Though I am a big fan of the FDO data connection that came around in Map 2007 (which of course, Civil 3D 2007 was built on), I do sometimes like to import map data the old fashioned way through the Map>Tools>Import.
In 2007 and below, I always had to manually assign the input coordinate systems. Map didn’t seem to want to automatically find the .PRJ (projection) files for me like the FDO did. This was a bit tedious, especially when importing a collection of .SHP files that each had a different coordinate system.
Click more to find out what I discovered in 2008.
Screen Shot Below: Civil 3D 2007
In 2008, as long as your data came with a .PRJ file…
The Map>Tools>Import command should find them, and assign them right out of the gate for you.
Screen Shot Below: Civil 3D 2008
It’s a small thing that makes life much easier when importing map data. I used to keep a .txt file with a list of the .shp files I have on my machine and their associate coordinate systems.Â
Dana,
Thanks for the information about Map. This may or may not be the place to discuss this, but I thought I’d take a moment now to let you know that I have just successfully completed a stormwater management study of approx. 240 acres in Northern Virginia using the Map / Civil 3D techniques that you showed at AU. The Map functions you showed for overlaying topologies and extracting to tables using annotation templates to determine CN values worked out very nice. Especially when some of the areas changed and I had to recalculate the new CN’s at the last minute (always happens that way, right?). And the expressions for labeling flows and velocities in pipe networks worked well too, even though I did have a problem extracting the Manning’s value from the pipe properties. ( I have since sent a help request to Autodesk about that one. )
So thanks for all that you do to promote the software and share your WEALTH of knowledge 🙂
Dave Dixon
Clark Nexsen, Architecture & Engineering
Norfolk, VA
It’s always the right forum to write about good stuff like this!!! Great news! I am so glad you found it useful. Keep me posted.