Continuing with the potential issues that can arise with the AutoCAD Sheet Set Manager, another issue to be considered is it’s use in an office where multiple people may be working on the same project simultaneously.  Opening files to editing works just the same as without the SSM.  If someone has the drawing open, it is locked for editing and others can open it read-only.  While this is great for controlling the content of your drawings, it also poses an issue for plotting.
If someone has a drawing(s) from the set open …

One more consideration for the use of the AutoCAD Sheet Set Manager is the ability to include a layout within your sheet set.  It is important to realize that a layout can belong to one, and only one, sheet set project.  A single drawing file can have many layouts and those layouts can belong to different sheet sets, but each layout can belong to only one sheet set.
If you work in an office where many users could potentially work on a project together, you don’t want to create a sheet …

The AutoCAD Sheet Set Manager is a beautiful thing.  When everything goes right, it works like a dream and increases productivity exponentially.  I think that the complexity that exists within the AutoCAD SSM is either unknown or taken for granted, because as simple a concept that the SSM can be, it is also a beast that must be tamed and respected.
One of the first and most common issues people have had with the Sheet Set Manager and, specifically, publishing, is the system variable PUBLISHCOLLATE.  The PUBLISHCOLLATE system variable was discussed earlier …

The AutoCAD Sheet Set Manager offers a great way to automate your sheet index tables.  Though, AutoCAD calls them “sheet list tables” and due to this, I will call them so throughout this post.  Creating a table for your sheets is easy enough during a project, but we all know that sheet titles and order can get changed several times during a project.  Creating a sheet list table through the Sheet Set Manager takes the hassle out of this process by doing the updating for you after the changes have …

Q:  I am using AutoCAD LT 2005 and am trying to use Fields as much as they are capable.  Can I use Fields in conjunction with the Sheet Set Manager?
A:  Unfortunately, Fields aren’t supported in your situation. A list of Field-supported features in AutoCAD 2005 are as follows:
-Use field to count AutoCAD blocks.
-Use field to calculate the area of multiple AutoCAD objects.
-Use field to calculate the length of multiple AutoCAD objects.
-Create the AutoCAD field based on the specific cell of AutoCAD native table.
-Import the specific cell of the …