home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Night Owl 6
/
Night Owl's Shareware - PDSI-006 - Night Owl Corp (1990).iso
/
021a
/
convrt12.zip
/
CONVERT.DOC
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1991-10-26
|
9KB
|
265 lines
**************************
* *
* C O N V E R T v1.2 *
* Copyright (c) 1991 *
* by -Mate Software *
* *
**************************
DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY:
-----------------------
THIS SOFTWARE AND MANUAL ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS OF PURPOSE. THE USER OF THIS
SOFTWARE AND MANUAL ASSUMES ALL RISKS.
INTRODUCTION:
-------------
Unmodified copies of this program and the accompanying documentation may be
made and distributed freely without charge. Under no circumstances shall
this program or the accompanying documentation be distributed as part of any
for-profit venture, without expressed written permission from the author.
CONVERT takes a coordinate data file in a specific format and converts it
into an AutoCAD DXF file which can then be used as a starting point for a
site plan or topographic drawings. Optionally, AutoCAD blocks may be
inserted at specific point locations, and feature lines may be drawn,
connecting specific points in the coordinate data file.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:
---------------------
The following files are required in order for CONVERT to function properly:
CONVERT.EXE
CODES.DAT
<YOUR COORDINATE DATA FILE>
In order for CONVERT to execute properly, and utilize the information in the
file "CODES.DAT", "CODES.DAT" must be in the current sub-directory when
CONVERT is executed.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR RUNNING CONVERT:
---------------------------------
First create a sub-directory on your hard disk for convert (ie: C:\CONVERT),
then copy the files from the archive or distribution diskette into that
sub-directory. In order for CONVERT to work properly, you must run it from
the sub-directory into which you have copied it.
C O N V E R T v1.2 Copyright (c) 1991 by -Mate Software
To execute CONVERT, simply type "CONVERT" and press [Enter]. CONVERT will
prompt you for an input data file, at which point you should enter the name
of the coordinate data file that you wish to convert into a DXF points file.
You may enter a full drive, path, filename combination at this prompt. Next,
CONVERT will prompt you for a drawing scale. At this point, it should be
noted that CONVERT dose NOT scale the points plot. Everything plotted by
CONVERT is plotted on the drawing at 1=1, and at the correct northing (y-
coordinate) and easting (x-coordinate). CONVERT uses the supplied scale only
to scale the printed point numbers and point reference circles. The next
prompt asks if you want to plot the AutoCAD blocks referenced in the
"CODES.DAT" file. If you answer "Y" to this prompt, CONVERT will plot any
AutoCAD blocks referenced in the "CODES.DAT" file that correspond to codes
specified in the coordinate data file. The final prompt offers you the
option of specifying a feature line file defining points that you wish to be
connected by feature lines.
Detailed information and coding instructions on the files used by CONVERT are
included in the following sections.
COORDINATE DATA FILE REQUIREMENTS:
----------------------------------
The coordinate data file should be in the following format with the fields
separated by one or more spaces:
<POINT NO.> <NORTHING> <EASTING> <ELEVATION> <CODE> <REMARKS>
All input values except <REMARKS> must me numeric. The value entered in the
<CODE> field is used to determine the AutoCAD layer that the point will be
plotted on, as well as the AutoCAD block (if any) that will be plotted at
that particular point. <REMARKS> may be any character/numeric combination,
and is ignored by CONVERT. Any lines in the coordinate data file that do not
conform to the above requirements are also ignored by CONVERT. Therefore, it
is not usually necessary to remove extra lines from a coordinate data file
generated by a survey data collector or other source before running CONVERT,
as long as the required information is in the correct format. A typical
coordinate data file is included in the archive or on the distribution
diskette.
"CODES.DAT" REQUIREMENTS:
-------------------------
CONVERT reads the file "CODES.DAT" upon execution, and uses the information
contained in this file to determine the AutoCAD layers that the points will
be plotted on, and the AutoCAD blocks (if any) that will be plotted at the
point locations in the AutoCAD DXF file. CONVERT reads the <CODE> field from
the coordinate data file, then searches the data from the "CODES.DAT" file to
find the AutoCAD layer and block names that correspond to that particular
code. The required format for the "CODES.DAT" file is as follows:
C O N V E R T v1.2 Copyright (c) 1991 by -Mate Software
FIELD VALUE REQUIREMENTS
----- ----- ------------
Column 1-8: <CODE> (Required -- Integer value)
Column 9-23: <AUTOCAD LAYER NAME> (Required -- Valid AutoCAD layer)
Column 24: <BLOCK SCALE FLAG> (Optional -- "*")
Column 25-38: <AUTOCAD BLOCK NAME> (Optional -- Valid AutoCAD block)
Column 39-80: <COMMENT> (Optional -- Character/numeric)
<BLOCK SCALE FLAG> controls the scaling of the AutoCAD blocks that are
inserted into the drawing. If you wish to have the inserted blocks scaled
based on the selected scale factor, you should leave this column blank. If,
however, you wish the block to be inserted at its actual size no matter what
the scale of the drawing, you should add a asterisk (*) in this column.
A typical "CODES.DAT" file is included in the archive or on the distribution
diskette.
"ACAD.DWG" REQUIREMENTS:
------------------------
CONVERT generates an AutoCAD compatible DXF file when executed that contains
the entity information necessary to create an AutoCAD points plot based on
the information in the coordinate data file, the "CODES.DAT" file and the
features file. CONVERT ONLY generates the entity portion of the DXF file,
and makes no attempt to generate the "LAYER" or "BLOCK" header sections of
the DXF file. Therefore, a base AutoCAD drawing (usually "ACAD.DWG") must be
loaded prior to loading the CONVERT generated DXF file into AutoCAD. The
base drawing MUST contain all of the layer and block information referenced
by the various codes in the coordinate data file, and the "CODES.DAT" file.
An example "ACAD.DWG" file created with AutoCAD release 10 which includes all
of the blocks and layers referenced in the example "CODES.DAT" file and the
example coordinate data file is included in the archive or on the
distribution diskette.
FEATURE LINE FILE REQUIREMENTS:
-------------------------------
CONVERT will optionally generate feature lines on the DXF points plot if a
feature line file is specified. This file must consist of a list of points
in sequential order included in the coordinate data file which are to be
connected by feature lines. Feature lines may be separated in the feature
line file by entering a "ENDSTR" command instead of a point number after the
last point in that particular feature line. Required format for the file is
one point number per line. The feature line will be placed on the same layer
as the second point in the feature line as specified in the "CODES.DAT" file.
Each separate line entry in the features line file must contain at least two
points, and may contain as many points as you desire. There is no limit to
the number of separate feature lines that you may specify. An example
feature line file is included in the archive or on the distribution diskette.
C O N V E R T v1.2 Copyright (c) 1991 by -Mate Software
OUTPUT FILES GENERATED BY CONVERT:
----------------------------------
CONVERT generates two output files when executed. The first is the AutoCAD
compatible DXF file which will assume the file name of the coordinate data
file name supplied as input with a ".DXF" extension. The other is complete
point listing including codes, AutoCAD layer names, and remarks. This file
is similarly named, but with a ".LST" extension. These files will be
generated in the same sub-directory as the input coordinate data file
specified at the initial prompt.
QUESTIONS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
-------------------------------------
All questions, comments, or additional information requests should be
addressed to:
Kurtis J. Jones
1748 North Oakland
Fayetteville, AR 72703
I may also be reached via The Spectrum BBS (501) 521-5639.
C O N V E R T v1.2 Copyright (c) 1991 by -Mate Software