Working with CAD software to create landscape plans is unlike other software applications. It is common to work on the same file over days, so since your CAD drawings are such a valuable store of information, they must be protected. However, with the best intentions in the world, CAD drawings can become corrupt. Sometimes the file itself will not load, and it is necessary to recover from a backup copy; at other times, even though a file may behave normally, some functions do not work. Steps like zoom extents reveal a blank screen, the plant schedule tool will not update, or gCADPlus closes and restarts. Here is a checklist to work through to fix corrupted drawings if you have a problem.
The file will not load
Use Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder containing your drawing file. In that same folder, select the file with the extension .lc$. At worst, this file will be 10 minutes old, so renaming the file to have a .lcd extension instead of .lc$ will allow you to load a recent version of your work. Once the file loads, save it again under a different name. You could also do the same with the .bak file, but it may not be as current as the .lc$ copy.
File loads, but operationally compromised
1. Run the Tools > Purge Unused Objects option [PURGEX command]. This cleans files of unwanted (unused) blocks, linetypes, text styles and layers. These can often be the source of a problem.
2. Move to model space. Use the Tools >Selection All option and copy all model space entities to the clipboard. Please start a new drawing (without choosing a template) and paste it into this new space. Save the drawing and test doing operations in this new environment that previously caused difficulty.
3. Try using the Tools drop-down menu and select AutoCAD > Check AutoCAD file. This is a proxy for file integrity. If success is reported, use File > SaveAs dwg and the ODA software tool to load the dwg and convert to DXF. Then start a new drawing and open the DXF file. Save immediately as the native .lcd file format and see if your problem persists.
Example movies
The movies below describe some instances where we had to resort to more drastic measures to fix corrupted drawings.
We take a drawing containing many ghost entities and a malfunctioning update plant schedule command and repair it straightforwardly.
How to fix a corrupt landscape design drawing using DXF tools. We take a gCADPlus file that was unstable in the editing environment and, using the DXFin and DXFout commands, create a stable version of the design.
Built-in file protection
We have systems in place that protect drawing files.
When you start drawing, gCADPlus loads a template file. The file is initially called Noname. When you select File > Save, the drawing is saved under the name you have chosen—let’s call it MyNewDesign. As the save command is implemented, gCADPlus adds the extension lcd to the filename, so the file becomes MyNewDesign.lcd.
As you add entities to the drawing, after 10 minutes, the autosave feature of gCADPlus cuts in and creates a backup file of the same name and in the same folder as the original drawing, but with the extension .lc$. At the 10-minute mark, the file has two copies – the LCD and the LC$. If you then File > Save, three copies of the drawing file exist. The original file gets renamed MyNewDesign.bak, the current drawing gets saved with the .lcd suffix, and the lc$ file remains (and is updated every 10 minutes). In this way, your design work is protected.
We suggest you protect your work by creating a Jobs folder in the My Documents > gCADPlus folder and sub-folders for each calendar year. Individual drawing files are saved in a folder with each client’s name. For example, drawings created for a job carried out in 2018 for M/s Smith would be filed in My Documents > gCADPlus > Jobs > 2018 > Smith.
Data backup is then quite straightforward—the Jobs folder is simply copied to a backup device. This can be as simple as a high-capacity USB drive or, better still, connect the Jobs folder to a cloud storage system so the Jobs folder and sub-folders are backed up without any intervention from you.
Microsoft with their OneDrive service, DropBox and Google + have excellent free systems backup applications for small projects while SugarSync and other commercial firms offer commercial cloud services.