Need to export and import commands made in the CUI

[j-dubya-merchant]

At my office, we use multiple Autodesk programs; the two main ones that I use are AutoCAD and Advance Steel.

In AutoCAD, I've used the CUI to create multiple custom commands.  I'd like to use some of those commands in Advance Steel as well, but I'm having trouble figuring out where exactly custom commands are stored (specifically ones created in the CUI) and how to import / export them between programs.

I'm not trying to transfer entire CUI files.  I don't need workspaces, toolbars, etc.  I just need the custom commands that I've created.

Is there a specific CUIx file that only has custom commands in it?  Or are custom commands buried in a CUIx file with other stuff?

Maybe what I'm wanting isn't possible exactly the way I want it.  Or maybe it's super simple and I've looked right over it.  In any case, thanks in advance.

[pendean]

@j-dubya-merchant
1) CUIx is not an easy-to-use-user-accessible folder to pick elements from inside it externally and magically drop into someone else's CUIx file externally. This is not MNU/MNR file editing, which might be your former customization experience?

2)What are these "commands" that are only present in your CUI please? Did you just create macros calling core functions for buttons in your CUIx or you are just calling external LISP from buttons in CUI? Or...?

[j-dubya-merchant]

1) I actually have no experience with MNU / MNS file editing.  In researching how to import and export CUI elements, I found that the CUI window has a "Transfer" tab (which I haven't tried using yet) that seems to allow a user to select which components of the CUI to transfer.  I guess I was hoping that custom commands could be transferred this way (or in a similar way) without having to transfer the ribbon, toolbars, or keyboard shortcuts.

2) Some of the custom commands are calling core functions, and some are calling loaded-in LISP applications.  The ones calling core functions are mostly meant to change multiple system / drawing variables at once, and I only access them through keyboard shortcuts (I haven't placed buttons for them in the ribbon or a toolbar; I tend to prefer using the keyboard whenever feasible).  The ones calling external LISP applications, as silly as this may be, I only created so that I could add an icon that shows up when I call them from the command line (although, in one case, I did also assign a keyboard shortcut).

Worst case scenario, I could just manually recreate them in Advance Steel.  As of right now, I only have 10 custom commands in AutoCAD, and I only want to copy a few of them.  I just thought I'd check to see if there's a simpler way to do it, in case I need to scale up this process at some point.

[pendean · Accepted solution]

Thanks for the reply: CUI's TRANSFER tool is really your only easy-to-use-now choice to only move a handful of customizations from one menu to another after you ensure those custom LISP are installed at the other users' AutoCAD sessions like you did yours.

And yes, manually recreating them is also an option.

How most of us customizers prefer to do it: we create and load one of our own unique-to-us CUIx file where we create our customizations (and that is all that contains, our own customizations only, with its own toolbars, panels, and tabs), load it into our session using CUILOAD command alongside the default CUIx menu file, and share this unique-to-us custom-content-only CUIx file with others so they can also use what we created. Perhaps this is the better path for your future needs.

HTH

[Sea-Haven]

You have touched on why I always write custom MNU files these are outside of the default Acad.cuix etc and they are a Text files, you need to remember that cuix did not exist when Autocad was 1st produced. Not sure when cuix was introduced. Its so much easier to make pop menu's and Toolbar menus, unfortunately when ribbons where introduced there is no mnu version that I know of.

You can open the cui open a notepad and copy and paste all the commands into notepad its a bit slow but doable to make a mnu.

Ok for the WIZ kids copy a cuix rename to .ZIP and look inside. Autodesk decided a cui file would be XML files, so you can look inside but its a massive amount of info. The xml are inter-related. A top calling sub levels. Its been on my To Do list for a few years take a notepad file and make a CUI. There is a CUI to MNU.vlx  to provide a reverse of the menuload which makes CUI or CUIX but its not quite there,  new version out there ?

[j-dubya-merchant]

Gotcha.  I may end up looking more in-depth at the CUI transfer process.  Seems like it could actually be pretty useful to me if I can get the hang of it.  I really appreciate your taking the time to respond!

[j-dubya-merchant]

I'll have to take a closer look at MNU's and see how they work.  They seem pretty interesting!  Thanks for the reply!

[Sea-Haven]

If you get stuck PM me. been making them for like 40 years.