I am looking for a way to create a PDF Task Add-In for Microsoft Office file formats such as .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx in EPDM. The task would be triggered by a Workflow Transition, and generate PDF files in a predefined location, named with the filename of the source file. Did anyone implement a similar feature already?
Have anyone create PDF in the EPDM? or has to be physical open the file and saveas to PDF..
Bao, you can create automated tasks in EPDM that will create a PDF file from a Solidworks file upon execution of a workflow transition (approval of a drawing for example). But that only works for Solidworks files. It doesn't work for MS Office files such as Word and Excel files, which is the issue I was raising in this post.
Olivier
Try posting in API sub-forum?
Just did - thanks.
Legend thank you.... Will give it a bash and see what happens
I installed the add-in but whenevery I got to create a new task using it my admin program crashes to the desktop
Do you have .NET 3.5 installed?
Ive never added a solidworks "add in" into EPDM - are there any instructions for this? And Would I be right in thinking you would have do install the pdf printer on the client rather than the server or can you set the task to use a central "server based" pdf printer?
Thanks
The PDF printer needs to be installed on the machine you intend to do the work. Tasks are configurable in that one can decide which machines will do the work.
Ah so I was doing it correctly initially - the reason I thought I was doing it wrong was because it threw up an error "Please select at least one DLL implementing the IEdmAddIn5 interface" Ive tried all the possible haunts to see what this means but Im yet to find the answer...
On a different note - just wanted to say thanks for your input on all this. Being one of many which will find this task useful I am very grateful
That error has caused me more grief than I can shake a stick at.
Try the attached files. I had some references that were not needed. Also note that the add-in requires .NET 3.5. You could also try replacing Interop.EdmLib.dll with your version.
Attached files worked fine for some reason - but I like one of the other users get a crash when trying to add a task. I do have .NET 3.5sp1 installed.... Just our of curiosity when you say replace Interop.EdmLib.dll - what did you mean by that?
Sorry my knowledge of PDM is getting better but the api/add in side is pretty much none existant - although I am a keen learner
Simon, if you'd rather try to resolve this outside of the forums, shoot me an email. lcsy @ ehcanadian.ca
The problem with task add-ins is that they can't be debugged in the traditional sense. It sucks.
Nice Lee!
Yeah, create/debug as much of the task code as you can outside of the task environment. Then when you can do no more outside only then start writing it as as task.
Hi Lee, I have the same issue as Simon's - if you don't mind I will send you an email as well. MANY thanks for developing this for us. Sincerely appreciate it.
Send me an email and we'll get it figured out.
Lee, I was able to install the addin from your first download. Not sure if it made a difference, but I only selected the the main addin dll and then added the other two reference files separately. I am also running EPDM 2011 sp2 on this machine.
It did fail to execute, but I figured it would. I did not download the BullZip PDF printer, I used my PDF995 printer.
Wayne, thanks for the feedback. I really didn't think about supporting other PDF printers but I suppose it wouldn't be that difficult. Nice to hear that it loaded up for you though! Thanks again.
Lee, no need to do that for me. I was just trying to help you by seeing if it would install for me.
When I first saw the thread, I was thinking about writing an addin. But my thoughts were much simpler and less flexible. I was going to make it just for Office 2007 and 2010 documents, using the Save as PDF built into the Office products.
For those of you that will be using this addin in production, I strongly urge you to contribute. Lee has put in a lot of effort into this addin.
Hi all... Hope you had a good weekend?!
Lee - thanks for your kind offer, if you dont mind me emailing you thats fine obviously there are others whome would like to use this addin so wouldnt it be easier for you having a central point of info rather than everyone emailing you? Just a thought...
As per the previous message about people helping develop this code - I wish I could... Im trying to learn how to write vb and addins for EPDM as it looks like a handy tool - it just takes me time to learn this stuff.
Thanks to all that have put time into this and other messages on the forums - its a great assit
For your information everyone, Lee kindly released another version of the add-in that allows saving PDF copies outside of the vault. Zip file is attached.
I found this very useful in my case as I needed to dump copies of approved non-solidworks documents on a company network drive so that all employees could see them without being logged in EPDM (we only have a few seats of EPDM at my company).
MANY thanks to Lee again. Please consider making a donation if you use this code.
Did you manage to add it in as a task to PDM? As for using the addin outside of PDM - how did you achieve this? I thought it was a PDM "add-in"?
Cheers
Simon, he's specifiying a path outside the vault to save the PDFs in. That's what he meant.
I haven't had a chance to try it on WinXP yet. Maybe this weekend but it's looking unlikely. I'm sorry for the delay.
Id be interested to find out if you achieve this. This is something I have been trying to figure out from the go - still not done it yet. I know you have to create an api to achieve this - and thats a whole different ball game.
Best of luck