Net:  This is an addin for SolidWorks Entperprise PDM that enables users to pick, at run-time, the numbering sequence to use for auto-numbering.

2009 Version Download

© Jeff Cope for Extensible By Design, 2008. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us digg
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Copyright 2007 Extensible By Design. All rights reserved.

 You have always had the ability to set up muliple serial number generators in PDMWorks Enterprise but now the user can decide at File/Folder creation time which serial number to use.  An anticipated use case with this improved version of the tools is for users who have multiple categories of parts with numbers being assigned by category.  Note:  Even though the functionality has been expanded, the tool is still very easy to install and configure. 

So how does it work?

The Number Generator is a PDMWorks Enterprise add-in that runs whenever a user presses a command button (from a data card) that is configured to “call” it.  The Number Generator downloads the latest copy of the ListItems.xml file from your vault’s Options folder and checks it for List Items.  Each <ListItem> element in the XML file has a <Name> element and corresponding <Value> element.  The <Name> elements represent what the users sees in the Number Generator’s drop-down list and the <Value> elements represent the Serial Number sequence that is “called” whenever a user selects that item from the drop-down list.  There is no reasonable limit to the number of serial number sequences that can be supported by the Number Generator.  Just add a new <ListItem> node to the ListItems.xml file, being careful to type the exact name of the Serial Number sequence in the <Value> node.

 Don’t be afraid of the xml.  It is really simple.  Here is the xml file that was used to develop and test the Number Generator.  Notice that the text contained in the <Value> nodes of the ListItems are an exact match for the names of the Serial Number sequences in the vault.

Alright…  Ready to get started?  Good.  Here are the high-level installation and configuration steps:

1. Download and unzip the file containing the tool.
2. Create any desired serial number sequences using the PDMWorks Enterprise Administration Tool. 
3. Add the included add-in to the PDMWorks Enterprise Add-ins using the PDMWorks Enterprise Administration Tool. 
4. Using Notepad or (better) an XML editor such as XML Notepad, edit the ListItems.xml file that is included in the Options folder to include your desired serial number sequences.
5. Copy the included Options folder to the root of your PDMWorks Enterprise vault.
6. Checkin the ListItems.xml file, if not done automatically.
7. Give all users Read Only permissions to the Options folder.
8. Add a command button to any data card you wish to run the Number Generator from and configure the command button to “call” the Number Generator.
9. Test it out and if it works well for you, then add some nice feedback to this post.  Otherwise, curse me under your breath and keep it to yourself.

Here are the detailed steps:

1. Download the file containing the tool from here.  Unzip it once it is downloaded.  It should contain two dll files (Interop.EdmLib.dll and NumberGeneratorForPDMWE2008.dll) and an Options folder which in turn contains a single xml file (ListItems.xml).
2. Create any desired serial number sequences using the PDMWorks Enterprise Administration Tool.  Keep track of the names of the Serial Number sequences as you will need this information for step four.
3. Add the included add-in to the PDMWorks Enterprise Add-ins using the PDMWorks Enterprise Administration Tool.  Use the New button to add the Add-in’s dll files to the vault.  Make sure you select BOTH dll files to add.  Don’t worry about the warning message that PDMWorks Enterprise gives you after you add the dlls.  The warning message is just letting you know that you have to reboot when updating the same Add-in to a later version.  I changed the name of this add-in from the previous version so that won’t be an issue here.
4. Using Notepad or (better) an XML editor such as XML Notepad, edit the ListItems.xml file that is included in the Options folder to include your desired serial number sequences.  Notepad can be used but I am partial to XML Notepad as seen below.  XML Notepad is a totally free utility from Microsoft and can be downloaded from here.  If using Notepad, be very careful to preserve the format of the XML file.  Each <ListItem> element tag must be closed by a corresponding </ListItem> element tag.  The same goes true for the <Name> and <Value> element tags. 
5. Copy the included Options folder to the root of your PDMWorks Enterprise vault.  I want to emphasize the “to the ROOT of your vault” part of that.  If your vault’s local view is found at “C:\PDMWE\MyVault” then your Options folder should be found at “C:\PDMWE\MyVault\Options.”
6. Checkin the ListItems.xml file, if not done automatically.
7. Give all users Read Only permissions to the Options folder.
8. Add a command button to any data card you wish to run the Number Generator from and configure the command button to “call” the Number Generator.
9. Test it out and if it works well for you, then add some nice feedback to this post.  Otherwise, curse me under your breath and keep it to yourself.

You can hit the “Copy” button to copy the auto-generated number to the clipboard.  You can then paste it anywhere you want (e.g. filename, data card variable, etc…).

 If you or someone you know use(s) this thing and find it helpful, then give us a holler in the comments section below.  Thanks.

© Jeff Cope for Extensible By Design, 2008. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us digg
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Copyright 2007 Extensible By Design. All rights reserved.

 In spite of all their positive benefits, which are many, more than a few SolidWorks users look upon custom properties with the same disdain that a pre-schooler would have for green leafy vegetables.  You can explain the benefits of custom properties, how they help you find things, how they lead to healthy drawing title blocks, how they improve PDM implementations, etc… until you are blue in the face and with some individuals you still won’t make a dent.  There might be a change for a few days even a few weeks but inevitably you are back to files with no custom properties filled out. 

In order to increase the life-expectancy of CAD administrators everywhere, I have posted a free .NET Add-In for SolidWorks that will “remind” your users to enter certain custom properties whenever they create a new file or save an existing one (after the initial save).  The list of custom properties is configurable and

the user cannot proceed with their file until they enter the custom properties.  I am sure the program can be improved upon but for those without SolidWorks API skills of their own this should be a nice little app.  Also, for those who do have SolidWorks API skills using Visual Basic.NET, I am more than happy to share the code if you request it.

 The Add-In, called “Big Brother” is written for SolidWorks 2008 and targets the 2.0 .NET Framework, which means if you have SolidWorks 2008 installed on your machine then you can use it.

 To get started,

1.  Download the installer package for Big Brother from here.

2.  Run the installer, agreeing to the overly wordy license agreement on the way.

3.  After installing the software, run the “Register Big Brother.bat” file in the installation directory.  Running this batch file will register Big Brother with COM and add the appropriate registry entries for SolidWorks to load Big Brother when SolidWorks is run.

4. This is an optional step but if you don’t already have a decent XML editor, then I recommend you download XML Notepad which is a free XML editor from Microsoft.

5.  Use XML Notepad to edit the XML configuration files in the installation directory.  The installation has three XML files which are used to configure which custom properties are managed by Big Brother for each of the three main part types in SolidWorks.

• AssemblyPropertiesToManage.XML – Represents custom properties for assemblies.
• DrawingPropertiesToManage.XML – Represents custom properties for drawings.
• PartPropertiesToManage.XML – Represents custom properties for parts.

Edit the list of custom properties to manage for each document type using XML Notepad.  Each “ExtProperty” node represents a custom property.  PropName represents the name of the custom property to be managed.  PropValue and PropType should not be touched.  Leave those alone.  Save the file(s) when finished.

6.  Open SolidWorks and create a new part.  After selecting your template, you should be prompted to verify or fill in the values for the custom properties in your PartPropertiesToManage.XML file.  The same thing should happen for subsequent file saves.  The original Save (for new documents) doessnot trigger the FileSaveNotify event.  I suspect that it is triggered by the FileSaveAsNotify event.  If anyone tries that and gets the answer then please let me know.

7.   Additional configuration of the Add-In may be performed by editing the “ExtensibleEventManager.dll.config” file, which you should also use XML Notepad to edit. 

• If BigBrotherMode=True then it is mandatory that users enter values for all custom properties.  If BigBrotherMode=False then the dialog pops up as an FYI.
• If CatchFileNewEvent=True then files are managed on FileNew in addition to FileSave.

© Jeff Cope for Extensible By Design, 2008. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us digg
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Copyright 2007 Extensible By Design. All rights reserved.