Quick page setup/plotting question

Hi,

I have found hundred of posts on this but all solution presented are way to "complex" compared to what I want to do.

I have thousands of dwg that were made many years ago that we need to print. The problem is that everytime I go in the plot menu, i receive the "the plotter configuration cannot be used...". We used a specific page setup 10 years ago, which no longer exists.

What i would like is simple : there is one page setup I would like to be applied when printing. We will print only with 1 printer, in monochrome, 8 1/2 x 11, for every dwg.

I created a new page setup (CTRL+P, ADD...) with the right printing preferences, but it seems that this setup is saved only within the dwg. I would like to know if i can export this page setup and re-import it and make it default in every dwg I open.

Thanks!

Thank you.

Lets say the name of the old page setup was HP1050C.

Simply create a new page setup using the name HP1050C but with the new information for whatever plotter you are using now.

Also,

You can use the DWG Trueview to push pagesetup names into existing files.

You can do this with "PUBLISH".

You can do this with "PUBLISH".

It seems publish is a one shot deal which I do not like. I have to open the files to view the dwg anyways so I can print it from there.

rkent :

Your first solution will require me to create the page setup in each file. Instead of using the same name i could just use a new one anyways since i need to manually create it in each file?

I will try Trueview this afternoon if nothing else comes up.

THanks!

You can import a layout with the new page set up by importing a new tab from the file with the page set up and then apply it to the existing layouts.

You can import a layout with the new page set up by importing a new tab from the file with the page set up and then apply it to the existing layouts.

You are talking about the "publish" window ? When i open the files after publishing them (after importing a page setup that works), they still will have the old page setup config.

I need to resize the layout and stuff so i need to open them one by one anyways. I just want to save couple of seconds by not having to import the page setup in every file.

Thank you!

No, within each file you can import page setups by importing layouts from other drawings by right clicking on a layout tab and selecting "From Template" and change the file type to .dwg.

i know, but it takes about 5 seconds to do, times 10 thousands, that is way i would like to skip this part. Why can't autocad just use the default printer just like every other app?

A colleague of mine suggested writing a script to import the page set-up and apply it to all the layouts. That would save you 4 seconds per file.

..

rkent :

 

Your first solution will require me to create the page setup in each file. Instead of using the same name i could just use a new one anyways since i need to manually create it in each file?

 

I will try Trueview this afternoon if nothing else comes up.

 

THanks!

You said you had a pagesetup that worked years ago. Is that pagesetup still set to be used in the drawings?, you made it sound like the drawings would still be calling that pagesetup.

So I guess what you need to do instead of what I first suggested is to open a drawing, edit the pagesetup and see what plotter is being called. I assume that that plotter is no longer used? Now close that out and create a pc3 file using that old name but calling the new plotter. Assuming the size of the plot is the same then this will work fine.

Otherwise use DWG Trueview to push a new pagesetup into each drawing.

A colleague of mine suggested writing a script to import the page set-up and apply it to all the layouts. That would save you 4 seconds per file.

thats what i had in mind at first when i started this topic. I can handle VB, C, but I'm in the dark when it comes to autocad, and like i said, the lisp files i found during my researches are way to complex for want i intend to do.

You said you had a pagesetup that worked years ago. Is that pagesetup still set to be used in the drawings?, you made it sound like the drawings would still be calling that pagesetup.

 

So I guess what you need to do instead of what I first suggested is to open a drawing, edit the pagesetup and see what plotter is being called. I assume that that plotter is no longer used? Now close that out and create a pc3 file using that old name but calling the new plotter. Assuming the size of the plot is the same then this will work fine.

 

Otherwise use DWG Trueview to push a new pagesetup into each drawing.

I will not use the old page setup. The printer died 5 years ago. I installed TrueView and it looks like a copy of Autocad with lesser features, how do i push a new page setup?

Thanks.

I don't think we are communicating so I am bowing out of this one.

Sorry I couldn't help.

how do i push a new page setup?

 

Thanks.

I was really hoping he would answer that question since he suggested that route.

I was really hoping he would answer that question since he suggested that route.

Alright I left that one hanging, so in DWG trueview, open one drawing to get the ribbon showing, pick DWG Convert, modify a conversion setup, on the right is a check box to replace page setups, below that is a box to navigate to a file with your page setups, pick the ones you want, close out of this, add files to convert. finally pick convert. It may be a bit slow, but that is autodesk for you.

I know my other solution would work and would take about 2 minutes to setup. Simply create a new .pc3 with the new plotter but using the old name. Done, every old drawing already calls the old pagesetup, the pagesetup calls a .pc3 file which it finds because you made it, and it goes to the new printer because you set it that way.

Alright I left that one hanging, so in DWG trueview, open one drawing to get the ribbon showing, pick DWG Convert, modify a conversion setup, on the right is a check box to replace page setups, below that is a box to navigate to a file with your page setups, pick the ones you want, close out of this, add files to convert. finally pick convert. It may be a bit slow, but that is autodesk for you.

 

I know my other solution would work and would take about 2 minutes to setup. Simply create a new .pc3 with the new plotter but using the old name. Done, every old drawing already calls the old pagesetup, the pagesetup calls a .pc3 file which it finds because you made it, and it goes to the new printer because you set it that way.

Tried both solutions, here are my feedbacks :

1- (trueview) It creates a page setup with the name of my choice which is nice, but i have to manually select it in the files i want to print.

2- I created three PC3 files (to replace the 3 missing printers) that all are linked to the actual printer that we use right now. I also created a copy of ctb files to replace/fill the missing ctb files that were linked to the page setups.

I still get an error saying that the plotter cannot be used when I try to print (after pressing ctrl+ P). In the plot window I still have to select an old page setup manually, which links correctly to my "fake-redirecting" pc3 and ctb files, but the page setup name goes back to "none". I do no know if it will be a problem at some point.

That being said, I think i prefer the first method better, but maybe i did something wrong.

Thanks again!