Q: Does Photopia work with AutoCAD 2002?

A: Yes. If your installation did not include the 2002 menu files then you can get them if you own a current Annual Maintenance Contract. Contact Photopia support to obtain the updated files required. To check to see if you have the required files already installed and to see how to setup the menu files for use in AutoCAD 2002, see the following FAQ.

Q: How do I install the Photopia custom menu file in AutoCAD 2000, 2000i and 2002?

A: Follow the instructions below:

1. Check to see if you have the proper AutoCAD support files installed for Photopia. You can do this by checking to see if the appropriate AutoCAD menu file is present in your \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder. The files are named ACAD2000.MNU, ACAD2000i.MNU or ACAD2002.MNU for the various versions of AutoCAD. If you already have the AutoCAD 2000 support files, then go into the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder in Windows Explorer and copy the appropriate files to ACAD.*. For example, if you are using AutoCAD 2000i, then copy ACAD2000i.* to ACAD.*.
2. If the required files are not present and if you own a current Annual Maintenance Contract, then contact Photopia support to obtain the updated files required.
3. Begin AutoCAD. Select Options from the Tools main menu item. From the Files tab in the Options dialog, expand the Support File Search Path. Add the path for the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder - for instance, "C:\LTI\PHOTOPIA\ACAD". Highlight this path in the list and click the Move Up button to place this path first in the list.
4. At the command prompt, use the "menu" command to select and enable the ACAD.MNC file from the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder as the default menu. Exit AutoCAD and start it again to ensure all features work properly.

Q: How do I install the Photopia custom menu file in AutoCAD 14?

A: Follow instructions below:

1. Check to see if you have the AutoCAD 14 support files installed for Photopia. You can do this by checking to see if ACADR14.MNU is present in your \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder. If it is not present and you own a current Annual Maintenance Contract, then contact Photopia support to obtain the updated files required.
2. If you already have the AutoCAD 14 support files, then go into the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder and copy ACADR14.* to ACAD.*.
3. Begin AutoCAD. Select Tools / Preferences or type "preferences" at the command prompt. From the Files tab in the Preferences window, expand the Support File Search Path. Add the path for the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder - for instance, "C:\LTI\PHOTOPIA\ACAD". Highlight this path in the list and press the Move Up button to place this path first in the list.
4. At the command prompt, use the "menu" command to select and enable the ACAD.MNC file from the \PHOTOPIA\ACAD directory as the default menu. The Photopia menu item should now be available. Exit and restart AutoCAD to ensure all features work properly.
5. There is one change in functionality of which you should be aware. As AutoCAD 14 made a new entity type for 2D polylines (PLINES) called LWPOLYLINEs (which it uses at its discretion), Photopia needed to make all polylines constructed from the Segmented and Curved Reflector macros 3DPOLYLINES. In releases prior to release 14, the entity stored internally and written to DXF files was a POLYLINE (which had a 3D description) whether it was originally constructed using PLINE or 3DPOLY. Now, AutoCAD usually makes an LWPOLYLINE (a completely new and 2D only description) both internally and written to DXF files when the PLINE command is used. The Photopia raytrace routines inside of AutoCAD rely on the 3D description of POLYLINES, so all polylines constructed from the Photopia menu item use 3DPOLY when constructing entities. Keep this in mind when drawing your own curves to be traced with our macros. The second implication is that the Raytrace II macro will only work in the front view now. It previously worked in any view, although all other macros have always been restricted to the front view.

Q: I am running AutoCAD 14 and the Photopia sub menu options in the AutoCAD menu are very long, listing all options of all sub menus.

A: This happens when the compiled version of the Photopia menu file for AutoCAD 14 becomes corrupt. To reset the menu, load the .MNU version of the menu file again. You can load the menu by typing MENU from the AutoCAD command line, and changing the filetype it lists to *.MNU. Then select the ACAD.MNU file from your \PHOTOPIA\ACAD folder.

Q: Is the Photopia custom menu file available for new versions of AutoCAD past version 2002?

A: The custom AutoCAD menu is only provided through AutoCAD 2002. The reason for this is because the tools that were provided inside of AutoCAD have now been moved inside of Photopia so that all customers can utilize them, not just AutoCAD users. Furthermore, the tools have been greatly improved to provide more general functionality.

1. The segmented and curved reflector design tools have been replaced by the Parametric Optical Design Tools (PODT) module. This module allows for a similar profile building process where reflectors are constructed in sections based on individual aiming points or aiming angles. But the PODT module provides this in an interactive environment allowing reflector aiming schemes to be automatically created based on a few initial inputs and then allowing all aspects of the reflector to be modified.

2. The 2D raytrace tools are provided via the use of 2D lamp models. The version 2.0 lamp library contains a range of 2D models including a point source, various length line sources, and T5 & T8 sources. The T5 and T8 sources create 2D ray sets in a single plane leaving the surface of these lamp cross sections. All of the 2D lamp models start with “2D” in their lamp name, for example “2DPOINT” and “2DT5.” Just import these like any other lamp model, placing them where you want to see the raytrace. General guidelines are as follows: 10,000 rays, 100% update frequency, and turn on 3D ray display with at least 500 rays. Keep in mind that because this process is only meant for seeing ray paths, the candela curves and illuminance planes will not be relevant. Additionally, the Parametric Optical Design Tools (PODT) provide an excellent way to determine how reflector sections are aimed and easily change the aiming without redrawing things in CAD.