Library
Design Mode
Microvellum Toolbox and Overdrive Pro have a very powerful feature that greatly facilitates library creation and management. This feature is called the Library Designer. When using the Library Designer, it is possible to create a list of parts that are used over and over again throughout the library. This list is called the "Common Parts Library". Once all the formulas controlling the size, machining, and other properties have been worked out for a common part, you can instantly spread those formulas to all of the products that use the part. It is important to understand that when you are in "Library Designer Mode" you are working with a separate Product Library Called "Library Designer Products". These products are kept in a folder called Library Designer under the root Microvellum folder. The default installation path is: C:\Program Files\Microvellum\Library Designer. The Library Designer folder MUST remain in this root folder. All of the products in the Library Designer have matching names with the "Complied Library" products. So by default, each product in the Library Designer folder has a matching product in the "Library" folder. Using Library Designer To enter "Library Design Mode", go to the "General" tab in the "Microvellum Options". There is a checkbox called "Library Designer Mode" that, when checked, will allow you to use the Library Designer features. While in "Library Design Mode" the following options are available under the "Utilities" menu item in the Overdrive Pro Product List Context Menu: Show Common Parts Library The "Show Common Parts Library" command is used to access the Common Parts.xls file that is stored in the Library Designer folder. This file contains all the parts that are used to build the library. Select the "Show Common Parts Library" command to display the Common Parts.xls file in Overdrive Pro. Build Library from Library Designer The "Build Library from Library Designer" command will allow you to compile the formulas from the "Common Parts" file into the products in the Library Designer folder, and then take those products and build a new library that you can use in your jobs. Now let's take a look at the difference between products in the Library and products in the Library Designer. After checking the option to enter "Library Design Mode", start a new job and add a "1 Door Base" cabinet into the Overdrive Pro Product List. Let's look at the Parts List for the product by right clicking and selecting the menu item "Show Parts List". The very first thing you will notice about the parts list is that instead of a list of parts with red and black values assigned to the part, you have one column of blue formulas that displays a part name. A formula that is blue means that it is referencing the "Common Parts" file. If you select a cell for one of the part names, will see a formula in the formula bar that reads: =P!Cut_Base_Left_EP. The "P!" is referencing the Common Parts file just like the "G!" in a formula references a Global Variable. The name that follows the "P!" is the defined name in the Common Parts File. The example above is referencing a name called "Cut_Base_Left_EP". The result of the formula is a part name called "Base Left EP". If you added a 2 Door Base cabinet, you will notice that the product is also referencing the same defined name. So both cabinets are using the same part in the "Common Parts" file. Now let's close the Parts List and view the "Common Parts" file by right-clicking on the Product List, selecting the "Utilities" menu item, then the "Show Common Parts Library" menu item. Another spreadsheet will be displayed that looks like a product’s parts list. This spreadsheet is used to store all the parts that the library will use. We can see that the first column is called "Defined Name" and the second column is called "Part Name". If we look at the first row, the Defined Name is "Cut_Base_Left_EP". We can see that the defined name is the name in the formula for the 1 Door Base and the 2 Door Base. This is the name that is used to create the link between Library Designer Products and the Common Parts file. This "link" is what allows you to make one common part and use it repeatedly throughout each and every product that utilizes that particular part. This makes it possible to eliminate a great deal of repetitive information, thus making the task of designing and maintaining the library much easier. To extend the Library Designer functionality even further, you can change any value in the "Common Parts" file and that value will be changed in every product that uses that particular part. For example, if you changed the width formula for the "Base Left EP" part in the "Common Parts" file, all the Library Design products that reference that part will be changed as well. Since most of the base cabinets are referencing that part in the "Common Parts" file, this change will be made to those products. This eliminates having to make the change repeatedly in every base cabinet. The "link" between the "Common Parts" file can also be used in a product’s "Hardware Parts" and "Subassemblies" tabs as well. To create a new part in the "Common Parts" file, first enter in a name in the "Defined Name" column in the first empty row. Then, fill in the rest of the columns for the part with formulas or values. Once all the necessary columns have been filled in, select the "Defined Name" column and right-click to display the Context Menu. From the Context Menu select the "Define Name" command. This will create the part in the "Common Parts" file and allow you to reference the part in the Library Designer products. Modifying Products Individually In Library Design Mode You can see that using the "Library Design Mode" can be a very powerful tool to create and make changes to a library, but what if you want to modify a part’s formula but do not want to change every product that uses that part. Library Designer products can be modified on an individual basis as well. To accomplish this, load in a product in the Product List and view the product’s Parts List. Select the part that you wish to make a change to and right-click on the spreadsheet to display the Parts List Context Menu. You will notice that while in Library Design Mode a new menu item is displayed in the context menu called "Common Parts Library". From the Common Parts Library menu item, select the "Display Values of Common Library Part(s)" command. The selected part will now display all the formulas that are being used from the "Common Parts" file. You can now select the cell you wish to edit and make the change in the formula bar. Once you have made the change, the formula will change from blue to red. This means that the formula has been modified and is no longer looking to the formula in the "Common Parts" file. Once you have made all the changes necessary to the part, select the "Remove Un-Edited Common Part Library Values" command in the Parts List Context Menu. All the blue formulas will now be hidden but the modified formulas will still be displayed in red. Right-click to display the Parts List Context Menu and select "Save Cut List As...”. Now save your product under the appropriate category in the Library Designer folder. This product has now been modified, but not affected any other products that reference that part because the change was made on a product level instead of in the "Common Parts" file. Once you "rebuild the library", the formula that was changed will be used in that particular product instead of the formula from the "Common Parts" file. To remove a modified formula from a Library Designer product, simply select the cell in the Parts List and delete the formula from that cell. You will need to re-save the product back to the "Library Design" folder using the "Save Cut List As" menu item. Since a red formula is no longer in the product, the formula from the "Common Parts" file will now be used. Adding a Part from the Common Parts File into a Library Designer Product If you would like to add a part from the "Common Parts" file into a product, load the product into the Product List and view the Parts List of the product. Select the first available empty row in the Cut Parts tab and right-click to display the Parts List Context Menu. From the "Common Parts Library" menu item select the "Add Part From Common Parts Library" command. The list of defined names in the "Common Parts" file will appear in a dialog box. Then double-click the defined name that is associated to the part that you would like to add into the product. A blue formula will now be displayed that references the part. Use the "Save Cut List As" menu item to save the product back to the Library Designer folder. To remove a part from a product, simply delete the formula that is referencing the part in the product and save the product back to the Library Designer folder. Product Prompts in Library Designer "Library Design Mode" is very useful for cut parts, hardware parts, and subassemblies, but prompts cannot be referenced from the "Common Parts" file. To make the process of adding all the necessary prompts into the products simple, Microvellum has created the "Add Prompt" utility. This utility is used to add prompts into the Library Designer products so that when the library is built from the Library Designer, all the necessary parts and prompts are in all the products. Please refer to the Add Prompt section to see how to use the Add Prompt utility. Rebuilding the Library from the Library Designer Products Once you have made all the changes to your "Library Designer Products" and "Common Parts" file, you can build a new library that can be used in your jobs. Select the "Build Library from Library Designer..." command from the "Utilities" menu item in the Product List Context Menu. All the Library Designer products will replace your existing library products with all of the modifications made. Once the library has been built, leave "Library Design Mode", and start a new job. You can now use your new library. |
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