Access to Acad DWG problem

[tomatoes]

Hi guys, my first time here but not going to be my last.
Firstly this is what I would like to do. I have a button on an Access form to open a form called Drawings and this has a Access picture control and text box on it and is used to view a drawing plan. This is fine as it stands but doesn't allow me to do any editing etc and save it back to access. So what I want is to be able to click the button open the form and then be able to open the drawing for editting etc. I guess a viewer might be a good option or perhaps VBA. I really am struggling on this and hope you can come up with some good solutions - I hope so. Quite happy to work with someone on this just need a solution. Grateful for help TIA.

[Dana W]

This is MS Access, right?

You may need to modify the Access program code to add another button which would launch AutoCAD itself. You can't edit a dwg in a viewer program. It looks like Access is already launching a viewer program. The dwg does not get "saved back to Access". Access merely gives you a path to the program that opens the drawing.

You can change the Access form by copying the original button and changing the name of the executable it launches to a cad editor, but I suggest adding a whole new form for editing with limited rights to it.

I can't help with the Access coding. It has been 15 years since I did any of it, and it has changed quite a bit since then.

[tomatoes]

Hi Dana W, I have been playing about with DBPix which allows some degree of functionaltity and have been looking at some others which claim to allow editing but!!??. Yes I can get a button to open the viewer but seeing the dwg is another matter. The funny thing is if I leave the control as a picture control I can press the button and the plan shows ok. The seems to be getting the viewer to see the DWG.

[hugha]

. You can't edit a dwg in a viewer program.

This. AutoCAD drawing files (.DWG files) contain a 3D data structure that can only be edited by AutoCAD or similar CAD systems. Images viewers such as you describe only deal with a 2D view and while they can be handy to view a 2D shapshot of the DWG contents on an Access I would be extremely interested to learn of one that could a) reliably edit a DWG b) keep up with periodical changes to the DWG file structure.

As Dana suggested, wire an Access button to start AutoCAD to edit the DWG file associated with the Access-stored image then Export a bitmap from AutoCAD to reflect any changes.

[tomatoes]

I do understand your point hugha and Dana's suggestion is virtually what I have got anyway but as always the boundaries have to be pushed a little. I am also looking at VeCAD which it is claimed can do what I am trying to do unless you know any different of course. You know with all the technology and know how out there I just can't believe that this is not possible.