Civil 3D Fundamentals: Copying Information from Prospector

Back in the day, I wrote a post about how to copy information from Prospector to Excel called If It Quacks Like a Duck, and a follow up post with some ideas about how to exploit this technique.

Here is something so simple that I just discovered tonight while double checking some documentation I wrote recently.

Read more after the jump.

As the original how to article explained, simply highlight the rows you’d like to take out to Excel. Then right click and choose “Copy to clipboard”.

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Take it into Excel and paste.

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The question I had was “What is the difference between ‘Copy to Clipboard’ and ‘Copy Value to Clipboard’?” I had tried it a few times from Panorama and Prospector and I couldn’t seem to get anything to happen.

Well, if you choose “Copy Value to Clipboard” it only takes the data from the column you are hovering over when you right click.

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Like I said, simple. But somehow it had eluded me until just now, so I figured there were other folks out there who might be in the same boat.

2 comments

  1. Jason Hickey says:

    I found this one out totally by accident – I was trying to copy everything to Excel and it would only take over one value. After much repetition, cursing, kicking my computer, throwing the mouse, etc. I finally figured out what was going on. I think you’re right – there are people out there who have likely never noticed this one.

  2. I wish it would act more Excel like – but you are not limited to Excel exports. It the windows Clipboard!

    Copy to Clipboard might actually copy the header data too! (Highlighted One Line)
    Name Description Created by Date created Modified by Date modified
    Existing Grade – Curb MAnderson 9/18/2006 7:40:13 AM WBielski 1/5/2007 8:12:18 AM

    If I select the entire Prospector setting and Copy Value while hovering over name I get ONLY the name:
    Existing Grade – Curb