Without A Net

Contextual Array Ribbon Tab Tip - Revisited

In August I posted a tip how to get the Contextual Ribbon Tab to display right when you are creating a new array.
http://withoutanet.typepad.com/without_a_net/2011/08/contextual-array-ribbon-tab-tip.html

The macros as originally posted only let you select one object for your array.

Here are some "improved" macros that let you select multiple objects:

Rectangular Array (ARRAYRECT) 
^C^C_select;\(command "arrayrect" "P" "" "" "1" "1" "" "X")(command "select" "single" "last")(sssetfirst nil (ssget "_p"))(princ)


Polar Array (ARRAYPOLAR) 
^C^C_select;\(command "arraypolar" "P" "" PAUSE "" "" "X")(command "select" "single" "last")(sssetfirst nil (ssget "_p"))(princ)


Path Array (ARRAYPATH) 
^C^C_select;\(command "arraypath" "p" "" PAUSE "1" "D" "X")(command "select" "single" "last")(sssetfirst nil (ssget "_p"))(princ)

 

Special thanks to Jürgen Becker for suggesting this modification :)

The Father of Lisp passes away

John McCarthy, the Father of LISP and AI has died at the age of 84.

Starting around AutoCAD 2.1, the ability to customize AutoCAD using AutoLISP was one of the things that made AutoCAD so powerful. At that time, LISP was the preeminent language in the field of Artificial Intelligence and the addition of LISP to AutoCAD really opened doors to customizing and automating workflows. All of a sudden, you weren't stuck with only what AutoCAD could do "out of the box."

When I started working with AutoCAD, I remember spending countless hours on CompuServe (my ID was 71521,450), on my 300-baud modem, exchanging AutoLISP routines with other AutoCAD users. Although I had previously done some programming in Pascal, I would say that AutoLISP helped solidify my love of programming and it was surprisingly powerful.

In the early 90s I wrote and sold a commercial AutoCAD layer manager called Layer Express. Initially it was all written in AutoLISP and DCL. Eventually I started incorporating ADS (and later ARX) applications as supporting modules (to get more speed and better file system access), but the main Layer Express app was still 5000 lines of AutoLISP. During those years, I did consulting and created lots of custom, discipline-specific, applications for large companies and much of it was written in AutoLISP.

When I joined Autodesk I worked on the Express Tools team and the vast majority of the tools we created were written in AutoLISP. The developers I worked with (Randy, Frank, Dominic) were magicians at making AutoLISP do amazing stuff. The amount of tools we created during the short life of that team would have been far less were it not for that language. Although many Express Tools commands have since been folded into AutoCAD as ObjectARX apps, we still ship almost 80 AutoLISP files for the remaining, original, Express Tools.

So, if you're ever written a (setq) statement, marveled at what you could do with (mapcar '(lambda)), or otherwise leveraged the power of AutoLISP to make AutoCAD a bit more useful, take a moment to remember the passing of John McCarthy.

Changes to the SNAP command in AutoCAD 2012

Many of you may have noticed that the behavior of the SNAP command has changed in AutoCAD 2012.

In previous versions, the cursor used to be attracted to the grid even when no command was active.

 

In AutoCAD 2012, when SNAP is turned on, the cursor is attracted to the grid only when a command is active.

 

For those users who prefer the "old style" Snap, a new variable called SNAPGRIDLEGACY was introduced in SP1 for AutoCAD 2012.

 

A value of 0 is the default setting and will keep the new 2012 Snap behavior (the cursor only snaps to the grid when a command is active)

 

If you prefer that the cursor snaps to the grid even if no command is active, set SNAPGRIDLEGACY to 1 and Snap will behave as in previous versions.

AutoCAD 2011 for Mac Update 3 - Lion support and more

An new update is available for AutoCAD 2011 for Mac that, among other things, adds support for Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion).

AutoCAD 2011 for Mac Update 3

Note: The AutoCAD for Mac updates are not inclusive of earlier updates. For that reason, Update 2, must be installed before installing Update 3 … and Update 1 before that. If you haven't installed any updates, it's time to catch up.

In addition to providing support for Lion, Update 3 resolves problems that have been reported by the Customer Error Reporting (CER) utility and other general problems identified after AutoCAD 2011 for Mac Update 2 was made available. Updates have been made to the following features:

• 2D and 3D Display
• Blocks
• Graphics System
• Printing

As always, check out the readme file for more details and installation instructions.

Roar.

The World Feels a Little Smaller Today

Image by Jonathan Mak Long

The Macintosh was the first computer to really hook me; the first computer that didn't seem strictly utilitarian to me.

My very first programming experience was using Borland's Turbo Pascal for Mac. It was at a Macintosh that I discovered my love of programming.

I was once the lone CAD operator running AutoCAD on a color Macintosh II while others used PCs from manufacturers that have long since vanished from the earth.

I start every morning with a cup of coffee and my iPad to catch up on email, news and RSS feeds.

In the evening, I often wind down watching movies on my Apple TV or reading books on my iPad.

Every day, I use my iPhone to do things that were unimaginable just a few years ago.

I'll deliver my Autodesk University class using a Macbook Pro. I'll create all the materials on my Mac Pro.

Steve Jobs was the reason I embraced computers in the first place. It was his innovations that led me down the path to my career and his technology that makes my every day a little simpler.

He will be sorely missed.

Without a Net at AU 2011

As most of you probably are already well aware, Autodesk University will, once more, take place in Las Vegas this year. Have a look at this to get an idea:

As always, there are lots of great classes for everyone - and the range of AutoCAD classes this year is amazing.

If you find it hard to make a choice - here are some classes not to miss, delivered by your very own Without a Net bloggers :)

 

Tom Stoeckel:
CM1844 - License and Registration please

 

Silvia Menon:
AC6320 - First Aid for AutoCAD - Troubleshooting Common Issues

 

Kathy O'Connell: 

LF4448-U - Licensing Compliance: What Do We Need from Autodesk

 

We look forward to meeting you there!

 

P.S.: If you register by October 12 you can save up to US$ 500!

AutoCAD 2012 Mac: AutoCAD Error Aborting

If you start AutoCAD 2012 and you get this FATAL ERROR: 

 Invalid Configuration path...

AutoCAD 2012 for Mac is looking for files in /Users/YOUR-USERNAME/Library/Application Support/Autodesk/local/AutoCAD 212/R18.2/enu.

Just download and extract the Autodesk  folder into /users/YOUR-USERNAME/Library.

Thanks to Dwayne Poot for this tip.

via upandready.typepad.com

My colleague Dwayne Poot shared this great tip for AutoCAD 2012 for Mac on the Up and Ready Blog - thanks Dwayne! :)

New Authors to Without a Net blog

You may have noticed that the frequency of posts to Without a Net has dropped off a bit lately. Allow me to explain the situation and tell you about changes to correct that issue.

When I started Without a Net, 2-1/2 years ago, I was the Global Technical Lead for AutoCAD Product Support. In that role, I was immersed in support-related issues all the time and that provided me lots of topics to blog about.

At the beginning of 2011, I changed jobs at Autodesk and accepted a position as Product Support Content Manager. In that role, I'm responsible for managing the support content (product support centers, technical solutions, etc.) that you find under Autodesk Services & Support. Over the last few months, I have gradually transitioned out of my former AutoCAD support duties and into my new role as Content Manager. Unfortunately, the Without a Net blog began to languish in the process.

I flirted with the idea of retiring the blog but I just couldn't let it go. I have used AutoCAD for way too long and I expect I'll still have a few things to say along the way. Also, I have received very positive feedback from readers of the blog who tell me how much they appreciate Without a Net.

What the blog needed was fresh blood, new perspectives, and writing from people who, unlike me, are still working with AutoCAD support issues every day. Let me introduce them:

Silvia Menon

Silvia is the Technical Lead for AutoCAD for the Autodesk Product Support team in the EMEA region. Before moving to the UK, she used to work as a 3D visualizer for Architects in Berlin in Germany. Silvia joined Autodesk Product Support in 2005. She contributed a guest post to Without a Net last month and I look forward to many more.

Kathy O'Connell

Kathy took over my previous job when I became a Content Manager. Kathy is the Global Technical Lead for AutoCAD for the Autodesk Product Support teams. She joined Autodesk in 2007 as a Product Manager for AutoCAD and moved to the Product Support team in 2011.

Shawn Niles

Shawn is the Team Lead for AutoCAD for the Autodesk support team in the America’s region. Before joining Autodesk, Shawn worked as a CAD manager for the largest architectural firm in Boston, Ma. Shawn joined the Autodesk support team in 2008.

I'm not going anywhere in the foreseeable future–I'll still be around and posting now and then–but I welcome our new authors and look forward to what they have to share with you.