max filename length?

Non-acad users, who also happen to be my bosses, want to rename drawing
files thus:

original 04-1A2-1.dwg
new 04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN).dwg
and so on... Not only that, they don't want abbreviations.

This would not apply to xref filenames, only the sheet drawings. However, I
take that back, since occasionally the sheet drawings ARE xref'd into other
sheet drawings. Would this work in cases where the drawing was not used as
an xref? (I know long layer names, block names, etc are problematic in
xrefs).

I know there is(are) a problem(s) looming out there with filenames that are
too long, but,
1. what exactly is the problem(s)? (not specific enough to say: "AutoCAD
will crash")
2. what is the maximum length in characters, before triggering the problem?

Any help, once again, is
Much Appreciated
John

 

I think the length issues have dwindled somewhat, but spaces in a file or directory name can wreak havoc on scripts and lisps.

 

256 characters

--
I support two teams: the Red Sox and whoever beats the Yankees.


| Non-acad users, who also happen to be my bosses, want to rename drawing
| files thus:
|
| original 04-1A2-1.dwg
| new 04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN).dwg
| and so on... Not only that, they don't want abbreviations.
|
| This would not apply to xref filenames, only the sheet drawings. However,
I
| take that back, since occasionally the sheet drawings ARE xref'd into
other
| sheet drawings. Would this work in cases where the drawing was not used as
| an xref? (I know long layer names, block names, etc are problematic in
| xrefs).
|
| I know there is(are) a problem(s) looming out there with filenames that
are
| too long, but,
| 1. what exactly is the problem(s)? (not specific enough to say: "AutoCAD
| will crash")
| 2. what is the maximum length in characters, before triggering the
problem?
|
| Any help, once again, is
| Much Appreciated
| John
|
|

 

Thanks, Matt
But, what happened to the old 32 character limit on layer and block names?
No longer applies?

John

 

Do other people use long (more than 32 character) filenames, with no
problem? Anyone else out there with experience in this area?

thanks

John

 

Our layers sometimes have morethan 32 characters and this hasn't been a
problem since we upgraded to 2004 from release 2000.

The problem that I can see for 'user friendliness' is that when you xref one
drawing into another, the layers of the xref are prefixed with the drawing
name. This makes it very difficult to use the standard layer pulldown to do
anything with your layers when the layername is very long (and the same for
the first umpteen characters).

What you see in the pulldown menu is:

04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN)|layer1
04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN)|layer2
04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN)|layer
04-1A2-1 (REFLECTED CEILING PLAN)|layer

 

Perhaps a better solution is to set the file properties in windows.
You can add information such as Title, Author, and other comments.
In Windows Explorer, right click on the file and click properties. Then
click on the Summary tab and fill in the desired information. This
information will show up in windows explorer when you want it to. (usually
in the little popup that shows up when you hover your cursor over the file)

 

<<The problem that I can see for 'user friendliness' is that when you xref one drawing into another, the layers of the xref are prefixed with the drawing name. >>

We get around that by renaming the block with the RENAME command. The Xrefs are listed under BLOCKS and can be renamed to anything you wish. I will usually prefix the XREF "block" name with a Z to sort xref layer names to the end of the list.

 

This is an excellent tip, and one that I will use. This should satisfy the
powers that be.

thanks

John

 

hi,
don't forget path length limitation with strange behaviors.
This is not specific to AutoCAD, but OS.

Bruno Toniutti.