AutoLISP Routines

The standard PURGE command only removes definitions that are already unused. When a block is still inserted somewhere it simply refuses, and you are left hunting for the last stray reference — which may well be nested three blocks deep on a layout you had forgotten about. BLOCKPURGE does the whole job. What BlockPurge does It erases every reference at every … [Read more...] about BLOCKPURGE LISP: Delete a Block and All Its References

BLOCKPROMOTE pulls a nested block out to the top level. Pick a block that lives inside another block and it is extracted to become a block reference in its own right — landing in exactly the same place, at the same scale, rotation and orientation it appeared to have while nested. It is then removed from the parent definition. What BlockPromote does This is … [Read more...] about BLOCKPROMOTE LISP: Extract a Nested Block to Top Level

Drop a block onto a line and the line runs straight through it. BLOCKNOTCH cuts the line so the block sits in a clean gap — exactly as a valve sits in a pipe run, a door sits in a wall, or a switch symbol sits in a circuit. It rotates the block to match the line at the same time. What BlockNotch does Place a symbol on a sloping or curved line and the block … [Read more...] about BLOCKNOTCH LISP: Trim Lines to a Block Outline in AutoCAD

Changing a block normally means opening the block editor, or exploding and redefining it. BLOCKABSORB lets you draw the addition exactly where you want it to appear, pick the block, and have the geometry absorbed into the definition — so it appears on every reference of that block throughout the drawing. What BlockAbsorb does Draw the new geometry in place, … [Read more...] about BLOCKABSORB LISP: Add Objects Into an AutoCAD Block

Type one line of AutoCAD commands, point at a folder, and BATCHSCRIPT writes a script that repeats that line for every drawing it finds — then runs it. No drawing is opened by hand and no script file has to be written. What BatchScript does The line uses the token *file* wherever a drawing name belongs. So this: _.open *file* _.saveas *file* … [Read more...] about BATCHSCRIPT LISP: Run One Command on Every Drawing

Blocks inherited from elsewhere routinely have their base point somewhere arbitrary, so they never snap where you want them. BASESNAP puts it on a corner or the middle of the block’s own bounding box, chosen from a nine-point grid exactly like text justification — for any number of blocks at once. What BaseSnap does Pick the justification from the … [Read more...] about BASESNAP LISP: Justify Block Base Points to a Corner