creating a layer using entmake...

(entmake '((0 . "table")(2 . "layer")(5 . "2H")(100 . "acdbsymboltable")(70
.. 100)(100 . "acdbsymboltablerecord")(2 . "test")(62 . 251)(6 .
"continuous")))

I thought it would look something like this but all i get is nil... what am
i doing wrong...

 

Run this (entget (tblobjname "layer" "0")) and
observe the difference in DXF codes.

 

You're defining a handle assoc 5, which autocad assigns.
--

AUTODESK
Authorized Developer
http://www.Cadentity.com
MASi

 

The handle has nothing to do with it. If a
handle is supplied it is ignored.

 

If you are using AutoCAD 2000 or newer I recommend you use
an activex method over entmake, as I learned the hard way
many years ago that layers created via entmake can be flaky
and can terminally crash your session of AutoCAD.

If you absolutely must use entmake, entmake a bogus entity
that references the layer you wish to make and then delete
the temporary entity.

e.g.

Code:

....
(if
(entmake
'(
(0 . "POINT")       ;; believe it or not this
(8 . "MyNewLayer")  ;; is sufficient dxf data
(10 0.0 0.0 0.0)    ;; for this entmake call
)
)
(entdel (entlast))
)
....

Of course, if the entmake call fails your code should veer
accordingly (has never failed for me). Admittedly this is
very kludgy and yet another reason you should go activex,
but like I said, if you must use entmake this would be less
likely to produce an unrecoverable error that is difficult
to trace; imo.

FWIW.

(entmake '((0 . "table")(2 . "layer")(5 . "2H")(100 . "acdbsymboltable")(70
.. 100)(100 . "acdbsymboltablerecord")(2 . "test")(62 . 251)(6 .
"continuous")))

I thought it would look something like this but all i get is nil... what am
i doing wrong...

 

Not what your asking - sorry, I gave up on entmake a while ago - but:
;;;whatch for word wrap
(setq ThisDrawing(vlax-get(vlax-get-acad-object)'ActiveDocument)); gets a
pointer to the active document

(setq LayerObj(vla-add(vlax-get ThisDrawing 'Layers) "test")))

the variable "LayerObj" is a pointer to the new layer created; "test". Now
add properties like this:
(vlax-put LayerObj 'color 1)
(vlax-put LayerObj 'linetype "continuous"); make sure linetype is loaded
first
(vlax-put LayerObj 'plotstyle "Black"); make sure plotstyle exists in active
plotstyle table.
etc.

Hope this helps . . .
jb