Problem with modified .shp

[Anonymous]

Hello,

i have a problem with a .shp, which i modified in AutoCad Map 3D 2014. To describe my problem and what i've done, here a sketch:

1) I got a shape (from Esri ArcGis) with a lot of parcels (polygons) like picture A.

2) In AutoCad Map i connected to this shape (Data->Connect to Data...->Add SHP Connection).

3) I merged the parcels to one area (polygon) per canal (like picture B).

4) If I close and connect again to the shape, there are only the "new" (merged) polygons like picture B -> everything ok.

If i import the shape, there are polylines like in picture B -> everything ok. But if i open the shape in ArcGis (explorer), i have my merged polygons AND the original polygons (like picture C). I don't want to have the original polygones in the shape and in ACad i don't have them apparently.

What went wrong?

Perhaps there is a better way to modify the shape?

Thanks very much!

Sry about my poor english skills. Hope you understand me anyway.

If you have more questions related to my problem, please ask me.

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

welcome @forums.autodesk.com! 

>> I got a shape (from Esri ArcGis)

Whenever you get SHP data from other software applications delete the IDX file before you start modifying the data.

Have you done that?

>> Perhaps there is a better way to modify the shape?

Depends on your data, if there is an option to automatically find "the polygons to union" or on the other hand to just draw the new polygon manually instead if using _MAPFEATUREMERGE to connect always two polygons together.

HTH, - alfred -

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the welcome and your help!

Sry for the late answer, but i had to do a lot of other work today.

Thanks for the hint, i didn't delete the IDX file. I will try it (hopefully tomorrow) and do a test, if my problem appears again. Will give you a feedback!

[Anonymous]

I did some tests and i'm confused. I modified a small part of the original file again (like described). Before i deleted the .idx file. Everything worked and i only have my new merged polygons (even in ArcGis Explorer). But i wanted to know, if that was really the failure. I tried modifying the file again without deleting the .idx file. Everything ok... I don't know what was happened to my old modified shape-file.

However, if you say it is better to remove the .idx-file before modifying the data, i will do this in the future.

Because there are several hundreds of polylines i modified in the old shape, i tried to "repair" it. First i imported (_mapimport) the polygons with the attribute data and then exported them as .shp. It seems to work, i only see now my new merged polygons in ArcGis Explorer. I hope a lot, that everything is ok now and nothing else go wrong.

[Alfred.NESWADBA]

Hi,

>> it is better to remove the .idx-file before modifying the data

To be more detailed: remove the IDX file every time you access the SHP with another software than the previous one. So when you get the SHP data from a different application remove the IDX, then start your work with Map 3D. As long as you now work only with Map 3D all is ok, IDX is ok for that.

BUT ... before you open that dataset with any other software than Map 3D again remove the IDX file.

The reason is (as far as I understood) that the IDX file is the same format, but depending on the software vendor handled with different character sets ... and that makes the index not safe. But whenever you delete the IDX file every software recreates that index file with it's own settings and so then without issues while working with that dataset.

With other words (as long as you only work with Map 3D):

• when you get a SHP dataset ==> delete the IDX before you open it the first time
• before you send the SHP dataset to anyone else ==> delete the IDX before transfering the data

HTH, - alfred -

[Anonymous]

Ok, this is nice to know. So i don't lose anything, if i delete the .idx.

In future, i will delete the .idx first. I'm curoius, if i get the same problem again. Maybe it was triggered by the occasional AutoCad Map program crashes during my editing.