What's New in Version 9

Version 9 has many new features. These are listed below. For detailed descriptions, refer to the appropriate help topic as underlined.

Computations

1. Point creation methods now include the option of entering slope distances and vertical or zenith angles. There is a drop down list available that allows the user to nominate a horizontal or slope distance in some creation methods. The existing elevation drop down list has had zenith angle and vertical angle options added to it. The creation methods that facilitate the entry of slope distances and vertical and zenith angles for computations are :
   • Point Creation By Radiation
   • Point Creation By Traverse
   • Line Creation By Radiation
   • Line Creation By Traverse
   • Spline Creation By Radiation
   • Spline Creation By Traverse
   • Alignment Creation By Distance Traverse
   • Radiation Creation By Bearing and Distance (Radiation)
2. Explode Ground Symbols; this command allows users to explode symbols into individual line segments in both SEE & CAD. These can then be manipulated and edited as required.
3. Create dialog boxes have the object name and the method of creation as the title, instead of just having the title "Create" for all types of creation dialogue boxes.
4. Line elements can now contain up to 10,000 points.
5. Polygons can now be filled with a color, not just a pattern.
6. Create Point by Equal Chord Distances and Create Point by Number of Chords have been enhanced to create points around circles as well as arcs.
7. Alignments can now be configured to be either Clothoid or Cubic Parabola type spirals.

Field Transfer

1. Data Recorder Browse Functionality: Whilst the introduction of drive letters into LISCAD's data recorder configuration allowed the user to access data on storage cards, the user was forced to store their data in particular folders on the drive selected. In Version 9, the user may browse to any location to access data, via a new FILE: setting available in the Port setting of the Data Recorder Communications dialog. If this is configured for a data recorder, the user will be presented with a browse dialog during the relevant process.
2. Leica System 1200 Splines (multi point geometry) are now imported into LISCAD.
3. Remembering Last Used Folders: When using the following export options, LISCAD will remember the folder path that was last used with the export. This has been done for:
   
   
   • Leica System 1200 Points, Lines & Areas
   • Leica System 1200 DTM
   • Leica RoadRunner Single Centreline
   • Leica RoadRunner Multi Centreline
4. System 1200 Line Codes: When using a System 1200 codelist that has point codes with the "Linework" property enabled, the line, when imported into LISCAD, is now being assigned the same code as that of the points which make up the line.
5. A sample System 1200 codelist, LISCAD, has been created based on the LISCAD Alpha code table. This codelist contains both feature and operation codes and is located in the LISCAD User Folder.
6. LISCAD Lite allows export using Leica System 1200 DTM stylesheets.
7. The Process Digital Level functionality has been enhanced so that when creating a level sheet from a Leica Digital Level field file, the backsight to the benchmark elevation can be before or after the observation.
8. The Traverse Editor field file extraction has been enhanced so that the setup for a round (Operation Code 3) does not have to come immediately prior to the round observations.
9. The creation of a field file from a Topcon GTS-700 raw file has been enhanced to cater for GTS-700 raw file 'HV' observations following a station setup.
10. New Leica Total Station named Leica FlexLine has been added to the Input Data Recorder and Output Data Recorder lists.
11. A sample FlexLine codelist "FlexLine.cls" and format file "FlexLine.frt" have been created based on the LISCAD alpha code table. The codelist contains both feature and operation codes and both files are located in the LISCAD User Folder.
12. Support for Carlson SurvCE.
13. Enhanced support for TDS Survey Pro.
14. Leica/Wild Operation Code 65 has been extended to include an additional line type - Arc by 2 points and centre.
15. It is now possible to specify the precision of distance data (i.e. number of decimal places) coming into LISCAD from a Leica DBX Database.
16. Leica Instruments are now named according to their model number. Example; TPS-300 Series & Leica TC-300 Class is now named Leica TPS-300.
17. When importing Leica System 1200 data, functionality has been added allowing users to browse to the location of their geoid model, if applicable.
18. Distances can be transferred directly via Bluetooth to LISCAD when using the Leica range of Disto's.

Profiles

1. If a Long Section Vertical Curve has been created via a 'Parabola K Value' or 'Circular Curve' (Arc length or radius) then this data can now be output to CAD.

3D Visualisation

1. When copying a display in 3D View to clipboard, users now have the ability to specify an Image Width, Image Height and D.P.I. for the image being created.

Utilities

1. Block Rectangle by Centre A new Block type is available, a rectangular block that is defined by firstly nominating the centre point of the block and then dragging the rectangle out to one of its corners.
2. The Projection functionality has been enhanced to allow south orientation of the LISCAD axis. When creating new projections, the 'Axis Orientation' of Transverse Mercator projections can now be set to 'North' or 'South'.
   When a job is created using a Transverse Mercator projection that has a south orientated axis, Y coordinates will increase positively to the South (Southings) and X Coordinates increase positively to the West and negatively to the East (Westings).
3. South African 'South Orientated' Projections are now directly available:
   • South Africa WG17 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG19 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG21 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG23 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG25 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG27 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG29 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG31 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa WG33 (Hartebeesthoek 94 datum)
   • South Africa Lo17 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo19 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo21 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo23 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo25 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo27 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo29 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo31 (Cape datum)
   • South Africa Lo33 (Cape datum)
4. Additional Projections now directly supported:
   • South American Datum 1969
   • Provisional South American Datum 1956
   • Qatar National Grid (QND95)
   • ACT Standard Grid
   • Poland PL_42/58 / 1965 Zone II
   • Turkey TR_ED50 / UTM Zone 37
   • Turkey TR_ED50 / UTM Zone 38
   • Norway NO_ETRS89 / UTM Zone 32
   • Norway NO_ETRS89 / UTM Zone 33
   • Nigerian TM West
   • Nigerian TM Mid
   • Nigerian TM East
5. Merge in a File Has been enhanced to make it significantly faster when a suffix or prefix is set to be added to point identifiers.

CAD Output

1. Support for MicroStation Version 8. MicroStation DGN version 8 is now available as a CAD Output option when MicroStation is chosen. Included in this support is
   
   
   • The ability to export multiline text as MicroStation Text Nodes
   • The ability to map LISCAD text to a MicroStation Text Style
   • The ability to map LISCAD entities to a MicroStation Layer name rather than a Layer Number, since MicroStation V8 supports alphanumeric Layer Names
   • The ability to export to MicroStation V8 without requiring a seed file.
   • The ability to export LISCAD background images to MicroStation V8.
2. Support for AutoCAD Hatch entities. LISCAD Polygon entities with a fill color turned on are now exported to AutoCAD as a Hatch.

Data Conversions

1. Support for MicroStation Version 8. MicroStation DGN version 8 is now a valid DGN file when MicroStation is chosen as an Import. Included in this support is
   
   
   • The ability to import MicroStation Text Nodes as multiline text.
   • The ability to import MicroStation Complex Shapes and Complex Strings.
   • The ability to import MicroStation Shared Cell References .
   • The ability to import referenced files in a MicroStation DGN file. If a referenced file is visible, it will be imported.
   • The ability to explode cells in a MicroStation DGN file, so that on import into SEE, the cell is displayed as it is in the DGN file.
2. Support for AutoCAD Hatch entities. AutoCAD Hatch entities can now be imported into LISCAD as a LISCAD polygon.
3. Support for AutoCAD Proxy entities. AutoCAD Proxy entities can now be imported into LISCAD as its constituent entities.
4. Support for AutoCAD 3D Solid entities. AutoCAD 3D Solid entities can now be imported into LISCAD as its constituent entities.
5. Support for AutoCAD External References. AutoCAD External References are now automatically imported into LISCAD.
6. Support for AutoCAD Paper Space Data. AutoCAD Paper Space data can now be imported into LISCAD.
7. LISCAD will now read the Import Scale Factor directly from the AutoCAD file. There is no need for the user to define a scale factor. The scale factor is calculated by reading the AutoCAD Insertion Units, which will be displayed to the user in the AutoCAD Import Dialog. Units supported by LISCAD include inches, millimetres, feet, miles, metres, kilometres, centimetres, yards, decimetres, dekametres and hectometres.
8. Support for GML UK Ordnance Survey Data. This data can now be imported into LISCAD V9. The GML is version 2.1.2, which is the schema that the Ordnance Survey is currently using for its GML data.
9. Support for LandXML Version 1.1.
10. Support for MX Version 8.0.
11. Support for ESRI Shape files. Allows the export of objects (points, lines and polygons) to an ESRI Shapefile. This will create 3 files for each Code/Group and each object: the main shapefile (*.shp), the index file (*.shx) and the database table file (*.dbf).
12. New Zealand Landonline Adjustment XML files can now be created from the LISCAD Traverse Editor.
13. Only terminal points of natural boundaries are now exported to New Zealand Landonline, greatly streamlining the export process.
14. The RelMo XYZ Export has been enhanced and now exports both point and line codes.
15. Remembering Last Used Folders: When using certain import options, LISCAD will remember the folder path that was last used with the import. This has been done for hardwired import techniques.

Volumes

1. Progressive Surface to Surface Volumes A new volume computation is available. Volumes can now be computed between two different models by dividing the region up into elevation slices and computing the cut and fill volumes between the surfaces at each slice.  The volumes can be computed between two models in the same data set or two models in different data sets.  The individual cuts and fills at each slice are output as well as the cumulative cuts and fills.

Certification

1. LISCAD Version 9 has been certified for Microsoft Windows Vista.
   "The "Certified for Windows Vista" logo is a compatibility designation for programs and devices that have passed a rigorous testing program on computers that are running Windows Vista. The technical requirements for this designation target four core areas: reliability, security, compatibility with Windows Vista and future operating systems, and installation and removal".
   
   

Licensing

1. LISCAD Standalone Hardware keys are now supported in a Remote Desktop environment using Windows XP and Windows Vista.