PeterT

You want something easier than just selecting the plane mode from the "Active Plane" pulldown in the view bar?

In VW 2013, why is it that sometimes when you option double click a symbol instance in the drawing you do not get the choice to Edit Symbol Options, but when you option double click a symbol definition in the Resource Browser you always see the Edit Symbol Options choice? For even more inconsistency, I just found one symbol instance in my drawing where option double clicking does correctly give me the Edit Symbol Options choice, but when I copy and paste that symbol to another file, not only does it revert and lose the Symbol Options that I just set in the first file, but when I option double click this symbol in the second file to re set these options, it does not even give the Edit Symbol Options choice, so I have to do it via the Resource Browser.

Don't know why if you try to Activate a Gray Layer or force select an Object on a Gray Layer nothing happens. As far as I am concerned, if you can see an object, gray or not, you should be able to force select it or activate the layer with the mouse contextual menu.

The problem is deeper than that. If you import the line styles into the other document, they look correct and use the correct line style in the resource browser thumbnail view, but if you try to draw a wall with the wall tool using one of the styles with dashed component lines the component lines disappear (go to "none"). If you then un-style that wall and check the components they are set to None. If you then reset them to dashed style and exit the components, the dashed components reappear in the wall, but they are using a different dash style. They do not use the dash of the correct name, but instead use the dash that is in the same position in the dashed line list. The problem with that is, when you import a dash style it adds it to the end of the list of dash styles, not in the same position in the list, so the wall substitutes whatever style is in the same position in the dash list of the original file it came from, and not the one of the correct name. Also, a similar thing happens to walls with no components, but dashed wall lines (like an optional or hidden wall style). When these wall styles are imported to another file and drawn, the wall completely disappears, but if you Un-style the wall and look in the attributes palette, it shows a dashed line, but the wall is still hidden. If you reselect the dash in the attributes palette the wall reappears with the dashed lines. I originally thought this was a problem with VS GetComponentPenStyles incorrectly identifying a dash, but it is actually a problem of the wall not showing the dash.

I am having nothing but troubles with walls in VW 2013. I have written several scripts to change line and fill styles and colors in walls for different sheets in my drawings, and in 2012 they all work fine, but in 2013 they are failing to work properly (no VS errors, the walls just don't change as expected). I have found that the offending function is GetComponentPenStyles which incorrectly returns Positive numbers for dashed line component pen styles. In VW 2012 the function correctly returns a Negative number for the pen style of a component if it is a dashed pen style. I am pretty sure this has to do with pen styles changing from being Attributes to being Resources in VW 2013. I suspect this because of another problem I am having. Walls or styled walls that contain components that use dashed line styles that are created in a VW 2012 file which is then converted to a VW 2013 file seem to look o.k. in the VW 2013 file. But if you then copy the walls and paste them into a different VW 2013 file, the dashed line components disappear in the new file. It's as if the wall cannot find the dashed line style, so it replaces it with None. If you edit the components of the unstyled wall you will see the components are still there, the line style is just set to None. As an architect, I usually use walls in my buildings, so I find these problems pretty critical.

It is double clicking blank space in the resource Browser that brings up the "Create Resource" dialog. Is it possible you are clicking in between the symbols? I can pull up the dialog by intentionally clicking just above or below a symbol in list view. And when you do this, it still highlights the symbol, so you think you have the symbol, but instead get the dialog. Perhaps you are missing a direct hit on the symbol, and clicking the blank space instead sometimes.

James, The purpose of the "Convert to Viewport" command is to convert Layer Links (Fundamentals) to Design Layer Viewports (Design Series). It only works if the Layer Link is unlocked though. The message you are getting says exactly what it means, the command only works on unlocked Layer Links. I am not sure what you are trying to use the command for, but it is only intended to be used on Layer Links. To create a new viewport of an object, draw a crop object around the object and choose View/Create Viewport. But any viewports in the DWG should automatically convert to viewports in the Vectorworks file when you import.

We just use the Polyline Tool in Bezier Vertex Mode, then its just click, click, click...

Page based symbols will ignore the layer scale. If you want the symbol to display reflecting the layer scale it needs to be World based. Then it will display at the appropriate size if you change the scale of your viewport. This is changed by editing the Symbol Options through the Resource Browser. Is this what you are trying to do?

Yes, Yes, Yes, Or at the very least, the file name should be appended to the sheet or saved view name if you cannot rename the output file. We create all our files from Template files so the sheet names and saved view names are identical in each file. So if we batch export two or more files made from the same template, the output PDF files are named by the sheet names or saved view names, and one file name overwrites the last file name and you only get the set of PDFs from the last file processed. You do not even get a file name conflict dialog, it just overwrites any previous export with the same name made during the same export. We can only batch process files if they were made from different templates. Vectorworks should recognize when PDFs come from different files one way or another. Being able to name each pdf output would certainly be the best way.

O.K. It now appears that once again, this issue is tied to the Quartz Imaging preference. When quartz Imaging is disabled, Local Mapping of Hatches are stripped from your file when you print it. If you save the file before you print though, you can at least revert to saved to get the local mappings back. You just cannot get a print of the local mappings unless you enable Quartz. Not sure why Quartz imaging would have anything to do with difference of printing a hatch unrotated or rotated 90?, but it seems that it does. At least it does in versions 2012 and 2013. In version 2011 you can print local mappings with quartz disabled just fine.

Is there any way to locally map a hatch and have keep the local mapping after it is grouped and printed or printed then grouped or ungrouped? Not sure what is going on here, but if you locally map a hatch on an object, then group the object, then print it, it loses the local mapping when the print command is called. Secondly, if you locally map a hatch on an object, first print it, then group it, you lose the local mapping when it groups. Thirdly, if you enter a grouped object, locally map a hatch on one of the contained objects, then exit the group, it prints fine, but the next time you enter the group you lose the local mapping. Actually, now I am finding you don't even have to group the object. If you just locally map a hatch on an object and print the file, the if you do a screen redraw ("H" key twice) you lose the local mapping. This occurs in VW 2012 SP5 and 2013 SP2. So the way I see it, the local mapping feature is great if you never intend to print your file. Hmm...

I should have mentioned, we have way too many Symbols/Plugins to view as thumbnails. I always view as a list. You do not get collapsible gray bars in list view. But I guess that is a whacky workaround. I could switch to thumbnail view, scroll down through all the resource types closing all the gray bars except symbols and symbol folders, then switch back to list view. But that seems almost as laborious as repeatedly checking off items in the pulldown list. I still say a dialog with checkboxes would be the most efficient.

Does anyone know the DoMenuTextByName selector for 'Export PDF' is? I do not need the (Batch) version or the (Quartz Only) version, just the regular 'Export PDF'. We are running Architect 2012, and 'Export PDF (Batch)' works but 'Export PDF' fails with the error message "Menu cannot be found". This selector is not in the appendix, so does anyone know what it is? I have tried: 'Export PDF' 'Export (PDF)' 'Export PDF (Single)' 'Export PDF (Not Batch)' 'Export PDF (Not Quartz) 'PDF Export' 'Export to PDF' 'Export PDF File' 'ExportPDF' 'Export Single PDF' 'Single Export PDF' I give up, any suggestions?

Does the yellow button still minimize the palette with one click? Also, I am on Snow Leopard, and the double click to minimize still works in 2013, so this may be a Mountain Lion only thing.

It is great that they have finally added the export DWF command to VW, as we have clients that demand we upload our CDs to Buzzsaw, and we are an all Mac office. But unfortunately, we cannot use the command due to its shortcomings. The problems we are having are that the font type and style are not exported to the DWF, so all text comes out in Courier or some generic font, and white fill does not seem to export, even with the "Export Solid Fills" box checked. (We sometimes use white masks to hide things in the background, and these fills go to "None") DWFs are used for viewing and printing files, and should exactly match the files they were made from. If I print my VW file in-house, and my client prints it from the DWF, the two outputs should look identical.

The "Adjust flipped text" preference is now in Document Preferences and it is global for all text in your file. Not good if you want some text flipped and some not. Starting in VW 2011 though, you can rotate an individual text block 180? and it will not flip back even with the preference set to adjust flipped text. You can select the rotated text mode of the text tool and pull a new text block right to left and your typed text will be upside down once you exit the block. But I find it easier to just write the text normally, then set the rotation to 180? on the Object Info Palette.

Sent automatically if you want... VW Preferences/Session/Error Reporting/Send crash details

I tried to post it, but UBB will not accept the file extension .px. Also, I am not sure of the distribution rights for this file. When you go to the VectorScript Archives can't you just scroll down to May 2004 and click on that month? You shouldn't have to do a search. If you are really in to scripting, you should figure out how to use the Vectorscript List anyway, it is what the advanced users seem to use more than this community board, and there are years worth of great discussion threads in the archives

If you search the Verctorscript List Archives for May 28, 2004, vsoEventsConstants.px is posted there by Charles Chandler. This file can be used as an Include file in your script, but if you open it in a text editor there are also descriptions of the event constants. Hope that helps.

Thanks guys, Both good work around tips, the Back Button, or using Expose (F9 on my Mac), but still work arounds. I am so used to clicking on the icon in the dock to switch apps, I will probably use the Back button in Adobe Air as I can still do it the way I do it with just one extra click. I remember the days when Adobe catered to the Mac OS and was invaluable. Now I find most Adobe Apps cumbersome and clumsy at best. Just my opinion.

Also, you might want to consider a flash drive. Prices have really dropped, I just saw a 32 GB USB flash drive on MacMall for $18.99. If you set up User Folders on the flash drive via Vectorworks Preferences/User Folders, you can direct Vectorworks to use those User Folders for preferences, workspaces, libraries, etc. whenever it launches. All you have to remember is to plug in the USB drive before you launch Vectorworks.

Yes, I forgot to mention that. I have never seen any application that updates itself as much as Adobe Air. I would say at least 5 out 10 times that I open the Help it notifies me of an update... of course, I will not mind the update that fixes the display refresh issue.

As the number of Resource types keeps growing in Vectorworks, it would be nice if choosing "Resources/Show Object Types" would open a dialog with checkboxes for the resource types rather than being a pulldown list. It was not so bad back in the day when there were only five resource types to turn off or on. But as new resource types are added such as Sketch Styles, Wall Styles, Slab Styles, Text styles, Tiles, etc. the Resource Type list is getting longer and longer with every upgrade of Vectorworks. If I want to filter the resource browser to Display only one resource type such as Symbol Folders, I have to tediously open "Show Object Types" and uncheck one type, then pull it down again and uncheck another type, then pull it down again and uncheck another type, then pull it down again and... well, you get the idea. Why not have the command just open a dialog where you could check or uncheck all resource types in one fell swoop and click "OK". Done.

When using the Vectorworks Help, I find it very frustrating that if I navigate the help to a particular help topic, then return to my drawing to test the the topic on a drawing, then return to the help by either selecting it again from the help menu at the top of the page or clicking the help icon in the Mac OS dock, The help system RESETS TO THE WELCOME PAGE, and I have to navigate to the topic I was looking at all over again. I do not know of any other application that does this. When you click on a background application in the dock it should come to the front of the other windows, but remain in the same view you were in when you last left it. Since the help system search engine is so bad in the first place, it is very cumbersome to have to find your topic all over again. The only work around is to slide all the front windows out of the way and click on the open help window in the background, then it does not reset, but this is not very practical if you have several other windows open.