Drafix CAD Professional Version 3.01
© Copyright 1995 Foresight Resources Corp.


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Welcome
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Please read this document carefully.  It contains information that is more
current than that provided in the printed documentation or in the online help.

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Installation
------------

Contrary to instructions in the printed documentation, you cannot install
Drafix CAD Professional from the CD-ROM.  To install from floppy diskettes:

- Insert Disk 1 in drive A
- Choose Run from the File menu in Program Manager
- Type "A:\SETUP" and press Enter.

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Contents of the CD-ROM
----------------------

The CD-ROM included with Drafix CAD Professional Version 3.0 contains symbols,
sample macros, and sample drawings in CAD format.  The files on it are
uncompressed and directly accessible from Drafix CAD Professional.  They are
organized as follows:

DIRECTORY     DESCRIPTION
------------  ------------------------------------------------------------------
DRAWINGS      Sample drawing files for Drafix CAD Professional Version 3.0
HOMECAD       Home plans based on designs from Home Planners, Inc. - organized
                as follows:
  1ANDHALF    Plans for 1-1/2 story homes
  1STORY1     Plans for One-story homes under 2000 square feet
  1STORY2     Plans for One-story homes under 2000 square feet
  1STORY3     Plans for One-story homes under 2000 square feet
  2STORY1     Plans for two-story traditional homes
  2STORY2     Plans for two-story traditional homes
  2STORY3     Plans for two-story traditional homes
  2STORY4     Plans for two-story traditional homes
  2STORY5     Plans for two-story traditional homes
  CONTEMP     Plans for two-story contemporary homes
  HILLSIDE    Plans for multi-level and hillside homes
  OVER2K1     Plans for one-story homes over 2000 square feet
  OVER2K2     Plans for one-story homes over 2000 square feet
  OVER2K3     Plans for one-story homes over 2000 square feet
  READERS     Plans for Readers Choice homes
  SIGNATUR    Plans for Signature Series homes
  SUNHOME1    Plans for sun country homes
  SUNHOME2    Plans for sun country homes
  VACATION    Plans for vacation and second homes
  VICTOR1     Plans for Victorian homes and farmhouses
  VICTOR2     Plans for Victorian homes and farmhouses
MACROS        Sample macros for Drafix CAD Professional Version 3.0
SYMBOLS       Symbol libraries for Drafix CAD Professional Version 3.0 - 
                organized as follows:
  HOME_SLB    Symbol libraries provided with Planix Home Version 1.0
  OFFC_SLB    Symbol libraries provided with Planix Office Version 1.0
  MECH_SLB    Professional Mechanical Symbols
  ELEC_SLB    Professional Electrical Symbols
  ARCH_SLB    Professional Architectural Symbols
  NTWK_SLB    Professional Network Symbols
  LAND_SLB    Professional Landscape Symbols

----------------------------
New Features in Version 3.01
----------------------------

GENERAL:

- Markers can now be converted to symbols using the right mouse button menu for
  the selection set.

- An extent box now appears as a visual aid during some Translate, Align, and
  Mirror operations.

- You can now access recently opened macros directly from the File menu in the 
  Macro Editor.

- Drag and drop printing of CAD files is now possible in desktop shells that
  support this function.  You must have an association in File Manager between
  the .CAD extension and Drafix to use it.

- You can now export report data in CSV, SDF, or XLS format.

- The Drafix CAD and Macro Editor application windows are now restored to the
  screen locations they had at the end of the previous drawing session.

- The number of characters allowed in a symbol name has increased from
  15 to 31.

- Settings from the current printer driver are now displayed in--and act as
  initial settings for--the Printer Page section of the Page Setup dialog box.
  "Use Printer Setting" now appears only when Drafix is unable to obtain a
  value from the driver.

- The Coordinate, Distance, Angle, and Area/Perimeter dialog boxes now display
  measurements in drop-down list boxes that show all available units of
  measurement.


AUTOCAD COMPATIBILITY ENHANCEMENTS:

- Overstrike and underline text is now supported in imported AutoCAD files.

- A second DXF filter (Alternate Drawing Interchange) was added.  This filter
  is somewhat more flexible than the primary DXF filter.

- Markers are now converted to symbols in all DXF/DWG exports.  This provides
  better translation in non-AutoCAD products that don't support shape files.

- Scale factor is now automatically applied on all DXF/DWG exports.  Units are
  set to architectural.  

- Scale factor is now automatically applied on all DXF/DWG imports if units in
  the imported file are set to architectural or engineering.  The Scale Factor
  dialog box appears otherwise.


DRAFIX.INI VARIABLES:

- [Filter]
  ExportAutoCADVersion=VersionNumber  (default: 11)  NUMBER
    Specifies the version of AutoCAD with which exported DXF/DWG files are
    compatible.  Valid settings are 10, 11, and 12.  This setting does not
    affect files exported using the Alternate Drawing Interchange filter.  You
    must use a macro or edit DRAFIX.INI directly to change this setting.

- [Filter]
  DefaultToNative=Number  (default: 1)  NUMBER
    Specifies how filters are assigned to drawings.  Valid settings are as
    follows:
    
    Value    Meaning
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    1        Each drawing remains associated with the filter used to import it
             unless a different one is assigned manually in the Save Drawing
             File dialog box.  The file name on the title bar has an extension
             that reflects this filter.
    2        Each drawing is associated with the native (CAD) filter regardless
             of its origin.  The file name on the title bar always has a .CAD
             extension.
    4        Each drawing remains associated with the filter used to import it
             unless there is no corresponding export filter.  In this case, it
             is associated with the native (CAD) filter.  The file name on the
             title bar has an extension that reflects the associated filter.
             
    You must use a macro or edit DRAFIX.INI directly to change this setting.

- [Preference]
  SelectAlongCurve=0 or 1  (default: 1)  BOOL
    Specifies whether a curve can be selected by clicking along its length as
    well as at its control points.  You must use a macro or edit DRAFIX.INI
    directly to change this setting.


MACRO LANGUAGE ENHANCEMENTS:

- The Open("dialog", ...) function now allows you to specify the font used in
  the dialog.  The following example specifies that the text in the dialog box
  (other than that on the title bar) be displayed in 10 point Arial:
  
  Open("dialog", "Sample Dlg", "font Arial 10", 0, 0, 250, 100)
  
- The AddEntity("poly", ...) function now allows you to specify the segment
  start width, segment end width, and constrain segment width.  For more
  information, refer to the sample macro _POLY.D or to online Help.

- The AddVertex function now allows you to specify start width, end width, and
  bulge factor.  Syntax is as follows:
  
  BOOL AddVertex(xyPoint[, nStartWidth[, nEndWidth[, nBulge]]])
  
  Default values for nStartWidth, nEndWidth, and nBulge are zero.  For more
  information, refer to the sample macro _POLY.D or to online Help.
  
- The Symbol("create", sSymbolName[, xyBasePoint]) function was added.  This
  function allows you to create a new symbol comprised of entities in the
  current selection set.

- The AddControl function now allows you to display a BMP, DIB, or WMF file in
  a dialog box.  Syntax is as follows:
  
  AddControl(hDialog, "bitmap|dib|wmf", nX, nY, nWidth, nHeight,
     sFileSpec/sStyle, "", "")

  sFileSpec/sStyle is a 2-part string that specifies the file to be displayed
  and how it is displayed. The two parts are separated by a space. The second
  part must be one of the following:

  Value              Meaning
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  "center"           Clip the image if it is too large
  "autosize"          "    "    "   "  "  "   "    "
  "autocenter"        "    "    "   "  "  "   "    "
  "stretch"          Stretch the image to fill the specified area
  "wallpaper"        Repeat the image horizontally and vertically at full size
                       (not applicable for WMF files)
  "scrollable"       Allow scrolling if the image is too large

- The AddControl function now uses the current value of sVariable as the
  initial value for the control when the dialog box appears.  sVariable accepts
  data types as follows:
  
  Command                                 Data Type of sVariable
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  AddControl(..., "checkbox", ...)        SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "checkbox left", ...)   SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "auto3state", ...)      SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "listbox", ...)         STRING or 1-based SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "combobox", ...)        STRING or 1-based SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "dropdown", ...)        STRING or 1-based SCALAR
  AddControl(..., "radiobutton", ...)     BOOL
  AddControl(..., "groupbox", ...)        1-based SCALAR

  For more information, refer to the sample macro _RADIO.D or to online Help.
  
- The Exit function now accepts %ignore as the exit code.  This exit code, used
  in conjunction with Variable("save", ...) specifies that any open channels
  should not be closed when macro execution is complete.

- The bit operators "&" (AND) and "|" (OR) are now available.  Because the
  numbers are converted internally to LONGS, it is important to limit
  the use of these operators to numbers in the range ±2,500,000,000.
  Examples of these operators are:
    A = A & 127;
    Y = Y | 3;

- The Random("seedtime") function was added.  This function allows you to seed
  the random number generator using the current system time.  Syntax is as
  follows:

  BOOL Random("seedtime")

- The Merge function was added.  This function allows you to
  merge the contents of a CAD with the current drawing at a specified location.
  Syntax is as follows:

  BOOL Merge("drawing", sFileSpec, "cad", xyOrigin[, xyScale, nAngle])
