Addin Class with Apprentice

[NachoShaw]

Hi

Are you not able to use InventorApprentice & Inventor in the same Class project?

in my addin project, I obviously have Inventor Imported & referenced. A particular function I need requires Apprentice but it keeps erroring. I have tried many ways:

Dim apprentice As New InventorApprentice.ApprenticeServerComponent
Dim jdoc As InventorApprentice.ApprenticeServerDocument = apprentice.Open(pPath)

Dim apprentice As New Inventor.ApprenticeServerComponent 
Dim jdoc As Inventor.ApprenticeServerDocument = apprentice.Open(pPath)

Dim apprentice As New ApprenticeServerComponent 
Dim jdoc As ApprenticeServerDocument = apprentice.Open(pPath)

I have even tried placing the members as public in my form but I get the error:

when I create a NEW project and just put this in (with imports & reference)

Dim apprentice As New Inventor.ApprenticeServerComponent 
Dim jdoc As Inventor.ApprenticeServerDocument = apprentice.Open(pPath)
Msgbox(jdoc.FullFileName)

it works correctly and give me the full path of the file. Using a msgbox to check the same in my Addin Project gives me the error......

Can I use both? If not, is there a workaround? The function I need only works with Apprentice

Thanks

Nacho

[NachoShaw]

OK so I read up and come to realise that you cant use Apprentice & Inventor in the same process.... Limiting I must admit but at least I know why it doesn't work now. Which leads me to the next point..

As I cant use both Inventor & Apprentice in the same process, does that would also mean that even if a created a new DLL class exclusively for the Apprentice methods, it still wont work because its in the same process? That being said..

What is a good way to accomplish this? I don't really want to change my Addin Class to a Windows Forms application. I'm not entirely sure how I can incorporate a separate Windows Forms application to carry out the Apprentice process and then return the values to my class. My purpose is:

I have a picturebox on a form in my Class (Picturebox1)

I need to pass this to the class (or windows forms application) along with a file path to allow Apprentice to open it and get a ClientView

Return the ClientView to the Class Picturebox

does anyone have an idea or example to achieve this or similar?

Thanks

Nacho

[NachoShaw]

Well, ive got to say that the Inventor API is the most stupidest retarded API probably ever made. Things that should be simple are not simple. As much is I hate to say it, Solidworks API just works. No pissing around with Inventor vs Apprentice, No (you cant use Apprentice in a Class Library addin). The inventor API even leads you to believe that some things can be done inside Inventor itself like ClientViews. There is a whole section in the API for ClientViews. You set it up only to read that it actually ONLY works with Apprentice only which doesn't work from a Class Library Addin.........

sort it out guys