I’m experimenting with using dynamic blocks more in drawings; creating drawings which are composites of wall types, floor types, and opening types etc., all defined in dynamic blocks. The aim is to be able to edit a master file of these blocks to make amendments, rather than tracking changes through multiple drawings.
The problem is updating the blocks. Autocad insists on storing blocks locally in each drawing. There needs to be a foolproof way of automatically updating these blocks in the same way as Xrefs. Otherwise the entire advantage of using blocks to manage drawings is lost; it’s all too easy to forget to redefine a block, and it’s not easy either. Using Xrefs would miss all the advantages of dynamic blocks, and create a nightmarish mess of layers.
How are other people using block libraries? If you want to change a door jamb detail after it’s placed as a block across hundreds of drawings, what happens? Surely being able to edit a single master drawing is the entire point?
What could be an enormously powerful tool seems to be made near useless by this problem. Or am I missing something?
Thanks for any thoughts.
