3D PMK's greatly increaseing File Size

[Anonymous]

Hello All,
I often create a sheet within a plotmaker layout which contains 3D hidden line views using the Internal Engine. On a current remodel job I have 6 such views on one sheet. Each 3D view seems to be about 12.5 MB. I know that I can set the drawing setting to "Frame only" in the preview in layout pull-down menu, but my question is about what others may be doing. I know that it is only file size that we are taking about, but the 6 views in the layout book are now accounting for almost 80% of the file size. With the views the LBK is 104 MB, without the views the LBK is 22 MB.

Backing-up to a CD the changed lbk on days that it changes, fills up a CD fast. I quess I could hold off on placing the PMK's into the lbk until the very last moment, but no one ever knows when that last moment is. Are any others out there placing these "ballooned" PMK into there layouts?

[Anonymous]

check out the number of lines and hatches in a hidden line drawing like that and you'll understand the 12 M / pmk.
But you can use file compression. this tipe of files and also pln compress very well.

[Anonymous]

or buy a dvd writer

[Aussie John]

is the cache written to the file or to a separate folder? ( see preferences). This makes a big difference to file size

[Laszlo Nagy]

Yes, the main problem is that each individual line of your 3D Hatches will be treated as a single line in PlotMaker, which cause the file size to bloat.
Maybe you can save views without 3D Hatch, and when it is final, you can save one with 3D hatches.
I don't know if this is feasible in your case.

[Aussie John]

You could also reduce the density of the shadow or publish the 3d views as a jpegs as they are not line based.

[Rob]

the PMK format sucks...

[Anonymous]

Rob wrote:
the PMK format sucks...

Then try a DWG. With that many lines it will be big too.