What's New?
What's New?
What's New?
What's New?
What's New?
What's New?
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MicroStation V8 2004 Edition includes several enhancements that make it easier to manage and attach references.
Enhancements to the References dialog box include:
a nested references tree
an information panel that displays reference settings
the Copy/Fold Reference tool
additional columns in the list box
ability to edit slot numbers
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References dialog box | |
The References dialog box includes a tree that displays the hierarchy of reference attachments. The Show Hierarchy icon toggles on and off the tree display.
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Show Hierarchy icon and references tree | |
When Show Hierarchy is on, the tree shows the active model and the references that are directly attached to it. Nested references (references attached to other references) can be expanded. When you select a nested reference, the reference list box shows only the references that are attached to the selected reference.
When the tree is turned off to save screen space, you can use the arrow button next to the Show Hierarchy icon to list the master file and any nested references that are attached to it. As with the tree, if you choose one of the nested references, the reference list box displays only the nested references that are attached to the chosen reference.
The References dialog box includes an information panel that displays and controls the attachment settings for a selected reference.
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References information panel | |
Many of the settings are represented by icons. If the icon is pressed, the setting is on. Click the icons to toggle on or off the settings.
If you select multiple references that have different settings, the icons representing different settings are shaded. For example, if True Scale is enabled for one selected reference and disabled for another, the True Scale icon is shaded.
The Copy Reference by Folding tool lets you more easily attach references that show a model from orthogonal angles, with all views correctly aligned.
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The References dialog box's list box uses icons as titles for the Display, Snap, and Locate columns. Icons are also used as titles for these new columns that display the attachment settings for the references:
True Scale
Scale Line Styles
Clip Back
Clip Front
Display Raster References
Ignore Attachment When Live Nesting
Use Lights
The Display, Snap, and Locate columns display by default. To display the new columns, right-click on the row of column titles. From the menu, choose the columns to display.
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References list box columns | |
In the References list box, the Slot column lists a unique number for each reference. To edit a slot number, slowly double-click on it, then key in a new number. If you key in a slot number that is used by another reference, the slot numbers are exchanged.
You can drag and drop reference attachments into the References dialog box from two sources:
Windows Explorer — you can select DGN, DWG, or other types of files in a Windows Explorer window, then drag and drop them into the list box in the References dialog box.
Models dialog box — you can select models in the Models dialog box (in the current session or another MicroStation session), then drag and drop them into the list box in the References dialog box.
Once the attachments are added to the References dialog box, the Attach Source Files dialog box opens.
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Attach Source Files dialog box | |
This dialog box lets you choose the method for attaching the file: Interactive, Coincident, Coincident World, or a view. The Interactive option opens the Reference Attachment Settings dialog box.
In the 2004 Edition, you can clip a reference using an element as a boundary and mask the same reference using a fence. Previous editions did not support combining these two techniques on a single reference.
The Attach References dialog box includes the Attachment Method options menu, which lets you select the view of the model being attached.
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Attach Reference dialog box | |
The default setting is Interactive, which opens the Reference Attachment Settings dialog box. If you select multiple files and set the attachment method to Interactive, the Reference Attachment Settings dialog box opens for each file.
If you choose either Coincident or Coincident - World, MicroStation attaches the reference to the model coincidentally using the default attachment settings or attachment settings of the last reference attached. The Reference Attachment Settings dialog box does not open.
If you choose one of the remaining orientation settings (Top, Right, Front, Isometric, Bottom, Back, Left, or Right Isometric), MicroStation also uses the default (or most recent) attachment settings. You must enter a data point to position each reference.
In the Reference Attachment Settings dialog box, you can select multiple views in the Orientation list box. If you select multiple orientations, MicroStation prompts you to enter data points to position the references. (The Coincident and Coincident — World options do not require a data point.)
Default reference attachment preferences can be specified in two ways:
The default user preferences are set in the References category of the Preferences dialog box (Workspace > Preferences).
The configuration variable MS_REF_DEFAULTSETTINGS sets the default reference attachment settings for all users.
The Reference Attachment Settings dialog box, Logical Name field uses the default reference logical name if it exists. If not, it uses the view (orientation) name.
The default reference logical name is defined in the new Ref Logical field in the Model Properties dialog box.
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Model Properties dialog box | |
The Adjust Reference Colors dialog box lets you set the hue, as well as adjust value and saturation.
You can use the same color for all elements in a reference by turning on both Fixed and Hue Fixed for All Colors. You can then use the Hue slider to adjust the color.
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Adjust Reference Colors dialog box | |
Setting the configuration variable MS_NEST_COLORADJUSTMENT specifies the multiplier applied to the nested reference color adjustments at each level. If not set, the color adjustment for the top level reference controls the color adjustment for all nested references.
In the Update Sequence dialog box, to change the position of a reference file in the sequence, you can:
drag the file to a new position
Click the arrow buttons to change the file's position
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Update File Sequence dialog box | |
The Reference Reload Forced key-in forces a reload of a reference.
In contrast, the Reload Reference tool checks the size and timestamp of the file that contains the referenced model and reloads the reference only if these have changed.
Setting the configuration variable MS_REF_CYCLECHECK to 0 causesMicroStation to skip the circular reference check for DGN files. This configuration variable does not affect DWG files.
By default, MicroStation highlights all elements in a reference when the reference is manipulated. Setting the configuration variable MS_REF_DONTHILITEFORMANIP disables highlighting. Disabling speeds up the reference manipulations but makes it more difficult to see which references are being manipulated.