Acad.lsp file

That's what I think I might try. I've changed everything to the mns file on a server, though this recompiles the mnr file on every drawing opened. I guess that's supposed to happen? This results in a load error on some pc's if 2 or more people startup or open a new drawing simultaneously as we are all using/compiling the same set of files.

Thanks

Chris

 

Chris,
For my 2 cents. I wouldn't place the .mns file on the server, and point everybody there. Problem is - at the 'local' PC, if they move a toolbar or do any other thing on the screen that affects the .mnr file..it will recompile on close of acad..not good. Besides the 'load' error you have. I would place the .mns, .mnr, .mnc files in each PC seperately. Like Tom says - "When I change the menu, I simply redistribute the mns and
everyone's menu will be updated the next morning."

Bob

 

Make the network location of the menu RO to the normal user. Only the CAD
Manager should have the right to modify it. That will prevent the unneeded
recompiles. Note that you can actually put all the menu files in a folder
that is *not* on AutoCAD's search path, and it will still load when AutoCAD
starts.

--
R. Robert Bell


That's what I think I might try. I've changed everything to the mns file on
a server, though this recompiles the mnr file on every drawing opened. I
guess that's supposed to happen? This results in a load error on some pc's
if 2 or more people startup or open a new drawing simultaneously as we are
all using/compiling the same set of files.

Thanks

Chris

 

Good points. I don't have experience with a shared mns so I can't comment --
I've wondered how these issues could be resolved. It'e possible to make the
mns read-only, but I believe that causes its own weirdness when people try
to make toolbar changes.

Of course, redistributing my mns is also going to destroy toolbar changes,
if anyone has modified that menu.

The best solution I've found for toolbar changes is to give each person an
initially empty "User" partial menu, and teach them to confine their
personalizations to that menu. That way they aren't going to get their copy
of the company-standard parial menu out of synch, or lose their toolbar
changes when I update that menu.

Most people (if they care at all) only want to add a button or two, or to
copy a few butttons from one Acad toolbar plus a few buttons from another,
into their own toolbar -- to use less space than the two standard ones. It
takes a little training to get them to do this properly (in their own user
menu) but this hasn't been a significant problem. Some users have little use
for toolbars at all, and on the other end of the scale, the heavy toolbar
users tend to want the full-out Acad standard versions without modification.

 

What I have done is: Only use 'partial' menus. Keep the .mns in a safe place (and back it up). Place a copy of the partial menu files (.mns, .mnc., .mnr) on each PC. That way, there is no user access to the main .mns, and allows for local toolbar customization. Further, in each user profile, you can 'unload' the partial menu, and decide if you want to 'load' it ..or some other menu..

Bob

 

"Tom Smith" <nospam> wrote in message ....
The best solution I've found for toolbar changes is to give each person an
initially empty "User" partial menu, and teach them to confine their
personalizations to that menu. That way they aren't going to get their copy
of the company-standard parial menu out of synch, or lose their toolbar
changes when I update that menu.


This is exactly what Autodesk did with AutoCAD 2005. They place an empty
Custom menu in the user's profile.

 

This is exactly what Autodesk did with AutoCAD 2005. They place an empty

I heard that. It's a great step toward encouraging a modular approach to
customization.

 

That's similar to what I do. Our base menu is the unaltered Acad menu, then
we menuload the Express Tools, our company-standard menu, and the user menu.
I maintain the company-standard partial in a read-only folder on the server,
along with all the blocks, lisps, etc. Users can do whatever they want with
their personal menu -- less than half of them use this at all. We haven't
had a reason to break up the company-standard one into smaller partials, but
in a different environment I could see this might be desirable.

The company-standard menu only gets updated every couple of months or so, if
a new feature is added. But I still caution people to avoid making any
toolbar changes in that menugroup, because they'll be lost when I update the
mns from my master copy.

This hasn't been an issue, in part because the design of the
company-standard menu incorporated feedback from all the users, so nobody is
motivated to fiddle with it. The big variable was how people felt about
toolbars. Some want lots, some want as few as possible. So in this menu,
there are a number of small toolbars (3-5 buttons apiece) organized by
function, and people can turn on just what they want. Additionally, all of
these are available as fly-outs from one all-purpose 4-button toolbar. So
there is a lot of flexibility built in. The anti-toolbar faction can have
access to all of our custom stuff without having to display anything more
than the 4-button bar; while the "button monkeys" can have every single
button displayed all the time.