2012

If you specified an SDF format using the sample template, the file might be
similar to the following example.
(PRICE)(MODEL)(SUPPLIER)(Y)(X)(NAME)
379.9551-793WACME IN-
DUST.
49.5120.0DESK
199.9534-902AACME IN-
DUST.
47.0122.0CHAIR
249.95X-52-44TOP DRAWER
INC.
40.0-77.2DESK
The order of the fields corresponds to the order of the fields in the template
files. You can use these files in other applications, such as spreadsheets, and
you can sort and manipulate the data as needed. See the documentation for
your spreadsheet program for information about how to use data from other
applications. If you open the file in a text editor or a word processor, you can
paste the information back into the drawing as text.
Nested Blocks
The line BL:LEVEL in a template file reports the nesting level of a block
reference. A block that is inserted in a drawing has a nesting level of 1. A block
reference that is part of (nested within) another block has a nesting level of
2, and so on.
For a nested block reference, the X,Y, Z coordinate values, scale factors,
extrusion direction, and rotation angle reflect the actual location, size,
orientation, and rotation of the nested block in the world coordinate system.
In some complex cases, nested block references cannot be correctly represented
with only two scale factors and a rotation angle, for example, if a nested block
reference is rotated in 3D. When this happens, the scale factors and rotation
angle in the extracted file record are set to zero.
Error Handling
If a field is not wide enough for the data that is to be placed in it, the data is
truncated and the following message is displayed:
** Field overflow in record <record number>
This could happen, for example, if you have a BL:NAME field with a width of
8 characters and a block in your drawing has a name 10 characters long.
786 | Chapter 21 Create and Modify Blocks