In this tip will show you how to convert your 2D vector data into an interactive graphic using the “Create Hotspots” tool in Arbortext IsoDraw.
Vector graphics may come from many different applications. In this case we will be converting a legacy version 3 CGM to a version 4 WebCGM 2 with Hotspots.
After opening the CGM in Arbortext IsoDraw, the file may need to be saved. To use the Create Hotspots tool, the file must have a valid name.
For this example we will verify that the file has no hotspots by using the “Show Objects” tool. This tool is located in the “Window” menu
Note: This step is only to verify the graphic has no hotspots. It is not needed in normal use.
As we can see below, there are no Hotspots in this graphic. All elements with hotspot information would be outlined in red.
The next step is to convert the callout text to hotspotted text. To do this we need to select the text to be converted. In this case we will convert all the text, as the only text elements are callouts.
We will use the “Select” tool from the “Edit” menu. Just configure the tool as follows:
If > Type > is equal to > Text
Then click ok to select the text. Then cancel to close the dialog.
With all the text selected we can now “Create Hotspots.” This tool is found in the “Object” menu.
We have a couple of options to help narrow the conversion. You can limit the text strings converted to numbers only as well as by length of the text string. In this case we will select numbers only.
We can now see that we have converted 15 elements into hotspots. You can also see that the callouts are outlined in red.
Note: This red outline is only visible in Arbortext IsoDraw as it is not part of the CGM file
We can now save this as a hotspotted file and export it as a version 4 WebCGM 2.
As you may imagine, this process is very quick and can be done using the batchtool and a macro to convert your legacy CGM archive to Interactive Graphics. This is only one method. You can also use Arbortext IsoDraw to convert raster images to interactive CGM files.
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