Copy Project Items ( Utility Functions )

Overview :

Also see :

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Step-by-step instructions :

You can, for instance, use this option to copy access control permissions for use in your current Job.

1 . Start up the Copy Job Items utility:

Method 1 : Home > Utilities > Utility Functions . Then, on the Utility Functions menu, click " Copy Project Items ."

Method 2 : In Modeling (classic) or the Drawing Editor , choose Utility > Copy Job Items.

2 . A selection dialog appears with a list of the following types of Job items:

  Details
  Job Standard Details
  Custom Properties
  Erection Views
  Sheet Outlines
  User Defined Connections
  Job Setup Info
  Assemblies
  Reference Drawings
  Fabricators
  Tower Cranes
  Mobile Cranes
  Symbols
  Access Control Permissions
 

Alternative 1 : Double-click the type of Job item that you want to copy into your current Job. For instance, if you want to copy sheet outlines, double-click " Sheet Outlines ." Go to step 3.

Alternative 2 : Press " Cancel " to end this Copy Project Items operation. Do not continue.

3 . A selection dialog opens. On it is a listing of all Jobs in the repository that your current Job is in. If you want a listing of Jobs in different repositories, choose a different repository using the Job repository menu .

repository
 JOB17044_A
 JOB17044_B
 JOB17098
 JOB17099
 JOB18001
 JOB18002
Typing ' 18 ' to " Find " in this example would automatically select JOB18001 since it is the first item with the character sequence 18 in it.

Alternative 1 : Double-click the name of the Job from which you want to copy items of the type you selected in step 2. Go to step 4.

Alternative 2 : Press " Cancel " to end the Copy Project Items operation without copying anything. Do not continue.

4 . A yes-no dialog opens.

Do you wish to overwrite any items in the current job that have the same name as the items being copied?
   

Alternative 1 : Press the " Yes " button if you want the program to overwrite any items in your current Job with items of the same name that you select in step 5.

Alternative 2 : Press " No " if you do not want items in your current Job replaced with any items that you select in step 5.

5 . One of the following happens:

Possibility 1 : An alert dialog opens if no items of the type you selected in step 2 reside in the Job you selected in step 3. When you press " OK " on this dialog, the Copy Project Items operation ends. Do not continue.

No items found to copy!
         

Possibility 2 : A Selection dialog opens. On it is a selection list of all items of the type you selected in step 2 that reside in the Job you selected in step 3. Either press "Cancel" to end this operation, or select those items that you want copied into your current Job, then press " OK " and go to step 6.

 item_1
 item_2
item_3
 item_4
 item_5

6 . As a result of your taking the above steps, one of the following may occur.

Possibility 1 : The items you selected in step 5 are copied into your current Job (unless items of the same type and name already exist in your current Job).

Possibility 2 : You may get warnings, for example, if items of the same name and type exist in your current Job. In some cases, you get these warnings regardless of whether you pressed " Yes " or " No " in step 4. The warning dialog lists each item that you selected in step 5 which could not be copied.

 'item' already exists in current job -- cannot copy
                 *** END OF WARNINGS ***

Tip: You can use the " Project Items List " utility to confirm that the selected items have, indeed, been copied.

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Types of Job items that can be copied :

Details: Usually it's a bad idea to copy system-generated member details from another Job. However, you may want to copy user-created member details, which can be created using the " New ... " button or Save As or Save Reuse.

Job Standard Details: These can be special symbols, annotations, or parts of any other Drawing Editor drawing.

If you're working for a particular Job that is similar to one you've worked on previously, it may be useful to copy job standard details from that other Job to your current Job.

Custom Properties: You can select " Job Schema " and/or " Member Schema " and/or " Bolt Schema " and/or " Weld Schema " and/or " Hole Schema " to be copied.

Warning: A schema file of a selected type (job, member, etc.) includes all custom properties associated with entities of that type. For example, if you copy " Member Schema ," new fields associated with the newly copied schema will appear on the Edit Properties window for all members in your current Job . Custom properties that previously appeared on the " Properties " tab will be deleted

Before copying custom properties: All users on your network should exit the Job into which the custom property are to be copied (your current Job). If they fail to do this, data corruption may result.

Erection Views: These are actual straight grid lines and curved grid lines . The straight grid lines have associated erection views, which you can Open ( Ctrl + o ) in Modeling to look at the 3D model.

Grid lines should only be copied into your current Job only if its 3D model is very similar in size and orientation to the 3D model of the Job you are copying from.

Sheet Outlines: These are often very useful items to copy from another Job to your current Job.

Even if they are not exactly the way you want them, but just close, you can modify copied sheet outlines to suit your purpose in your current Job.

Note that these may optionally be copied when you Home > Change active job > " New... " .

User Defined Connections: Copying user defined connections from another Job is a lot easier than creating new ones.

Just make sure that you apply the copied user defined connection to a member that has the same member type, material type and web rotation as were specified when the connection was originally set up.

Note that these may optionally be copied when you Home > Change active job > " New... " .

Job Setup Info: This lets you copy the entire Job Options file from another Job so that it overwrites the Job Options in your current Job. Generally speaking, you should do this only at the beginning of a Job. Note that Job Options may optionally be copied when you Home > Change active job > " New... " .

Access control: If " Copy job setup " is prohibited by Access Control , then " Job Setup Info " does not appear as an option in Copy Project Items , thus preventing you from copying Job setup information from another Job.

Reference Drawings: These are Drawing Editor drawings of the Reference Drawings drawing type. A reference drawing (as well as a job/global standard detail, erection view or member detail) can be placed as a reference drawing in Modeling .

Fabricators: This copies one or more Fabricator Options files from another Job into your current Job. This option will not copy Fabricators of the same name. Once the Fabricator(s) have been copied, you can make any one of them into your current Fabricator by using " Change Fabricator " on the SDS2 Setup Job or Fabricator Options window (the main setup menu).

Also see: The utility Replace Current Fabricator Settings can be used to copy values from another Fabricator into your current Fabricator.

Assemblies: Copying assemblies from another Job is a lot easier than creating new ones.

Tower Cranes: A tower crane is a crane that has been added to your model using Add Tower Crane . Copying a tower crane using this utility also copies crane placements associated with that crane.

Mobile Cranes: A mobile crane is a crane that has been added to your model using Add Crawler Crane or Add Truck Crane . Copying a mobile crane using this utility also copies crane placements associated with that crane.

Symbols: These are symbols that are stored in your current Job (job symbols). Be aware that if you copy a symbol that has the same name as symbols that have been placed in drawings in your current Job, the newly copied symbol will replace all incidences of symbols in those drawings.

Access Control Permissions: These set the permissions that will be used in your current Job . All of the permissions that are set in the Access Control window of the Job you are copying from will be copied. To safeguard against your not having permission to access your current Job after the permissions are copied, the program will open a dialog showing the login name that is access control's ProgectAdministrator for that Job. You must enter the password to gain access to the Job.

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