creating an object from a viewport

[carch]

I have several details that I have drawn in the design layer and have noted up in the viewport (annotations). How can i put that viewport into my office reference library to be used in different projects/files. Also, will i beable to edit this detail after inserted. Any thoughts? I think I want to create an object from a viewport.

Thanks

Chris

[jfmarch]

what is have found is that it is not a good idea to notate a detail in a viewport in general, and if you want to use it again. if a detail is drawn at a known scale, i would note it on the layer it is drawn at. in that way you can reuse it for other projects with minimal changes to fonts/scale.

otherwise, you might investigate creating a file of only details- using viewports- that you can reuse over and over again. think of it as a vw database for stock details.

another thought is to export the viewport detail as an image file that you could use in seperate project manuals.

the viewport feature is a really powerful, i think, but it does have weaknesses when it comes to details. plus if the file gets corrupted, there is no way to retrieve stuff on the sheet layers. hope this helps...

[digitalcarbon]

print a hard copy of the detail you want and put this in your office reference library.

then make a note on it as to the job file (cad file) it belongs too. your done!

do not gather all your details into one file. this is a waste of time. (been there - done that) people seem to remember details by jobs, "go to the Smiths project and use the detail for the porch" the ref book helps them because you can point to a picture.

details should be annotated in the viewport. one of the main reasons for croppable viewports was so you could draw a complete section and chop it up for details later.

this is extremely powerful for keeping the drawing accurate.

so, when you want a specific detail, look through your ref book locate the piece of the building section you want copy/paste and start building your new section. then cut/paste your annotated notes to the new viewport when the time comes.

i would rather do it this way and know i have finished section than do a schematic section w/ details on another sheet just so i can cut/paste details for future jobs.

keep in mind that if you annotate in the design layer, then your going to have text all over the place because you will be showing that section at different scales. i.e. building, wall, 3" detail.