832 Part V Organizing and Managing Drawings

4.Type in a new path or use the Ellipsis button to browse to the location. Click OK.

5.From the Reference Manager’s toolbar, choose Apply Changes. A summary message appears to confirm that the drawing has been updated.

To create a list of references, choose Export Report. In the Export Report dialog box, choose the file type you want to create from the Files of Type drop-down list. You can create the following file types:

Comma-separated values report file (*.csv)

Extensible Markup Language report file (*.xml)

Microsoft Excel Workbook (*.xls)

Choose a name and a location for the file and then click Save.

The Express Tools contain a command, REDIR (choose Express File Tools Redefine Path) redefines paths for xrefs, images, shapes, and fonts.

Handling Errors and Crashes

Although AutoCAD 2005 and AutoCAD LT 2005 are stable, and the latest versions of Windows are more stable than previous versions, nothing can eliminate the occasional crash. Knowing how to reopen a drawing after a crash can save hours of work.

Taking care of temporary files

When AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT is loaded, it opens one or more temporary files as part of its normal functioning. Note the following two points regarding these files:

You need to leave room on your hard drive for these files — 50MB is a good starting point.

Never erase current temporary files if you’re on a network because someone else might be using them.

However, if the program or your entire computer crashes, you’ll probably be left with one or more .ac$ files. A good guideline for erasing .ac$ files is to only erase those from yesterday or earlier. Leave today’s alone.

You can also specify where you want these temporary files. You might want to place them on a hard drive with more room. If you’re on a network, you might want to place them on your local drive so that there is less traffic back and forth on the network. To find or change the current location, follow these steps:

1.Choose Tools Options. Click the Files tab.

2.Click the plus sign next to Temporary Drawing File Location to display the current location.

3.If you want to change the location, click Browse.

4.In the Browse for Folder list, find and choose the desired folder and click OK.

5.Click OK to close the Options dialog box.

Repairing corrupted drawing files

The most common cause for a corrupted drawing file is a program crash, but power surges and system crashes can also be causes. If AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT detects an error in a file during loading, it attempts to fix the problem automatically. In many cases, it is successful.

When it isn’t, you can try the AUDIT or RECOVER commands. These commands search the database for errors and try to fix them. If they cannot fix an error, they simply move on, letting you recover at least part of the file.

If you have a drawing open and get an error message that AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT can’t read the file or part of it, follow these steps:

1.Choose File Drawing Utilities Audit.

2.At the Fix any errors detected? [Yes/No] <N>: prompt, type y to fix any errors.

3.Watch the screen as it displays messages for errors.

Use RECOVER when you can’t even load the drawing. Follow these steps:

1.Open a new drawing.

2.Choose File Recover.

3.In the Select File dialog box, choose the corrupted drawing file and click Open. The recovery process starts and displays the results in the Text Window.

The DWGCHECK system variable controls how your drawings open when they have errors. Look up this system variable in Help to find a setting that gives you the information and control that you need. Here are some other tips for opening a recalcitrant drawing:

Open a new drawing and choose Insert Block. Click Browse and insert the problem drawing as a block. (See Chapter 18 for more information on blocks.) Then use the AUDIT command.

Open a new drawing and choose Insert External Reference. Locate and attach the problem drawing as an external reference. (See Chapter 19 for more information on external references.) Then use the AUDIT command.

834 Part V Organizing and Managing Drawings

If the drawing crashes just when it looks like it is about done loading it, try again; but this time, press Esc repeatedly until the loading is complete. This procedure aborts the regeneration of the drawing, which may be causing the crash due to corrupt objects. Then use the AUDIT command.

If you can open the drawing but objects are not displayed, try the following:

•Choose File Save As and save it as a new drawing.

•Use the WBLOCK command to save the drawing as a new file.

•Save the drawing as a DXF file. (See Chapter 27 for more on the DXF file format.)

•Use File Save As or save as a DXF format, but to an earlier version of AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT.

Thanks to Darren Young of Minnesota CADWorks, Inc. (www.mcwi.com) for these suggestions.

Using backup drawings

If you can’t repair a drawing, perhaps you have an archived copy you can use. If not, AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT automatically create backup drawings that have the same name as your drawings but with a .bak extension. You can change the extension to .dwg and open it. You may also find one of the .ac$ drawings. You can also try changing the extension of this file to .dwg.

Tip If your computer doesn’t show filename extensions for BAK and AC$ drawings, open Windows Explorer and choose Tools Folder Options. Click the File Types tab. Choose BAK from the list of extensions. Then click the Advanced button and check the Always Show Extension check box. Click OK. Do the same for the AC$ extension. Click Close.

If you want to troubleshoot a persistent crash, try turning on the log file. Choose Tools Options and choose the Open and Save tab. Check Maintain a log file. This log file lists all your activity and can be used to try to determine what actions caused a crash. You can also customize the log file’s location using the Files tab of the Options dialog box. In the same location, you can turn on or off the saving of backups.

The Express Tools contain a command, MOVEBAK (choose Express Files Tools Move Backup Files), that moves backup files (*.bak) to a folder that you specify and thereafter saves the backup files in that folder every time you save your drawing.

Managing Drawings from Prior Releases

When you upgrade to a new release, you need to understand how to work with drawings from earlier releases. Also, you may need to send drawings to clients or colleagues who have an earlier release. AutoCAD 2005 uses the same format as 2004 and the same goes for AutoCAD LT.

However, you won’t be able to open 2005 drawings in 2002 or earlier releases. In fact, when you open a drawing in AutoCAD 2005 or AutoCAD LT 2005, you’ll notice that the command line tells you that you’re opening a 2004 format drawing.

You can save your AutoCAD 2005 drawings in the following earlier drawing formats:

AutoCAD 2000/LT 2000 Drawing (*.dwg). Because 2002 and 2000 used the same drawing format, this format is also accessible in AutoCAD 2002.

AutoCAD 2000/LT 2000 DXF (*.dxf)

AutoCAD R12/LT 2 DXF (*.dxf)

See the next chapter for more about the DXF format. Choose File Save As and choose the file type in the Save As Type drop-down list. Then click Save.

The Drawing Batch Converter is a migration tool available from Autodesk’s Web site. You can use this tool to save multiple drawings in an earlier release format. Go to www.autodesk.com and search for Migration Tools. This converter can save as far back as Release 14.

Summary

In this chapter, I covered various methods for managing drawings. You read about the following:

Using the DesignCenter to access drawing components

Using the new tool palettes to access drawings, blocks, and hatches

Maintaining CAD standards, including checking a drawing against a standards drawing and translating layers

Understanding the new Communication Center

Renaming named objects

Organizing your drawings, including archiving drawings, finding them, and setting properties for them

Working with sheets sets

Maintaining security of your drawings with a password and digital signatures

Using the Reference Manager to keep track of external files referenced in a drawing

Handling errors and crashes

Managing drawings from prior releases

In the next chapter, I cover how to use AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT with other applications.