Room Name Simple--no fill on number box

[eas]

I would like to set up my room name tag to use a box around the room number but without fill. With the fill it turns into a black blob when I go to b/w to print.

Is there a way to do this?

Edited January 30, 2007 by eas

[panthony]

Yes... before you select anything change the attributes to "none" for the fill and that should do the trick.

You could also select the room object and change the attributes individually.

Pete A

[eas]

Thanks Pete

but, have you tried this? I get the sense that the room name simple has one of those overly controlling VW auto formats.

When I turn on the room number box it is filled. period.

I have tried selecting it and turning off the fill, changing attributes to none and then selecting. The class they are on has no fill at its definition.

So it seems that this tool is supposed to work this way? Printing black blobs? There doesn't seem to be any documentation on it in the manuals or the online help.

This should be a great simple tool to use, instead it is really frustrating.

[panthony]

eas,

You are correct in that the Simple Room Name picks up the attributes of whatever layer you drop it....Fill and Pen Style. The Attribulte Palette does not change the attributes of the object. I did find out though that if you create a class with a white fill then the label drops with that fill style. As far as it printing solid black...I cannont duplicate it.

Pete A.

[eas]

Pete,

I give up--it seems to work fine (no fill) on some classes and not on others. I can't figure out the relationship between how the class is set up and getting this roque fill. But I guess I am convinced it is rogue.

So I will set up a new class for labels and chalk it up to experience!

thanks for your help.

[eas]

Pete--I don't know if you (or anyone else) is still reading this thread but a final follow up:

I mentioned the problem to a colleague yesterday. He experimented and discovered that the class seemed to have a memory of having a fill assigned to it.

By sequentially assigning a fill to the class, closing out of the classes window, reopening it and removing the fill he managed to fix the class. He seems to have an intuitive understanding of how VW thinks that I cannot hope to match.

[CipesDesign]

If a class is set to "use at creation" then anything in that class will exhibit the attribute(s) (as set in the class setup dialog). If not, then they won't. Classes are very powerful, but tricky to understand. Two main uses: first is to contol attributes (as above), second is to control visibility (eg: turn on/off). These uses can (and frequently do) overlap. Classes and Layers used together add even more control. A Layer is the "container" for all the objects within it. Any object(s), in any layer(s), can be assigned to any class. Does that help?

[eas]

As far as I can tell, it wasn't a basic class or misunderstanding problem (although I still have plenty of those).

The odd thing in the case I originally posted about was that the class in question is a standard class we use for all labels in the office.

For some reason it was interacting with the room name simple tool to make filled room number boxes. Nothing else on that class was ever filled. The definition of the class was none for fill and use at creation. All of our classes are use at creation (which is an issue for another time). So the strange interaction was just that--a fluke.

Really annoying at the time (see my rant above) but now that I know what was happening, interesting.

VW has depths unsuspected by us newbies!