Plant Catalogue & application error

[dennisp]

Two issues - Every time I use the Edit Plant in the Object Info pallette I get an application error that shuts down the program??\

And 2 - I have resorted to establishing all my plants in a file and bringing that file in as my start-up file per each design. I then delete the previous design. I find using the Plant Catalogue to be cumbersome and annoying. I used a program 12 years ago that allowed me to keep a custom catalogue, add symbols, create and modify symbols. Symbol retrieval was instant. Am I really off the page on this??

[Guest]

Could you go into a little more detail on the first issue you bring up? Is this happening with a brand new document where you place a plant and that happens? Or is it when you open an older file and it happens?

For your 2nd part, it sounds like you could really take advantage of the default content. All you have to do is open your "master" plant file in VW12, then save it.

After that, move the file to the directory at /Libraries/Defaults/Plants. You will see there is already a file in there named "Plant Symbols.mcd." You can keep that in there, or remove that file as well. It is up to you.

If you have your "master" plant file in a VW12 format, and place it in that directory, then every single time you open up a new document in VW12 and click on the place plant tool, that image popup menu will have the plants available from that file, already incorporated into the plant tool.

If you need some more help on setting that up feel free to let me know and I'll try to help you some more.

[dennisp]

1) I opened a new document, imported a few symbols and then placed them with the Plant Tool. They came in fine, with their Plant Record. I then chose to edit the symbol through Object Info. This worked. Then I imported the remainder of my symbols, tried to edit again and the appication error resulted.

Reloaded, opened a new doc, tried to place a symbol, application error resulted.

1.5 & 2)My symbols that are in my drawings appear in the Plant Tool but when I accesss the Place Plant Tool the symbol I select is not always the one that gets placed in the drawing. It does, however, come in with a plant record. Access speed is also an issue.

[Pamela]

I am also experiencing this 'application error' which closes the program. At first I thought it was just a glitch in the translation from an VW 11.5 to VW 12 drawing, but after more work time, I experience this in both converted drawings and new VW12 drawings.

We have a convereted VW 11.5 file with our custom 2d plant symbols which we are using to develop a customized plant catalog and that file has even started displaying this application error. A tech worked in it for about a week with no problems, and when he came back to it last week the error started showing up which is now preventing any further work on the plant catalog. Any suggestions??

Pamela

[Guest]

Den and Pamela - I had similar problems with VWL 11.5. My problem was I used as the Code in the Plant Database AbGr for Abelia granfiflora or say CaSa for Camellia sasanqua and so on. I also used the same abbreviation in the ID Field in the Define Plant dialog box. By default the ID field for say Abelia grandiflora would be ABgr# or Camellia sasanqua CAsa# - these were the fields I would change to AbGr or CaSa. If I then selected a new plant from the Plant Database and placed it still naming it in the ID Field - say Eucalyptus scoparia as EuSc instead of the default EUsc# - eventually as I continued to place plants the program would sometimes crash and also after selecting a new plant sometimes but always in a drawing with lots of plants when the software returns to the Edit Plant Catalog - just before clicking on OK and placing the plant I would notice the wrong plant would be showing in the Symbol Preview window with the wrong ID.

I figured it may have been my changing the ID form the default of say ABgr# to AbGr and a database issue.

My solution was to upgrade to VWL 12.

What I have discovered is having collected many plant symbols from all over the internet over the last three years we must be careful they are not too complex - too many vertices lines and the like. I do not know if this is really true but I check their weight in Kbs Help/About Vectorworks shows the drawing file size once the drawing is saved - place the symbol and re check and you have the kb weight of the symbol. I also check there is no record info attached - I am working through 220 or so of them at the moment.

Apparently also it is best to draw the symbols with closed polys - again not too many vertices and closed polys help with being able to apply fills etc. Perhaps others can help with this.

As for converting 11.5 files to 12 files with plants and Plant Worksheets - I gave up best I think to leave 11.5 as 11.5 files and use 12 for new drawings.

I still have 11.5 installed on my puter so if I have a need to go back to an 'old' 11.5 file I do it in 11.5.

Dunno if this helps but it is my experience.

Darrell

[dennisp]

I have decided for the time being to limit my use of Plant Catalogue. Seems like such a waste, but I am bringing my symbols in a design as I use them, when I start a design I open the previous and delete the contents but not the symbols. Each design adds more symbols and I don't have to wait for Plant Cat.

[kate w]

I have been having the same application error with the plant catalogue whch closes the drawing - this seems to happen after I have edited the render/shadow through the dialogue box. At other times I find that the plant symbol I have selected from the catalogue is then not the one which is placed in the drawing. I'm usually only changing the size of the plant with the dialogue box - nothing complex! I'm now using VWv12, with no imported stuff from previous versions, although I used to have the same issue with 11.5.