This Client Server article is republished in its entirety from 2006 for reference purposes.
InterPlot has three interfaces to plot design files: InterPlot Organizer, IPLOT Dialog, and IPLOT Command line. Using the interface InterPlot Organizer, the plot definition information is stored in InterPlot plot set files (IPS); using IPLOT Dialog and IPLOT Command line, the information is stored in InterPlot parameter (IPARM) files.
IPS files contain information about several plot jobs, whereas IPARM files contain information about one plot only. In both file types, the information about the plot job is the same and contains non-state information like the printer, paper size, and rotation, as well as state data about the DGN file and references. This discussion is limited to the state data in IPS and IPARM files and the commands used to update that data from a DGN file.
When an IPS or IPARM file is created, the settings of the file are inherited from the DGN file. The settings include the levels that are switched on, what view settings are switched on or off, and similar information. These settings can be modified when needed. Modifications to the settings define what the plot looks like, which can be different from what is displayed on screen. When no modifications are made, the plot is created as displayed in MicroStation at the time the IPS and IPARM files are created.
IPS and IPARM files let the user plot multiple times using the same settings, independent of the settings in the DGN file when the plot is created. When changes are made to a DGN file, the IPS file or IPARM files must be updated if the user wants the changes to be reflected in a plot. Rather than making these modifications manually, the Update from Design File command lets the user update all the settings in the IPS and IPARM files. This command has existed for quite some time.
Update from DGN file
The Update from Design File command updates the settings in the IPS and IPARM files with current data from the DGN and references. This includes the following:
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The levels that are switched on or off are known levels in the IPS or IPARM file. For new levels in a design file or reference files, use the newer command, Update Levels.
Update Levels command
The Update Levels command updates the selected plot jobs with the current levels from the master file and all associated reference files. A configuration variable (IPLOT_UPDATE_LEVEL_STATE) in the IPLOT.CFG configuration file determines which levels are updated.
The following values are valid for IPLOT_UPDATE_LEVEL_STATE:
- on - newly added levels will be turned on and will plot
- off - newly added levels will be turned off and will not plot
- dgn - IPLOT will use the design file setting of the new level to determine the plot/no plot setting
Use the IPLOT Client Configure utility to set the value for this configuration variable. The default value for IPLOT_UPDATE_LEVEL_STATE is "DGN".
InterPlot Organizer
The Update Levels command is located under Tab Levels.
As previously mentioned, the Update Levels command updates both DGN and reference files for the selected plot jobs. A selection between master file and individual reference files is not possible. In other words, the selection as displayed in figure above does not affect the Update Levels command. After the Update Levels command is invoked, the default settings file is updated.
InterPlot command line
The Update Levels command takes the qualifier -update_levels. In the IPLOT Create and IPLOT Modify commands, the qualifier -update_levels is valid. Here are several examples:
iplot modify -update_levels plot1
iplot create -design=learn.dgn -update_levels learn
After the command "iplot modify -update_levels" is invoked, the default settings file (IPLOT.SET) is updated.
In practice, the qualifier -update_levels will be used with the IPLOT Modify command, since when an IPARM file is created, the information is retrieved from the design files and reference files anyway. In MicroStation V7 files, only a fixed number of levels (1-63) are supported. Therefore, the -update_levels qualifier is valid in MicroStation V8 only.
See Also
ProjectWise TechNotes And FAQs
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Original Author: Bentley Technical Support Group