Leaderboard

did a little cleaning & tweaking and added a (grdraw) background to give it just a tiny bit more spunk ... enjoy ;;; RlxGrMenu - 2025-07-09 - Just a funny / basic / tiny 'toolbar' ;;; It draws a column on the right of your screen with 12 rows. ;;; Config is not working yet and I'm not sure it's worth the effort because its only meant as a lisp launcher. ;;; Quit by click on QUIT in toolbar or by typing Q , q or space, zoom in / out with +/-/z ;;; I've run a little out of button-space so wanted an out of the box solution to this problem. ;;; this is just a way to run my 10 most used lisp routines, nothing more , nothing less. ;;; Substitute the names in app-list (setq app-list (list "LC" "VT"...) with names from your own favorite apps ;;; Apps (lisps) have to be in search path so (findfile (strcat "MyApp" ".lsp") should work. ;;; Also apps should not be self executing and the start command should be same as app name. ;;; If your app is named "MyApp" this routine loads the app if found and starts it with (eval (read (strcat "C:" "Myapp"))) ;;; have fun ;;; ------------------------------ ;;; ;;; |S1 S2| ;;; ;;; | -------------- ----- [a]| ;;; ;;; | |E1 E2| [b]| ;;; ;;; | | | [c]| ;;; ;;; | | | [d]| ;;; ;;; | |E3 E4| [e]| ;;; ;;; | -------------------- [f]| ;;; ;;; |S3 S4| ;;; ;;; ------------------------------ ;;; ;;; (count_calcula) : run time values for viewsize / viewcenter etc ;;; values are effected by resize window : vc , vs , ss , x+ , x- , y+ , y- , P1-P4 ;;; screen corner points : S1 = (x- y+) , S2 (x+ y+) , S3 (x- y-) , S4 (x+ y-) ;;; extents corner points : E1 - E5 extmin / extmax ;;; viewsize : vs - height current viewport (drawing units) (i.e. 300 / 386 after resize) ;;; screen size : ss (1187 532) (pixels) after max acad window : vs = 386 , ss = (1840 685) ;;; - 12 rows, 1-10 for user , 11 for config , 12 for exit ;;; - height each row = viewsize / 12, row width = 2 x row height ;;; cell-ip = (list (- (fix x+) cell-size) (fix y+)) ;;; vector draw cell-ip -> cell-size<0, (* cell-size 12)<270 , cell-size<180 , (* cell-size 12)<90 (defun draw_menu ( / ip-x ip-y cell-h cell-w cell-ul cell-ll cell-ur cell-lr y-list ctr-x app-list app gr-loop tblc tbtc tbbc start-viewsize) (setq app-list (list "LC" "VT" "RlxBatch" "USB" "FX" "FIP" "LspUser1" "LspUser2" "LspUser2" "Spare" "Config" "Quit")) ;;; toolbar line color / toolbar text color / toolbar background color (setq gr-loop T tblc 7 tbtc 7 tbbc 8) ;;; when zooming in/out it messes up back ground fill so have to compensate for that (setq start-viewsize (getvar "viewsize")) (redraw_menu) ;;; launch app (if app (RlxGrMenu_Start_App app)) ) (defun redraw_menu () (redraw) ;;; get live screen data (count_calcula) (setq cell-h (/ (- y+ y-) 12) cell-w (* cell-h 2)) ;;; corner points (setq cell-ul (list (- x+ cell-w) y+) cell-ur (list x+ y+) cell-ll (list (- x+ cell-w) y-) cell-lr (list x+ y-)) ;;; get y values for all horizontal separators (setq x-list (list (car cell-ll) (car cell-lr)) y-list (gnl- (- (fix y+) cell-h) 11 cell-h)) ;;; fill the backgrounds (setq yy y-) (while (< yy y+) (grdraw (list (car cell-ll) yy) (list (car cell-lr) yy) tbbc) ;;; next y depends on zoom factor (viewsize) , 0.25 is emperical, bigger means bigger linespacing (setq yy (+ yy (* 0.25 (/ (getvar "viewsize") start-viewsize)))) ) ;;; draw the outlines (grdraw cell-ll cell-ul tblc)(grdraw cell-ul cell-ur tblc)(grdraw cell-ur cell-lr tblc)(grdraw cell-lr cell-ll tblc) ;;; drawn separators (foreach y y-list (grdraw (list (car cell-ll) y) (list (car cell-lr) y) tblc)) ;;; label the cell (setq ctr-x (+ (car cell-ll) (* cell-w 0.5))) (mapcar '(lambda (s y)(grtxt (strcase s) (list ctr-x (+ y (* cell-h 0.5))) tbtc 0 "M")) app-list (append y-list (list (- (last y-list) cell-h)))) (if gr-loop (RlxGrMenu_Get_Cell_ID x-list y-list)) ) ;;; fill cell with cell background color , use offset of 0.5 unit so outlines remain visible (defun fill_cell (x y w h / x2 y2 w2 h2 x3) (setq x2 (+ x 0.5) y2 (+ y 0.5) w2 (- w 1) h2 (- h 1) x3 (+ x2 w2)) ;(repeat (* (fix h2) 2) (grdraw (list x2 y2) (list x3 y2) tbbc)(setq y2 (+ y2 0.5))) (while (< y2 (cadr cell-ul)) (grdraw (list x2 y2) (list x3 y2) tbbc)(setq y2 (+ y2 0.5))) ) ;;; (re) calculate display parameters (count_calcula) (defun count_calcula () (setq vc (getvar "VIEWCTR") vs (getvar "VIEWSIZE") ss (getvar "SCREENSIZE") dx (* vs (/ (car ss) (cadr ss)) 0.5) dy (* vs 0.5) x- (- (car vc) dx) y- (- (cadr vc) dy) x+ (+ (car vc) dx) y+ (+ (cadr vc) dy) ip (getvar "viewctr") vc-x (car ip) vc-y (cadr ip) txt-h (/ (getvar "VIEWSIZE") 100.0))) ;;; (getvar "extmin") (getvar "extmax") (setq dvx (- x+ x-) dvy (- y+ y-)) (defun screen_res (/ s i is) (setq s (vlax-invoke (vlax-create-object "WbemScripting.SWbemLocator") 'ConnectServer nil nil nil nil nil nil nil) is (vlax-invoke s 'ExecQuery "SELECT CurrentHorizontalResolution, CurrentVerticalResolution FROM Win32_VideoController")) (vlax-for i is (vlax-get i 'CurrentHorizontalResolution))) ;;; generate number (gnum 1 5) -> '(1 2 3 4 5) (defun gnum (s e / i l) (and (numberp s)(numberp e)(setq i s)(while (<= i e)(setq l (cons i l) i (1+ i)))) (reverse l)) ;;; i = startnumber n = number of numbers , d = difference (gnl- 100 6 12) -> (100 88 76 64 52 40) (defun gnl- (i n d / l) (setq l (list i))(repeat (1- n)(setq l (cons (setq i (- i d)) l)))(reverse l)) ;;; found this old lisp (grtxt.lsp) , don't know author but all credits are for this human from earth ;;; text string / coordinate point / color / angle justificationz ;;; *** UPPER CASE ONLY *** (grtxt (STRCASE "Rob") (getvar "viewctr") 1 0 "M") (defun grtxt (ts cp cl a j / vp ltb i xp z c p1 p2 lp ld n al) ;;; vertex points (setq vp '(( 1 ( 0.50 0.25))( 2 ( 0.50 0.55))( 3 ( 0.50 0.85))( 4 ( 0.50 1.00))( 5 ( 0.25 1.00)) ( 6 ( 0.00 1.00))( 7 (-0.25 1.00))( 8 (-0.50 1.00))( 9 (-0.50 0.85))(10 (-0.50 0.55)) (11 (-0.50 0.25))(12 (-0.50 0.10))(13 (-0.25 0.10))(14 ( 0.00 0.10))(15 ( 0.25 0.10)) (16 ( 0.50 0.10))(17 ( 0.50 -0.05))(18 ( 0.50 -0.45))(19 ( 0.50 -0.85))(20 ( 0.50 -1.00)) (21 ( 0.25 -1.00))(22 ( 0.00 -1.00))(23 (-0.25 -1.00))(24 (-0.50 -1.00))(25 (-0.50 -0.85)) (26 (-0.50 -0.40))(27 (-0.50 -0.05))(30 ( 0.35 0.85))(31 (-0.35 0.85))(32 (-0.35 -0.85)) (33 ( 0.35 -0.85))(40 ( 0.25 0.35))(41 (-0.25 0.35))(42 ( 0.25 -0.15))(43 (-0.25 -0.15)) (44 ( 0.00 0.45))(45 ( 0.00 -0.25))(50 ( 0.30 0.20))(51 ( 0.30 0.35))(52 ( 0.20 0.35)) (53 ( 0.20 0.20))(54 ( 0.30 0.10))(55 ( 0.30 -0.10))(56 ( 0.20 -0.10))(57 ( 0.20 0.10)) (60 (-0.30 0.20))(61 (-0.30 0.35))(62 (-0.20 0.35))(63 (-0.20 0.20))(64 (-0.30 0.10)) (65 (-0.30 -0.10))(66 (-0.20 -0.10))(67 (-0.20 0.10)))) ;;; letter table (setq ltb '(("A" 24 9 7 5 3 20 16 12) ("B" 12 15 1 3 5 8 24 21 19 17 15) ("C" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19) ("D" 3 5 8 24 21 19 3) ("E" 4 8 12 15 12 24 20) ("F" 4 8 12 15 12 24) ("G" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 16 14) ("H" 20 -4 8 -24 16 12) ("I" 7 5 6 22 23 21) ("J" 4 19 21 23 25) ("K" 8 24 12 13 4 13 20) ("L" 8 24 20) ("M" 24 8 14 4 20) ("N" 24 8 20 4) ("O" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 3) ("P" 12 15 1 3 5 8 24) ("Q" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 3 -19 20 45) ("R" 20 14 12 15 1 3 5 8 24) ("S" 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("T" 4 8 6 22) ("U" 8 25 23 21 19 4 20) ("V" 8 22 4) ("W" 8 23 14 21 4) ("X" 4 -24 8 20) ("Y" 8 14 22 14 4) ("Z" 8 4 24 20) ("0" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 -3 4 24) ("1" 31 7 6 22 21 23) ("2" 9 7 5 3 1 15 13 27 24 20) ("3" 9 7 5 3 1 15 13 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("4" 8 12 16 15 5 21) ("5" 4 8 12 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("6" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 17 15 12) ("7" 8 4 22) ("8" 3 5 7 9 11 13 27 25 23 21 19 17 15 13 15 1 3) ("9" 25 23 21 19 3 5 7 9 11 13 16) ("<" 4 12 20) (">" 8 16 24) ("," 33 21) ("." 19 20 21 33 19) ("\'" 4 30) ("\"" 4 -30 7 31) (";" 50 51 52 53 -50 54 55 56 57 55 45) (":" 50 51 52 53 -50 54 55 56 57 55) ("\\" 8 20) ("/" 4 24) ("?" 11 10 7 5 2 1 45 22) ("|" 6 -44 45 22) ("+" 44 -45 13 15) ("=" 40 -41 43 42) ("-" 13 15) ("_" 20 24) (")" 6 2 18 22) ("(" 6 10 26 22) ("*" 40 -43 41 -42 45 44) ("&" 21 31 7 6 26 25 23 16) ("^" 10 6 2) ("%" 57 54 55 56 -57 63 60 61 62 -63 5 24) ("$" 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 -26 22 6) ("#" 24 -6 22 -4 1 -11 17 27) ("@" 42 15 40 44 41 13 43 45 42 17 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19) ("!" 6 -45 22 22) ("~" 9 31 44 40 2) ("`" 8 31) ("[" 6 8 24 22) ("]" 6 4 20 22) ("{" 6 7 41 12 43 23 22) ("}" 6 5 40 16 42 21 22) (""))) ;;; text height (setq z (/ (getvar "VIEWSIZE") (cadr (getvar "SCREENSIZE")) 0.2)) (cond ;;; left justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "L") (setq xp (list (+ (car cp) z) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ;;; middle justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "M") (setq xp (list (- (car cp) (* z (strlen ts) 0.5)) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ;;; right justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "R") (setq xp (list (- (car cp) (* z (strlen ts) 1.5)) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ) (repeat (strlen ts) ;;; each charachter / line point list / letter point def (setq c (substr ts i 1) lp '() ld (cdr (assoc c ltb))) (while (> (length ld) 1) (setq p1 (cadr (assoc (abs (nth 0 ld)) vp)) p2 (cadr (assoc (abs (nth 1 ld)) vp)) p1 (mapcar '* (list z z) p1) p2 (mapcar '* (list z z) p2) p1 (mapcar '+ xp p1) p2 (mapcar '+ xp p2) lp (append lp (list (if (minusp (nth 0 ld)) 0 cl) p1 p2)) ld (cdr ld)) ) ;;; add rotation angle (setq n 0 al nil) (repeat (/ (length lp) 3) (setq al (cons (nth n lp) al) al (cons (polar cp (+ a (angle cp (nth (+ n 1) lp))) (distance cp (nth (+ n 1) lp))) al) al (cons (polar cp (+ a (angle cp (nth (+ n 2) lp))) (distance cp (nth (+ n 2) lp))) al)) (setq n (+ n 3)) ) (and al (grvecs (reverse al))) (setq xp (list (+ (car xp) (* z 1.5)) (cadr xp)) i (1+ i)) ) (prin1) ) ;;; probably won't need tracking mode (cut-copy-paste you know...) (defun RlxGrMenu_Get_Cell_ID (xl yl / inp dev tpt prev-tpt mark-current-tracking-point cell-id prev-cell-id prev-view-size cur-view-size rtn) (princ "\nEsc/Q/Rmouse to cancel, zoom with E(extend), Z(oom) or + / -") (setq prev-view-size (getvar "viewsize")) (while gr-loop (setq cur-view-size (getvar "viewsize")) (setq inp (vl-catch-all-apply 'grread (list T 8 1))) (if (vl-catch-all-error-p inp) (progn (setq gr-loop nil inp nil)(redraw)) (progn (setq dev (car inp) tpt (cadr inp)) (cond ;;; space , q or Q (Quit) ((and (= dev 2) (member (last inp) '(32 113 81))) (redraw)(setq gr-loop nil) ) ;;; point selection (3 (221.882 173.853 0.0)) ((= dev 3) (if (setq rtn (find_cell tpt xl yl)) (progn ;(alert (setq app (nth (1- (atoi rtn)) app-list))) (princ (strcat "\nLaunching : " (setq app (nth (1- (atoi rtn)) app-list)))) (setq gr-loop nil) ) ) ) ;;; device tracking point (probably don't need tracking mode) ((= dev 5) ;;; if mouse moved (if (or (/= (car prev-tpt)(car tpt)) (/= (cadr prev-tpt)(cadr tpt))) (progn (setq prev-tpt tpt ))) (if (not (equal cur-view-size prev-view-size)) (progn (setq prev-view-size cur-view-size) (redraw_menu) ) ) ) ; user pressed E of e ((member inp '((2 69)(2 101))) (command "zoom" "e")) ; user clicked R-mouse button, pressed enter or space (done selecting) ((or (equal (car inp) 25)(member inp '((2 13)(2 32)))) (setq gr-loop nil)) ; user pressed + ((equal inp '(2 43)) (vl-cmdf "zoom" "2x")) ; user pressed - ((equal inp '(2 45)) (vl-cmdf "zoom" ".5x")) ; user pressed z or Z ((member inp '((2 122)(2 90))) (vl-cmdf "'zoom" "")) ) ) ) ) (princ) ) ;;; pt = point , xl = x-list , yl = y-list ;;; scribble : (< 1 2 3) , (> 3 2 1) , (cdr (vl-sort '(1 2 3 4 5) '>)) -> '(4 3 2 1) (defun find_cell ( pt xl yl / ptx pty y-lst l n hit) (setq n nil hit nil ptx (car pt) pty (cadr pt) y-list (vl-sort (append yl (list 0)) '>)) (if (< (car xl) ptx (cadr xl)) (mapcar '(lambda (y)(if (and (not hit) (> pty y)) (setq hit T n (vl-position y y-list)))) y-list)) (if n (itoa (1+ n))) ) ;;; program assumes no self starting routines and start command is "C:" + app name (defun RlxGrMenu_Start_App (app / fn) (cond ((setq fn (findfile (strcat app ".lsp"))) (redraw)(load fn)(eval (read (strcat "(C:" app ")")))) ((wcmatch (strcase app) "QUIT")(princ "\nBye bye")(redraw)) ((wcmatch (strcase app) "CONFIG")(princ "\nUnder construction")(redraw)) (t (redraw)(princ (strcat "\nUnable to load " (vl-princ-to-string app) " ...bye"))) ) ) ;;; future... ;;; RlxGrMenu - Rlx Jul/25 (defun RlxGrMenu_future ( / ;;; global variables scr-res cell-rows cell-cols cell-col cell-id app-list ;;; display parameters like viewctr/viewsize/screensize (count_calcula) vc vs ss dx dy x- x+ y- y+ ip vc-x vc-y txt-h ;;; registry variables RlxGrMenu-nof-cell-rows RlxGrMenu-nof-cell-cols RlxGrMenu-app-list ) ;;; mostly not used because for now I just just one column with 10 rows (setq scr-res (screen_res) rows 3 cols 3 cell-col 141 cell-id 1) (count_calcula) (setq app-list (list "LC" "VT" "RlxBatch" "USB" "FX" "FIP" "LspUser1" "LspUser2" "LspUser2" "Spare")) (RlxGrMenu_Init) (RlxGrMenu_Doit) (RlxGrMenu_Exit) (princ) ) (defun RlxGrMenu_Init ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Init ")) (defun RlxGrMenu_Doit ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Doit ")) (defun RlxGrMenu_Exit ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Exit ")) (defun c:RlxGrMenu ()(draw_menu)) (defun c:t1 ()(draw_menu)) (defun t1 ()(draw_menu))

I managed to get rid of the flickering but keeping snap enabled. Here is the new version: offset.lsp Instead of hiding the polyline before doing the osnap, I now keep the polyline hidden and render it with grvecs instead. Therefore no snapping to itself and no more flickering!

oh yeah , the good ol' days of AutoCad , think I started around version 2.22 , 1987/88 or something. In that time only pull down & screen menu's , no xrefs , no model / paper space yet, IBM screens and keyboards you could knock out T-Rex with. Downside is , part of you will always be stucked in the good old days. I probably know only a couple % there is to know about AutoCad , maybe even less. I still go back to the old *mnu files for my toolbars because I still don't like ribbons. I want my buttons simple and always on the same location. But I do like colored buttons so now & again I upgrade one of my apps , this one is almost 30 years old and I couldn't live without it

This reminds me on SCREENMENU (picture 1), but you're solution are better . One old programmer with a lot experience in programming, in AutoCAD, told me about SCREENMENU when I tried to do something. And I forget to mention, I have never done anything with SCREENMENU .

That looks good. Years ago I had FastCAD which had a menu very similar for inserting blocks. My current LISP to try to do similar used DCL and buttons, however a couple of tweaks this could (pretty much) copy what was in FastCAD (it was about the best bit of FastCAD). Example call say 'Doors', your pop-up menu appears and instead of text an image of the block to insert (can make a simplified block using vector graphics, same way as your text). I'll add another line to my to-do list. EDIT. A comment I was going to make last night. You reminded me. The vector letters are handy to keep somewhere - in a DCL for example you can create an image (or image button), using vector letters but add colours to highlight text:

Here is a version that only uses lisp. You will have to download grsnap: https://www.lee-mac.com/grsnap.html It does flicker when I am preventing it from snapping to itself, rest seems to work fine. Keyboard input works a s well. Give it a try: offset.lsp

have done a sort of messenger in the past with (m)text so just wanted to try something else. With vectors a simple redraw and your plate is clean again. I was / am considering adding background but for now wanted to keep it fast & furious due to workload (turning my boss's promises into reality)

@dexus Well done! This works very well! Just a suggestion if you wish to add more to it. My code below is for incorporating Function keys during a grread loop would be a good addition. It doesn't support everything, like Snap, polar tracking, osnap tracking, but it does all the toggle modes. It can replace the return condition in your grread loop. ;|============================================================================== Function Name: (pjk-Grread-Fkeys <Character Code)) Arguments: kcode = integer; The Character code from the second element in the return from GRREAD. Returns: T if ENTER or SPACEBAR is pressed, otherwise NIL Description: This function emulates the functions performed when a function key is selected within a GRREAD loop. Created by Phil Kenewell 2018 ================================================================================|; (defun pjk-Grread-Fkeys (kcode / acv ret) (setq acv (atof (substr (getvar "acadver") 1 4))) (cond ((= kcode 6) ;; F3 ;; Faster more efficient way to toggle osmode. Thanks to Lee Mac for the idea. (princ (strcat "\n<Osnap " (if (>= (setvar "osmode" (boole 6 (getvar "osmode") 16384)) 16384) "off>" "on>") ) ) ) ((= kcode 25) ;; F4 (if (>= acv 18.1) ;; If AutoCAD 2011 or Higher (princ (strcat "\n<3DOsnap " (if (= (logand (setvar "3dosmode" (boole 6 (getvar "3dosmode") 1)) 1) 1) "off>" "on>") ) ) (princ (strcat "\n<Tablet " (if (= (setvar "tabmode" (- 1 (getvar "tabmode"))) 1) "on>" "off>") ) ) ) ) ((= kcode 5) ;; F5 (cond ((= (getvar "SNAPISOPAIR") 0)(setvar "SNAPISOPAIR" 1)(princ "\n<Isoplane Top>")) ((= (getvar "SNAPISOPAIR") 1)(setvar "SNAPISOPAIR" 2)(princ "\n<Isoplane Right>")) ((= (getvar "SNAPISOPAIR") 2)(setvar "SNAPISOPAIR" 0)(princ "\n<Isoplane Left>")) ) ) ((= kcode 4) ;; F6 (if (>= acv 17.0) ;; If AutoCAD 2007 or Higher (princ (strcat "\n<Dynamic UCS " (if (= (setvar "ucsdetect" (- 1 (getvar "ucsdetect"))) 1) "on>" "off>") ) ) (princ (strcat "\n<Coords " (if (= (setvar "coords" (if (= (getvar "coords") 2) 0 2)) 2) "on>" "off>") ) ) ) ) ((= kcode 7) ;; F7 (princ (strcat "\n<Grid " (if (= (setvar "gridmode" (- 1 (getvar "gridmode"))) 1) "on>" "off>") ) ) ) ((= kcode 15) ;; F8 (princ (strcat "\n<Ortho " (if (= (setvar "orthomode" (- 1 (getvar "orthomode"))) 1) "on>" "off>") ) ) ) ((= kcode 2) ;; F9 (princ (strcat "\n<Snap " (if (= (setvar "snapmode" (- 1 (getvar "snapmode"))) 1) "on>" "off>") ) ) ) ((= kcode 21) ;; F10 (princ (strcat "\n<Polar " (if (= (logand (setvar "autosnap" (boole 6 (getvar "autosnap") 8)) 8) 8) "on>" "off>") ) ) (Princ "\nNOTE: Polar Tracking is not supported in this command.") ) ((= kcode 151) ;; F11 (princ (strcat "\n<Object Snap Tracking " (if (= (logand (setvar "autosnap" (boole 6 (getvar "autosnap") 16)) 16) 16) "on>" "off>") ) ) (Princ "\nNOTE: Object Snap Tracking is not supported in this command.") ) ((= kcode 31) ;; F12 (if (>= acv 16.2) ;; If AutoCAD 2006 or Higher (princ (strcat "\n<Dynamic Input " (if (minusp (setvar "dynmode" (- (getvar "dynmode")))) "off>" "on>") ) ) ) ) ((vl-position kcode '(13 32)) ;; Enter or Spacebar (setq ret T) ) ) ret ) ;; End Function (pjk-Grread-Fkeys)

This weekend I spent some time alone with CrazyHorseSubTangentsArc. I want to share some snapshots of this memorable encounter. Beautiful! But I guess I should be able to show some even better images soon.

i'm also not a fan of ribbon. don't really use buttons either. i use the command line for pretty much everything. ribbon uses too much space and have always found it unnecessary. having it closed ensures i've got maximised screen space for my drawings

You asked in the AutoLISP, Visual LISP & DCL Forum, something like what @mhupp posted is the best solution with FREE LISP, IMO. You need to look at asking this in some .NET forums, though not sure the FREE will happen.

You can use a similar technique to display arbitrary bitmaps in a DCL or at the cursor Interesting ideas rlx

Nice, I can see uses for this. Might add a slight change one day if it works to draw a wipeout under the 'buttons'?

Have you considered replacing grvecs with temporary 'TEXT' objects? It's easier to do this with dynamically sized and positioned text. This makes it easier to create effects such as mouse-over highlighting. @mhupp "It's never too late to return to the old places where you loved life"

Oh , you're not lisping anymore? pitty... you belong to the top lispy's

I think this thread is becoming interesting again. I suppose there will be some updates in the near future — I believe @Dexus has opened the door to some much-needed improvements. As for me, I take up the gauntlet. But I believe the basic rule should be not to rely on third-party libraries/APIs (except those inherent to Windows and AutoCAD).

Another necessary question: Does the original code work as expected when selecting an arc segment flanked by other arc segments? Is it possible this isn't intended in the code?

I wanted more buttons but ran out of space so just created an alternative reallity for myself. It's very basic / simple and still a work in progress but as usual time is not on my side especially now my boss in away for 4 weeks and he probably was afraid I would get bored and start to play with myself so he left me with a load of work. Update : because this routine uses grread you can't run any other (transparent) commands. Thats why I added 'hot' keys for zoom. E for extents, Z for zoom , + & - for zooming in & out. Maybe it's useful , maybe it's not...bite me. ;;; RlxGrMenu - 2025-07-09 - Just a funny / very basic little 'toolbar' ;;; It draws a column with 12 rows. Config is not working yet, quit by click or by typing Q or q. ;;; I've run a little out of button-space so wanted an out of the box solution to this problem. ;;; this is just a way to run my 10 most used lisp routines, nothing more , nothing less. ;;; Substitute the names in app-list (setq app-list '("LC" "VT" ...) with names from your own favorite apps ;;; apps have to be in search path so (findfile (strcat "MyApp" ".lsp") should work'. ;;; Also app should not be self executing and the start command should be same as app name ;;; If your app is named "MyApp" this routine loads app if found and starts it with (eval (read (strcat "C:" "Myapp"))) ;;; have fun ;;; ------------------------------ ;;; ;;; |S1 S2| ;;; ;;; | -------------- ----- [a]| ;;; ;;; | |E1 E2| [b]| ;;; ;;; | | | [c]| ;;; ;;; | | | [d]| ;;; ;;; | |E3 E4| [e]| ;;; ;;; | -------------------- [f]| ;;; ;;; |S3 S4| ;;; ;;; ------------------------------ ;;; ;;; (count_calcula) : ;;; values are effected by resize window : vc , vs , ss , x+ , x- , y+ , y- , P1-P4 ;;; screen corner points : S1 = (x- y+) , S2 (x+ y+) , S3 (x- y-) , S4 (x+ y-) ;;; extents corner points : E1 - E5 extmin / extmax ;;; viewsize : vs - height current viewport (drawing units) (i.e. 300 / 386 after resize) ;;; screen size : ss (1187 532) (pixels) after max acad window : vs = 386 , ss = (1840 685) ;;; - 12 rows, 1-10 for user , 11 for confid , 12 for exit ;;; - height each row = (fix (/ (- y+ y-) 12)) , for example 25 ;;; - row width = row height , lets call it cell-size ;;; cell-ip = (list (- (fix x+) cell-size) (fix y+)) ;;; vector draw cell-ip -> cell-size<0, (* cell-size 12)<270 , cell-size<180 , (* cell-size 12)<90 (defun draw_menu ( / ip-x ip-y cell-h cell-w cell-ul cell-ll cell-ur cell-lr y-list ctr-x app-list app gr-loop tblc tbtc) (setq app-list (list "LC" "VT" "RlxBatch" "USB" "FX" "FIP" "LspUser1" "LspUser2" "LspUser2" "Spare" "Config" "Quit")) (setq gr-loop T tblc 7 tbtc 7) ;;; toolbar line color / toolbar text colot (redraw_menu) ;;; launch app (if app (RlxGrMenu_Start_App app)) ) (defun redraw_menu () (redraw) ;;; get live screen data (count_calcula) ;(setq app-list (list "LC" "VT" "RlxBatch" "USB" "FX" "FIP" "LspUser1" "LspUser2" "LspUser2" "Spare" "Config" "Quit")) ;(setq cell-h (fix (/ (- y+ y-) 12)) cell-w (* cell-h 2)) ;;;; corner points ;(setq cell-ul (list (- (fix x+) cell-w) (fix y+)) cell-ur (list (fix x+) (fix y+)) ; cell-ll (list (- (fix x+) cell-w) (fix y-)) cell-lr (list (fix x+) (fix y-))) (setq cell-h (/ (- y+ y-) 12) cell-w (* cell-h 2)) ;;; corner points (setq cell-ul (list (- x+ cell-w) y+) cell-ur (list x+ y+) cell-ll (list (- x+ cell-w) y-) cell-lr (list x+ y-)) ;;; draw the outlines (grdraw cell-ll cell-ul tblc)(grdraw cell-ul cell-ur tblc)(grdraw cell-ur cell-lr tblc)(grdraw cell-lr cell-ll tblc) ;;; get y values for all horizontal separators (setq x-list (list (car cell-ll) (car cell-lr)) y-list (gnl- (- (fix y+) cell-h) 11 cell-h)) (foreach y y-list (grdraw (list (car cell-ll) y) (list (car cell-lr) y) tblc)) ;;; label the cell (setq ctr-x (+ (car cell-ll) (* cell-w 0.5))) (mapcar '(lambda (s y) (grtxt (strcase s) (list ctr-x (+ y (* cell-h 0.5))) tbtc 0 "M")) app-list (append y-list (list (- (last y-list) cell-h)))) (if gr-loop (RlxGrMenu_Get_Cell_ID x-list y-list)) (princ) ) ;;; (re) calculate display parameters (count_calcula) (defun count_calcula () (setq vc (getvar "VIEWCTR") vs (getvar "VIEWSIZE") ss (getvar "SCREENSIZE") dx (* vs (/ (car ss) (cadr ss)) 0.5) dy (* vs 0.5) x- (- (car vc) dx) y- (- (cadr vc) dy) x+ (+ (car vc) dx) y+ (+ (cadr vc) dy) ip (getvar "viewctr") vc-x (car ip) vc-y (cadr ip) txt-h (/ (getvar "VIEWSIZE") 100.0))) ;;; (getvar "extmin") (getvar "extmax") (setq dvx (- x+ x-) dvy (- y+ y-)) (defun screen_res (/ s i is) (setq s (vlax-invoke (vlax-create-object "WbemScripting.SWbemLocator") 'ConnectServer nil nil nil nil nil nil nil) is (vlax-invoke s 'ExecQuery "SELECT CurrentHorizontalResolution, CurrentVerticalResolution FROM Win32_VideoController")) (vlax-for i is (vlax-get i 'CurrentHorizontalResolution))) ;;; get aspect ratio current screen (defun asp_rat () (rtos (* 1.5 (/ (getvar "VIEWSIZE") (cadr (getvar "SCREENSIZE")))))) ;;; determine status caps lock for when typing filter (even though filter uses strcase) (defun case (s) (cond ((null s) "") ((not (eq (type s) 'STR)) "") ((null capslock) s) (t (if (= (acet-sys-keystate 20) 0) (strcase s t) (strcase s))))) ;;; generate number (gnum 1 5) -> '(1 2 3 4 5) (defun gnum (s e / i l) (and (numberp s)(numberp e)(setq i s)(while (<= i e)(setq l (cons i l) i (1+ i)))) (reverse l)) ;;; i = startnumber n = number of numbers , d = difference (gnl- 100 6 12) -> (100 88 76 64 52 40) (defun gnl- (i n d / l) (setq l (list i))(repeat (1- n)(setq l (cons (setq i (- i d)) l)))(reverse l)) ;;; found this old lisp (grtxt.lsp) , don't know author but all credits are for this human from earth ;;; text string / coordinate point / color / angle justificationz ;;; *** UPPER CASE ONLY *** (grtxt (STRCASE "Rob") (getvar "viewctr") 1 0 "M") (defun grtxt (ts cp cl a j / vp ltb i xp z c p1 p2 lp ld n al) ;;; vertex points (setq vp '(( 1 ( 0.50 0.25))( 2 ( 0.50 0.55))( 3 ( 0.50 0.85))( 4 ( 0.50 1.00))( 5 ( 0.25 1.00)) ( 6 ( 0.00 1.00))( 7 (-0.25 1.00))( 8 (-0.50 1.00))( 9 (-0.50 0.85))(10 (-0.50 0.55)) (11 (-0.50 0.25))(12 (-0.50 0.10))(13 (-0.25 0.10))(14 ( 0.00 0.10))(15 ( 0.25 0.10)) (16 ( 0.50 0.10))(17 ( 0.50 -0.05))(18 ( 0.50 -0.45))(19 ( 0.50 -0.85))(20 ( 0.50 -1.00)) (21 ( 0.25 -1.00))(22 ( 0.00 -1.00))(23 (-0.25 -1.00))(24 (-0.50 -1.00))(25 (-0.50 -0.85)) (26 (-0.50 -0.40))(27 (-0.50 -0.05))(30 ( 0.35 0.85))(31 (-0.35 0.85))(32 (-0.35 -0.85)) (33 ( 0.35 -0.85))(40 ( 0.25 0.35))(41 (-0.25 0.35))(42 ( 0.25 -0.15))(43 (-0.25 -0.15)) (44 ( 0.00 0.45))(45 ( 0.00 -0.25))(50 ( 0.30 0.20))(51 ( 0.30 0.35))(52 ( 0.20 0.35)) (53 ( 0.20 0.20))(54 ( 0.30 0.10))(55 ( 0.30 -0.10))(56 ( 0.20 -0.10))(57 ( 0.20 0.10)) (60 (-0.30 0.20))(61 (-0.30 0.35))(62 (-0.20 0.35))(63 (-0.20 0.20))(64 (-0.30 0.10)) (65 (-0.30 -0.10))(66 (-0.20 -0.10))(67 (-0.20 0.10)))) ;;; letter table (setq ltb '(("A" 24 9 7 5 3 20 16 12) ("B" 12 15 1 3 5 8 24 21 19 17 15) ("C" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19) ("D" 3 5 8 24 21 19 3) ("E" 4 8 12 15 12 24 20) ("F" 4 8 12 15 12 24) ("G" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 16 14) ("H" 20 -4 8 -24 16 12) ("I" 7 5 6 22 23 21) ("J" 4 19 21 23 25) ("K" 8 24 12 13 4 13 20) ("L" 8 24 20) ("M" 24 8 14 4 20) ("N" 24 8 20 4) ("O" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 3) ("P" 12 15 1 3 5 8 24) ("Q" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 3 -19 20 45) ("R" 20 14 12 15 1 3 5 8 24) ("S" 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("T" 4 8 6 22) ("U" 8 25 23 21 19 4 20) ("V" 8 22 4) ("W" 8 23 14 21 4) ("X" 4 -24 8 20) ("Y" 8 14 22 14 4) ("Z" 8 4 24 20) ("0" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 -3 4 24) ("1" 31 7 6 22 21 23) ("2" 9 7 5 3 1 15 13 27 24 20) ("3" 9 7 5 3 1 15 13 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("4" 8 12 16 15 5 21) ("5" 4 8 12 15 17 19 21 23 25) ("6" 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19 17 15 12) ("7" 8 4 22) ("8" 3 5 7 9 11 13 27 25 23 21 19 17 15 13 15 1 3) ("9" 25 23 21 19 3 5 7 9 11 13 16) ("<" 4 12 20) (">" 8 16 24) ("," 33 21) ("." 19 20 21 33 19) ("\'" 4 30) ("\"" 4 -30 7 31) (";" 50 51 52 53 -50 54 55 56 57 55 45) (":" 50 51 52 53 -50 54 55 56 57 55) ("\\" 8 20) ("/" 4 24) ("?" 11 10 7 5 2 1 45 22) ("|" 6 -44 45 22) ("+" 44 -45 13 15) ("=" 40 -41 43 42) ("-" 13 15) ("_" 20 24) (")" 6 2 18 22) ("(" 6 10 26 22) ("*" 40 -43 41 -42 45 44) ("&" 21 31 7 6 26 25 23 16) ("^" 10 6 2) ("%" 57 54 55 56 -57 63 60 61 62 -63 5 24) ("$" 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 -26 22 6) ("#" 24 -6 22 -4 1 -11 17 27) ("@" 42 15 40 44 41 13 43 45 42 17 3 5 7 9 25 23 21 19) ("!" 6 -45 22 22) ("~" 9 31 44 40 2) ("`" 8 31) ("[" 6 8 24 22) ("]" 6 4 20 22) ("{" 6 7 41 12 43 23 22) ("}" 6 5 40 16 42 21 22) (""))) ;;; text height (setq z (/ (getvar "VIEWSIZE") (cadr (getvar "SCREENSIZE")) 0.2)) (cond ;;; left justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "L") (setq xp (list (+ (car cp) z) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ;;; middle justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "M") (setq xp (list (- (car cp) (* z (strlen ts) 0.5)) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ;;; right justification ((eq (strcase (substr j 1 1)) "R") (setq xp (list (- (car cp) (* z (strlen ts) 1.5)) (cadr cp)) i 1)) ) (repeat (strlen ts) ;;; each charachter / line point list / letter point def (setq c (substr ts i 1) lp '() ld (cdr (assoc c ltb))) (while (> (length ld) 1) (setq p1 (cadr (assoc (abs (nth 0 ld)) vp)) p2 (cadr (assoc (abs (nth 1 ld)) vp)) p1 (mapcar '* (list z z) p1) p2 (mapcar '* (list z z) p2) p1 (mapcar '+ xp p1) p2 (mapcar '+ xp p2) lp (append lp (list (if (minusp (nth 0 ld)) 0 cl) p1 p2)) ld (cdr ld)) ) ;;; add rotation angle (setq n 0 al nil) (repeat (/ (length lp) 3) (setq al (cons (nth n lp) al) al (cons (polar cp (+ a (angle cp (nth (+ n 1) lp))) (distance cp (nth (+ n 1) lp))) al) al (cons (polar cp (+ a (angle cp (nth (+ n 2) lp))) (distance cp (nth (+ n 2) lp))) al)) (setq n (+ n 3)) ) (and al (grvecs (reverse al))) (setq xp (list (+ (car xp) (* z 1.5)) (cadr xp)) i (1+ i)) ) (prin1) ) ;;; probably won't need tracking mode (cut-copy-paste you know...) (defun RlxGrMenu_Get_Cell_ID (xl yl / inp dev tpt prev-tpt mark-current-tracking-point cell-id prev-cell-id prev-view-size cur-view-size rtn) (princ "\rEsc/Q/Rmouse to cancel, zoom with E(extend), Z(oom) or + / -") (setq prev-view-size (getvar "viewsize")) (while gr-loop (setq cur-view-size (getvar "viewsize")) (setq inp (vl-catch-all-apply 'grread (list T 8 1))) (if (vl-catch-all-error-p inp) (progn (setq gr-loop nil inp nil)(redraw)) (progn (setq dev (car inp) tpt (cadr inp)) (cond ;;; space , q or Q (Quit) ((and (= dev 2) (member (last inp) '(32 113 81))) (redraw)(setq gr-loop nil) ) ;;; point selection (3 (221.882 173.853 0.0)) ((= dev 3) (if (setq rtn (find_cell tpt xl yl)) (progn ;(alert (setq app (nth (1- (atoi rtn)) app-list))) (princ (strcat "\nLaunching : " (setq app (nth (1- (atoi rtn)) app-list)))) (setq gr-loop nil) ) ) ) ;;; device tracking point (probably don't need tracking mode) ((= dev 5) ;;; if mouse moved (if (or (/= (car prev-tpt)(car tpt)) (/= (cadr prev-tpt)(cadr tpt))) (progn (setq prev-tpt tpt ))) (if (not (equal cur-view-size prev-view-size)) (progn (setq prev-view-size cur-view-size) (redraw_menu) ) ) ) ; user pressed E of e ((member inp '((2 69)(2 101))) (command "zoom" "e")) ; user clicked R-mouse button, pressed enter or space (done selecting) ((or (equal (car inp) 25)(member inp '((2 13)(2 32)))) (redraw)(setq gr-loop nil app "Quit")) ; user pressed + ((equal inp '(2 43)) (vl-cmdf "zoom" "2x")) ; user pressed - ((equal inp '(2 45)) (vl-cmdf "zoom" ".5x")) ; user pressed z or Z ((member inp '((2 122)(2 90))) (vl-cmdf "'zoom" "")) ) ) ) ) (princ) ) ;;; pt = point , xl = x-list , yl = y-list ;;; scribble : (< 1 2 3) , (> 3 2 1) , (cdr (vl-sort '(1 2 3 4 5) '>)) -> '(4 3 2 1) (defun find_cell ( pt xl yl / ptx pty y-lst l n hit) (setq n nil hit nil ptx (car pt) pty (cadr pt) y-list (vl-sort (append yl (list 0)) '>)) (if (< (car xl) ptx (cadr xl)) (mapcar '(lambda (y)(if (and (not hit) (> pty y)) (setq hit T n (vl-position y y-list)))) y-list)) (if n (itoa (1+ n))) ) ;;; program assumes no self starting routines and start command is "C:" + app name (defun RlxGrMenu_Start_App (app / fn) (cond ((setq fn (findfile (strcat app ".lsp"))) (redraw)(load fn)(eval (read (strcat "(C:" app ")")))) ((wcmatch (strcase app) "QUIT")(princ "\nBye bye")(redraw)) ((wcmatch (strcase app) "CONFIG")(princ "\nUnder construction")(redraw)) (t (redraw)(princ (strcat "\nUnable to load " (vl-princ-to-string app) " ...bye"))) ) (princ) ) ;;; future... ;;; RlxGrMenu - Rlx Jul/25 (defun RlxGrMenu_future ( / ;;; global variables scr-res cell-rows cell-cols cell-col cell-id app-list ;;; display parameters like viewctr/viewsize/screensize (count_calcula) vc vs ss dx dy x- x+ y- y+ ip vc-x vc-y txt-h ;;; registry variables RlxGrMenu-nof-cell-rows RlxGrMenu-nof-cell-cols RlxGrMenu-app-list ) ;;; mostly not used because for now I just just one column with 10 rows (setq scr-res (screen_res) rows 3 cols 3 cell-col 141 cell-id 1) (count_calcula) (setq app-list (list "LC" "VT" "RlxBatch" "USB" "FX" "FIP" "LspUser1" "LspUser2" "LspUser2" "Spare")) (RlxGrMenu_Init) (RlxGrMenu_Doit) (RlxGrMenu_Exit) (princ) ) (defun RlxGrMenu_Init ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Init ")) (defun RlxGrMenu_Doit ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Doit ")) (defun RlxGrMenu_Exit ()(princ "\nUnder construction - RlxGrMenu_Exit ")) (defun c:RlxGrMenu ()(draw_menu)) (defun c:t1 ()(draw_menu)) (defun t1 ()(draw_menu))

oh nice. ive got very similar setup. i just use layer/styles/properties toolbars though (i havent actually looked at the others properly in such a long time so i might check out some of those other ones you've called up) was going to copy some of this to my main lisp file but no need really as you would only need to run 1 time when you upgrade to new version or something. i'll set up a separate routine. thanks!

This is much better. After seeing your code, I think there's something I may have misunderstood or didn't consider important: the use of the chord as a control parameter. All along, I've been thinking that the main goal was to ensure the cursor was tangent to the curve at all times. But I see that using the chord is important. Clearly, these types of tasks were never part of my CAD menu. In any case, this forces me to change my approach somewhat: I'll try to make 'offsetea' versatile in this case.

Kind of you to say, now I'm blushing. LoL I'm just passionate about Core Console, and think it's one of the best 'new' features in the last decade+, that's seemingly underutilized (as I understand it from forum convos, etc). Cheers

Ow sorry , not intentionally , assumend peoples would click on swamp link and see that this came from BlackBox BlackBox BlackBox

I made up this one or 2 upgrades ago: (defun c:setupworkspace ( / MyWorkspace ) ;;Get workspace name to edit menubars later (setq MyWorkspace (getvar "wscurrent") ) ;;close ribbon (command "ribbonclose") ;;Show menubars / toolbar (setvar 'menubar 1) ;;menus (command "-toolbar" "draw" "s") (command "-toolbar" "draw order" "s") (command "-toolbar" "layers" "s") (command "-toolbar" "modify" "s") (command "-toolbar" "standard" "s") (command "-toolbar" "styles" "s") (command "-toolbar" "properties" "s") (command "properties") ;;ViewCube (command "DISPLAYVIEWCUBEIN2D" "Off") (command "DISPLAYVIEWCUBEIN3D" "On") ;;modelspace paper colour, RGB "255 255 255" = white "0 0 0" = black (defun somefunc (x y z) (apply '+ (mapcar 'lsh (list x y z) '(16 8 0))) ) (setenv "Background" (itoa (somefunc 255 255 255))) ;;Go to model space (setvar "ctab" (nth 0 (layoutlist) )) (setvar "ctab" "Model" ) ;;custom alerts to set up user things like papaer sizes (alert "Set up Ax Full Bleed to 0mm margins") (alert "Set up Ax Expand to 0mm margins") (alert "Set up 'DWG to PDF - No Preview.pc3'\nChange PDF Options") (alert "SP: See plotter configuration files folder, copy to AutoCAD folder") )

Thank you . I have set things running on another pc, I was hoping to save some time . interesting to learn about core console though .

It's called purchasing the previously posted Drawing Tree | AutoCAD | Autodesk App Store. It has a free trial. Other than that, just need to ask around and see if someone will make you something for free. What permissions do you have for installing software?

Hello Slw i test your lisp today and works !!! seem all ok. thanks a lot!

agree , ribbons itself are nice & pretty and so , but half of it I have never used in my life nor will I so the classic menu will do nicely thank you , easy to change , clean and simple. So every new AutoCad version : ribbon off , menuload , rlxmenu... done.

I moved your thread to the .NET, ObjectARX & VBA Forum in case some one feels like making a program for FREE.

You might want to check out OpenDCL, it has pallets, block preview … all the tools you would need create a block + group manager

You want to create a GUI? There’s a sample in python creating a palette with block names and preview https://github.com/CEXT-Dan/PyRx?tab=readme-ov-file#features you’d have to roll it yourself. There’s also opendcl if you feel more comfortable with lisp

Monday i Will test It and i tell you .thanks a lot

Great thank you . i am planning to add into the startup folder and give a go but got distracted today .

No worries, I get that we have other usages, for my work changing the position of the arc segment without changing the tangentcy is important. If it doesn't keep that I'll have to fix it afterwards every time. I updated the code in the previous post to be a little bit less gittery, but I understand that not everyone will sacrifice smoothness to have snap enabled. Therefore here is a version without snap. So the only difference with the one from Evgeny's is that you are able to type in an offset distance as well as select an (inexact) point. offset - nosnap.lsp

I'll try to find time in the coming days to modify and expand offsetea. I've found a couple of bugs in it, likely due to the lack of stress testing. Also, I'll try to find a way to rein in those arcs governed by tangents. I might include a few more improvements as well. But I'll leave that as a surprise.

Thank you @Danielm103 for the information, next time, I will try to play with this (because I'm also occuring with this problem, not always, but it happens). Also, there is LAYOUTREGENCTL (System Variable), same thing which can be found in Option -> System.

This was recently discussed in PyRx, How to batch create layouts? https://github.com/CEXT-Dan/PyRx/discussions/368 Each time you create a layout, AutoCAD will cache the graphics of the viewports, consuming large amounts of memory and slowing the process, you can try to turn off the cache as explained here https://github.com/CEXT-Dan/PyRx/discussions/368#discussioncomment-13604115 But… it is what it is, layouts are a resource hog

I should have read the code by PGia closer (setq Access (vl-catch-all-apply 'vlax-create-object '("Access.Application"))) Instead use (setq Access (vl-catch-all-apply 'vlax-get-or-create-object '("Access.Application"))) The get or create means if it is open then make application, if it is not open it will open Access. I have never had a problem opening Word or Excel with lisp. Same with are they open already. @PGia its your turn to respond, The code should work.

Interesting for sure!

Amazing and original. I find it interesting to see how you’ve solved the character's drawing using polar coordinates. I also did something similar when I was thinking about drawing text next to the cursor in real time. I even created tools to encode characters from drawing polylines. But I gave up on the idea because there are simpler options. However, your approach is a different one — something I had never considered. It’s an interesting idea that opens the door to imagining new possibilities

Probably, the answer to your question has already been answered. Try reading all the messages in this thread.

I incorporated nanoflann( https://github.com/jlblancoc/nanoflann) wrappers into PyRx. Although other efficient KD-Tree implementations exist in Python, such as pykdtree, the wrapper is specifically designed for AcGePoint2d/AcGePoint3d, eliminating the need for type conversions. How can these structures be beneficial in CAD? in this example, we search for a phone within a certain radius of each computer. Additionally, we can identify computers that do not have phones. We could also do something like, search all MTexts on the Layer "Employee" to determine whether they are near a chair, phone, or computer. import traceback from pyrx import Ap, Ax, Db, Ed, Ge, Gi, command # radiusSearch @command def doit(): db = Db.curDb() phones, computers = getBlocks(db) result = [] # create the tree of phone locations phonePoints = Ge.Point3dArray() for phone in phones: phonePoints.append(phone[1]) phoneTree = Ge.Point3dTree(phonePoints) # search for nerby phones for computer in computers: idxs, _ = phoneTree.radiusSearch(computer[1], 50 * 50)# sqrd if len(idxs) == 0: print("no phone") continue for idx in idxs: result.append((computer, phones[idx])) for cpu, phn in result: Ed.Core.grDraw(cpu[1], phn[1], 2, 0) # helper, store the id and position def getBlocks(db: Db.Database): phones = [] computers = [] model = Db.BlockTableRecord(db.modelSpaceId()) refs = [Db.BlockReference(id) for id in model.objectIds(Db.BlockReference.desc())] for ref in refs: if ref.getBlockName() == "COMPUTER": computers.append((ref.objectId(), ref.position())) elif ref.getBlockName() == "FNPHONE": phones.append((ref.objectId(), ref.position())) return phones, computers

Incremental Numbering Suite Version 4.0 Released. The main feature of the new version is the introduction of a dedicated 'Content Builder' to facilitate the construction of an incrementing string from an arbitrary number of incrementing and/or static components. With this feature, the user now has the ability to independently control the increment amount and increment frequency for each component of the string, enabling multiple sections of the string to increment by different amounts and at different rates to one another. The new version also introduces the ability to load & save application configurations, streamlining the operation of the program for multiple numbering systems.

ClipIt (Express Tool) works on blocks, etc. so I got it to work manually. I did do some light reading on automating options in a called Express Tool, so maybe at some point. This works for me, hopefully speeds things up for the OP. Works OP provided .dwg and some quick blocks to test it. ;;; Creates a circular detail clip from a block reference. Copies, scales, and trims to scaled circle (connected by trimmed line). ;;; ;;; https://www.cadtutor.net/forum/topic/98334-detail-circle-in-ms/page/2/#findComment-674313 ;;; ;;;*************************************************************************************************| ;;; | ;;; By SLW210 (a.k.a. Steve Wilson) | ;;; | ;;; MSCirClip.lsp | ;;; | ;;; Uses the Express Tool ClipIt manually (maybe this will be automated at a later time). | ;;; At the prompt-Select the detail circle then select the copied and scaled block. | ;;; At Enter maximum allowable error distance for resolution of arc segments. | ;;; I used 1 and it seems good (smaller is more segments) (see Clipit in Express Tools help). | ;;; | ;;;*************************************************************************************************| ;;; ClipIt creates a pseudo circle of polylines, the connector line will most likely have a gap. | ;;; | ;;; Optionally you could comment the part erasing it. | ;;; | ;;;*************************************************************************************************| ;;; (defun c:MSCIRCLIP (/ ent cen rad circle newPt scaleFactor newRad vec dir pt1 pt2 len scaledBlock detailCircle entsBefore entsAfter diffBlocks ) (vl-load-com) (prompt "\n--- MODELSPACE DETAIL VIEW WITH CLIPIT ---\n") ;; Modelspace entities (defun all-ents () (vl-remove-if 'null (mapcar 'cadr (ssnamex (ssget "_X" '((410 . "Model"))))) ) ) ;; Select block reference (setq ent (car (entsel "\nSelect block reference to detail: "))) (if (not (and ent (= (cdr (assoc 0 (entget ent))) "INSERT"))) (progn (prompt "\nNot a valid block reference.") (exit)) ) ;; Circle center/radius (setq cen (getpoint "\nSpecify center of detail circle: ")) (setq rad (getdist cen "\nSpecify radius of detail circle: ")) (entmakex (list '(0 . "CIRCLE") (cons 10 cen) (cons 40 rad) (cons 62 1) (cons 8 "DETAIL") ) ) ;; Detail location and scale (setq newPt (getpoint "\nSpecify center point for detail view: ")) (initget 7) (setq scaleFactor (getreal "\nEnter detail scale factor (e.g. 2): ")) (setq newRad (* rad scaleFactor)) ;; Copy and scale block (command "COPY" ent "" cen newPt) (setq scaledBlock (entlast)) (command "SCALE" scaledBlock "" newPt scaleFactor) ;; Clipping circle (setq detailCircle (entmakex (list '(0 . "CIRCLE") (cons 10 newPt) (cons 40 newRad) (cons 62 1) (cons 8 "DETAIL") ) ) ) ;; Run CLIPIT manually (prompt "\n>>> Run CLIPIT: Select the detail circle and the new (scaled) block.\n" ) (C:CLIPIT) ;; Delete temp circle after CLIPIT (if (and detailCircle (entget detailCircle)) (entdel detailCircle) ) ;; Draw connector line (setq vec (mapcar '- newPt cen)) (setq len (distance cen newPt)) (setq dir (mapcar '/ vec (list len len len))) (setq pt1 (mapcar '+ cen (mapcar '* dir (list rad rad rad)))) (setq pt2 (mapcar '- newPt (mapcar '* dir (list newRad newRad newRad)) ) ) (entmakex (list '(0 . "LINE") (cons 10 pt1) (cons 11 pt2) (cons 62 3) (cons 8 "DETAIL") ) ) (prompt "\nDetail view created and connector drawn.\n") (princ) )

I can't believe you just asked "What are architectural units?" Hint: feet and inches. Type the UNITS command at the command line then press Enter. At the UNITS dialog window look under the heading for "Type". Select "Architectural". Specify the Precision below that. I would expect 0'-0 1/16" to be good enough. Click on the OK button. You're done. Go to work. I don't think we've gotten as far as dimensioning yet. I think we are still trying to draw to the correct length.

I suppose the simplest would be something like: (defun c:zoomhandle ( / e ) (if (setq e (handent (getstring "\nSpecify Handle: "))) (command "_.zoom" "_O" e "") ) (princ) ) In the mean time, use AfraLISP to learn LISP.