Reference PointVolume 2, Number 1 Technical Resources (or DataCAD@ Winter, 1992

In This IssueTech Support covers a number of subjects:• The erroneous default parameters in the

AEC_Model macro are listed.• A problem that occurs with the LyrUtil

macro is described.• Some problem areas in Velocity are detailed.• lnstallation procedures for the Logitech

MOllseman mouse are provided.• Installation procedures for the new Hewlett

Packard Design Jet plotter are discussed.

An article on Alias Upfront, a highly toutedWindows 3D sketching application, describes itsuse and examines its compatibility with Data­CAD. Upfrontaffords some interestingpossibili­ties to the DataCAD user.

Configuring for DataCAD discusses the topicofsystem optimization for DataCAD. The articledetails allocation of available system RAM toRAM disk,disk caching. and softwaredisplay list.

Doing Windows discusses additional sourcesof information about Windows.

Customizing DCADMCRdetails the processof creating specialized keyboard macros. Twothird party DCAL macros are discussed. Forusers who have not explored this, it is a highlyrecommended enhancement to DataCAD.

Points of Reference reviews a new b'ainingbook, Beginning DataCAD,and its accompanyingvideos. Thediscussion of UsersGroups started inthe last issue is continued.

NewsCadkey & Soft-Tech: a ClarificationAn article in the November issue of MicroCADNews made a number of erroneous statementsabout the relationship between Cadkey, Inc. andSoft·Tech, the German distributor of DataCAD(DataCADSpirit, in Europe). Someconfusion hasresulted from lhe publication of this article.

The foUowing is quoted from an internal Cadkeymemo circulated to aU AEC staffby Lou Bodnar:

The International section of the Navember issue ofMicroCAD Newsstated that Soft-Tech will be respon­siblefor thedevelopmelltofthe DataCADand 'PQrthe~

non' products. This infrmrwtion is incorrect.

Soft-Tech is an additional development site for Data­CADatul currentlydevelopsapplication macrosfor theCentum version ofDataCAD, DataCAD Spirit. Soft­Tech is not jointly developing Parthe1llm with Cadkey,but mayelect to develop applications for Parthenon ata fuhlre date. All development for the ClIrrent U.S.version of DataCAD and the new Parthenorl productis being done i" the U.S. at Cadkey, Inc.

Elaboration on the subject by a number of peopleat Cadkey has stressed the fact that the develop­mentofbothDataCAD(U.5.) and the forthcomingParthenon-based product is solely the responsi­bility of Cadkey.

Attention:DCAL ProgrammersOn a fairly regular basis, Cadkey receives inquir4

ies from users (usually large installations)seekingthe names of people able to write custom DCALmacros for their facilities.

As a means of facilitating the referral process, Iwould like to compile a list of programmersinterested in this typeof work. Iwill keep Cadkeyupdated with the current listing and distribute itdirectly to users, either in direct response to in­quiries or by publishing it in Reference Point.

DCAL programmers interested in having theirnames included on the list should contact medirectly. Please indudea briefdescription ofyourexperience with DCAL, including the names ofany commerciallyavailable macros, and all neces­sary information for contacting you. Thanks, P.H.

N~$ rotllinUl'd tm PAge 2

CONTENTS

TECH SUPPORTMiscell4nrous ProbIem5

ALIAS UPFRONTWindows based 3D Sketching

CONFIGURING FOR DATACADSome Pointers 011 System Configurgtion

DOING WINDOWSSources of Information

CUSTOMIZING DCAD.MCR

POINTS OF REFERENCE

Users Groups, Bwk/Vidro Review

3

4

6

8

9

12

1"-1 R~ft!rl"'c:e Point

BSA BOiJrd BiJek 01l·Ull~

Aftersumeteethingproblemsas­sociated with its more w newquarters, 1M Boston Society ofArchittl:ls bulletin botIrd is upimd runningllgain.1t fcituresanumber ofCAD ro,m areas, in­cluding one deoot£d to DiJriJ­CAD, A mt5Sil~areRfur Refer­enot' Pointfr.tdhlekcan befuundunder th~ DiJtiJCAD mllinmenu, Plwn~ 1/: (617) 737-8102(8 bits, no ptlrity, 1 stop bit).

In lighl of this series, lind otherforlha:Jming topics, user inputis sought on lhe pllowing soft­ware products:Drvno, Cord SyslemsDdllX~ PiJi"t, ElectTonic ArtsGRASP, Paul Mila Softwar~

MiJ""~qllj",HUMANCADDR DOS, Digital ResearchUsers w/whare familiarity withthese products art encourllgedto shilre lheir experimas withfellow u.sm through th£septlges.

Referem:e Point now a QuarterlyAs 3D World will now be sent to users on aquarterly basis, so will Reference Point. To assureusersofa continuity in the quantity ofinfonnationprovided, Reference Point has been expanded totwelve pages per issue,

Beginning with this issue, advertising for Data­CAD third-party products will be included withRefemu:e Point, Ads will be handled as inserts.Parties interested in advertising should contactFrank Simpson at Cadkey for rate schedules,procedures, etc.

Marketing with DataCADAn upcoming series of articles in Reference Pointwill examine software and hardware tools thatenable the DataCAD user to utilize his/her skillsmore broadly. The articles will explore the inte­gration of DataCAD and Velocity with other(non-Cadkey) software, Illustration and presen­tation products will be examined.

Theconceptof'CAD-To-Co' willbeinvestigated,focussing on the utilization of DataCAD in on­sight presentations. 'CAD-To-Co' will be exam­inedasatoolforbothmarketing(HowamDataCADsh'lls be used to get new work?) and project specificpresentations (Haw can DataCAD be used to sell adesign to aclient or review agency?).

Thegoalof this seriesis to present to the user someinsights into a broad range of possible applica­tionsfor DataCADand Velocity in thereat-worldpractice of architecture.

ABC Draw DemonstratedAt the November meeting of the Boston Data·CAD Users Group (DBUG) a very interestingnew product was demonstrated. Tentativelynamed ABC Draw, it is comprised of hardwareand softwarecomponents which allow theusertofield measure an existing structure, creating anaccurate 3D model of the space.

The Modeler is run on a laptop computer con­tained in a briefcase. A mechanical measuringdevice loea ted in theother sideofthe case is linkedto DataCAD through proprietary software and aDCAL macro. A wire is fed out from the measur­ingdevice;itsend,attached toa 'wand,' is held bythe user to points in the space and, using a radio­controlled mouse, the user tells DataCAD whatisbeing pointed at. Vertical and horizontal poly­gons are drawn in DataCAD.

Nou: The ABC Draw 'user' illustrlJted III the n'ght IWS created i/1 Mannequinas a series of polyg<msll/1d imported 10 DQ/iJCAD through DXF trlJ/1sfer. Therest of tIu! 'model' lalS dl"ilum in DiJtiJCAD; then a hidden line tRl5 nl/1 lindcleaned up. The graphic lalS imported wPage Maker as an HPGL plol fi1e-More 011 Mannequin in lhe nexl issue.

Pa~2

The measurements are calculated based on thelength of the wire pulled out of thedevice and onthe angle of the wire. Triangulation of pointsdevelops a series of3D references from which the3D entities are created.

ABC Draw was demonstrated by Dr. MichaelGeary, Chairman of Resources Engineering Sys­tems, Inc. and membersof thedevelopment team.Thedevice is at an earlystageofdevelopmentandthey are seeking input from the DataCAD com­munity regarding its real-world potential. Theymay be contacted directly:

Resources Engineering Systems, Inc.~eCMnbridgeCenter

Cambridge, MA 02142(617) 621-8555

FAX (617) 621-6989

TECH SUPPORT

AEe_MODEL MacroAs noted in the last issue of Refemlce Point, thereare some errors in the default parameters set inthismacroasshipped tousers. Uthemacrois usedwith these settings, some unexpected results willbe produced. Reset to:

Windows Erroneous CorrectMenu Selection Default Default

Hcad Height 14'-8~ 6'-8"SilIl'leight 8'-4" 3'-4"Trim

At Head Off OnAt Jamb OIf OnAtSiU OIf On

HmdDoHmd OIf On

'"h Off.., 3'-4~ 2",m

TN""'" 3" 11/2"Muntins

"'''' 011 OnMunllhk '" 1/r

Gb~

OoQ_ 011 Onem"", """" On

Doors Erroneous CorrectMenu Selection Default Defaultw..nll1k t'-4~ '""""'g.,,,,,,,, 0 '"Trim

At 1·lead 011 OnExtcnsn 3" '"At Jamb 011 On

HcadcrDo Head Off On

JambDo Jamb 011 On

'<opDo Stop Off On

Problem with LyrUtil MacroThe Problem: After importing a series of layerswith the LyrUtil macro, placement of entitiesusingkeyboard entry (SPACE BAA) may result in theentities being placed in an unexpected fashion.

The Cause: When the Input Mode of the SQllrce

drawing is set to either Relative Cartesian orAbsolu te Cartesian, the target dra wing file is resettoAbsolute Polar Input Modeby importing layersusing LyrUtil, regardless of the previously setInput Mode. Source me settings of Relative orAbsolute Polar reset the target file correctly.

The Solution: After importing layers, reset theInput Mode of the drawing file. Press the INS keyto cycle through the options until the desiredInput Mode has been selected.

Velocity TipsWhen batch processing a series of views saved.in the source.0c3 file, an error results if the userhas specified more than 100 views. This typicallyoccrIlS when the user attempts to create a ren­dered walk·through presentation.

Solution.: process in Vekxitysetsofless than 100views, then combine the sets for the completepresentation.

Voids: A slab may only contain 36 rectangularvoids. If37 or more voids have been constructedin one slab, rendering will fail with the followingerror message:

~ZE Of ENTlTY DATA EXCEEDS BUffER SIZE.ERROR CREATlNG POLYGON FILE.CHECK DISK. SPACE.

Ifhorizontal slabs with more than 4 vertices wereused todefine the voids, fewer than 36 voids willprocess successfully. As the number of verticesincreases, the Plumber t:f voids mllst decrease.

Divisions: Entities such as the Torus and Domewill not render successfully with Divisions sethigher than 24. If divisions are set too high,rendering will fail with the following error mes­sage:

TORUS DR ARC DATA EXCEEDS OUTPUT BUffERS.ERROR WRITlNG TEMPORARY RENDERING FILE.ERROR CREATING POLYGON fiLE.CHECK DISK SPACE.

Logitech Mouseman MouseUsers have been calling Cadkey's technical sup­port tine requesting assistance with the useof theLogitech MOllstmQPI serial mouse in DataCAD.TIleLogitech C-7 serial driver supplied by Cadkeydoes not work with the MOllsettultl.

Thereason for this isthat,.unlike previous Logitechmice, which were hardware compatible with theMouse Systems mouse, the Mouseman is hard·ware compatible with the Mkrosoft Mouse.

The solution is to run the driver, MOUSE-COM

supplied by Logitech with the MouSettum. Run itfrom AUTOEXEC.BAT or a batch file used to launchDataCAD, (RUNDCAD.BAT or its equivalent).MOUSE-COM is a TSR that the user should, if p0s­sible, load to the high memoryarea to freeconven·tional memory. Then configureDataCAD for theLogitech Bus mouse.

u.~Brnrlcillg topic HnokttPllcbrJ Duipld ,IDttn.This pIottn' use inkitt t«IrnDI­ogy to produa 14Tgt (up to fsiu) bUIck & wIlik dill/DingS III

JOO d.pj.ll nm.sfrom HPGLI1com1l'lil1td Lmgwge lit II mud!ftukr spnd thll" pt7I pIoItm.D.!taCAD hils _Ill HPCLdet1ia drivers but dots not rur·rmtty support flPCL ft. SinerflPGLrom1l'lilnlls artll subset ofHPGLlf, aderJia thlll mns wilhHPGL II sheu/d II/SO acceplHPGL comlllQnlls. However, 10get the Design/et 10 plot using II

D:ltaCAD HPCL drirxr thrreIlrtll roupleof pecuIiari/in thIltmus' bedNlt with.0ufkEy hils prrpIlrtd lin HPGLdritrer: HPGLS2.DVP far IhtDesignjtt thIlt IldJrtsStS th.tselfllirb.1t is posttdOfllhtc..dkyBuIktiIr BoIlrdJ(2Q]J29B-6f()5;

II Irits;IIOJIIlri!y; J stoplrilJ inlhtC.l.ItaCADllnII. TOU$l!!lhtdTftr.copy it to lhe \W"l"Ill:\llRY\ diT«­tDryllltdr:tmfigrmDlJtIlCADfarthe HP Design/d.IIlwllwbmt rrporU'tI tlwllhelJe;ignJrl CIl7l be dritm by lheD.!taCAD drftrn F the HPlJIsnf'-'t 1II.

More infrmnlliiort nat issue.

Edi tor'$ "OU: /hIlvc strng,g/edfor yetJfS wilh Nrious micund~subs/itules,trying tofind~ !hilt is both "Calmtt lindcnmforlJlblt. This i$handsdown(pun inttrnW) the bt$t mouse IhIltltnltf USftI. TN Mowu...."is IlNilRblt in both rightlrld IlfthIlnkd modtU Illtd is ttny com·farlJlblt 10 grip. Wgil«II soft­1W1r an configure the bul/OIlS.so tlwllefthIlrulnl usm mIrY w.st

thriT indafin~F"prt$$ theleft button" oP"'"'tims.I hatlt btrm using Iht Mouse­".,.,. for .bout sir """thSllnd,for Iht first lime in ytVfS, hIlvcMn rrlitNrl of thellChing hIlrldsyndrome resWling from longhours ofworking withll mouse.Iam grot the MO..$,..... .. mywhck httlrttd lind enthusiasticr«cmmetldDtion; it is wrllworlhits relatitody Ww strret priet.

PIIgt3

1"1 Rcferc"ce Point

Alias Upfront: a Front-End for 3D Modeler?

A1ills ~rd!.Irn:.no Richmond StTm ERstT(WOIlto, c.rwdll M5C IPJTd: (416) 362-9J8JFar. (416) 362-G6JO

UpfrontTN, from AliasResearch, Inc. has recentlybeen widely reviewed in the Architectural press.It is touted as a user-friendly Windows applica­tion which allows the Architect to make 'napkinsketches' in any 3D perspective view. It wasoriginally developed for the Macintosh platfonnand ported to Microsoft Windows last year.

One of Upfront's most powerful features is theabilitytocoordinatetheperspectiveorientationofa scanned-in site photograph with the viewp:>rtorientation of the user. Resulting images may begenerated that serve as views of the proposeddesign 'in place: Upfront also supports shadowcasting and surface shading. 'The resulting im­ages, though not rendered, are very impressive.

As Upfront supports DXF import and export,DataCAD users have expressed interest in thepossibilities afforded by Upfront as a 'front end'for the 3D Modelerand asa means of perfonningshadow studies on models created in DataCAD.

Using Uphont, for users familiar with bothWindowsand the Modeler, wiD be fairly straight­forward. Asa Windows application, installationis extremely simple. The user need only use thesupplied lNSTAU. program and run Upfront fromthe Program Manager. Because it is a Windowsapplication, there is none of the complexity thatwould be encountered in installing a IX>S pro­gram of this sophistication (juggling parametersin CONFIC.svs, installing drivers, etc.).

Theuser interlace is, for themostpart. simpleandU5e'r-fTiendly, especially to anyone with familiar­ity with other Windows applications. The com­mand sequence for thecreation. ofentities is veryeasy to learn, especially if theuser is familiar with3D entity types based on DataCAD experience.

The menu controlling shadow casting (in whichLatitude and time ofday are set) is very clear.Themenu options for controlling perspective views,though, are less than intuitive and require somestudy of the manual. Likewise, the manipulationof views relative to the previously mentionedscanned-in imagesrequiresa degreeof familiaritywith the software. The manual, by the way, is all'lOC!el for other vendors to emulate; it is weDorganized, clearly written, and weD illustrated.

The DXF transfer of a model from Upfront toDataCADiscleanand straight-forward,ascan beseen from theiUustrationsat the right Becauseollimitations in DXF transferof3Dentities(seeR.P.00/.1, no. 2), one would not expect all DataCAD3Dentity types to translate to Upfront. One wouldhope, though, that simpleentitiy types (conform­ing to DXF) might transfer.Todate, successin thishas not been acheived. Investigation with Aliasresearch as to the cause is under way.

In an upcoming issue, the use of Upfront will beexamined in more detail. For now, limited use ofit indicates that it can, in fact, serve as a realenhancement to the use of DataCAD.

Figure 1Perspeclive view with shadows

Figure 2plQll view

Figure 3plan view with shadows

Ow w limitJJtimls in the"Jl"O'"duct... proas:ses U5ftI in print­ing Reference Point, the Up­front iJlust1'lltiorts prtSCltalhtrran ""sed OPI $CTtlm imllges ofllmodtl disp/llytd in II mono-­chromt paldtt(II/IofthemtititsIIrt shown with whi~ surfrlct5lind black edgts). Surfrlu shad­ingo(mtitie5 i5lhtrtbydisllb~d.

NOlt /hilt lilt shadows ClI5t bymlilits inlhu modd filII 0If lheground pUlnt(IIhoriumtllJ poly­gon which hlId wbednfw,l)1t7Id0I'l the surfi-s tfother mtitits,"8"niJes5 of IIrrit orimL<lt....

Figure 4perspective view

Figure 5perspective view

The DataCAD Hiddtn LineRtmOOlll imRgt hils nol beendtsmtdupinllnYIolIlIY.1he trims­

fer of mtitin through DXFIrllrlSl.<llion is lICCW'II~ dintnr­sion4Ilyllrtd IIOmlitits _lostin tN proc.tSS.

Figure 6DataCAD HLR image

17 \~

- II~\ If

l-- /'

.

P.gt5

1"'1 R~f~wlce Point

Configuring for DataCAD: basic principles for speed

• Disk CacheCache in Extended or E~nded Memory

• RAM (or virtual) DiskRAM Disk in Exttmded or Expanded Memory

Figure 3 illustrates the result of loading driversand a portion of DOS to High DOS Memory.

Note:when using a metrwry marUlger to load drivershigh, RUNDCAD.lM.Tshould be replaced with adifferentbatch file. DataCAD's CONFlC re-writes RltNDCAD.lM.Tevery time it is exited and does not recognize the 'loadhigh' statements of memory milfUlgers. A copy ofRUNDCAD.lM.T, renamed, should beedited to incillde thestatements for loading the softuXlre display list andgraphiCS drivers to high memory. Use this altenllltebatch file to start DataCAD.

DataCAD can function with as few as 2 PageFramesavailable, but perfonnance is marginal, atbest. Cadkey recommends that a maximumamountofConventional Memorybemadeavail­able for Page Frame swapping. In DataCAD, theuser can enter the DIRECTRY menu and selectMEMQiECK. The message line reads 'Number ofPage Frames allocated:_.' Though some usersrun with fewer than 10 Page Frames, 18-22 PagesFrameson286systemsand30-40Pages Frameson386 and 486 systems is easily achievable.

To maximize available Page Frames;

• UseaDOSversion(MSOOSS.OorDRIXJS6.0)which allows a portion of itself to be installedin the High DOS Memory area. The result ismore free Conventional Memory for applica­tions. See R.P. vol. 1, no. 2 for adisclIssion ofupgrading to MS DOS 5.0.

• Load to High DOS Memory all of the driversutilized in the system configuration.

To load drivers to high memory, memory man­agement software must be used. Both DOS ver­sions listed include memory managers; also, anumberofexcellentthird-partyproouctsareavail­able. System components whose drivers shouldbe loaded to High DOS Memory are listed below.The RAM region,and type, to which their data isstored is listed when applicable.

• Software Display ListDisplay list in Expanded Memory

• Graphics Card

• Mouse (if using a vendor supplied driver)

• Maximize application space in conventionalmemory (number of Page Frames).

• Relieve the processor of some of its tasks.

• Maximize access to the .sWP files in RAM,rather than hard disk.

To understand these goals, a brief explanation ofthe software's operation is in order. When enter­ing DataCAD, the appropriate graphiCS driverand software display list driver (if used) are firstinstalled.11lisisusually handled by RUNDCAD.BAT

or a user-defined batch file. In a 'vanilla' configu­ration these drivers are loaded to ConventionalMemory (RAM below the 640K DOS barrier).

When the command 'DeAD' is invoked, theexecutable portion of the DataCAD program isloaded to Conventional Memory. Then, when adrawing file is loaded, it is copied from its harddisk directory and a 'working' version of it ismade [the drawing swap (.swp) filel. The locationof the .SWP files is specified in the PATH menu ofCONRG under the option for 'virtual files.' At thispoint, Conventional Memory contains the coreDOS resources, the DataCAD application, andthe DataCAD drivens) as illustrated in Figure 2.

1be remaining Conventional Memory is thentaken over by DataCAD for its use. Data isswapped between this area of free ConventionalMemory and the .SWP files in 4K segments, re­ferred to as 'Page Frames.' TIUs swapping actionis the means with which DataCAD operates onthe data comprising a drawing .SWP file. By in­creasing the size of this 'work' space, DataCADperfonnance can be improved.

Video RAM

O:u:sCAOAppIic:stion

UnusedMemory

VIdeo Ads tor

Moved to HllhDOS Memory.RAM Disk Driver

Disk Cache DriverS.D.L Driver

Grsphlcs DriverDOS Resour~es

Page Fn.mes

S.O.L On--

Grsphlcs On--

OsaCAOAppIicstion

OOs Resour~es

OK

r:OO~S:ER:.~~~~;;:.jOK"

Figure 3Memory AfterOptimization

800K

76aK

....K,-----,

System optimization for running DataCAD is acomplex topic. Thegoal istogetDataCAD torunas quickly as possible on any given system for theparticlllar drawing tasks to be undertaken. In thefollowing.. an overall strategy is outlined that willallow the user to make basic choices about theJ allocation of system resources.

.... There isno substitute forhorsepower;processorg type/rating is the single most important factor in:!o DataCAD performance. A 486-50 based systemJ: will outperforma386SX-20, etc. Second,access to

....K1-----; data in RAM isaccomplished roughly 1,000 times.~ faster than to hard disk. The more DataCAD can] be configured to use RAM resowces, the better,f: it will perform.

'- ..I g lhree goals in configuring for DataCAD:OK­

Figure 1Typical Memory Map

Figure 2Conventional MemoryBefore Optimization

I,OUK H' h Memo Ar

I.:~:~ SGem ROM

P"se6

Reference Point 1"1

RAM SOFIWARE RAMTOTAL AVAILABLE DISK

DISPLAY (VIRTUAUI SYSTEM RAM FOR CArnEALLOCATION

UST DISK

1 Megabyte

2 Megabytes 1 Megabyte 384< 640<

4 Megabytes 3 Megabytes 2 Megabytes 1 Megabyte

8 Megabytes 7 Megabytes 1 Megabyte 1 Megabyte 5 Meg;abytes

12 Megabytes 11 Megabytes 2 Megabytes 1 Megabyte 8 Meg;abytes

Figure 4Recommended RAM al1oaltim, for DlltllCAD

- "The Hidden Uneoperation createsa.swp fileofits A Disk CacM i'l • ropy in

own, which can be quite large, depending upon RAM t! IN~t RlCmIIy rtIUi

the amount of information being processed. inftJrmRticm tMt htu bml rtIUifrom tM httrd di'lk. W71m, J11O'

RAM Disks small... than 4 megabytes should be grvm calli fix inftmnlltion from1M hard disk, the cacM i'l rtIUif used with extreme caution and only with rela- first. If the rstUSS/lty dtlt. i'l in

tively small drawing files. Note tha twhen thesize tkalChe, it i'l muI dinctlyfromof the .sWP files exceeds thesizeof the RAM Disk, RAM od the IMrd disk is rIOt- DataCAD crashes. fICa$StfI.lf the dtlt# is !lOt in lite. OICN, the IMrd disk is rnullmd

Disk Caches are an extremely beneficial tool in lite Qlche is updilled with new

all configurations. For systems with less RAM datil. Mostly,disk alCM"rtu~datedon" llst in,lIstout' lwsis.

- than is adequate for a RAM Disk, where the.swp A RAM Disk is , portion offiles are configured to hard disk, even a small KA/I.1 tholt hols bml "I/oal1nl1l$1Icache improves DataCAD's performance. 1ogit4ldrin-.ToOOS,ilbdrlrots

Inaddition tocaching reads from the .swpfiles (onlih , disk d1'iue (or II Iogicrllpartition ofone).

hard disk), program support filesaccessed by the Drivers for disk Qlchd Itld

• executing portion of the program are cached to RAM disks Ire itlSlD1/t'd by"dd-

RAM once they havebeen read the first time. This itlg statemerlts to CONAC.sys, illwhich they should be IoIlded /0

isa mllst in alf cot/figurations. Relatively large Disk high memory us/tlg memory

s Caches are recommended for all configurations. manager commands. Disk Qlch-ing softwilre catl U5U11l1y be

In theconfigurationsouUined in Figure4, the one tut'l1tdonatldoff(QtlCl': itls ID /kdJdescribed for a 4 megabyte system relies upon a at the 005 command line IItld

large DiskCacheforitsspced ofexecution. Writes maybeOOllfTQUedfmm baldtjilts.

f to the .swp files are to hard disk but, once a Om! wam;ng:ifbotha RAM

drawing file has been worked on for a short time,disk and a disk cadte 1Irt' ustd,mablsure 11uI/lheQldledritla is

most reads (for swapping to the Page Frame area) amfigumllo not rtlld lhe RAMshould occurin RAM. The8 megabyteconfigura- disk. II woutdslow thesystml by

tion is an optimal oneas swap file readsatld writes filling the mclte with inJemrtl.- lOtI idmuly /oaIted ill RAM.

are from and to RAM. Once the Disk Cache has--

picked up the program support data, workingsessions in this configuration occur almost en- A fIn'lJ com",dltns~ di$cu$-

t:irely in RAM. sian of configuring DIIt.CtD- INspublishtdmWindowlnon

System configurations with RAM in excess of 8 OataCAD II lite poinl of 4.0·5rritllse (rot. 4, FlOJ. J), & J'.megabytes are not directly beneficial to Data-They"rt'''IJII~blefrom:

CAD. However, Velocity and Windows perfor- c. L Drois Cor!sultmg A$D:.mance is significantly improved by having large P.O.8ar502

Middld7u VTOS75J

Use the Software Display List to relieve theprocessor ofsome of its tasks. nus feature is welldescribed in the manual and will not be dwelupon here. Two note on its use, though: rust, it isrecommended most urgently that the softwaredisplay listtwl be configured to hard disk; perfor­mance degradation will result from doing thisAlso, Cadkey recommends against configuringthe Display List to the same RAM Disk to whichthe.sWP files' path are set. The potential for con­flicts between the two can lead to disaster.

The Software Display Ust should be configuredto Expanded Memory for optimal performance

Maximizing access to.5WP files in RAM, thethird goal for optimizing performance, is accompUshed by using a Disk Cache and/or a RAM (orvirtual) Disk. These utilize system RAM to ac­complish specific tasks. Each has itsown benefitsand relative merits depending on the amount 0RAM available to the user.

Figure 4 illustrates recommended RAM allocation for the Software Display List, Disk Cacheand RAM Disk for various amounts of systemRAM; the following discussion win bebasedon it

As described above, DataCAD operates by making .sWP files to and from which data is swappedby the program for its execution. If the .swp filesare located on hard disk, the process of readingfrom and writing to them is slow. If they can belocated in RAM, through one means or anotherDataCAD can access them much more quickly.

One means of accomplishing this is to install aRAM Diskand configure the path forthe .swpfileto it. Autosaves are made to the source drawingfile directory SO the amount of work lost in theevent of a power failure or system crash is afunction of theautosave interval. For a couple 0

reasons, the recommended minimum size for aRAM disk used for swap files 4 megabytes:

"The drawing .sWP file may grow to a size muchgreater than it parent.DC3 file. DataCAD operations which include an UNDO feature create buffers of data which enlarge the draWing .sWP meOther operations, as wen, expand the size of thedrawing .sWP file as they execute. Second, DataCAD creates more than one .swp file. When a newfont isadded to a drawing. the message 10adingfont filexx.chr' isdisplayed;a new .sWPfileisbeingcreated. Each font used has itsown.swp file,equalin size to its parent.aiR file. amounts of RAM available.

1"1 Refuena Point

DOING WINDOWS -

The user might be well aduisedto WIlil until the relalseof Win­dows 3.1 for the purchase of agood Windows book. One canassume that the current crop oftitles will be updated to aJuer

3.1, DOS 5.0,and the latest a~pliclllion softWllre. 3.1 is sdled­uled for rele4st in early 1992.

PageS

Sources ofInformationWindows 3.ae is an immensely complex and s0­

phisticated environment.Theuserisrewarded bythe many features that the authors of Windowsapplications are able to incorporate. The usermay, justas easily, spend many frustratinghoursattempting to get something to work underWindows.

Regular users of Windows (and with the releaseof the Parthenon4 based product, this includesthose of the DataCAD user base who elect toswitch to it) are encouraged to broaden theirknowledge about Windows.

The two primary sources of infonnation cur­rently available are periodicals and books. Publi­cations like PC Magazine, Byte, and 11lfau:crld (tolist only a few) run feature articles on Windowsand Windows applications on a regular basis.Most of the magazines also feature regular col­urnns devoted to Windows.

"Though feature articles often focus on topics thatwould appear to be of little interest to the.Data­CAD user, theyoften containgemsofinfonnationabout technical quirks in Windows. Similarly,Windows columnists may devote all of theirspacetoapparentlyobscureareasonlytomentionsomething in passing thatisrelevant to thereader'sWindows configuration.

There is real value in qUickly scanning thesearticles and columns. At some future date, whenfacing a significantproblemin runningWindows,one may remember reference toa problemarea inan article previously read. Instead of spendinghours trying to unravel a mysterious conflict orwaiting for a technical support call-back fromMicrosoft or a dealer, the solution may be trace­able through topics covered in thesepublications.

For a more consolidated source of infonnation, itis strongly recommended that the user purchaseagoodbookon Windows. But which one? AqUickglance through the computer shelves at any de­cent book store will turn up a staggering numberof titles on the subject.

Thepublications thatareavailablespan a range ofapproaches. At the high end are technical refer­ences for Windows programmers. Atthe lowendare the 'Windows in plain English" books; thesecan be characterized as being simple re-hashes ofMicrosoft's manual and help files. While a decentexplanation of icons and mice is useful, and al~

most automatically more easily understood thanthe Windows manual, something more is neededfor the serious user of Windows applications.

In selecting the most appropriate book to pur·chase, a comparison of the coverage given to acouple of selected topics will qUickly narrow thechoice. The following is a short list of questionsthat might be asked:

Hawextensive is thediscusskm of386 Enhanced modeoperatkm?

Are memory l1umagers (QEMM 386,386MAX, etc.)discussed iruiividlwlly? As ageneric class?

Is the PlF editor discussed at length?

AreproblemswithCOMport interruptsdiscussedandu:crk-arounds suggested?

My own search led me to the purchase of:

Windows 3 SecretsBrian Livingston

IOC Books Worldwide, Inc.San Mateo, CA 94402

livingston is theWindowscolumnist for11lftnrorldand is a Windows consultant. His writing sbikesa nice balance between the provision of basicinfonnation and detailed technical discussion.

Portions of the 838-page book may be used as asolid introduction to Windows for the new user.It includes many useful tips on Windows setupand configuration. Additionally, the book servesas a detailed reference guide to the running ofWindows. lbe book also includes two floppiescontaining some useful (.ZIP compressed) Win­dows shareware.

By wayofillustratingits usefulness, I was initiallyunable get my modem to work under Windows.Livingston's discussion of modems and commu­nications, to which he devotes 20 pages, helpedme track down and solve the problem (conflictinghardware interrupts).The Microsoftdocumenta·tion on this subject did not provideenough infor4

mation for me to solve the problem.

This is not meant as a recommendation of thisbookoverothers, though Ido think thatitisa goodone. Rather, it is an example of the typealld level ofresource that I feel Windows users should haveavailable. Agood bookon Windows isexpensive,but will pay for itself in increased efficiency andproblem solving.

Customizing DCAD.MCR, Keyboard Macros Explained

R"tl!w,cI! Po;,,' 1"1Theseoond most important customiza tion withinDataCAD(afterde(aultdrawings)thattheuserisable to control is the m<XIification of DCAD.MCt.

This is thefile which controls the 'meaning' of thekeyboard macros, the ALT+t.£TTD. combinationwhich 'jumps' the user to a particular menulocation in DataCAD.

DCAO.MCl. is an ASCI file, nonna.11yinstalled to theMTEC\SUP directory. It is easily modified using atext editor like [)()5 5.O's Edit command or oneincluded with most [)()S shell programs, or aword processor (saving the file to ASCII format).

Reading DCAD.MeR: Each line in the file corre­sponds to one keyboard macro command se­quence. Figure 1 illustrates the contentso( the fileas shipped with DataCAD 4.0. The first line,beginning with the letter A is the command se­quence corresponding to ALT+A, the keyboardmacro that jumps to the aJRVES menu. An exami­nation of this line will serveas a meansofdescrib­ing the way in which keyboard macro files work.

When the user holds down the ALT key andpresses the A key, DataCAD searches the file

Figure 1DeAD.MCR as supplied by Cadkey

DCA.D.Ma for the line beginning with A and ex­ecutes lherommandsrontained on that line. Theronunands are separated from each other by theCARAT ~character<SH1fT+6inthe typewriter areaof the keyboanl).

Any given line in DCAD.MOl. may not m:ttd 128characters, total.

There are fOUT basic types of 'commands': ex­tended ASOl characters,keyboard interrupts, fu ne­tion keys, and text entry.

Extended o4SOl characters: the keyboard macrofile recognizes four extended ASCII charactersandassigns to them special meanings. 11lcy arc usedto suppress and resume the display of the mes­sage and menu portions of the DataCAD screenduring the operation of the command sequence.Without using them to suprcss the display, thescreen would flash through each of the menuoperations, slowing execution.

Figure 2 illustrates the appearance of the charac­teTs as they display in a [)()5 ASCtt editor. Thecharacters are written by holding down the o4LT

key while typing the number on the numerickeypad of the keyboard (NOM LOCK on). The ex­tended ASCII character is displayed after the ALT

key is released.

Note: some keyboord macros, o4LT+N in Figtlre 1, forinstance, require that the display be kept on dllri"gtheir execution. If the user finds that a parlicu.larkeyboardmacroisnotexecutingproperfy,he{shemighttry removing the extended ASCI1 characters from thatline as a possible fix.

Returning to the line defining o4LT+A, we under­stand that the first actions of this keyboard macrohave been tostop thedisplayof themessagesandmenus in the DataCAD screen. Next, the key­board interrupt for the edit menu (;) is invoked.

Keyboard interrupts: any keyboard intenuptmay be u.sed ina keyboard macro. Generally, Hiswise to begin any keyboard macro with a 'jump'to either the EDIT (;) or the UTn.ITY <:) menu. Thisensures that the user exits the current menuposition and is placed in one of the two primarymenus, from which he/she may thenselectmenusteps using function key cans.

Moread vanced useofkeyboard interruptswiU bediscussed later in this article. Fornow,;has takenus to the mrr menu, from which we wiU usefunction keys to enter the curves menu.

11 ALT+l83stop menu display

, ALT+l84start menu display

I! ALT+200stop message display

Ii ALT+201!start message display

Figure 2extended ASCII charaders

used by DCAD.MCR

Note IX:.\O~!IoIO.,.1I$sJtippnl, ismissing 1M amll dIIIr«tD mst1tM posilions mA. H, N, QIfn4 Y. Tht fW morts pro,my.bul UStn shouU follow till!prJ,,:.tu of IIlrwyf ~"'Img rom-­nwruls with 1M OIn1t.

1'-1 R~/~mIC~ Point

Function keys: simply by entering keystrokesequivalent to the appropriate Fx or Sx menuJXlsition, that command is selected. tn the ALT+Aline, S5 selects the menu option in the S5position(OJRVES) displayed in the EDIT menu, previouslyselected by the i interrupt.

'The line is closed with the extended ASCII charae-­ters created with ALT+l84 and ALT+20l.

It is important to remember that any keyboard macrobeginningwith thesuppressionofmenusami messagesshould conclude with tuming them back 011.

Modifying DCADMCRUsers with a fair bitofexperience with DataCADwill be able to identify which of the keyboardmacros he/she has little use for and which oneshe/she wishes had been provided.

By way of example, let's say that the user neveruses ALT+O (I'ERPENDICUlAR toggle in the OBJSNAPmenu) but wishes there was a keyboard macro forONE UNE TRIM (in the a..EA.NUP menu).

First, enter DataCAD and write down the menusequence that takes the user to the desired menu.In this case, it is: EDIT (;), a..EA.NUP (F9), lLN TRIM(F4). Exit DataCAD to [X)5 and enter the direc­tory containing DeAD,MCR (\MTEC\SUP in a stan­dard configuration) and save a copy of the file toa different name:

CDlMTEOSUPCOPY DCAD.MCR OLD.MCR

Then, using an ASCII editor, open DeAD.MCR andmodify the line beginning with 0 to read:

0"'..'" (!A ; A~AF4A,AIi

Using the text editor's commands, save the file asDCAD.MCR and close the editor. Enter a DataCADdrawing file and invoke the modified keyboardmacro by holding down the ALTkey and pressingthe 0 key. ONE UNETRIM will have been accessed.

If desired, the original version of the file may bereturned to by renaming the files in [X)5:

CDIMTEOSUPREN DCAD.MCR NEW.MCRREN OLD.MCR DCAD.MCR

Since DataCAD always reads the file namedDeAD.MCR when accessing a keyboard macro,whichever file currently has that name is the onewhich controls the action of the keyboard macroswithin DataCAD. A macro which fadlitates the useofmultiple .mcrfiles is described 011 TXlge 11.

Some RefinementsThere are a couple of additional wrinkles in thecustomization of keyboard macros.

'Returnable' keyboard interrupts: mast of theDataCAD keyboard interrupts act in a 'positive'way; when they are invoked, the user is taken toa specific menu position. Exiting that menu stepsthe user back through the menu structure.

Some interrupts, though, are 'returnable.' Whenthey are used, theuser is taken to a menu positionand, uJXln exiting that menu, is returned to themenu from which the interrupt was invoked.

If, for instance, the user is in the MOVE menu, hasentered someof the MOVE parameters, and pressesthe X (upper case) key; he/she is taken to theOBJECT SNAP menu. After setting parameters inOBJECT SNAP, and exiting that menu, DataCADreturns the user to the MOVE menu,at thesameplacein the sequence as when the X interrupt UXlS inooked.

The user may take advantage of this type ofinterrupt in a keyboard macro. The foUowingsequence is one that I use:

QA)(ASSAS8

ALT+Q enters OBJECT SNAP, toggles LYRS NAPOn/offand exits OBJECT SNAP. Because X isa 'returnable'interrupt, the user returns to the menu positionfrom which the keyboard macro was initiated. Inuse, LYRSNAP is toggled within any commandsequence. Note that suppression of menus andmessages isnotused; the messagestating whetherall (ayers or only the tu:tive layer will be snapped tois briefly displayed as user verification.

Direct entry of text can be a useful tool in a key­board macro. For instance, access to a particularDCAl macro can be difficult to accomplish bycallinga menu JXlSition; the position mightchangewhen new macros are installed (and get listed inalphabetical order). Entering its name at the userprompt line will call the macro, regardless of itsposition. A keyboard macro which calls a(fictidous) DCAl macro named EDDIE.DCX wouldlook like this:

zA~A~AnAEDD[EA$A,AR

The M (upper case) interrupt enters the MACROSmenu, 'EDDIE' isentered at the user prompt,andthe $ serves as the ENTER key. Regardless of itsJXlSition in the MACROS menu, EDDIE.DCX will beloaded by this keyboard macro. A variety of usesfor this ability are possible in DataCAD as thereare many menus that aa::ept direct entry of text.

Multiple Keyboard Macro FilesThe user may define any number of keyboardmacro files, each particular to a specific type ofdrawing. Some users, for instance make a versionfor working in the 3D Modeler. Others haveversions for drawing wall sections, etc. Theprob­lem with multiple versions of OC....D.MCR, eachstored with its own name, is thatitis irritating toexit to DOS and rename the various files to makethe correct one operative at any given time.

A solution is available. David Pendery ofHMFHArchitects, Cambridge, MA has written a DeALmacro, NEWKYMCJLDCX, which isavailable throughEvan Shu's Cheapume for a very nominal price.When entered, the macro displays a list of all files

in the \sup directory with a .MCR extension. Theuser selects the file to activate and the macroperfonns the DOSrenaming process. Effectively,the user is no longer limited to the 26 charactersavailable in a single keyboard macro file.

Cheapware bundles NEWK'YMCJLDCX with anotherDeAL macro by Pendery: EDITKEY.DCX, whichenables editing the contents of a .MCR file fromwithin DataCAD. This macro works well but isIimitedbythedisplaycharacteristicsofDataCAD'suser input line. The extended ASOl charactersdisplay as smudgy blobs or blank spaces; addi~tionally, only one line of the file may be edited ata time. These Jimitationsaside, NEWKYMCJLDCXandEDITKEY.DCX augment the use of keyboard macros.

R~f~r~ncePoint 1"1

Che4pw<lr~

Shu Associates10 Thacher St.

&l:ston,MA 02713(617) 367-9622

An Example:

By way of demonstrating the possibilities avai1~ preceding discussion. Note that in ALT+I,ableinacuslomizedDCAD.MCR,thefollowingisthe NEWKYMCJLDCX is used to call a second keyboardbasic 2Dediting keyboard macro file that I use. I macro file (T£XT.MCR). The macro T£XT.MCR resetshope that theparticulareditingcommandsthatit DIMENSiON and TEXT menu parameters relative toaccesses might stimulate the reader to evaluate plot scale and includes an ALT+lcommand whichhis/her own needs within DataCAD. The file, recalIsthis(primary)keyboardmacrofile.Seetheitself, utilizes all of the elements described in the note below about the ALT+K and ALT+V lines.

....LT+AALT+BALT+C....LT+OALT+E....LT+FALT+CALT+HALT+IALT+JALT+KALT+LALT+MALT+NALT+OALT+PALT+QALT+RALT+SALT+TALT+UALT+V....LT+W....LT+XALT+YALT+Z

curves (Arc)

cleanup, weldline (Butt)

Changearchitect, DoorswingEnlargegeometry, oFfsetGeometrydimension, linear, Horizontalswitch to 'text' keyboard macro filecleanup, 2 line trim (Join)dear, activate, add to SelSetl, mask, colorcleanup, L intersectionMirrorfile i/o, New drawingcleanup, One line bimerase, Partialtoggle layer snap on/offpolygon, RectangleStretchcleanup, TintersectionmeasUresclear, activate SelSea, toggle appendarchitect, Windowscleanup, X intersectiontextchange, text, contents

BTU« KapIDn, of KapIDn & As­sociates, Burke VA uses the foI­lawingforA~T+A inhiskeylnlrdmacro file:

A"I"F2"SOWith thecursorp/llwl at tln en­tity when this macro is inooked,IDENTIfY is used to rrwke tlctilltthe /Ilyeron which the identifiedentity is p1Dced.

Ptlge 11

1"1 Referrmce Point

POINTS OF REFERENCE

&feTellCe PoiNt ispub~~nerlyby:

PUBLICATION INFORMATION

M&1I"PIlI Editor;EdItor:

Edltorf.ll Revl_ eo...l_

1Mrihlt8p£'llI~DOm'­

oW( is ptUd .t $25.00. theothn's ne $75.00 .pita. 11ttromJ!lt*sttoftilhos ispriad.'$650.00. VitW titkJ:

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BooklVideo ReviewBeginning DataCAD

The DataCAD Videos1ft, Leonard 0, Nasman

Microcomputer Education Systems, Inc.4900 Blazer ParkwayDublin, Ohio 43017

(614) 793-3069FAX, (614) 766-3605

book $29,95'-;deos $25,00 & $75.00

Beginning DataCAD and The DataCAD Videos areauthored by Dr. Leonard O. Nasman, and in­tended as instructional tools for an institutionaltraining envirorunenl

The book is structured around a seriesof lessonsin which the student creates drawings, graduallylearning about new menu options in DataCAD.

Theintroductory video tape 'DataCAD OumJiew'providesjust that.Theother nine tapesroordinatewith lessons defined in the book, serving tointro­duce the student to the new topic (and DataCADmenu) areas required for the completion of eachlesson. As thestudentcompleteseach lesson, his/her skill level with DataCAD is broadened.

The sequence of lessons isappropriate to thegoalof instructing the new user in DataCAD. Thewritingstyle is dearand easy to follow;each newcommand is described simply and every effort ismade to get the student to 1eam by doing: Thecoverage of each topic is, therefore, rather cur­sory. No provision is made in the book for acomprehensive guide to each menu command,nor is there much exploration ofaltemative meth·ods for the accomplishment of a given task.

In styleand in form, thiscombinationof text-bookand video tapes serves its function well. In adassroom setting, or in an architectural officewhere a large group of users needs to be uainedat one time, Beginning DataCAD wiD work well asthe basis for a training program.

Particularly in the officesetting, where new usersmustbebroughtquick1y toprofidency with Data­CAD, this program should be supplemented.Both particularized infonnation in the form ofmoredetailed resources (the DataCAD manuals,OataCAD !o' the Arch;'"", thiro-party publica­tions, etc.) and individualized attention to theprogress of the uainees should be provided toensure success.

Users GroupsEvery Users Group is roncemed with the subjectof maintaining and expanding its membership.The single most important meansof maintainingthe partidpation of an existing membership isthrough responsive meeting agendas. EveryGroup wiD have its own needs, defined by themakeup of its membership.

Groups comprised mostly of experienced usersmay minimize the number of presentations onDiltaCAD commands. focusing on integratingDataCADwithothersoftware.Groupswithmanynew users, all trying to help each other expandtheir use of DataCAD, will have a very differentseries of presentations.

Groups with mixed membership, both new andexperienced users, may try to presenta varietyofsubjtx:t areas. Variation by user level may occurwithin a meeting or alternate between meetings.

As a means of attracting new members, Groupsattempt to make themselves known to users intheir regions. Local dealerscan serveas a primarysource of infonnation; they are usuaUy happy toprovide lists of their DataCAD customers toUsers Groups.

In the responses to a survey that was sent toGroups last Summer, a desire was voiced formorehelp from Cadkey inobtainingaccess to new(or previously unidentified) users of DataCAD.

Cadkey is reluctant, for competitive reasons, tosimply hand out their mailing lists to anyone.They do, however, want to provide to UsersGroups assistance in recruiting new members. Apolicy regarding this is currently being deter­minedand will beannounced through thesepages.

Ddkq,l.tIc:.4 Griffin RaId NorthWU'ICbor,CT 060Il5

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