move Layouts than normal. Even in the Sheet Set Manager, there would have been a lot of scrolling.

I may not have shared that our Office has a lisp for views. If the Layout is A.1, we merely type "V1" and it goes to Layout A.1.  We type V20 and it goes to Layout A.20. We developed that lisp back in the early 90s, before there were even any Layouts, just the one Paper Space.

So, I do what I call "The Closest". If my hand is on the mouse, I would go to the Sheet Set Manager. If my hands are on the keyboard, I type "V1", etc.

The Sheet Set Manager was one of the greatest AutoCAD inventions.

Read Y'all Later -KLYPH