yang686526

dumb filenames, using pdm properties advanced search
i've been using a structured file name convention like this (0303_204_1_01_dt01.sldprt) this works well within our company for almost everything. however, as our dept expands with additional sw users i've been reading about best practices and thinking of taking filenames to the next step of simplicity using dumb filenames such as a simple sequential number.
here is my dilemma
i've also been using custom properties for a while now and have established redundancy between some elements of the file name and many of the properties for each model file. i did this for a reason. in pdmworks i can use the advanced search feature to find properties on any file easily. however, once checked out i cannot search by properties any more. windows explorer properties do not map to sw properties. so if i have a folder with 200 dumb sequential numbered file names, how do i quickly find a file that i want to open? at least with my structured file name method the files stay sorted by job,p/n,tooltype,detno, etc...and once used to this it works pretty good. you just visually scroll the list and find the file you need.
i would appreciate any help from those that use a dumb file name structure. how do you find the needle in the windows folder haystack?
thanks, tom
tom malinski
first off...you need to write a pdm procedure for the company, and have everyone follow it to the "t". i recently wrote a 7 page doc and is under review at our company.
second.....i would generate a report under the advance search and print a hard copy out. i believe this is the only way to do this.
best,
colin fitzpatrick (aka macduff)
mechanical designer
solidworks 2008 sp 3.1
dell 490 xp pro sp 2
xeon cpu 3.00 ghz 3.00 gb of ram
nvida quadro fx 3450 512 mb
i'm just a little verklempt. talk amongst yourselves. i'll give you a topic. pink floyd, was neither pink nor floyd. discuss!--"coffee talk" mike myers snl

can't solidworks search use custom properties?
-handleman, cswp (the new, easy test)
does this help?
why you don't use solidworks search. solidworks search use "windows desktop search"..
solidworks online user guide:
solidworks search is available in solidworks and solidworks explorer to search for file names and for text strings in all indexed documents.
any custom property can be a keyword. for example, if a solidworks document contains custom property customer, a search can be customer: acme.

interesting, i've never used solidworks search. this may do it
thanks
tom malinski
1)
is there a way to get custom properties to show up in solidworks search keyword list? i have a tooltype, toolnumber, and detno property. without these the search doesn't help me much
2)
is there a property search tool for solidworks that is similar to the property search in pdmworks advanced search that allows you to stack up search criteria using and / or?
this is ideal and would solve all of my search issues. maybe somebody has written an app for this?
tom
tom malinski
i don't know about making file names themselves dumb, only the part numbers of the parts themselves in which the file names are identical (or is this what you are referring to?).
matt lorono
cad engineer/ecn analyst
silicon valley, ca