Fixin' Streams with Civil 3D

Map of Polluted Waterways in Virginia

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 00:21:00 +0000

Interactive online map showing polluted waterways in Virginia:

http://gpstrails.info/ex/wax/vastreams/index.html

Made using 2011 shapefile data from Virginia DEQ using Mapbox Wax.

New iOS app available on iTunes

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 21:47:00 +0000

My new app MBTiles GPS is available on the iTunes App Store! https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mbtiles-gps/id592703465?mt=8

Use Tilemill from @Mapbox (www.mapbox.com) to create custom map tiles that you can view anywhere you go where MBTiles GPS. I hope to share more soon about how to create great maps with Tilemill. I have promo codes available for the app, please let me know if you would like one....civil3dstreamrestoration@gmail.com

Where did the command line, layout tabs, toolbars, and menu disappear to?

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 13:32:00 +0000

With so much technology to learn these days, it amazing that people are able to keep up. The more capabilities software has, the bigger the learning curve involved. Nowadays, even software updates will throw you for a huge loop. Especially because the manufacturers apparently do not empathize with difficulties of learning a new interface.

Autodesk certainly adds to this difficulty by expecting users to learn its new interface without explaining how to bring up old interface options. Specifically, I’m talking about the missing command line, layout tabs, and toolbars the first time you open up 2010 Map 3D.

I feel fortunate to know that the options are still there and where to find them. Most firms will have legacy users that will be able to show the new users the ropes and get them started. I cringe when I think of the newcomer to the engineering world who needs to learn AutoCAD on their own, or someone completing a 30 day trial of the software.

To get to the point, though, here are how you bring back the command line, layout tabs and toolbars.

Missing Command Line

Use the command button as shown to bring back the command line.

Missing Viewport Tabs

Missing Toolbars

Use the CUI command as shown to bring back toobars to the workspace.

Missing Classic Menu

Set MENUBAR=1 to bring back the classic menu at the top.

Save Workplace Changes

Make sure to save your workspace changes so that you don’t have to make changes everytime you reopen AutoCAD. You can change workplace settings using the settings button under the workplaces toolbar.

RIP Professor M. Gordon (Reds) Wolman August 16, 1924 - February 24, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:23:00 +0000

I was saddened to discover the other day that Professor M. Gordon “Reds” Wolman passed away in February. For those who don’t know, Reds Wolman was a pioneer in the research of river/stream bankfull flow concepts with Luna Leopold in the 50 & 60’s. The 1.5 year frequency bankfull flow calculations used frequently in stream restoration design are based upon his work. You can see Professor Wolman in a US Forest Service introductory video to bankfull flow – it can be viewed here: link to video.

Peter Wilcock of the National Center for Earth-Surface Dynamics penned a short obituary:

_________________________________

“M. Gordon (Reds) Wolman

August 16, 1924 - February 24, 2010

Prof. Wolman's career was defined by fundamental contributions to our understanding of rivers, supported by pioneering work in developing interdisciplinary environmental education and an extraordinary commitment to the application of research to river management and policy.

In his Ph.D. research at Harvard University and subsequent work with Luna Leopold at the U.S. Geological Survey, Prof. Wolman played a central role in defining rivers in a modern, quantitative and generalizable framework that still provides the standard against which new models and concepts are evaluated. The understanding and the methods developed in this work form the foundation of modern river geomorphology, engineering, and restoration. Building on this work, Prof. Wolman addressed a fundamental problem in river science: the magnitude and frequency of the processes that shape rivers and their ecosystems. Is it the rare and destructive storm that sets the size, shape and composition of river channels, or the small, persistent flows, or something in between? With his colleague John Miller, Prof. Wolman demonstrated that relatively common floods do the most work in shaping river channels and, further, that there is remarkable consistency in the frequency of these 'effective' floods. This result has guided interpretation of rivers and challenged river theory for the past 50 years, while also providing a key element of modern channel restoration and design. Prof. Wolman's contribution extends to the pervasive impact of urbanization on rivers. With his colleague Asher Schick, he documented the impact of urbanization on stream channels, developing a characteristic sequence of events that defines the standard model against which impacts and remediation are evaluated.

Committed to the idea that environmental stewardship requires knowledge that is both deep and broad, Reds played a leading role--by personal example, by academic leadership at Johns Hopkins University, and by advising many academic and research programs--in defining the nature and scope of effective, rigorous, and interdisciplinary environmental education.

The link between science and society was not an abstract theme for Reds, but a path to action. Reds contributed sustained service and frequent chairmanship of National Academy Commissions, Boards, and Committees dealing with water management and policy. He also provided expert guidance to Resources for the Future, the World Health Organization, the International Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Savannah River Plant, and the State of Maryland among others. His indefatigable service, combined with his good-natured wisdom, influenced environmental decisions and decision-makers around the world.

For those who knew him, Reds' professional accomplishments merely provide context for his greater personal contributions through his inspired combination of warmth, wit, and genuine affection for all he came into contact with.

The whole exceeded the sum of the parts. Reds was a distinguished scholar who played a central role in defining our modern understanding of rivers, a visionary academic who pioneered integrated environmental education, a devoted citizen who worked tirelessly to apply an understanding of rivers to their protection and wise use, and an extraordinary human being who inspired and delighted generations of students and colleagues, all friends.”

From: http://www.nced.umn.edu/content/tribute-reds-wolman-peter-wilcock

Converting a Drawing Datum in AutoCAD Map 3D 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Tue, 11 May 2010 00:55:00 +0000

Converting your drawing’s datum in not a straightforward, user-friendly task in Map 3D. It is not difficult to do, though, and can be mastered after some trial and error. Two separate DWG files are used for this procedure – one with the original linework in the original datum; the second in a new DWG in the datum to be converted to.

Begin by setting up a DWG in the datum you wish to convert to.

Next, if the datums are in different units, then use the UNITS command. In this example, the drawing being queried is in meters (UTM WGS-84), and the native drawing is in feet (VA State Plane South). The Insertion Scale is set to the imported drawing’s units which is meters.

Begin the Define Query command under Tool Ribbon>Create>Object Query.

The Define Query command sets up parameters for importing drawing information from other DWG files. The DWG you wish to convert the datum for is attached here.

Select the relevant drawing and add.

Drawing are locked when they are actively queried.

The Define Query>Drawings command shows the currently active drawings. Choose deactivate or close out the drawing exectuing the query command in order to reopen the locked DWG.

Now set the query type. There are all sorts of different queries that can be performed:

Location	Query based on boundary conditions
Property	Query based on properties such as linetype, layer, color, etc
Data	Query based on attached object data attached to drawing objects
SQL	Query based on externally linked SQL database

In order to grab all drawing objects for datum conversion, choose "Location" for query type. Select "All" for boundary conditions (brings in all drawing objects).

Now that Drawings and Query Type are selected in the dialog box, choose the Query Mode. Select Draw to bring queried data into the drawing.

USGS Topography showing before/after querying:

When edits are made to the queried objects, a dialog appears asking if the object should be added to the save set. The save set consists of objects that were created or modified in the current drawing and are marked to be saved back to source drawings. Additional save set options are given if the objects are added.

When closing the drawing, a warning will appear that the active link between drawings will be lost.

This just a little snippet of what can be done with querying. Much more can be done with the command. See the Autodesk Map 3D Help Page regarding querying topics or experiment with the command to learn more.

Live Track Your Civil 3D Drawing with GPS in Google Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sun, 09 May 2010 22:30:00 +0000

Site visits are essential to well designed plans. Visualizing how future plan sets will appear in the field can be difficult without being able to efficiently georeference your current location in relation to your proposed plans. However, by using now ubiquitous technology, your current location on your future plan sets can be viewed easily. To do this, Google Earth is used in conjunction with a handheld Garmin GPS Unit and a laptop with an active internet connection (ie. tethered phone, network card..or cached images). The proposed plans are exported to Google Earth in KML/KMZ format; Google Earth is set to live GPS tracking; and the mobile internet connection will facilitate imagery regeneration.

Begin by exporting the drawing for use in Google Earth. Use the command “PublishKML” to export to a KMZ/KML file.

Turn on real-time GPS tracking in Google Earth under Tools>GPS in the menu bar. Select the Garmin PVT protocol and the interval desired between location refreshes. Start the real-time tracking.

View your current location on Google Earth in relation to your site’s linework.

Need to Quickly Georeference an Image? Use ADETRANSFORM in Map 3D

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sun, 09 May 2010 19:44:00 +0000

With two known landmarks in a drawing, an image can be very quickly rotated and scaled using the corresponding landmark locations from the image using ADETRANSFORM.

In this example, a USGS topography map is correctly rotated and scaled by referencing its NAD83 tick marks. The lat/long for the tick marks were placed in the drawing using the MAPTRACKCS command (the end of the red polylines are the tick mark locations in the drawing).

Begin the ADETRANSFORM command in Map 3D. For the first source point, select a point on the image to be georeferenced.

Select the corresponding destination point in the drawing.

For the second source point, select a point on the image to be georeferenced.

Select the corresponding destination point.

Success! The image lines up under the destination points selected.

Place an Object with Lat/Long (Degree/Minute/Seconds) Points into AutoCAD Map 3D 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sun, 09 May 2010 19:24:00 +0000

Have points in degree/minute/second format, but absolutely no clue how to easily import them accurately? Use the Coordinate track command under Analyze>Geo Tools in the Ribbon.

Coordinate track opens up a separate window. This command displays drawing coordinates in a different datum. To display latitude and longitude coordinates, select the relevant datum.

Most GPS based systems report Lat/Long in WGS84 format (LL84). However, this example is referencing tick marks placed on a UGSG topo map that references the NAD83 datum. The code LL83 is entered for NAD83 and can be entered manually to save time.

Shown below, the drawing is in Virginia State Plane South, NAD83 Feet. However, the Track Coordinates Window displays coordinates for the alternatively chosen datum, NAD83 in latitude and longitude in degrees/minutes/seconds format.

To place an object on user specified coordinates, start the drawing command. When the point is asked for, goto the Track Coordinates window and select the “Digitize using entered position” command as shown.

The drawing object is placed at the specified Lat/Long coordinates. Notice how it is directly centered on the NAD83 tick mark placed by the USGS.

**Please note, there appears to be a bug in the command that causes Map 3D to severly slowdown after initializing the “Digitize Using Entered Position” command. Make certain (as always) that your work is backed up Map 3D will probably need to be restarted.

Import Garmin Mapsource Data into AutoCAD & Civil 3D

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 07 May 2010 16:48:00 +0000

Garmin Mapsource tracks can be imported into AutoCAD & Civil 3D with some easy steps

Begin by saving your Mapsource track in the DXF file format

Make note of the UTM zone for your datum settings in AutoCAD or Civil 3D. Use the dialog box settings as shown for saving the DXF file. A 3D polyline will be created if the Include elevation information box is checked, otherwise the track will be a normal polyline.

A warning message appears if the track/waypoint information overlays more than one UTM Zone

Now open the DXF file in AutoCAD. Make certain that DXF file is selected as the file type.

If the DXF is being edited in Civil 3D, and not just vanilla autoCAD, then adjust the datum of the DXF file just opened to be the same datum of the Mapsource tracks and waypoints that were just saved. The datum will be in the UTM-WGS 84 as shown in the dialog box below. Also, BE SURE TO CHANGE DRAWING UNITS TO METERS.

The track is now imported into AutoCAD Civil 3D on the UTM84 datum. The drawing may now be saved in DWG format. Additionally, the datum can be verified as correct by using the Google Earth imagery import function under Insert>Import (in Civil 3D). If the tracks overlay the Google Earth image (shown below is Google Earth imagery with overlay USGS topography), then the drawing settings are correct.

Additional steps are required to display the track in a different datum. See my post at http://civil3d.streamrestoration.info/2010/05/converting-drawing-datum-in-autocad-map.html for more details.

Overlay USGS Topography in Google Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Thu, 06 May 2010 14:35:00 +0000

Referring back to my last post on network links, there are also many published kmz files on the web of network links to online Google Earth GIS information. One of the kmz files I particularly enjoy overlays USGS Topography Maps. This can be very useful when used with the Google Earth image/surface functionality of Civil 3D. The KMZ file for viewing USGS topography is available here: topomaps.kmz

Adjustments can be made to the desired method of refreshing by right clicking on the network link and going to the properties menu. I prefer to change the refresh to On Request. The topo maps do not constantly refresh as the vantage point is moved for On Request.

To refresh the view, right click on the network link and select refresh.

To permanently save this network link to your GE database, right click and select Save to My Places.

Use Network Links to Make Google Earth Load Faster

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Thu, 06 May 2010 08:59:00 +0000

Google Earth is a superb GIS database resource. You can save all sorts of geographic information to GE, and it will all display every time you start the program. However, every time you save something to your My Places Folder (the method for storing database in GE), it is saved to a single My Places KMZ file that can become very large, cumbersome, and difficult for GE to process upon startup. There is a fairly simple workaround to the inefficiency of storing all your Google Earth Database on one KMZ file.

First you have to create a KMZ file seperate from your My Places KMZ file. When you GIS information is temporarily stored in GE, it is located in the Temporary Places Folder. From here, it can be saved to either you My Places Folder (which will make it large and unwieldy), or you can save it separately. A KMZ file can also be created from within the My Places folder.

Save the link to a separate location – this will be used for setting up the network link.

Add the Network Link

Select the KMZ file previously saved from the Temporary Places Folder

Name the KMZ File as it should appear in the My Places Folder

The Network Link is stored in the My Places folder. This significantly reduces the core database size being loaded at startup, and makes Google Earth much faster.

The Performance Booster You Will Soon Be Hearing Lots About

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Thu, 06 May 2010 00:29:00 +0000

Recently I did my first PC build (more on that later). I've been quite ignorant of PC hardware until now, even though they've been a part of my life since preschool. While learning about the relative ease and affordability of building my own PC, I stumbled upon a new hard drive technology that has been cost prohibitive until just recently.

Solid State Drives (SSD’s for short) are the hard drive of the future. Instead of using clunky mechanical clunky hard drives, SSD's employ flash memory and produce some incredible results with seek, read, and boot times! I got my first SSD yesterday, and the performance boost it gives is incredible!! My boot time for Windows 7 is 30 seconds; Civil 3D 2011 opens in ten seconds; and most other programs open in less than a second. It makes for a quite enjoyable computing experience and I highly recommend trying out this technology. I use the SSD in conjunction with a standard hard drive for music, video, pictures, etc. The two work great in tandem.

A 40GB Intel SSD can be purchased for a little over $100 through Amazon. The technology will drop significantly in price over the next five years to the point that SSD's will become an economically feasible data storage solution. At the moment, they are most cost effective when used as a boot drive and for program file storage.

Make Navigation Bar Show Current Location in Windows 7

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Wed, 05 May 2010 23:42:00 +0000

The Navigation Bar in Windows 7 does not automatically go to the current folder location by default.

To change this and make the navigation bar show you current location, go to the organize button on Folder toolbar.

Select Automatically expand to current folder and select OK.

Import Profile Data from Excel

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 22:31:00 +0000

First, format the stationing so that it is read as a whole number as seen below (not 10+00, etc). Next adjust the column width of the stationing column to 5:

Left justify both the stationing and elevation columns so the output will format correctly in the txt file you will output:

Save the file as a space delimited file (*.PRN). After that, rename the *.PRN file with a *.TXT file extension so that AutoCAD can import it:

Start the create profile from file command:

Select the PRN file you just saved and renamed as a TXT file:

Select the appropriate alignment, style, name, and layer for your profile:

You're Done.

Map 3D SHP File Export Bug

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:39:00 +0000

If you are getting fatal errors when exporting shp files from Map 3D, then you will need to do a little tinkering to your mapexport.ini file. The entity types in the .ini file are set to “ALL” instead of “types”. Check out the blog, Murph’s Law, to see more on how to fix this problem:

http://map3d.wordpress.com/2008/11/01/exporting-to-shp-with-civil-3d-and-errors/

Use Excel for looking up Curve Numbers for TR-55 calcs

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 14:06:00 +0000

For doing TR-55 calcs, it can be a pain to lookup curve numbers for each land use/condition/hydrologic group. If you’ve already inputted that information elsewhere (see topology and excel drop down list entries for additional tips), then you can use it to your advantage in excel to automatically assign curve numbers for specified critieria. The method I’m currently using is the vlookup function. I combine columns C, D & E using the function = C1&D1&E1, then use that combined variable as the desired value for the lookup in the vlookup function. You will need to make a list with the combined three variable name assigned to

The lookup variable would be column F in this case. The table array would be columns O and P (the combined name associated with the curve number). The column index number is the value returned by excel from the table array – in this case the second column has the value that needs to be returned, so the value is 2.

Using the vlookup function, you can do a pull down of the entire function and automatically grab the curve numbers associated with the table array automatically.

How to get 2008 Map3D to import SID images

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:00:00 +0000

You need the 2008 raster design object enabler for 2008 civil3D: http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9476871&linkID=9240618

Free Utility from COE for coordinate system converstion

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 16:06:00 +0000

http://crunch.tec.army.mil/software/corpscon/corpscon.html

Export Autocad Linework to Google Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:37:00 +0000

Autodesk introduced a new labs tool in March for exporting autocad objects in a KML/KMZ format for Google Earth. The tool works farely well, but I have definitely had some trouble with surface exporting. It is not easy because if your surface elevation is below existing ground in GE, then it will not show up. So with some tinkering, I was able to get one of my surfaces to show up when I offset the elevation about 40' in relation to existing ground.

If you are curious as to what my stream surfaces look like, then you can download my recent tinn surface in kmz here:
http://sites.google.com/a/streamrestoration.info/civil3d/gis/STREAM.kmz?attredirects=0

You can download the Autodesk Labs Google Earth Extension here:
http://labs.autodesk.com/utilities/google_earth_extension_beta/

The command is "publishkml".

Ton Ten Uses of an iPhone for Stream Restoration

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Sun, 24 May 2009 16:34:00 +0000

I haven't made a good post in a while and I thought this would be a interesting topic -- how to great use of your iphone out in the field. An iphone with a 3G data connection is a very powerful data tool that is all too often dismissed as a luxurious toy. To make use of some of these functions, then you will have to jailbreak your iPhone, unfortunately. See iclarified for easy instructions on how to do so.

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1. Tethering

Use your iphone to connect to the internet. This will enable Google Earth to get realtime terrain and images. With 5.0, you can see your gps position on Google Earth if you connect to a handheld unit (Garmin or Magellan). Use both the iPhone and GPS unit in conjunction to see your location on your laptop. If you export your sitework linework via kml (http://civil3d.streamrestoration.info/2009/07/export-autocad-linework-to-google-earth.html), then you can see yourself realtime in relation to your site.
(Jailbreaking is necessary)

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2. Cycorder

A simple video recorder that works well. (Jailbreaking is necessary)

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3. Note2Self

Make quick notes to yourself out in the field with this versatile voice recorder. It will also let you email the sound clip to anyone.

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4. Weatherbug Plus

See when huge storms are coming in on a realtime Doppler radar map so you know when to prepare.

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5. Tracks

Record your gps track while out in the field.

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6. Google Earth/Maps

See your gps postion on a street map or in relation to the satellite image.

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7. Topo Maps

Download any USGS topo map and see your current gps position in relation to it.

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8. Qik

Broadcasts a realtime video stream to Qik.com. Especially useful for construction administrators.
(Jailbreaking is necessary)

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9. PDF Viewer

View maps and other assorted pdf documents easily.

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10. iBird Yard

A comprehensive database of photos and birdcalls. Get better at ornithology while out in the field.

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Revert the Layer Properties Manager Back to Static Based in 2009 Civil 3D

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:33:00 +0000

The dynamic function of the layer properties manager box is a fantastic new feature with 2009 civil 3D. However, it is a memory hog and there can be a severe lag time between edits to it. There are a couple workarounds for this minor issue. Set up layer group filters to improve the performance by reducing the number of layers on display at any one time (http://civil3d.streamrestoration.info/2009/01/group-filters-for-easier-layer.html), or change the layer properties manager functionality to static based. Do this by typing layerdlgmode and setting it to 0 instead of 1.

Use Static Polylines for Corridor Boundaries

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 03:50:00 +0000

Stray triangulation in corridor modeling can be easily fixed:

Go to corridor properties, then the boundaries menu. Right click on the surface and select "Add from polygon". Create polylines from your corridor feature lines and join them to form a large closed polyline encompassing your corridor surface. This boundary is static in memory and is NOT updated as you change the original polyline you selected. In fact, you can delete that polyline if you wish and the boundary will remain in memory. The boudary function is a fantastic way of deleting links from a surface tinn by simply excluding them outside of the corridor boundary. The closed polyline boundary is much easier to use than the corridor feature lines (method shown in previous post before this one):

Finished Product:

Use Corridor Feature Lines for Surface Boundaries

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 17:58:00 +0000

You can select corridor feature lines for a boundary via the boundary menu in corridor properties. Right click on the surface in the boundary menu to bring up the “add interactively” command. Then tap the start and end of each feature line that you would like to use for the boundary. One caveat to this is that if you have you links overlap around curves, then the feature lines are connected via the stationing order – so you get a overlapping feature line that Civil 3D will not accept as a boundary.

Editing Profile Data via the Panorama Editor

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 17:44:00 +0000

You can enter in the PVI data manually in the panorama editor via the "profile grid view" button on the top right. You can insert PVIs by using the "Insert PVIs-tabular" button redlined above on the left.

$1,000,000 fine levied by Justice Department for Clean Water Act Violations

noreply@blogger.com (Alan Pew) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 21:56:00 +0000

http://news.findlaw.com/prnewswire/20090107/07jan20091748.html

“WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Five defendants associated with the construction of the Liberty Village housing development in Lynchburg, Va., will pay a $300,000 penalty and fund more than $1 million in stream and wetlands restoration work for alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and permit restrictions during construction, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced.

The settlement with Savoy Senior Housing Corporation, Savoy Liberty Village LLC, SDB Construction, Inc., Best G.C., Inc., and Acres of Virginia, Inc., was part of a consent decree lodged today in the Western District of Virginia by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of the EPA.”