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=========================================== README.DOC - Release 12 General Information =========================================== June 19, 1992 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ CONTENTS ======== Platform-Independent Information - General Notes Platform-Specific Information - 386 Platform-Specific Information - Sun SPARCstation Manual Corrections and Additions AutoCAD Reference Manual AutoCAD Customization Manual AutoLISP Programmer's Reference AutoCAD Development System Programmer's Reference AutoCAD Extras Manual Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide - 386 Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide - Sun SPARCstation Bonus CD-ROM Information ====================================================================== See the following documents for more README information: README.DRV Contains additional information on ADI 4.2 device drivers. Note, this file is incorrectly called README.ADI in the AutoCAD Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide. README.ADS Describes the text files that explain how to compile, link, and debug AutoCAD Development System (ADS) Applications, and tells where to find them. README.AME Contains additional information on the AutoCAD Advanced Modeling Extension Release 2.1 (AME R2.1). README.ASE Contains additional information on the AutoCAD SQL Extension (ASE). README.AVE Contains additional information on AutoCAD Render. GENERAL NOTES ============= - Using Custom Menus Many Release 12 features are implemented as external ADS and AutoLISP applications. These applications are made available to you by the loading of the file acadr12.lsp. This file is automatically loaded when the standard menu that is installed with Release 12 (acad.mnu) is loaded. If acad12.lsp is not loaded, many features, such as the region modeler, AVE Render, and various dialogues, will not be available. If you are using an older menu, or any menu other than the one installed with AutoCAD Release 12, you must make sure that acadr12.lsp is loaded. To load acadr12.lsp, insert the following line in the menu's .mnl file, if it exists, or in acad.lsp: (load "acadr12") - Entity Sorting/Drawing Order The SORTENTS system variable determines whether or not entities are processed in database order by various AutoCAD operations. By default, this is set to 96 (entity sorting for plotting and PostScript output only). If it is important for the display and selection of entities to have a predictable order, you can change the setting of SORTENTS as desired. However, specifying sorting for additional types of AutoCAD operations can significantly affect AutoCAD's performance in large drawings (especially the time required for a REGEN, if bit value 16 is set in SORTENTS). See "Entity Sort Method..." on page 29 in the AutoCAD Reference Manual. - AutoCAD Release 12 Memory Use In Release 12, AutoCAD makes more aggressive use of memory than ever before. Various commands such as Hide, Regen, and Render use memory intensively and in return either run faster or offer extended capabilities. Because of these changes, optimizing memory use and the location of temporary and paging files is increasingly important. See "AutoCAD 386 Memory Use" in the AutoCAD Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide for details. In addition, see the corrections and addenda related to TREEMAX, ACADPAGEDIR, ACADMAXPAGE, and the placement of temporary files noted below in this document. - AVE Render and New Drawings You cannot create a completely empty new drawing if AVE Render is loaded. If you want to load a complete DXF or IGES file when AVE Render is loaded, you must first unload AVE Render. To do so, select Unload Render from the Render pull-down or use the following command line syntax: Command: (xunload "averendr") Then use the NEW command to obtain a new drawing. (Note: If your configured prototype drawing is not an empty one, you'll also need to select the "No Prototype" toggle in the New Drawing dialogue box.) - AutoLISP Routines in the \sample Directory If you plan to use any of the routines in the Sample directory, we recommend that you add this directory to the ACAD variable path. This will enable the routines that use dialogue boxes (DDTYPE and BMAKE) to find their dialogue definition (.dcl) files. - Automatic Timed Save Feature The new Automatic Timed Save feature has replaced the Spacer File mechanism previously used by AutoCAD to reserve hard disk space for the drawing currently being edited. This feature, common to most programs, saves your drawing file on a regular, user-defined, interval. See "Automatic Timed Save" on page 79 in the AutoCAD Reference Manual. - Long-Axis Plotting Frequent timeout messages may be issued during long-axis plotting. These do not indicate errors -- just hit RETURN to continue the plot. Timeout messages occur when AutoCAD temporarily stops sending information to the plot device because its buffer is full. Once the plot device "catches up", AutoCAD starts sending information again. Here is a typical AutoCAD timeout message: An error has occurred while writing to the hardcopy device. Please check that it is turned on, online, and has paper. Abort? <N> When you long-axis plot with the HP 7586B roll-fed plotter, the "Out of Limit" light will come on at various times. In most cases this is not an error, but simply a result of how AutoCAD and the plotter interact when handling very large drawings. - Moving the AutoCAD Program Files If you move your AutoCAD program files to a different directory after initial configuration, you will need to reconfigure AutoCAD. This is because the entire path to the drivers is saved in the acad.cfg file. - Quitting a Drawing from a Script Scripts do not call the Drawing Modification dialogue box that appears when you issue QUIT, NEW, or OPEN from a drawing with unsaved changes. A script that uses QUIT, NEW, or OPEN should follow these commands with Y (discard all changes) or N (don't discard changes) -- not with S (Save Changes) or D (Discard Changes). - EXPLODE Command Object Selection from a Script When input comes from a script, a menu, the AutoLISP (command) function, or the ads_command() function, the EXPLODE command allows only one entity to be selected. This preserves script compatibility with previous releases of AutoCAD while letting you select multiple objects when using the EXPLODE command interactively. - Release 11 Compatibility with Release 12 Users of Release 11 and Release 12 can freely exchange drawing files, without any required file conversion. However some support files, such as the R12 acad.mnu file and many AutoLISP/ADS programs, are not downwardly compatible with R11. If you plan to intermix or exchange R11 and R12 drawings, we recommend that you keep your R11 support files accessible. The \r11supp directory contains a self-extracting compressed file containing many of the R11 support files. When this file is executed (make the \r11supp directory current and enter `r11supp' at the DOS prompt), it "explodes" into 36 files totaling approximately 730K bytes in size. - TABLET Command Compatibility Due to changes in the TABLET Cfg and TABLET Cal commands, scripts, menu items, the AutoLISP (command) function, and the ADS ads_command() function may now supply input at the "Digitize point:" prompts of these commands. Where previously AutoCAD waited for the user to digitize a point at these prompts, now it is necessary to supply explicit pauses to make it do so. Since scripts have no mechanism for pausing, these commands should not be used in a script. See the section entitled "TABLET command", starting on page 93 of the AutoCAD Reference Manual, for a complete description of the new tablet calibration options. Also see the AutoLISP Programmer's Reference and the ADS Programmer's Reference for information on the (tablet) and ads_tablet() functions. - UNNAMED drawings Prior to Release 12 it was impossible to start a drawing without previously naming it. With Release 12, when you start AutoCAD without providing a drawing name, you are editing a drawing named "UNNAMED" until you specifically name it with SAVE, SAVEAS, or other commands that force you to provide a name for the drawing. If you plot this drawing to a file before naming it and don't supply an explicit name for the plot file, it will be named unnamed.plt. Also, in the unlikely event that you crash, AutoCAD gives you the option to save the drawing. If this drawing has not yet been named, AutoCAD saves it as unnamed.dwg. - Using Files from a Read-Only Directory By default, AutoCAD creates temporary paging files in the same directory as the current drawing. If you have not changed the default configuration and you attempt to open a drawing in a read-only directory you will get the following message: +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | AutoCAD Alert | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | To access files in a read-only directory, you must configure | | a temporary file location other than DRAWING | | | | [ OK ] | +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Examples of read-only media include write-protected floppy disks, read-only network directories, and CD-ROMs. To open a drawing in a read-only directory (or drive), you will need to specify the name of a writable directory where AutoCAD can create temporary paging files. Option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters submenu of the Main Configuration menu lets you do this. See your AutoCAD Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide (and later sections of this README) for more information on temporary paging files. - Where is the PRPLOT Command? The PRPLOT command is now part of the PLOT command. Printers and printer plotters are handled just like plotters, and can be configured by the Configure plotters option of the CONFIG command. All plotter and printer plotter drivers are discussed in appendix C of your AutoCAD Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide. - Programming with the Get File Dialogue The AutoCAD Development System Programmer's Reference manual (p 156) states "The string in the result argument, result->resval.rsting, must point to a memory area large enough to store a pathname string." This is erroneous. The ads_getfiled() function does not always return a pathname. If the user dismisses the dialogue by pressing the "Type It" button, the dialogue returns an integer value equal to 1. For this reason it is necessary for the ADS library to allocate the memory needed to store the pathname if a pathname is returned. If the caller attempts to allocate a memory buffer for this purpose, the pointer passed into ads_getfiled will be ignored and the buffer may become inaccessible to the caller. According to the AutoCAD Development Sustems Manual, and the AutoLISP Programmers Reference Manual, if the flags bit 1 is set (Value = 2), the 'Type it' button will be disabled. This implies that the programmer would not need to test for the return values caused by the user pressing this button. However, if the NULL display driver is configured, ads_getfiled() and (getfiled) always returns these values - no matter what the flags setting is. Therefor, the programmer must test for these values, even if flags is set to 2. PLATFORM-SPECIFIC INFORMATION - 386 =================================== - Startup Batch File The Installation, Interface, and Performance Guide on page 60 incorrectly states the name of the startup batch file as acad386.bat. The name of this file has been changed to acadr12.bat. - Upgrade Installation Information When upgrading from an earlier release of AutoCAD, we recommend that you install Release 12 in a separate directory, rather than installing on top of the existing software. This is particularly important if you are using the Release 11 AutoCAD Extension for Windows or any third-party applications. If you install on top of an older version, various support files required for use with R11 AEW will be overwritten. The support files needed by R11 AEW are installed as part of Release 12. They are stored in a self-extracting compressed file in the \r11supp directory called r11supp.exe. See pages 17, 87-88 of the 386 Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide for further details. - AVE Render and Color Mapping Display colors with a value of 16 or greater reference the standard AutoCAD color map, which, on most displays, is overridden by certain rendering operations. If you have assigned these higher-numbered colors to your dialogue boxes (with DLGCOLOR), you can avoid potential display conflicts by invoking the dialogue from a NON-RENDERED viewport. - DLGCOLOR Command As supplied, AutoCAD's dialogue boxes use very few colors (this is to ensure proper visibility on all types of displays). You can use the DLGCOLOR command to liven up the colors of these dialogues considerably and to give their buttons a 3D appearance. You can use DLGCOLOR to create your own color combinations or to choose one of several color schemes provided as .DCC (dialogue color configuration) support files. To select one of the supplied color schemes, pick "Read file" from the DLGCOLOR dialogue box, and then select one of the .DCC files from your SUPPORT directory. To see what a color combination looks like on your display, pick "Show..." to display a sample dialogue box that uses the color scheme you selected. If you like what you see, dismiss the sample dialogue box and pick "OK" in the main DLGCOLOR dialogue box. The color scheme you choose is saved in acad.cfg. - Limitations on the use of the MULTIPLE command If you use the MULTIPLE command in conjunction with any dialogue box command, you will need to issue multiple Ctrl-C's quickly to end the command repetition. - Plotting over a Network AutoCAD does not support direct plotting to a port captured by network software. For example, if LPT3 refers to a network captured port, do not configure the plotter for LPT3. Instead, use one of the following methods to send AutoCAD plot output to network printer or plotter queues. The first method is to instruct AutoCAD to plot to a file, and then enter the name of the captured network port for the filename. When using this method be sure to blank out the pattern portion of the filename in the Create Plot File dialogue. Otherwise, the output might be written to a file named LPT3.PLT, rather than to the network captured port LPT3. After selecting the captured port for the filename, AutoCAD will display an alert box stating that "The specified file already exists. Do you want to replace it?" Press the "Yes" button or press the return key when the above prompt is displayed. The second method is to plot to a file, and then use the DOS copy command to copy the file to a captured output port, as in the following example. copy plotfile.plt /b lpt2: Important: The /b (binary) option is necessary for binary output. The above example assumes that LPT2: is directed to the network plotter queue by the user's network port capturing software. PLATFORM-SPECIFIC INFORMATION - Sun SPARCstation ================================================ - Ctrl-C Handling with the Null Display Driver Due to a problem with the Open Windows $OPENWINHOME/bin/cmdtool terminal emulator, Ctrl-C is not handled properly when you run AutoCAD with the Null Display in a cmdtool window. Pressing Ctrl-C in this case can cause AutoCAD to exit unexpectedly to the system prompt; if this happens, you will lose any AutoCAD edits you have made. To avoid this problem, use another terminal program -- such as shelltool or xterm -- when running AutoCAD with the Null Display. You can also use the Term Pane menu in a cmdtool window to disable scrolling, effectively making the cmdtool a shelltool. - Kernel Dependencies for AutoCAD Mole Mode To use AutoCAD Mole mode on your SPARC, you need to have a kernel that has the VDDRV option enabled. If you are using the Sun supplied GENERIC or GENERIC_SMALL kernels this option should already be installed. The following lines should be added to your kernel config file: # # The following option adds support for loadable kernel modules. # options VDDRV # loadable modules - Open Key In an OPEN LOOK dialogue box, your keyboard's "Open" key returns a value of "is_cancel". This is equivalent to picking the "Cancel" button. - Limitations on the use of the MULTIPLE Command You should not use the MULTIPLE command in conjunction with any dialogue box command. Since Open Look dialogue boxes cannot be dismissed by means of pressing Ctl-C, it can be very difficult to dismiss the dialogue then press Ctl-C fast enough to effectively end the command repetition. - Multiple Sessions under the ELM License Manager If you have more than one License Server on your network and use Server Resolution (by not setting the ACADSERVER environment variable to a list of License Servers), it is possible that multiple sessions of AutoCAD on the same display will be charged multiple licenses. We recommend that the second (and succeeding) session of AutoCAD be started with the ACADSERVER variable set to the results of the first session's broadcast. To do this: 1. Start the first session. 2. Exit to the shell (with the SHELL command) 2. At the prompt, type "echo $ACADSERVER". 3. In the shell in which you intend to start the second session, set the ACADSERVER environment variable to the output of the echo command. 4. Start the second session. - Permission Settings for `loadmodule' If your Open Windows 3 operating system was installed according to the Sun installation procedure that ships with Open Windows, the `loadmodule' executable file will have its permissions set to 4755. However, if you are using the operating system installed on a server that is directly connected to the "outside world" (by modem) the permissions of this file might be set to NO USERS (if the file has been modified by your system administrator). For AutoCAD to function properly, the permissions for the `loadmodule' file must be set to 4755. We recommend that you run AutoCAD under an Open Windows operating system that has the proper permissions on this file. - Using an ADI 4.0 Digitizer Driver AutoCAD R12 does not allow the reinitialization of a digitizer using an ADI 4.0 driver. If you attempt to reinitialize this driver with the REINIT command, the digitizer will be disabled until AutoCAD is exited and restarted. However, you are in no danger of losing your drawing if this happens. MANUAL CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS ================================ AutoCAD Reference Manual ------------------------ Chapter 2 - "Select objects: Prompt", page 33. In the description of the "ALL" option, the first sentence should be replaced by the following: Entering "all" (no abbreviation) selects all entities in the drawing except those on frozen layers. This selects all entities on thawed layers regardless of the layer's On/Off and Locked/Unlocked status. (Many AutoCAD commands cannot be used on objects in locked layers -- for more information, see "Unlock or Lock" on page 326.) - "Select objects: Prompt", page 34. In the description of the "Previous" option, the last sentence should read: AutoCAD remembers the space (model or paper) in which each selection set is obtained; the previous selection set is ignored if you switch spaces and attempt to use it in the other space. Chapter 4 - "DDUNITS Command--Units Dialogue Box", "Direction...", page 86. The last sentence in the first paragraph on page 87 should be deleted, since there is no "Direction Status" area. - "Graphics Acceleration", starting on page 114. The following section should be included, immediately after "TREESTAT Command": TREEMAX System Variable The TREEMAX system variable limits memory consumption during drawing regeneration by limiting the maximum number of nodes in a drawing's spatial index (oct-tree). Unlike TREEDEPTH values, which are stored in individual drawings, the value for TREEMAX is stored in your Configuration file. By imposing a fixed limit with TREEMAX, you ensure that you will be able to load drawings that were created on systems with more memory than your system and have a larger TREEDEPTH than your system can handle (that is, drawings with an oct-tree large enough to, if unchecked, eventually consume more memory than your computer has). TREEMAX also protects a drawing once it is loaded, by providing a safeguard against overzealous experimentation with inappropriately high TREEDEPTH values. The TREEMAX format is: Command: treemax New value for TREEMAX <default>: Enter a positive integer at this prompt. The initial default for TREEMAX is 10000000 (ten million!), a value high enough to effectively disable TREEMAX as a control of TREEDEPTH. The value to which you should set TREEMAX depends on your system's available RAM. You get about 15,000 oct-tree nodes per megabyte of RAM. For example, if you want a drawing's oct-tree to use up to, but no more than, 2MB of RAM, set TREEMAX to 30000 (2 x 15,000). If AutoCAD runs out of memory allocating oct-tree nodes when loading an existing drawing, and is forced to quit, the following message displays: Out of memory allocating oct-tree nodes. TREEMAX or TREEDEPTH should be decreased. If this happens, you should restart AutoCAD, set TREEMAX to some smaller number, and try loading the drawing again. AutoCAD may occasionally "run into" the limit you set with TREEMAX. When this happens, the following message is displayed: Oct-tree node allocation limit reached. TREEMAX should be increased or TREEDEPTH decreased. Although AutoCAD will continue to execute, we recommend that you follow the prompt instructions -- if you don't, the oct-tree will not be optimally "shaped", and performance may be affected. Note that your ability to increase TREEMAX depends on your computer's available memory. Chapter 6 - "STRETCH Command", page 207. The following should be added to the description of the STRETCH command. When the STRETCH command is invoked while a PICKFIRST selection set is active, only those entities selected with the last Box (Window or Crossing) are used to determine which "defining points" (endpoints, vertexes, etc.) are stretched. Chapter 7 - "Switching Between Model Space and Paper Space", page 308. The last sentence of the Note following the first paragraph should read: When you switch spaces, the current selection set (that created by graphics cursor selection when PICKFIRST is set to 1 or grips are enabled) becomes the Previous selection set. Chapter 11 - "Dimension Variables", starting on page 435. On page 437, the illustration of the Dimension Line subdialogue box shows a check box entitled "Reference Dimension". This should be "Basic Dimension". - "Dimension Variables", starting on page 435. On page 437, the "Reference Dimension" subsection is incorrect, and should be replaced with the following text: Basic Dimension To create basic dimension text -- dimension text with a box drawn around its full extents -- pick the Basic Dimension check box. An example of basic dimensioning is shown in the figure to the left. AutoCAD stores the distance maintained around the dimension text as a negative value in the DIMGAP variable, indicating basic dimensions. - "Dimensioning Variables", page 472. In the section describing "DIMGAP", the second paragraph should read as follows: DIMGAP also allows you to create basic dimensioning -- dimension text with a box drawn around its full extents. This is accomplished by entering a negative DIMGAP value. See "Basic Dimension" on page 437. Note: The abovementioned cross-reference is made to the changed text, as noted in the preceding section. Appendix A - "Table of System Variables", starting on page 574. This table should include the following entry: Variable | Type | Saved In | Description ----------+----------+-----------+---------------------------------------- TREEMAX | Integer | Config | Limits memory consumption during | | | drawing regeneration by limiting the | | | maximum number of nodes in the spatial | | | index created with TREEDEPTH (see | | | TREESTAT command) | | | | | | Although imposing a limit on the index | | | size may slightly affect the speed of | | | some editor operations, all editor | | | operations will work regardless of the | | | settings of either TREEMAX or TREEDEPTH Appendix D - Revision History - "Release 12--June, 1992", starting on page 619. On page 620, the bullet item mentioning "reference dimensions" should read as follows: * Creation of basic dimensions - "Release 12--June, 1992", page 623. The bullet item regarding the new ADS function, ads_distof(), should read: - ads_distof converts a distance in display format to double precision, floating point format. - "Release 12--June, 1992", page 624. The bullet item regarding the new AutoLISP function, (distof), should read: - (distof) converts a distance in display format to double precision, floating point format. Index - Index entries for "Reference dimensions" should all read "Basic dimensions." AutoCAD Customization Manual ---------------------------- Chapter 6 - "Modifying the acad.mnu and acad.mnl Files", new subsection of page 68. The acad.mnl file contains AutoLISP code used by the standard menu file, acad.mnu; it is loaded automatically each time the acad.mnu file is loaded. Some of these AutoLISP routines modify the appearance and functionality of the standard menu by AutoLISP function calls with the (menucmd "P1.n=~") syntax (see page 92 in the AutoCAD Customization Manual and the "(menucmd)" function in the AutoLISP Programmer's Reference). These function calls explicitly modify particular menu item locations without regard to the contents of that item. If you modify the Files pull-down section of the acad.mnu file, you will need to make appropriate modifications to the "ASE functions" section of the acad.mnl file. The routines in this section use a list of numbers (such as '(11 13 14 17 ...) ) to identify the menu items that will be modified. If you delete or move any of the menu items in the ASE section of the acad.mnu file, you can change the associated numbers in this list and the menu items will continue to function properly. Chapter 8 - "The .mnl File--Automatic Loading", page 112. The following sentence should be added to the description of the .mnl file. If a menu file is loaded with the AutoLISP (command) function, its associated .mnl file is not loaded until the entire AutoLISP routine has run to completion. Chapter 9 - "Attributes of Predefined Tiles", page 147. The discussion of the is_cancel button should include the following information: For programmable dialogue box buttons with the attribute "is_cancel" set to "true": if the caller does not exit the dialogue in the action code for this button (doesn't call done_dialog), the dialogue will be terminated for him when the button is pushed after the user action code is executed. - "Text", page 153-154. The is_bold attribute of text tiles is ignored o Sun SPARCstations. - "DCL Syntax", starting on page 157. This section should include the following subsection: Optional Semantic Auditing for DCL Files AutoCAD provides a choice of four levels (0-3) of semantic auditing for DCL files (similar to what the lint command does for C programs). These audits are done at DCL load time. 0. No checking: This level should be used only if the DCL files have already been audited (e.g., by the developer) and have not been touched since. 1. "Errors": This level of checking finds DCL bugs that, if not caught, may cause AutoCAD to terminate abnormally. This level of checking is the default and involves almost no delay. 2. "Warnings": This level also finds DCL bugs that, if not caught, will almost certainly result in dialogues with undesired layout and/or behavior. A DCL file that has been modified in any way should be audited at this level at least once. 3. "Hints": This level of checking also finds attribute definitions that, though harmless, are redundant. This is intended for use by developers who want to ship DCL that is not only correct, but uncluttered. To set the audit level for a DCL file, include one line like the following anywhere within the DCL file (but not inside the definition of anything else): dcl_settings : default_dcl_settings { audit_level = 3; } It is recommended that DCL developers generally keep the audit_level at 3 for the duration of development, and strip out the dcl_settings line before shipping to users. Here are examples of some of the things that the DCL auditor looks for: errors: - A named tile is used but never defined. - Circular definitions of prototypes. warnings: - A required attribute is missing. - An attribute has a value of an inappropriate type (e.g., a 'value' attribute that is not a quoted string). hints: - An attribute of a tile is redundant. It is either repeating the default, or repeating the value that would be inherited from prototypes. To keep the noise down, some redundancies (like integer-valued attributes) are not criticized. Chapter 10 - "The AutoCAD PostScript Support File--acad.psf", page 228-229. This section should include the following information: Since a font downloader is not provided with AutoCAD, you might want to modify acad.psf to reference fonts that are resident in your printer. A font downloader may have been provided with your printer; if not, many are available through the Adobe forum on CompuServe. AutoLISP Programmer's Reference ------------------------------- Chapter 1 - "Function Libraries--Automatic Loading", page 15. The following should replace the last sentence in the second paragraph: When a menu file is loaded (either by starting a drawing or issuing the MENU command), AutoCAD searches the directory containing the newly loaded .mnu file for a .mnl file of the same filename. If a matching .mnl file is found AutoCAD loads the AutoLISP code in that file after loading the menu file (e.g., AutoCAD loads the file acad.mnl after loading the acad.mnx compiled menu file). - "Function Libraries--Automatic Loading", page 15. The following should be added to the description of the .mnl file. If a menu file is loaded with the AutoLISP (command) function, its associated .mnl file is not loaded until the entire AutoLISP routine has run to completion. Chapter 4 - "(entget)", page 102 and "(entmod)", page 107. These sections should include the following information: Before performing an (entget) or (entmod) on Vertex entities, you should read or write the header (Polyline entity) for the Polyline to which they belong. If the Polyline entity most recently processed is different from the one to which the Vertex belongs, width information (the 40 and 41 groups) can be lost. - "(*error*)", page 111. This incorrectly states that your *error* function should not include any calls to the command function without arguments. This paragraph should be replaced with the following: Your *error* function can include calls to the command function without arguments (i.e., (command) ); this will cancel a previous AutoCAD command called with the command function. - "(grread)", page 121. Value 16 (bit 4) of the <allkeys> argument is not supported. - "initget - Keyword Specifications", page 127. The following information should be added to this section: A legal keyword can contain letters, numbers, or hyphens (-). Appendix C - "Error Codes", page 210. The following error code should be added to the "On-line program error codes" table: +-------+--------------------------------------------------------+ | Value | Meaning | |-------|--------------------------------------------------------| | 85 | AutoLISP/ADS operation attempted and prohibited while | | | a dialogue box was displayed | +-------+--------------------------------------------------------+ AutoCAD Development System Programmer's Reference ------------------------------------------------- Chapter 2 - "File" Search, page 57. The third line of code in the example, if (ads_newrb(result) == NULL) { should read as follows: if ((result = ads_newrb(RTSTR)) == NULL { Chapter 3 - "Transforming Selection Sets", page 94. In the second example of the dragsample() function, the declaration of the matrix argument should be as follows (as it is in the first example): ads_matrix matrix; - "Entity Name Functions", page 97. This section should include the following information: If a call to ads_entsel(), ads_nentselp(), or ads_nentsel() returns RTERROR, and you want to know whether the user picked a point that had no entity or simply pressed <CR>, you can inspect the value of the ERRNO system variable. If the user picked an empty point, ERRNO equals 7 (OL_ENTSELPICK). If the user pressed <CR>, ERRNO equals 52 (OL_ENTSELNULL). (You can use the symbolic names if your program includes the header file, ol_errno.h.) CAUTION: You should inspect ERRNO immediately after ads_entsel(), ads_nentselp(), or ads_nentsel() returns. A subsequent ADS library call can change or clear the value of ERRNO. Chapter 4 - "ads_entget()", page 145 and "ads_entmod()", page 149. These sections should include the following information: Before calling an ads_entget() or ads_entmod() for Vertex entities, you should read or write the header (Polyline entity) for the Polyline to which they belong. If the Polyline entity most recently processed is different from the one to which the Vertex belongs, width information (the 40 and 41 groups) can be lost. - "ads_getfiled", p. 156. In the paragraph below figure 4-2, replace the first two sentences with the following sentences: If the dialogue box gets a filename from the user, ads_getfiled() sets the string in the result argument to a string specifying the filename; otherwise, ads_getfiled() sets the string in result to NULL. The ads_getfiled() function allocates the pathname string. Your program is responsible for freeing the string by calling free() (if result is a static buffer) or ads_relrb() (if result is a dynamically allocated buffer). - "ads_getkword", page 160. In the final paragraph on p. 161, replace the words "RTNONE or RTKWORD (for arbitrary input)" with "RTNONE (if the user enters a null response or arbitrary input)". - "ads_getsym", p. 162. Delete the last sentence of the first paragraph, "It also fails if the symbol is not bound, or is bound to nil.", and replace it with the following sentence: If the symbol not bound or is nil, ads_getsym() returns RTNORM and sets the value argument to NULL. Replace the first sentence of the second paragraph with the following sentence: The ads_getsym() function returns RTNORM if it succeeds; if it fails, ads_getsym() returns RTERROR. - "ads_getsym", page. 162. The ads_getsym() function can access AutoLISP symbols that AutoLISP cannot. (Such symbols can only be created by ads_putsym() calls.) This will cause an error in a future upgrade or release of AutoCAD. Your programs should not rely on this capability. - "ads_initget() - Keyword Specifications", page 170. The following information should be added to this section: A legal keyword can contain letters, numbers, or hyphens (-). - "ads_putsym", p. 180. An ads_putsym() call can create a new AutoLISP symbol that AutoLISP cannot access -- for example, by including illegal characters in the symbol name, such as "pair(s". An ads_getsym() call can access such symbols, but they will cause an error in a future upgrade or release of AutoCAD. Your programs should not rely on this capability. AutoCAD Extras Manual --------------------- Chapter 3 - "File Size and Performance", page 87. The third bulleted paragraph of this section states that you can use the SOLPURGE 2dtree command to reduce the structure of regions. After running SOLPURGE 2dtree, you must also run SOLPURGE Erased to see a decrease in drawing size. - "Tips and Techniques", page 85-95. This section should include the following subsections: Selecting Objects Combining objects from both paper space and model space into a single selection set may produce unexpected results in some Region Modeler commands. The "Previous" object selection option will select the previous selection set even if it was in paper space and you are now in model space, and vice versa. The "ALL" object selection option selects all objects on non-frozen layers in your drawing. Both of these options can create a selection set that contains a mix of paper space and model space entities. Extended Entity Data Extended entity data that is automatically updated when you edit an object with an AutoCAD command is NOT automatically updated when you edit the object with an equivalent Region Modeler command. For example, the value of extended entity group codes 1011, 1021, 1031, 1012, 1022, 1032, 1013, 1023, 1033, 1041, and 1042 is automatically updated when you mirror, move, scale, rotate, or stretch an object in AutoCAD. The same group code values are not updated when you modify the object using the Region Modeler SOLMOVE command. The Region Modeler does not rely on these extended entity group codes to function properly, but other ADS applications might rely on their values. AME/Region Modeler Tablet Overlay The AME/Region Modeler tablet overlay is provided in a drawing named TABLETAM.DWG. This drawing is externally referenced from the AutoCAD tablet overlay drawing TABLET.DWG. The half-tone (grayed-out) areas of the tablet menu represent AME-only commands that are not available in the Region Modeler. The half-tone is created with a PostScript fill and can therefore only be printed on a PostScript printer. If you want to plot the drawing to a pen plotter, you can set the SOLHPAT variable to "dots" and create regions over the half-tone areas. SOLCHP Command While in the SOLCHP command, if you perform any operation that forces the screen to redraw (like entering 'redraw), all of the primitives for the selected solid or region may be displayed. Entering the SOLCHP Instance, Replace, or Delete option while your grid is on will also display all the primitives in some cases. - "System Variables", page 97. In the table, the "Initial value" of SOLWDENS is now 1. - "SOLWDENS Variable", page 100. The initial value of this variable has been changed from 4 to 1. This change reduces the number of vectors used to represent curved edges of regions when in a mesh representation. A SOLWDENS value less than 3 is treated the same as 3, but for consistency with AME, the initial value of SOLWDENS is set to 1. Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide - 386 ---------------------------------------------------- - Startup Batch File The Installation, Interface, and Performance Guide on page 60 incorrectly states the name of the startup batch file as acad386.bat. The name of this file has been changed to acadr12.bat. Chapter 3 - "Placement of Temporary Files", page 48. The second paragraph after item number 3 should be replaced with the following: If the drawing and its internal data exceeds the available memory AutoCAD will use up to two paging files to temporarily store this information. The size and location of these files depends on your particular configuration and the size of the drawing being edited. The first paging file's location is specified by the ACADPAGEDIR environment variable. If ACADPAGEDIR is not set, the file is created in the location specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu, which by default is the current drawing directory. The second paging file is created when the first one has reached the limit specified by ACADMAXPAGE and is created in the location specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu. We recommend specifying a directory for temporary file placement on a drive other than that which contains the current drawing files. - "Placement of Temporary Files", page 48. The `Important:' note should read as follows: Important: To access read-only drawings, drawings in a read-only directory, or drawings from a read-only device such as a CD-ROM, you must specify a location using this configuration option. Chapter 4 - "ACADPAGEDIR", page 74. The following should replace the first paragraph in this section: This environment variable specifies the directory where the first page file is created. This allows you to designate a directory on a disk drive with plenty of free space. By default, the temporary pager files are placed in the same directory as the drawing file being edited. The directory specified by ACADPAGEDIR should be on a different drive than that specified as the location for temporary files by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu and if possible on a different drive from that which contains the current drawing files. - "ACADPAGEDIR", page 75. The `Important:' note should be deleted, you must specify the location for temporary with option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu when using drawings in a read-only directory. - "ACADMAXPAGE", page 75. The following should replace the paragraph in this section: This environment variable specifies the maximum number of bytes that can be written to the first page file. If this variable is not set AutoCAD writes to it until the disk is full. If this variable is set AutoCAD writes to it until this limit is reached and then creates a second paging file in the directory specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu. If ACADPAGEDIR specifies a directory on the same drive as the current drawing files, ACADMAXPAGE should be set to allow for a reasonable amount of space to be left on the disk after the first paging file reaches it's limit. Interface, Installation, and Performance Guide - SUN SPARCstation ----------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1 - "Autodesk Device Interface", starting on page 10. On page 11, the "Video Displays" and "Digitizers" subsections should read as follows: Video XGL Display (GX, GXPlus, and cgthree graphics boards) Displays Unaccelerated Display (Color, including GS, or Monochrome) Null Display Digitizers Kurta (R) Series I; XLC; IS/1 and IS/3 Tablets Chapter 3 - "Placement of Temporary Files", page 64. The second paragraph after item number 3 should be replaced with the following: If the drawing and its internal data exceeds the available memory AutoCAD will use up to two paging files to temporarily store this information. The size and location of these files depends on your particular configuration and the size of the drawing being edited. The first paging file's location is specified by the ACADPAGEDIR environment variable. If ACADPAGEDIR is not set, the file is created in the location specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu, which by default is the current drawing directory. The second paging file is created when the first one has reached the limit specified by ACADMAXPAGE and is created in the location specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu. We recommend specifying a directory for temporary file placement on a drive other than that which contains the current drawing files. - "Placement of Temporary Files", page 64. The `Important:' note should read as follows: Important: To access read-only drawings, drawings in a read-only directory, or drawings from a read-only device such as a CD-ROM, you must specify a location using this configuration option. Chapter 4 - "ACADPAGEDIR", page 77. The following should replace the first paragraph in this section: This environment variable specifies the directory where the first page file is created. This allows you to designate a directory on a disk drive with plenty of free space. By default, the temporary pager files are placed in the same directory as the drawing file being edited. The directory specified by ACADPAGEDIR should be on a different drive than that specified as the location for temporary files by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu and if possible on a different drive from that which contains the current drawing files. - "ACADPAGEDIR", page 78. The `Important:' note should be deleted, you must specify the location for temporary with option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu when using drawings in a read-only directory. - "ACADMAXPAGE", page 78. The following should replace the first paragraph in this section: This environment variable specifies the maximum number of bytes that can be written to the first page file. If this variable is not set AutoCAD writes to it until the disk is full. If this variable is set AutoCAD writes to it until this limit is reached and then creates a second paging file in the directory specified by option 5 of the Configure Operating Parameters menu. If ACADPAGEDIR specifies a directory on the same drive as the current drawing files, ACADMAXPAGE should be set to allow for a reasonable amount of space to be left on the disk after the first paging file reaches it's limit. Chapter 7 - "dBASE III PLUS", page 129. The code example for setting the `SAMPLES' environment variable should be revised as follows: # setenv SAMPLES /files/database Appendix A - "Video Graphics Array", on page 135, and "SVADI Super VGA", starting on page 136. Two new color mappings have been added to the four that are mentioned here. They are "Lo16/Hi256" and "Lo16/Hi128". See README.DRV for more information. Appendix B - "Summagraphics Summasketch MM Series Tablets", page 150. The last sentence in the `Note:' is incorrect, it should read as follows: The AC jumper must be in place (ON). Bonus CD-ROM ============ - The AutoLISP routine mmo_edit.lsp lets you interactively test and edit MODEMACRO strings. It displays six edit boxes for entering text strings but only evaluates the first five. To correct this problem revise the AutoLISP file as shown below. Add `l6' to line #121, (setq mmo (strcat l1 l2 l3 l4 l5)) so it reads (setq mmo (strcat l1 l2 l3 l4 l5 l6)) - AutoCAD Lock Utility (CADLOC) Note In Release 12, there is an additional swap file (DOS386 only) which did not exist in R11 and is therefore not removed by cadloc -c (crash recovery). This file, if it exists following a crash, will normally be located in the root directory of the drive containing the current working directory, or drawing directory. There will be two files of the same name; one with an extension of '.SWR', and the new one - with no extension. CADLOC finds and removes the one with the '.SWR' extension, but the other will need to be deleted manually. The name is a random sequence of letters, which changes each time AutoCAD is run.