The Framework for Civil 3D is a standard to build your standards from. The Framework is all about the Adaptive Systems Management of Civil 3D. Why is adaptive systems management important? Lacking a systems approach to CAD Standards in Civil 3D, we are confined to standards ruled only by the immediacy of preference.
Don’t get me wrong. Preference and choice are great. Our freedom to choose and get work done is essential. However, when our favorites erode our ability to adapt to the definite demands of current civil engineering and survey projects, we have a serious business problem.
Civil 3D Beyond the Bubble
Both the iterative model in the data behind and the abstraction of specific detail and substance into Civil 3D Styles, Sets, and Label Styles sounds and works great until the ever-growing collections of inconsistences and references become problematic to maintain. We all tend to create our own…
A Civil 3D Castle of Chaos.
That business problem is definitely not fake news. Most of us loudly attest to that in Civil 3D complaints, wish list items, and forum posts that are on-going to this day. We can tweak Civil 3D to do almost anything. Autodesk has invested heavily in tools to provide us the ability to change and customize a lot of Civil 3D. That result does not always yield a manageable and productive result. Nor does that ability to tweak all things Civil 3D always address our real-world project and engineering demands.
Unquestionably, Civil 3D requires a larger, more complex, and more integrated set of standards plans, executions, and methods of regular revisions. The Framework for Civil 3D was born to train and tame that Civil 3D beast.
Fully documented naming conventions for Civil 3D resources were a fundamental ingredient to our successful recipe for the Adaptive Systems Management of Civil 3D.
We asked the important question…
Can Managed Resource Content Deliver More Consistent Results?
Yes and no.
People must still do the work.
Systems Managed Resource Content alone does not solve the personal and corporate Civil 3D skills problems. Better and more consistent Civil 3D tools and resources help in every way imaginable. They even make radical and innovative new approaches to tool use possible and achievable for all.
If we can make the Framework’s Layer Standards, Survey Codes, Description Key Sets, Figure Prefix databases, Symbol Systems, and all the rest more adaptable, consistent, and robust.
Why not do the same for our Linetype resources?
Adaptive Linetype Resources
In a recent Together We Do Work to Improve Civil 3D post, we discussed how you as a Civil 3D user can improve the application of linetype standard resources supplied with the Framework for Civil. You can easily include your own linetype preferences into the mix. You can work in Civil 3D and make the next project better project after project. This simply takes a different type of Civil 3D user and corporate discipline. Anyone can achieve that.
Adaptive Linetypes AddOn
The Adaptive Linetypes AddOn includes new NCS 6.0 linetype resources that employ NCS 6.0 Key standards for the appropriate linetypes. In other words, the names of the linetypes are now consistent with the NCS 6.0 Keys employed in all the current variants of the NCS Layer Standards.
There are new .LIN file versions for the NCS 6.0 Framework utility scheme and the NCS 6.0 AIA large building project utility scheme. Either or both should be compatible with the recommendations of the current GSA and DOD standards.
Older Linetype Standards Improvements are Included
The Linetypes AddOn includes new and updated linetype resources for the older supplied NCS 5.0 standard including some customer requested fixes to the supplied NCS 50.lin file supplied with both Release 8 and Release 7 product downloads.
Updated and new versions of the linetype resources examples drawings are included for both the older NCS 5.0 and newer NCS 6.0 version variants.
- Linetype resources and examples are now delivered in variant specific folders
- Drawings include examples of all the non-stock Autodesk generic linetype definitions
- The supplied .LIN files are self-documented with detailed comments per the Framework standards.
We even include a reasonable current version of the raw DOD linetype resources for Civil 3D.
New Linetype Spreadsheet Tools
By popular request we built brand new Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools supplied with the AddOn to help you manage and maintain linetype named resources more systematically and consistently now and in the future.
- The Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools supplied produce typical Rename scripts to adjust linetypes names in use in project drawings for different Key schemes.
- The rename scripts are supplied to convert linetype names to and from NCS 5.0 and NCS 6.0.
- The rename scripts are supplied to convert linetype names between both versions of the NCS 6.0.
- The tools can also produce Linetype Purge scripts from filtered sheets
- The supplied Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools fully document all the fixes, updates, and additions available in the new resources.
- New On-line help file documentation available on the website.
- The Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools employ the typical Excel resource Lookup Sheets and Name definitions employed in the Layer Standards Spreadsheet Tools to help reduce your learning curve and maintenance time.
- If you have a documented Key-based scheme for Layers, you can now more easily adapt all or some of the supplied linetype definitions to your own Key scheme with the Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools.
New Linetype Definitions
We added new linetype definitions to the NCS 6.0 variant resources into the supplied .LIN files based on customer requests and feedback. Additions and changes are documented in the Linetype Standards Spreadsheet Tools and in the .LIN resource files.
Where to Get the Adaptive Linetypes AddOn
The Adaptive Linetypes AddOn is available to Jump Kit customers via they product download page in all supported Civil 3D releases.
The Adaptive Linetypes AddOn will be available for both Framework for Civil 3D Releases and versions of Jump Kit Civil 3D 2018- Jump Kit Civil 3D 2020.
Adaptive Tools to Reach Beyond the Code
Get the Framework for Civil 3D Release 8