Using STB

I realize this topic has been discussed here ad nauseam. I have found many discussions about the ctb vs stb issue however I haven't found any that really explain the usage of STB. I am in the process of setting up my firm's first cad standard and I have decided to go with using STB's. However I do not know how to implement them.

I was planning on setting my layer standard up so that each layer has a specific color so that it is easy to identify what objects are on what layer. I also wanted each layer to have a specific Line Weight. If I were to use STB to achieve this how would I go about doing so? Do I assign each layer a specific Plot Style? I was also wondering since I can set color and lineweight to be by layer where does the usage of plot styles even come into play?

My other question is if I were to set up my standards this way am I really using STB the way it was meant to be used?

If there is a resource which already answers my questions please point me to it. If not could someone give me a detailed example of exactly how STB is intended to be used.

 

There seems to be 2 ways of using STB's
1: STB's control the color/shade. Leaving Lineweights to be controled by the
layer.

and
2: STB's control color/shade and linewieght.

I prefer the 1st method, as it leaves the most versatility with the least
amount of plot styles to manage.

discussions about the ctb vs stb issue however I haven't found any that
really explain the usage of STB. I am in the process of setting up my firm's
first cad standard and I have decided to go with using STB's. However I do
not know how to implement them.

specific color so that it is easy to identify what objects are on what
layer. I also wanted each layer to have a specific Line Weight. If I were to
use STB to achieve this how would I go about doing so? Do I assign each
layer a specific Plot Style? I was also wondering since I can set color and
lineweight to be by layer where does the usage of plot styles even come into
play?

using STB the way it was meant to be used?

to it. If not could someone give me a detailed example of exactly how STB is
intended to be used.

 

TittkeK,

Let me see what I can add to this discussion. I setup STB's where I work about 3 years ago. They have proved very handy for us and are quite easy to use.

We too have standard layers with a specific (Screen) color and (Screen) lineweight set to it. In the STB world this is the plot style called "Normal". (When you create a new layer in an STB drawing this is the default plot style. This means, no extra work thinking "what is the proper plot style for this layer.)

So, now enter an Engineer. I'll call him Engineer 1. He's got an old print in his hand and he says "TittkeK, I want to use this drawing as the basis for a major revision. I'll give you a bonus of $1000.00 if you can generate a plot which has all the existing structure content shaded back 50%, and you can have that print in my hands in 5 minutes. (I bet you like him already : )

Here's where all your great work at layer building comes into play and STB's just take you to the bank.

You select all your "Ex-bldg-struct*" layers, click on plot style, which is currently Normal. The Select Plot Style dialog will appear.

Here you click on Editor.

In the plot style editor, click Add Style. The default settings are the same as Normal. For this one you'll go to the Screening property and enter 50, for 50%.

Click Save and Close.

Pick the newly created style in the Select Plot Style dialog and click OK.

Back in your drawing now, you're ready to simply plot the drawing, carry it to Engineer 1 and pick-up your check. (I'll let you decide what to do with the modified drawing.)

The benefit here is that now you have a 50% screen you can use anytime, in any drawing from here on out. If you add this to a "Standard" Plot Style Table that all your users have access to then they will have it too.

Our plot style names look like this:
40mm_bk
40mm_obj_cl (Object Color)
40mm_bk_50%

Regarding your question about "How are STB's ment to be used?" Well, I think the answer is "However they best work for you." Their power is that you can have two red layers that plot differently if you'd like.

You could have, as we do, two plot style tables that have all the same plot style names in them but the pen wights are half the width in one. This way when you plot a D size drawing to a B size printer you simply point to the reduced width plot style table from the plot dialog.

Confussed yet?

Again, we've found that using STB's has improved our ability to react more quickly to the changing needs of our engineers. Oh BTW, if you have an engineer who hands out $1000.00 bonuses please let me know his/her name. : )

Cheers, and good luck,
george

 

A few of styles you may wish to consider:

Style:

"ByLineweight"
Color: Black
Lineweight: Use Object's Lineweight
Screening: 100%

"ByLineweight Screened"
Color: Black
Lineweight: Use Object's Lineweight
Screening: 50%

"ByLineweight 20"
Color: Black
Lineweight: Use Object's Lineweight
Screening: 20%

"ByColor"
Color: Use Object's Color
Lineweight: Use Object's Lineweight
Screening: 100%

I've found ByColor particularly useful for Gradient Hatches, while
ByLineweight is useful for *lots* of things - use your imagination.
(Dimensions, just for starters)

(Keep in mind that since you can set an object's lineweight to be "ByLayer",
you can quickly control how an entire layer plots via the layer's lineweight
setting in the layer dialog - set the Layer's lineweight as needed, set the
Layer's plotstyle to "ByLineweight", set that Layer current, set the current
Plotstyle to "ByLayer", set the current Lineweight to "ByLayer" (which they
ought to be anyways) and you're off...

hth,
David Kozina

discussions about the ctb vs stb issue however I haven't found any that
really explain the usage of STB. I am in the process of setting up my firm's
first cad standard and I have decided to go with using STB's. However I do
not know how to implement them.

specific color so that it is easy to identify what objects are on what
layer. I also wanted each layer to have a specific Line Weight. If I were to
use STB to achieve this how would I go about doing so? Do I assign each
layer a specific Plot Style? I was also wondering since I can set color and
lineweight to be by layer where does the usage of plot styles even come into
play?

using STB the way it was meant to be used?

to it. If not could someone give me a detailed example of exactly how STB is
intended to be used.

 

Grrr I misspelled my username when I created the account lol

Anyway... Thanks a lot for the replies. For some reason the way you have explained it finally got through to me. I have a much better understanding of the entire STB concept now. I also see why people have been saying what they have about how we use colors in our drawings while using STB. I realize now that you can use any color you want and it won't affect the printed output.

In this case is it necessary for me to set up a color standard? I mean even if it is just a lose guideline. I understand that color usage is usually different for everyone depending on eyesight, color blindness, personal preference... etc. Or at least it can be now that we have STB. Should I bother to set standard colors?

 

When I fist started drafting for a living, there were no colors. All my pens drew black lines. Some were heavy lines, some were fine lines. My drawing always looked just like it would print. Yes, we actually had WYSIWYG way back then.

Along came AutoCAD, and we lost WYSIWYG. Computers wer just not able do process and display well enough to show lineweight. Meanwhile, they could display colors - and we needed some way to tell the plotter which pen use - so CTBs were developed, and we spent a 13-14 years dealing wit the fact that CTBs are linke fingerprints. Everybody has a different one (or a couple handfulls), and nobody EVER remembers to send theirs along with the file.

STBs gave us back WYSIWYG. If you want to use color for on-screen differentiation, you can make a plot style that prints black, no matter what the object color is. However, this isn't real WYSIWYG, and you have to send the STB file along with the DWG.

I take it all the way; with "normal" as the only plot style used. If a line is in color it will print in color. If I want a layer to be screened I set the layer color to the true-color values that do the job (like 75% black is 64,64,64) and even get pastels for shading. The best part is that I can send my drawing out to another office and they can print it.