In 2001, we released AcadXTabs^TM, the original and very first 100% native-code MDI document tab extension for AutoCAD 2000. Initially available free of charge, AcadXTabs quickly became the most popular AutoCAD add-on ever created, with hundreds of thousands of copies in use world-wide.

Since then, AcadXTabs has been imitated and cloned by many, with additional bells and whistles to distinguish them from the original. It rapidly became a real 'me-too' thing :), and as a result, AcadXTabs is arguably the most imitated and cloned AutoCAD extension in existence, with even Autodesk itself getting in on the act. Well, thanks for the complement.

Today we raise the bar, introducing a completely new AcadXTabs with powerful new features and productivity-enhancing functionality that you will not find in any AcadXTabs 'knock-off', document tab extension, or AutoCAD extension of any kind.

Introducing AcadXTabs 2010

AcadXTabs 2010 is a completely new, built from-the-ground-up product with significant new features and powerful functionality enhancements you will find nowhere else.

The focus and theme of the original AcadXTabs was in a nutshell, document navigation. AcadXTabs 2010 expands the focus of its predecessor to include document-centric user interface navigation, and multiple document settings management as well, courtesy of ToolScape. Document tabs and document navigation is just the tip of the iceberg of productivity-enhancing functionality offered by AcadXTabs 2010.

This new release of AcadXTabs is designed exclusively for AutoCAD 2009 or later. Not only does AcadXTabs 2010 leverage many new features of AutoCAD 2009, it actually makes using some of them feasible. AcadXTabs 2010 comes bundled with a number of useful companion tools, not available separately.

Detailed information on AcadXTabs 2010 will be posted here periodically in the coming weeks, as it becomes available. While there is no firm ETA at this time, barring major feature-creep we expect to ship near the end of Q3. If you are an AcadXTabs licensee using AutoCAD 2009 and you're interested in participating in beta testing, please contact us via the link on the AcadXTabs main page.

Current AcadXTabs licensees who purchased a new license or a license seat upgrade on or after 01/01/08, as well as all Enterprise licensees, are eligible for a free upgrade to AcadXTabs 2010 (upon request).

Features and Benefits

What follows is a brief overview of new features and companion tools included with AcadXTabs 2010. This overview is not complete.

Drag & Drop Tab Reordering and Tab Sorting

The most popular wishlist request from current AcadXTabs users is drag and drop tab reordering. AcadXTabs 2010 delivers on that request fully, and also offers sorting of tabs based on document usage data or filename. While holding down the ALT key, you can drag any visible tab to any position. Tab sorting options are available from the Documents menu.

64 bit Support

AcadXTabs 2010 fully supports both 32- and 64-bit environments.

Document and Layout Thumbnails

While AutoCAD 2009's QuickView Drawings/Layouts feature offers elaborate, graphical depictions of layouts and drawings complete with animation, many find these features extremely sluggish and not very 'Quick'.

AcadXTabs 2010 offers the option of displaying both layout and document thumbnails on document tab context menus and the document overflow dropdown menu, without the stupid pet tricks.

New Document Tab

This is a small tab that appears to the right of the last visible tab. When clicked, it reveals a dropdown menu showing all template (*.dwt) files located in the AutoCAD templates folder (as configured via the Files tab on the Options dialog). Selecting one of the template files opens a new document based on the selected template file.

Document Overflow Dropdown

This dropdown button located on the right side of the AcadXTabs control bar provides access to all open documents, including those whose document tabs are not visible.

Documents Dropdown

This dropdown button located on the left side of the AcadXTabs control bar provides access to a variety of application-level commands and functions that apply to all open documents. Commands available from this dropdown include Close All, Save All, and more.

Navigation Controls

These Internet Explorer-style forward and back buttons allow you to easily navigate the recently active documents, layouts, or views. You can configure these controls to navigate documents only, documents and layouts only, or documents, layouts, and view changes.

Open Last Document Set

This command provides an easy way to reopen all documents that were open when AutoCAD was last exited.

Open From Recent Folder Menu

This menu, available from the Documents dropdown on the AcadXTabs control bar, offers a handy way to open drawing files located in folders containing other recently-used files. The recent folders menu can vastly reduce the need to navigate folders in AutoCAD's Open file dialog. When you select a folder from the Open From Recent Folder submenu, the AutoCAD OPEN command starts with the contents of the selected folder shown in the Open file dialog.

Open, Insert, and Attach From Containing Folder

These commands are available from the context menu that appears when you right-click on a document tab. The Open From Containing Folder command is simply an alternative way of using the AutoCAD OPEN command, but with the added benefit that the initial folder shown in the Open file dialog is set to the folder containing the document whose tab context menu was used to access the command.

Similarly, the Insert From Containing Folder and Attach From Containing Folder items start the AutoCAD INSERT and XREF commands with the initial folder shown by the file dialogs available from those commands set to the folder containing the document whose tab was used to start the command.

Open Containing Folder

This command, available from each document's tab context menu, opens an Explorer window showing the folder containing the associated document.

AcadXTabs 2010 Companion Tools

The following tools are included with AcadXTabs 2010, at no additional charge.
These tools are exclusive to AcadXTabs 2010 and are not available separately
 

 ToolScapeTM

Intelligent User Interface and Settings Management

ToolScape^TM, an AcadXTabs 2010 companion tool, complements AutoCAD 2009 with powerful new intelligent user interface and document state management functions.

ToolScape makes AutoCAD's various user interfaces (namely the ribbon, dashboard, and tool palettes) more intelligent, by enabling active ribbon/dashboard tabs and active tool palettes to automatically synchronize with documents and paper and model spaces of each document.

As a result, each open document can have its own distinct active ribbon/dashboard tab, and active tool palette. As you switch between open documents, ToolScape manages these interface elements for you, automatically restoring each activated document's active ribbon/dashboard tab and tool palette.

You can configure ToolScape to manage ribbon/dashboard tabs only; tool palettes only, or both. You can enable management of interface elements in all open documents, or select what open documents it is enabled in (a preference you can save with the document). You can temporarily toggle ToolScape on or off by simply holding down the shift key while switching documents or via an AutoCAD status bar toggle button.

You can optionally configure ToolScape to track the ribbon/dashboard tab and tool palette used in paper space and model space, and restore them as you toggle between spaces. With paper/model space interface management enabled, each open document has two active ribbon tabs and two active tool palettes associated with it - one of each for paper space, and one of each for model space.

ToolScape's content- and document-contextual interface management functions support all forms of document and space navigation, and work regardless of how you navigate open documents and spaces, including via Quick View Drawings/Layouts, the Window menu, the keyboard, scripting, and so on.

Document-specific Managed Drawing Editor Settings

ToolScape can manage document-specific values for a broad range of AutoCAD drawing editor settings, like object snap and tracking; orthomode; polar snap and many more. This function allows you to for example, have running object snap set to ENDPoint + MIDPoint in one open document, and CENter + QUAdrant in another document, and disabled entirely in other documents. You can have drafting settings like orthomode, dynamic UCS, and dynamic input enabled in some documents and disabled in others.

As you switch between open documents, ToolScape automatically manages document-specific settings for you, automatically saving and restoring them as needed. Document specific settings are fully configurable, allowing you to select which settings have document-specific values, and which do not. Additionally, ToolScape allows you to save document-specific settings in a document, and will restore them when the document is opened.

Custom Contextual Tool Palettes and Ribbon Tabs

If you've used AutoCAD 2009's new ribbon, you may have found its contextual tabs a nice alternative to the specialized toolbars that automatically appear during certain tasks, like editing multi-line text or tables. As you already know, AutoCAD's highly-customizable interface offers the means to define your own custom ribbon tabs and tool palettes. Well, wouldn't it be cool if you could also define when they automatically appear and activate?

ToolScape provides sophisticated tools that allow you to associate your own custom tool palettes and ribbon tabs with specific contexts and actions, like for example, the selection of a certain type of object, or the invocation of a specific command or set of commands. So for example, you can define a contextual ribbon tab or tool palette that will automatically activate when you select only block insertions, or select a specific block or set of blocks.

The following videos illustrate ToolScape in action:

(For best results, videos should be viewed at full (100%) size)

	Document-Contextual Dashboard and Tool Palettes -  (1.1 MB)
	Document-Contextual Ribbon and Dashboard tabs (1.1 MB)

QMacro

A Cure for CUI Headaches

You may have heard the jokes, like 'CUI = Completely Unusable Interface'. Well, the CUI is a major pain in the you-know-what when it comes to simple and routine customization tasks, many of which the CUI's designers seemed to have completely overlooked.

For example, how many times have you added a simple customization to AutoCAD, like a button or menu item with a short macro, using the CUI? If you're like me, you rarely get the macro part right on the first try, and usually need to 'debug' (repeatedly test and edit) or 'tweak' new macros. It takes an average of 3 revisions before the new macro I'm writing works. Normally, testing and revising menu macros requires you to open and close the dreaded CUI Editor once for each macro edit/test cycle. Argggg!

QMacro ("Quick Macro"), is a very simple tool that makes composing, testing and debugging menu macros a breeze. QMacro lets you write, test and debug menu macros without the need to open the CUI editor. QMacro lives on a toolbar-sized palette that uses minimal display space, given what it does.

Simply type your menu macro into the QMacro editor window and press the run button or the ENTER key, and the macro executes in exactly the same way it does when assigned to a button or a menu item. QMacro supports the very same menu macro syntax that AutoCAD recognizes, including DIESEL and LISP expressions; input pause (\); menu control characters (like ^C, ^P); repetitive execution (*); menu commands (like $P0=*), and so on.

Once you've composed, tested, and perfected your menu macro with QMacro, you can simply copy it to the clipboard, paste it into the CUI editor, and you're done. QMacro also allows you to copy an existing menu macro from any ribbon button or menu browser item, by simply right-clicking on the button or item, and choosing "Copy Macro" from the pull down menu. The item's macro is then pasted directly into the QMacro editor, ready for editing. QMacro also provides a handy context menu you can use by right-clicking on the run button. This context menu provides access to QMacro settings and sub-menus that lets you insert commonly used menu escape sequences (like ^C, ^P, pauses (\), and so on) directly into the macro editor.

QMacro is also indispensable to those just starting to learn the AutoCAD menu macro language. That's because QMacro makes interactive experimentation with menu macros incredibly simple, in the same way that AutoCAD's command line allows you to easily and interactively use, test and experiment with LISP expressions. QMacro is also extremely useful for "ad-hoc", macro consumption. For example, you may need a simple macro that automates a few unique steps related to the task at hand, but have little need to use it afterward. For those cases, QMacro offers a quick, convenient way to compose and immediately use menu macros, on-the-fly, and without the need to assign them to an interface element with the CUI.

QMacro is a small tool that uses very little display space, that can float or dock to any side of the AutoCAD window (I prefer it just above the command line as shown below). QMacro can be hidden when not needed and displayed by simply issuing the QMACRO command.
 

The QMacro Tool

Our current plans for QMacro are to enhance it to include limited recording of typed command line input while using AutoCAD, and saving macros directly to command entries in any loaded CUI file (thereby eliminating the need to open the CUI to edit an existing macro).

Hyperlink Palette

Entity Hyperlink Preview and Editing Made Simple

The Hyperlink Palette, another companion tool available exclusively with AcadXTabs 2010, displays high-quality preview images of hyperlinked documents. Supported document types currently include HTML documents and all types of image files that can be displayed natively by Internet Explorer (we plan to add support for additional document types in future updates). Previews are generated on-demand for both local and remote documents located anywhere on the internet. When the Hyperlink Palette is active, select an entity with a hyperlink and a preview of the hyperlinked document is generated and displayed in the preview palette.

In addition to displaying previews of hyperlinked documents, the Hyperlink Palette also makes assigning and editing entity hyperlinks incredibly simple, through its innovative use of Windows drag-and-drop and the clipboard. To assign a hyperlink to one or more entities, simply select them in AutoCAD and then drag the document you wish to hyperlink to the selected entities (or a shortcut or hyperlink to the document) from a Windows folder; Explorer view; or an Internet Explorer document, and drop it on the Hyperlink Palette.

You can also use the Windows clipboard to assign hyperlinks to selected entities, using the standard Window's "Copy Shortcut" command to copy a shortcut to a document or any internet location to the Windows clipboard, and then simply right-click on the Hyperlink Palette and choose "Paste shortcut" from the context menu.

The Hyperlink Palette's drag & drop and clipboard-based hyperlink editing function supports all of the following data sources:

Drag & Drop Sources:

• Files; shortcuts to files; and shortcuts to internet locations, dragged from a shell folder; Windows Explorer view; or any other source (provided the dragged item can be dropped onto a shell folder view or Windows Explorer view).

• A clickable hyperlink dragged from any HTML-based content in Internet Explorer.

• Any item that can be dragged from Internet Explorer's address bar.

Clipboard Sources:

• Shortcuts to files or internet locations that have been copied to the Windows clipboard using the "Copy Shortcut" command in Window Explorer or Internet Explorer.

• Windows clipboard text containing a valid URL or fully-qualified file path.

• Views contained in a dropped AutoCAD drawing file.

Hyperlink descriptions can also be assigned automatically, using the title of the target HTML document or the value of any file property that can be displayed in a column in a windows folder detail view.

The Hyperlink Palette

The Hyperlink Palette provides a number of additional hyperlink-related functions, that are available from its right-click context menu. Many of these functions can be applied to the currently selected objects in AutoCAD:

• Navigate to hyperlink

• Remove hyperlink

• Assign/Edit hyperlink (using the AutoCAD hyperlink dialog)

• Open hyperlinked document for editing using the shell-designated application

• Paste shortcut from the Windows Clipboard

• Copy a shortcut to a hyperlink's target to the clipboard

• Display URL of the shortcut currently on the Windows clipboard

• Package local targets of all hyperlinks in the current document into a .ZIP file

• Audit all hyperlinks (ensure target exists or is accessible).

• Shell Context Submenu for local files

• Automated hyperlink generation & assignment

You can adjust the document page rendering size using a slider located at the bottom of the preview palette. The document page rendering size allows rendering of document previews formatted to varying page sizes and levels of detail. The document preview is rendered at the specified page size and then scaled to the size of the preview palette.

The Hyperlink Palette includes a dialog-based tool that automates the generation and assignment of entity hyperlinks, based on the value of one or more entity properties. The properties that can be used to generate hyperlink URLs include layer name, block name, block insertion attribute values, dynamic block properties, field values, and many more. This tool can generate and assign hyperlinks to hundreds or thousands of entities in a matter of seconds.

Ribbon Usage Monitor

Ribbon and Dashboard Customization Support

If you participate in Autodesk's Customer Involvement Program, you may know that it collects and transmits to Autodesk, information related to your AutoCAD use, like for example, the commands you use; how frequently you use them; and how you access them; what third-party applications you use and how frequently you use them, and so on. Unfortunately, Autodesk did not see a need to make that valuable information available to you, in spite of its usefulness in customizing your AutoCAD interface.

The Ribbon Usage Monitor (or 'RUM'), another companion tool included with AcadXTabs 2010, was created to make the same type of valuable usage data like that collected by Autodesk's CIP, directly available to you, the one who needs it most.

The Ribbon Usage Monitor is an extremely helpful tool for those who are customizing their ribbon or dashboard. The RUM tracks your usage of the ribbon/dashboard and makes that data readily available to you, primarily for use in customization tasks such as decisions related to interface layout.

This tool can show you for example, the efficiency of each ribbon/dashboard tab. Efficiency in this context, is a very simple, abstract metric conveying the frequency of tab activations relative to the frequency of tab tool usage. This type of usage data supports the design of more efficient ribbon/dashboard interfaces, namely those requiring less tab switching and panel expansion. 
 

Ribbon Usage Monitor Dialog

The Ribbon Usage Monitor tracks both tab and tool usage, and displays that data in a tabular summary that includes calculated efficiency factors for each ribbon/dashboard tab. The collected data is saved with each use of AutoCAD automatically. Data is cumulative across AutoCAD sessions, back to the point when the tool was last reset or enabled. You can enable or disable the tool at any time (or you may choose to not install it at all).

When enabled, the tool does not affect system performance in any way. The Ribbon Usage Monitor is also ToolScape-aware, and consequently, discounts ToolScape-managed ribbon/dashboard tab switching that is triggered by navigating documents or spaces.

The Ribbon Usage Monitor does not use information collected by Autodesk's CIP. It performs its own data collection and does not require Autodesk's CIP tool to be installed or enabled. The Ribbon Usage Monitor does not transmit any information at all, it merely saves collected data to disk. Future plans for RUM include broadening its tracking and analysis to include ribbon panel expansion (for example, how frequently an expandable ribbon panel must be expanded to access its content), and tool palette usage monitoring.