Best Practices Question - creating a data reference vs. data shortcuts

[MaryBell1]

I've been searching in the forums and can't seem to find one on this subject specifically so if you know of a discussion please pass it along..... At my current workplace we are getting a mixed bag of, of for example, alignments....sometimes they are data referenced in another base drawing and sometimes (usually) they are a data shortcut. I almost always have used a data shortcut for alignments, surfaces, pipe networks, etc.  (I'm just a tech or drafter presently) so my opinion has no weight but in my previous jobs I did some preliminary design and don't recall data referencing a civil 3d feature. The problem is I don't remember exactly why we did it like that. Is one way better than the other? I feel like shortcuts make more sense? Can anyone tell me what the best practice might be and why? Thanks!

[Joe-Bouza · Accepted solution]

Data shortcuts are created

Data references are used 

source drawings contain geometry that a data shortcut is created from

host drawings data reference geometry.

best practices: create source drawings for individual object types and add data shortcuts to the given Civil3d project 

host drawings data ref various data shortcuts to compose you deliverable drawings 

[Neilw_05]

Data shortcuts and data references are terms for the same objects, depending on how they are used or created. If you want to share your Civil 3D objects with other users or drawings, you create a shortcut. The shortcut gets added to the Data Shortcuts tree for the project. When a user wants to add a link to one of those objects to their drawing, they create a reference to it from the shortcuts tree, called a data reference.

The shortcut is just a link to an object stored in a source drawing. A data reference is when you add one of those links to your drawing. 

[Neilw_05]

So why use data references? Because they function exactly as if they were live in your drawing with the exception that you can't edit the geometry. For example a data reference to an alignment allows you to apply your own styles, labels etc. to the alignment to suit your specific drawing needs. Compare with an XREF where you can only turn layers on or off and change the colors and linetypes.

Too you can use the shortcut to the alignment to generate profiles, sheet layouts and more. By sharing an alignment via shortcuts it can be used in any number of drawings for differing purposes without duplication. If the alignment is edited in the source file, all files that are linked to it will update.

[MaryBell1]

Thanks for the responses all!

I think I did a pretty good job explaining how data references and data shortcuts work but I wasn't able to give a reason why just synchronizing the civil 3d objects that they have Created References to isn't just as good as using a data shortcut. I'm not talking about objects that have been Promoted where it creates a totally seperate entity, rather, Creating a Reference that creates a civil 3d entity in your drawing that is still referenced and can be updated by synchronizing. Other than making it difficult for layer control in the host drawing, is there any advantage/disadvantage to doing it that way vs. using a data shortcut? It's hard enough to explain to engineers who use it but now I have to explain it to the CAD manager who only used Civil 3D as a CAD tool. I mean, I think I understand it well enough for me but it would be nice if we were all on the same page.
Thanks again!

[Neilw_05]

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@MaryBell1 wrote:

I think I did a pretty good job explaining how data references and data shortcuts work but I wasn't able to give a reason why just synchronizing the civil 3d objects that they have Created References to isn't just as good as using a data shortcut

That IS a shortcut. You are not making sense.

It's hard enough to explain to engineers who use it but now I have to explain it to the CAD manager who only used Civil 3D as a CAD tool. I mean, I think I understand it well enough for me but it would be nice if we were all on the same page.

It seems you are confused yourself. Maybe there is where the problem lies.

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[Greek2Me]

IMHO the MAJOR advantages of using a DREF (data shortcut) over an XREF (externally referenced drawing) include:

1) having them in a much cleaner  drawing (containing ONLY your civil objects). You can xref in a basemap to make adjustments but then unload (NOT remove) and reload it as needed.

2) show several connecting alignments in a Plan/Profile sheet, but display the one from the profile in a much bolder style in the plan view so it really stands out, as well as turn off stationing on all others so they are present, but "muted". You can't do this if you use xrefed base maps as previous poster mentioned.

But my personal favorite is

3) the ability to data shortcut a surface, necessary alignments, and create the ONLY the profiles that will appear in this particular Plan/Profile sheet. I tend to make one *.dwg file for, say, "Franklin St" with several tabs to show the entire length of that street. I don't want an xref with every profile for the whole project hiding in model space. While I realize most won't appear in any viewports, they are still there unnecessarily and "bloat" the drawing.

Maranatha