DWG True View Plot Settings

[Anonymous]

Note: I'm not an Engineer, and never have used AutoCAD or Inventor.. I'm in IT attempting to print drawings using DWG True View 2007 and Inventor Viewer 11sp2.

I'm using an automated program (Automate) to "batch" print drawing related to a machine that my company makes.. Automate simply mimics mouse clicks/keyboard commands that I specify.. My question is regarding printing settings on DWG files.

One thing that I've gathered, is that plot settings are saved with the DWG file. When I open some drawings, they are set to a specific printer (that doesn't exist anymore) with some settings.. Sometimes the "Fit to Paper" is selected, sometimes not.. sometimes its Portrait, sometimes landscape.. Unfortunately Automate is ignorant of the state checkboxes are in.. however with our new plotter and printer, all drawings need to be the same settings.. So when Automate sends the command Alt+I (the letter "eye"), sometimes Fit to Paper gets unchecked, and other times it gets checked - when I need it always checked.

I am trying to avoid the Publish option.. Reason being, I am printing my prints in a specific order where some IDWs get mixed inbetween DWGs (and some PDFs as well for super-old drawings).

So my question is, how can I open a file, File-> Print, and load preset options that I specify in DWG True View? Also using 100% keyboard commands is optimal for Automate.

Any help appreciated, thanks -

[Anonymous]

Kbalz said the following On 4/23/2007 9:43 AM:
>
> So my question is, how can I open a file, File-> Print, and load
> preset options that I specify in DWG True View? Also using 100%
> keyboard commands is optimal for Automate.

As you mentioned, the plot settings are saved in the drawing itself. You
can specify plot settings all day in TrueView, but there is no way to
save them back to the DWG file.

Either save the drawings, using AutoCAD, with the correct page setup (a
page setup is a named collection of plot settings)

-or-

Import and apply a page setup while in DWG TrueView. You can also import
and apply a page setup to all drawings in the PUBLISH dialog if you are
using that.



--
R.K. McSwain
http://rkmcswain.blogspot.com

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reply - my Support number just called me, and said the exact thing..

Create a single DWG File with all of the possible printer/size/scale combinations I need. When my Automate program opens drawing -> File -> Plot.. Use the Import Page setup dialog, and select the correct combination for that drawing.

This is going to save a ton of manual printing!!

[Anonymous]

Hmm we've hit a snag. This worked great for DWG drawings that were created using AutoCAD.. but I guess we have a good chunk of DWG files created in Autodesk Mechincal Desktop 2005-2007..

The engineer made most of his drawings in Layout instead of Model..

For my solution to work, I need to have my Automate script load a Layout Page setup when the drawing is in Layout mode, and a Model Page Setup when the drawing is in Model mode..

So --- how, using TrueView or some sort of file properties.. how can I tell if a DWG was created using AutoCAD, or Mechanical Desktop?

[Anonymous]

Kbalz said the following On 4/23/2007 2:29 PM:

>
> So --- how, using TrueView or some sort of file properties.. how can
> I tell if a DWG was created using AutoCAD, or Mechanical Desktop?

Why does that make a difference?

Drawings last saved in either software can be made to plot in layout or
model space.

--
R.K. McSwain
http://rkmcswain.blogspot.com

[Anonymous]

I guess to reproduce my problem, we are using 2007: Create a DWG drawing in AutoCad Mechanical Desktop, using Layout Mode. Now Create a similar DWG file using AutoCAD.

Do not setup and Page Setups for these DWG, since my problem is with importing Page Setups from a "plot template"

Create the DWT drawing called Plot Template using AutoCad.. this is the drawing that will have 5 Page Setups.. Give it Page Setups called A, B, C, D and E.

Now open the DWG created with AutoCAD using DWG TrueView. File -> Plot.. Page Setup, Import. Select the DWT file, and then select A template (or any I guess). The settings from the DWT File Load fine.

Now open the DWG File created with Mechanical Desktop using True View. The viewer will go to Layer Mode, since that is where the drawing is (whether something is drawn in Model Space or not).. File -> Plot. Page Setup, Import. Select the DWT file, then a template..

---> Nothing happens! <---

Okay, go DWG TrueView opening the MechDesktop DWG again, and flip the view at the bottom to Model. Now import the Page Settings again from the Plot Template. The settings load.. however, our drawings are in Layout Space.

One thing I've tried since yesterday is AutoDesk Design Review.. This Plot Dialog is using mostly Radio Buttons instead of CheckBoxes.. so my AutoMate program will be consistant using this program to plot DWGs whether they were created in Layout Space or Model Space.

The test I didn't get to try was creating a DWT file from MechDesktop, and creating Page Setups for Layout Space.. Then in TrueView's import page space, trying to import that for both AutoCad/MechdeskTop DWG files.

Did I explain that ok?