MicroStation Tips & Tricks: Making global changes easier

It's common to have to repeat the same task over and over in a given design file or in a series of design files. In these cases, it's nice to have a macro recorded that will perform that repetitive action without your having to go through all the key-strokes and mouse-clicks each time to get the task done. What's better is being able to run that macro on all your design files at the same time! This is where Global File Changer from Axiom (http://www.AxiomInt.com) steps in.

Create your own MicroStation basic macro

1. Open any design file.

2. Go to Utilities|Macro|Create BASIC Macro... (BASIC is the programming language MicroStation uses to assist in creating its macros.)

3. From the "Create Macro" dialog box, add a name in the "Name:" field and a description in the "Description:" field.

4. Notice the "Location:" menu button at the bottom of the "Create Macro" dialog box. This shows you where the macro you are creating will be placed. The default is ...workspacestandardsmacros. Using the drop-down menu, you can change it to the only other location option ...workspacesystemmacros. It really doesn't matter which one you use, since by default MicroStation will see both locations.

5. Now get ready! As soon as you press "OK" on the "Create Macro" dialog box, MicroStation will start recording your every move. As soon as you're ready, press "OK" and watch what comes up immediately after.

6. Notice that the "Play" button is already engaged. Walk through the actions that you'd like to have recorded for later use. There's a "Pause" button there in case you need to stop recording before you've completed the macro. Press the "Play" key again to resume recording. Press the "Stop" button to complete the process. Pressing "Stop" will close the recording session entirely, so don't press it until you're done.

How to run a MicroStation macro on all of your design files using Global File Changer

1. Create a text file and call it whatever you want, but change the "txt" extension to "key".

2. You only need one line in the file. The format is:

macro (macro name)

The word "macro" followed by a space, followed by the name of the macro that you created earlier. Example: If your macro were named "Superman", it would look like this:

macro Superman

3. Save and close the text file.

4. Load Global File Changer from your Axiom pull-down menu.

5. To select which files to process, press the "Select..." button next to the "Design Files:" field. This will open the "Choose Files to Process" dialog box.

6. Press the "Browse for files" button and you will be able to navigate to and select the files you want to process. Press "OK" to get back to the main Global File Changer dialog box.

7. Press the "Select" button next to the "Key-in Files:" field. This will allow you to navigate to and select the key file that you made earlier. Press "Open" to return to the main Global File Changer dialog box.

8. The "Report File:" field is unimportant for processing, but it needs to have a valid path and file name.

9. Press "Start" to process your files.

You should now see the fruits of your macro executed! What was recorded earlier should now have replayed in your MicroStation environment for every file processed by Global File Changer.