Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
(OP)
We are at NX 8.0.2. I would like to deploy a custom toolbar to the users, but I don't want to do it using a Role since that will reconfigure all the custom layouts the users have set up. Searching around I haven't seen a way to do that. Anyone know of a method?
Thanks,
Drew
Thanks,
Drew





RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=333282
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Drew
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
UGII_SITE_DIR
or UGII_GROUP_DIR
or UGII_USER_DIR variables ?
If uncertain, have a look in the NX logfile and search for these variables. If they exist they will be noted with their value there.
If or more of these are unused you can define a new directory that will be read upon startup of NX.
If they exist and you have write access to one of the directories you can place a toolbar there.
It must probably exist in a subdirectory named "startup".
This method works for the "older style" toolbars ( ".tbr" ), i have not tried the newer type which can be defined on the fly inside nx.
Regards,
Tomas
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Users may have to save their roles in order to restore them later once the new toolbars have been loaded.
Tim Flater
NX Designer
NX 7.5.4.4 MP8
WinXP Pro x64 SP2
Intel Xeon 2.53 GHz 6GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro 4000 2GB
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Copying the custom Roles file (mtx) into the user folders makes them show up on the Roles pallet, and the user can click on them to bring up the toolbar, but their current layout vanishes. I suppose the worst case scenario is that the user can switch roles (to the custom role) when the toolbar is needed, but I was hoping for something a little less clunky (like a way to deploy a custom toolbar for every user without messing with their custom layout settings). I even wondered about trying to record a journal that creates the toolbar and have the user run that journal. But that is even more convoluted.
Just to be complete, here is where the MTX files go:
For Windows7:
C:\Users\[USER NAME]\AppData\Local\Unigraphics Solutions\NX80\roles
For XP:
C:\Documents and Settings\[USER NAME]\Local Settings\Application Data\Unigraphics Solutions\NX80\roles
Drew
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
The .tbr and .men files are the older way to create custom toolbar and menu items, but they still work (I recently added some to NX 8).
Customizing your toolbars/menus and saving .mtx files is modern and easy for a single user, but provides no good mechanism to roll out those customizations to multiple users. If you want to roll out site wide custom toolbars/menus without breaking individual user's customizations, the .tbr and .men files are the way to go (for now, at least).
www.nxjournaling.com
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Drew
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
If NX8 still has the .tbr and .men files in the install folders, you can open them in Notepad/Wordpad or any other text editor and pretty much see how to create/edit them to your liking. Just do not save over the default file names (meaning Save As and use a new name and location). If that is a dead end, try reading over the Customization area of the NX docs - the NX 7.5 docs pretty much spells it all out if you look thoroughly (click all links and How To's, etc.).
If you have more questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Tim Flater
NX Designer
NX 7.5.4.4 MP8
WinXP Pro x64 SP2
Intel Xeon 2.53 GHz 6GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro 4000 2GB
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
When I mentioned using the .men files, I meant those will give you the syntax for a line that's used in the .tbr files. So if you want to make a customized icon for a command that's only available in the pulldowns, you can look up most of the info in the corresponding .men files and then place it in the .tbr file. You will then have to specify a bitmap, which can be an existing bitmap (found in .men file) or you can create your own.
All of this information is in the docs (at least for NX 7.5 it is). If you use those, read them carefully and explore the links in the text areas (not just the table of contents links out to the side).
You will also want to know (if you didn't already) that once you edit a .tbr file, you will have to restart NX for the changes to take effect, like changing a Customer Default. You shouldn't, however, have to continually reload the .tbr files after you load them the first time via the NX customization dialogs.
Hope this helps out.
Tim Flater
NX Designer
NX 7.5.4.4 MP8
WinXP Pro x64 SP2
Intel Xeon 2.53 GHz 6GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro 4000 2GB
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Once you get to the last selection, you should see a gray box in the middle of the document area. In that box there are two links, the first to UTD information and the second to .tbr files. Click the second one and from there you will need to do more exploring on your own - the information is kind of all spread out and not directly accessible from the TOC menu to the left.
Just ask if you need some help - will try to keep an eye out on this thread, if I can.
Tim Flater
NX Designer
NX 7.5.4.4 MP8
WinXP Pro x64 SP2
Intel Xeon 2.53 GHz 6GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro 4000 2GB
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Drew
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
www.nxjournaling.com
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
this variable contain the path of the \\ugii\menus.
In the menus folder ther is the file custom_dirs.dat that contain the path of yours .tbr toolbar.
Thank you...
Using NX 8 and TC9.1
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Cubalibre00 - I'll take a look at the custom directory method. That might be a bit cleaner.
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
my solution is for toolbar that use macro that are used by different workstation architecture (32bit and 64bit).
Your solution read independently all .tbr toolbar.
Thank you...
Using NX 8 and TC9.1
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
The custom_dirs.dat can be used as well as the mentioned "UGII_xxx_DIR", The final result is identical to the user.
the main difference is that the "custom_dirs.dat" is a file and the "UGII_xxx_DIR" is "windows environment variables" on the local computer.
If you have a mixed environment 32 and 64bit, maybe the custom_dirs.dat is a simpler solution. (?)
I run a little ".bat" file when installing the computer that sets the UGII_SITE_DIR and UGII_GROUP_DIR
The UGII_GROUP_DIR contains different plot setups depending on the office.
Regards,
Tomas
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
we have different architecture, so my suggestion is the solution for this environment.
Thank you...
Using NX 8 and TC9.1
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
Great stuff,
Thanks
RE: Sharing a Toolbar without Changing Custom Layouts
I had a list of some hidden gems as well but I've been unable to find it since I changed jobs last year. I'll have to dig around at home to see if it's there. These gems were the first Windows icons that were hard-coded into NX and not shown in any of the .men or .tbr files.
Tim Flater
NX Designer
NX 7.5.4.4 MP8
WinXP Pro x64 SP2
Intel Xeon 2.53 GHz 6GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro 4000 2GB