Viewports only showing one layer, other can be seen momentarily

[Trillian]

Hello all,

I'm having issues with viewports in sheet files. Say I have a viewport with layer A & layer B turned on in a sheet file. Sometimes the sheet file will show A & B without problem and then for no apparent reason stop showing B.

Once this happened while I was mid print - the printed version showed A & B but the screen version showed only A. When I printed again immediately, only A printed. When I zoom in or out both A & B are visible for a second and B disappears again.

The only thing I can think of is I could have hit a keyboard shortcut by accident as I'm not making any changes. These are plain, top/plan views, nothing unusual.

The file is currently with my local support but I have a deadline tomorrow for this submission and I don't want to re-do all the viewports (this has been my 'solution' until now).

If you have any suggestions as to what it could be, please help.

(This has happened in both 2012 & 2013 on different files so it's not linked to this file alone. I've also tried opening it on a different computer but that hasn't helped.)

[Benson Shaw]

For printing for the deadline this might work or at least narrow down what is wrong. It's worth the effort only if one or two VPs. Might not work if layer geometry is referenced.

Open a New file with same units, layer scale, sheet border, title block, etc.

1. Copy/PasteInPlace (or import) the two layers from the orig file to the New.

2. Create a new sheet and VP on the New file.

3. PasteInPlace the annotations from orig VP into new VP.

Alt,

Do #1 above,

Create a new blank Sheet Layer in the New file

Then group the VP in orig file (remember to ungroup it later

Copy the Group

PasteInPlace the Group onto the new sheet layer in the New file

It should pick up the geometry

If all this fails, maybe there is some corrupt object in the B layer.

Good luck

B

[Monadnoc]

Possibly you inadvertently put one of the viewports into a class that is turned off.

[Trillian]

Thank you both for the suggestions. Both layers A & B are in the same viewport, with all classes on, so it's not what Monadnoc suggested.

I tried a variation of what Benson Shaw suggested - I duplicated the viewport in the same sheet file, turned off layer A in it and ticked/unticked every option I could until layer B was visible! I know this is unscientific & I'm not sure which worked in the end, but needs must so I can get the job printed and then get back to figuring out why so it doesn't happen again.

If anyone has more suggestions, please keep them coming. I used to do tech support for Microstation in a previous job and I know a lot of 'bugs' were 'WAD' or works as designed, where someone just didn't understand what they were asking the programme. This seems a little more strange as I didn't make any changes (that I'm aware of) when the viewports started acting up. But I'm very open to being corrected on that.

[Trillian]

Update: I have been printing each sheet as they were finished, in case there were any more issues. Since my first message, some of the viewports have disappeared entirely. They are printed luckily, though not to PDF.

To be clear, they aren't blank viewports now - the viewports have disappeared from the sheet file.

Is it possible that my seed file is corrupt?

[PVA - Admin]

The only other reason I can think of for multiple layers not to appear in a viewport is if they are set to different layer scales.

However, the viewports themselves should certainly not disappear. If you can, send your files into tech@vectorworks.net with a description of the issue or a link to this thread and we can have a look.

[Monadnoc]

Thank you both for the suggestions. Both layers A & B are in the same viewport, with all classes on, so it's not what Monadnoc suggested.

Just to clarify, it's not the classes for the viewport that need to be on, but the class that the viewport itself is put into. Select each viewport and see what class it's been assigned to (and layer). Of course, if the viewport is missing, it makes it a little hard to select it. You need to make sure all classes and layers are turned on for that Sheet Layer. So with your Sheet Layer active, deselect all viewports/everything, then switch to the "Classes" tab of the Navigation Palette, and turn on every single class in the file. See if anything pops back in. If that doesn't work, switch to the "Layers" tab and make every layer in the file is visible. If neither reveal your viewports, something really strange is up.

I always try to put the viewport on the main layer for the view that is always going to be turned on (like "Mod-Floor-1" for a first floor plan viewport). And then always put it into either the "None" class (which I always leave on), or more usually (and more in keeping with AIA standards) put all viewports in a "G-Anno-View" class. Or just "Viewport".

But it sounds like you may be dealing with something altogether different and unrelated to viewport/layer visibilities. Either a bug or a corrupt file.

By the way, it's a little off topic, but I would love to have autoclassing of viewports directly into a class of my choosing. I am always going to want all my viewports to go into a distinct, separate class for viewports every single time I create one (just like dimensions go into the dimension class). I get tired of having to do it every single time manually. Plus sometimes I forget.

Edited January 24, 2014 by Monadnoc

[PVA - Admin]

By the way, it's a little off topic, but I would love to have autoclassing of viewports directly into a class of my choosing.

Totally, submitted this recently.

[Monadnoc]

By the way, it's a little off topic, but I would love to have autoclassing of viewports directly into a class of my choosing.

Totally, submitted this recently.

Thanks much.

[Trillian]

The only other reason I can think of for multiple layers not to appear in a viewport is if they are set to different layer scales.

However, the viewports themselves should certainly not disappear. If you can, send your files into tech@vectorworks.net with a description of the issue or a link to this thread and we can have a look.

No, they're the same scale & I've tried turning on all classes, within the viewport and in the sheet file. I did contact tech@vectorworks.net (thanks to your helpful Twitter account) but they sent me on to an English company as I'm in Ireland. I've got to be honest, the second company ignored my email completely for 10 days until I sent a slightly snotty email pointing out that if I had been looking to purchase more licenses, I was sure I would have had a prompt response. I'm still waiting on an answer from tech support there but I have uploaded my files so they are looking into it.

Is it possible I'm using a corrupt symbol or linetype or seedfile or something?

After doing a bit of tech support myself in the past, I understand that there is still a distinct possiblity it's something I'm causing, but for the life of me I can't figure out what.

Thanks for your help.

[Trillian]

I just had a thought, my usual workflow is to create one viewport of say an existing elevation in a sheet file and then copy/paste the same viewport into a new sheet file and modify it by turning off the existing layer and turn on the proposed layer. Could the repeated copy/paste of a viewport be causing chaos?

(Can you guess I'm reaching a bit here?!)