2011

Table Of Contents
Introduction to
Programming Interfaces
The programming interfaces introduced here are ActiveX
®
Automation, VBA (Visual Basic
®
for Applications), AutoLISP
®
, Visual LISP
, ObjectARX
, and .NET. The type of interface
you use depends on your application needs and programming experience.
ActiveX Automation
ActiveX Automation is a technology developed by Microsoft
®
and is based on
the COM (component object model) architecture. You can use it to customize
AutoCAD, share your drawing data with other applications, and automate tasks.
Overview of ActiveX
You can create and manipulate AutoCAD objects from any application that
serves as an Automation controller. Thus, Automation enables macro
programming across applications, a capability that does not exist in AutoLISP.
Through Automation, AutoCAD exposes programmable objects, described by
the AutoCAD Object Model, that can be created, edited, and manipulated by
other applications. Any application that can access the AutoCAD Object Model
is an Automation controller, and the most common tool used for manipulating
another application using Automation is Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).
VBA is found as a component in many Microsoft Office applications. You can
use these applications, or other Automation controllers, such as Visual Basic,
.NET, and Delphi, to drive AutoCAD.
7
429