So it's obvious that plotting through civil 3d is slower than potting with map. Has anybody attempted to plot there civil 3d drawings via another version of autodesk such as map to expedite the plotting process whereby you'd expedite by loading proxy's instead of actual editable objects?
I'm kind of tired of the slow plotting process and time consuming aspects of loading civil 3d content to "plot".
"Plotting to what?"
Plot files - via Civil 3D 2012 - sheetset manager to an hp1050c.pc3 file, stored locally (in this instance) on my workstation, to a plot files on a network location over cat 6 network.
same performance results from output to pdf with dwg to pdf.pc3 stored on c drive locally, fyi.
"Using which driver?"
hp1050c.pc3 with a DesignJet 650C C2859B driver - has no bearing on the problem, we've been using this driver since 2002 it's a civil 3d problem loading xrefs, data shortcuts, and civil 3d content (the issue i'm trying to circumvent)
"method of connection to plotter?"
local c drive - plot to plot file
"do you use a custom PC3 file"
yes, with a pmp file (again no bearing on the issue at hand)
computer is a dell T3500
Xenon W3550 @ 3.07GHz
Ram 12GB
64bit Windows 7
NVIDIA Quadro 2000
thanks for the reply!
I don't think you understand the issue and possibly i explained it wrong....
Plotting is from CAD to a file or a device
Printing is from a FILE to a DEVICE
We don't have a printing problem, we a have a plotting problem. All of the plotting we do is to a file, not a device.
The issue i believe is with the complexity of Civil 3D content being loaded during the plotting process and I'm trying to determine if there is other versions i.e. MAP that plot faster because it loads C3D objects as proxies.
thanks again.
Nope I got it, just went off on a tangent. If you need C3D fixes you need to ask fellow C3D users in the C3D forum: it's not a CAD Manager type solution you seek.
nope, not looking for a civil 3d answer, just looking for another way to plot drawings using sheet set manager with proxy objects or something to avoid loading civil 3d content
I just did a test to get the actual time it takes....
18mins for 26 sheets. each sheet is a separate drawing with plan and profile, xrefs, data refs, etc... MassDOT standards.... following Autodesk BMP
@Anonymous wrote:I just did a test to get the actual time it takes....
18mins for 26 sheets. each sheet is a separate drawing with plan and profile, xrefs, data refs, etc... MassDOT standards.... following Autodesk BMP
Try running that same test using the shortcut for "Civil3d as AutoCAD". That will avoid loading the code for civil 3d initially, and _may_ be faster. FWIW - I have a separate install of Map3d, and have not noticed any improvements in plotting time. Of course, anything is faster than the old single pen HI plotters.....
If you are running a current version (2013 or later) you could try running your plot's through CoreConsole as a headless Acad. Getting from a SheetSet to a script that CorecCnsole can run through could be tricky though..
(a pity that TrueView doesn't work with .DST files.....)
Yeah, first thing I tried was the Civil 3D as autocad, no improvement really... ok maybe a slight improvement on the drawing opening time.