GoSurvey·

Plotting

Plotting

GoSurvey plots to vector PDF. There is no Windows printer output — you produce a PDF and print or issue that.

Plot scale — the two different things called "scale"

These are easy to confuse, so be clear which one you mean.

Scale Set by Controls
Annotation scale — model units per plotted inch Status-bar dropdown, or PLOTSCALE / PSCALE The size things are created at: new text height, survey point marker size, survey label placement
Viewport scale — model units per paper inch Viewports window, per viewport How much model the viewport shows on the sheet

For a sheet to come out right, set them to the same value. At 1" = 50', the annotation scale is 50 and each viewport's Scale (model/in) is 50.

PLOTSCALE (PSCALE)

PSCALE 50
Plot scale: 1 plotted inch = 50.000000 model units.

A bad value answers: PLOTSCALE — usage: PLOTSCALE <model_units_per_plotted_inch> (example: 50 for 1"=50').

The status-bar dropdown offers the common presets.

Changing the plot scale repositions every survey point label, because labels are laid out in plotted inches around their point. This is deliberate: the sheet keeps looking the same at any scale. Existing text is not resized.

Text height

model height = default text height (inches on the sheet) × model units per plotted inch

Default text height (in) is in the Properties panel → General, with nothing selected. At 1" = 50' with 0.10 in, new text is 5 model units tall and plots at 0.10 in. See Annotation.

Plotting one layout

Ribbon (Layout): Plot

  1. Switch to the layout you want. Plot is only available in paper space — PLOT — switch to a paper layout first.
  2. Press Plot.
  3. Choose an output path. The default filename is the layout name plus .pdf.
  4. The log reports PLOT — wrote 1 page(s) to <path>.

There is no typed PLOT command — use the ribbon button.

Batch plot

Ribbon (Layout): Batch

Plots several layouts into one multi-page PDF.

  1. Press Batch. The current layout is pre-ticked.
  2. Select layouts to plot (one page each, in order): — tick the layouts you want.
  3. Press Plot to PDF… and choose an output path (default plot.pdf).

Layouts are plotted in layout order, one page each, regardless of the order you ticked them. Reorder them first with Move or Copy… on the layout tab if the page order matters.

Plot to PDF… stays disabled until at least one layout is ticked.

What gets plotted

Included Excluded
Paper-space geometry and text on the layout Layers whose Plot flag is off
Model geometry visible through each viewport, at that viewport's scale and framing Viewport borders, when the viewport's layer is not plottable
Layer colours, linetypes, and lineweights Layers frozen in that viewport via VP Freeze
TrueType and SHX text

Per-viewport layer freezing and colour overrides are honoured — a layer frozen in one viewport does not appear in that viewport's page.

Setting a sheet up

  1. Create a layout — the + button on the status bar, or ☰ → New paper layout.
  2. Right-click the tab ▸ Page Setup Manager… — choose the Paper size and Drawing orientation. The dialog reports the resulting plot size in inches.
  3. Right-click the tab ▸ Viewports… — + Add viewport, then set its X, Y, W, H in paper inches, its Center X / Center Y in model coordinates, and its Scale (model/in).
  4. Put the viewport on a non-plottable layer if you do not want its border on the sheet.
  5. Draw the border and titleblock in paper space, in paper inches.
  6. Set the annotation scale on the status bar to match the viewport scale, so text and point labels come out at the right size.
  7. Turn VPLOCK on so later panning cannot rescale the viewport.
  8. Plot.

Messages

Message Meaning
PLOT — wrote N page(s) to <path> Success
PLOT — switch to a paper layout first. You are in model space
PLOT — no layouts selected. Batch plot with nothing ticked
PLOT — no plottable layouts. Every selected layout is excluded
PLOT — no output path. The save dialog was cancelled
PLOT — could not open output file: <path> The path is not writable, or the PDF is open elsewhere
PLOT — could not create the PDF document. / PLOT — failed to write the PDF. The PDF could not be produced
PLOT — note: could not embed TrueType font '<name>'; substituted … A font could not be embedded; a substitute was used. The PDF is still valid, but check the text

Common problems

Problem Cause Solution
The Plot button is not on the ribbon You are in model space Switch to a paper layout
Text is far too big or too small on the sheet Annotation scale does not match the viewport scale Set both to the same value, then recreate the text
Survey point labels moved after I changed the plot scale Labels are placed in plotted inches, so they reposition by design Set the plot scale before you finish the sheet
The viewport border shows on the PDF Its layer is plottable Move the viewport to a non-plottable layer
A layer is missing from the PDF Its Plot flag is off, or it is VP-frozen in that viewport Check the Layer Manager, Plot and VP Freeze columns
Fonts look wrong in the PDF The font could not be embedded and was substituted Read the log line naming the font; use a different text style
Cannot write the PDF The file is open in a PDF reader Close it and plot again
Batch pages came out in the wrong order Pages follow layout order, not tick order Reorder with Move or Copy… on the layout tabs

Related

Paper Space and Layouts · Layers · Annotation · Survey Points