Merging layers

[Anonymous]

Maybe someone has answered this before but I cannot find it.

We've recently begun using Master Template by Eric Bobrow. The layers he uses are completely different than our previous layers. We often copy details from old projects into new projects, and of course this brings the old layers into the new project, which is undesirable. Is there a way to take an old layer and put everything in that project that has that layer onto a new layer? I'm guessing Attribute manager does this, but the ArchiCAD help menu is lacking on explanation.

I'm also hoping that by setting up a translator in the future if we use the merge command and bring a detail in, you can set it up to change the layers. But for now, how do you merge old layers into new ones?

Thanks,

[Gerald Hoffman]

I am not sure I understand what you want exactly what you would like but in the case of details could you not just select everything in the detail and put it in the Archicad Layer and then copy and past it into your new project?

Cheers,

[Anonymous]

The problem is someone's already imported a bunch o' stuff that's brought in unwanted layers. I don't want to just delete the layer because we'll lose all that stuff. I'd like to take a layer and merge it with another layer. Is this possible?

[Karl Ottenstein]

The ideal solution is something for the wish list. IMHO, deleting a layer that contains information should be handled the way that QuickBooks handles deleting an account: you are asked what account (layer) you want the information merged into. (This in contrast to AC which simply deletes all of the information along with the layer.)

If your layer contains only 3D-visible elements, it is easy - view only that layer in 3D, select all, change the layer (ctrl-shift-T / cmd-shift-T).

if your layer contains any 2D elements, you have to open every single view in the project - which could be 100's of them to do the find / switch. Not a reasonable thing for anyone to do.

Maybe there is a simple method that I'm spacing out on right now?

Cheers,
Karl

[Anonymous]

Karl,

I agree completely. And since we are only just now trying to do things completely in 3D, all of our previous details are line drawings.

There isn't a way to do this with element attributes? I notice there is a "merge" button in this dialog box. I am completely unfamiliar with this and don't want to go merging and deleting layers with catastrophic results but it seems like this would be the place.

[JaredBanks]

So here's a 'sort of' answer.

With the attribute manager you could overwrite layers from one file to another. The process would go something like this:

open the file with the bad layers. (file A)

open the attribute manager.

on the right open a file with good layers. (file B)

Overwrite layers from the good file (B) onto the bad file (A), the layer names will be replaced, but the numbers will stay the same. (overwrite looks at numbers, not names).

If the numbers correspond, and there are no holes, then the overwrite should be done. The problems occur when there are holes in the sequence. You have layers 1-45, 48-90, 93, & 95 in file (B) and layers 1-100 in file (A). In that case you'll still have junk layers, but less of them.

Anyways... once you've done this (ideally with no holes in the sequence), you'll have good layers in file (A). This means you can copy and paste things out of it, without bringing over crap layers. However what will almost definitely happen is everything is on the wrong layer. Your walls might be on the plumbing layer, your roofs might be on the text layer, etc. At least they'll be layers that should exist in the new file, so it's just a matter of changing their layers in file (B). Which shouldn't be too bad. Maybe.

Clear as mud?

[Steve Jepson]

Is there some way to do this using the DXF-DWG Translator Setup.?
It has a layer conversion setting.
Also, when you save as a .dwg like this it automatically adds the pen numbers to the layer names. This could also be useful in sorting and conversions.