|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Frequently Asked Questions
1. When should I use APR Director? At Latitude Geographics, we always use APR Director to open ArcView. This way, we can use the recently opened projects feature, a backup project is automatically saved, and we can quickly get started whether or not any files have been moved. You can even create a new ArcView project using APR Director. There is really no reason to even keep the ArcView shortcut on your desktop. If your ArcView project is large but your computer is slow, unclick "Scan with ISSR" provided you are sure no files have been moved around since the project was last opened. The project will open immediately.
2. What kind of files can APR Director handle? APR Director is versatile in the sense that it can handle virtually any file extension type. The only time it runs into problems is when a file is generated on the fly. For example, when opening an ArcInfo coverage, ArcView looks at the coverage folder and creates files on the fly. This is an ESRI operation that we can not duplicate. However, APR Director is designed so that when it finds a file it doesn't understand, it is able to skip it altogether. When APR Director opens ArcView, ArcView generates the files on the fly, which allows you to point to where the coverages are manually. In such a case you will have to deal with some where is boxes. If ArcInfo and AutoCad files have been moved around, you may have to point to their new locations the old fashioned way.
3.
Why doesn't APR Director run on UNIX machines or on Windows ME?
APR Director is a Visual Basic application and only runs on Windows platforms. If you would like to see a UNIX version of APR Director, let us know. We will consider developing it if there is sufficient demand. For the most part, APR Director functions on Windows ME. There is an bug in the current version of Windows ME that only the first eight characters of folder names display when APR Director views folders over a network. We have notified Microsoft about this issue, and expect a fix in the near future. Otherwise, APR Director has performed well on our Windows ME beta testing machine.
4.
What is 'ISSR' and what does it do?
By default, APR Director scans the APR file (ArcView Project) using ISSR (Intelligent Search, Store and Replace). If a file is not where it expects it to be, APR Director will prompt the user for guidance. With ISSR you only need to point to the new location of a file once. Before asking you where the next missing file is, it checks the directory you just specified. It continually builds a list of places to look before bothering you again. It will even search your computer or network to find the file if you aren't sure where you moved it. If it finds two files with the same name, it will ask you which one you want to use.
5. Something went wrong when I opened the project. How do I restore it? Accidents happen. Once in a while, you may pick the wrong file or skip something you shouldn't have skipped. You find yourself staring at a mangled ArcView project that you accidentally saved the changes to. No problem. Under the Advanced Options tab, select Restore from Backup. Find the project (the number tacked on is the backup version, so a higher number is a more recent backup), set a different path if you want, and click restore. It is that simple.
6. How often should I clear the back-up directory? It depends how often you open projects, how big your projects are, and how much room you have on your hard drive, and how accident prone you are (I dropped a spilled a whole bag of blueberries last night. Once your backup directory passes the 200MB mark, it is probably worth clearing it out, especially if you haven't had any problem with messed up projects. APR Director will remind you every once in a while to clear out you backup directory. We'd have it clear itself automatically were it not for Murphy's Law.
7.
When would I use the set path function?
Put simply, you should the set path function when everything has been moved from one place to another place. Here's an example. Suppose I move my 'gisdata' directory from my c:/temp drive to my i:/projects drive. The relative locations of the files haven't changed except for this one thing. It is a waste of time to go through all the locations of all the shapefiles in all the subdirectories. In this example, you would select the project, click the Set Path button, and change c:/temp to i:/projects. It should open without any hassles.
8. One of the projects listed in the Recent Projects won't open. Why is this? If the project has been moved or renamed, the recently used pathname is obsolete. APR Director endeavors to open a given file at a particular location. If it doesn't find it there, it can't open it.
9.
What happens if I don't have one or more of the ArcView extensions the
project is looking for loaded on my computer?
ArcView extensions add new capabilities to ArcView. Extensions let you do things 3D analysis, create and analyze grids, work with labels, reproject data, and many other things. The catch is you need to have the extension on your computer to be able to use a project that has it loaded. In many cases the project won't open without the extension. If you want to use a project created on another computer, you need to make sure you have the required extensions. Some are free, so the person can give them to you, and others you need to pay for. One option is to open the project on their computer and unload any non-essential extensions so you can open the project on your computer. Some projects, like those using 3D Analyst, require the extension at all times.
|
| Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Policy |