This is the Dimension Prefix section, covering global and view-frame-related prefixes, special prefix syntax, and two practical examples combining prefixes with Data tree references and messages.
Prerequisites
Dimension arrangement, activation, text alignment, extension lines, and arrowheads are configured via Properties.
Pitfall: Adding or changing the global dimension prefix affects every view and every project — new and old alike. This is generally not recommended — the view-frame-related option avoids that.
Steps
Global vs. view-frame-related prefixes
1.) Understand the global dimension prefix (not recommended). A global prefix change is global in the same way as the chain descriptions — but you can easily avoid the global operation by using the view-frame-related option instead.
2.) Add or change a view-frame-related prefix (recommended). A frame-related prefix only affects the selected dimension in the current view frame — keeping the global prefix untouched in the background.
Special prefix syntax and Data tree references
3.) Use the special prefix/suffix placeholder syntax. The existing dimension text can be treated as a placeholder using less-than/greater-than characters, to extend or overwrite it:
Prefix and/or suffix:
<> Suffix(add the sequence "Prefix <> Suffix")Hide the dimension value: add the prefix sequence
<!>Stack a second row above/below: insert
\Pbetween the two textsReplace the value with any expression: add the sequence
<!> Any ExpressionUse External$'s from the Data tree inside any of the above.
4.) Combine a Data tree reference with a special prefix option. For example, activate the door width dimension, then copy the door height's External$ reference from the Data tree into the prefix/suffix expression.
Practical examples: prefixes with messages and calculations
5.) Use Data tree references together with messages for automatic language switching. Combining a Data tree reference with a referenced message means the dimension text updates automatically when the drawing language changes. You can use your own messages too, as long as they're referenced.
6.) Copy a message reference from the global prefix, and copy a height reference from the Data tree. Copy the message reference from the global prefix, then copy the height reference from the Data tree, and combine both in the same dimension prefix expression.
7.) Calculate a dimension result in two units at once. For example, showing a "Travel" dimension in both mm and m: External$("MSGGRP0.MSG521"): <> mm \ \;#[.0]External$("Shaft0.LIFT_TRAVEL")/1000\; m.
Result
You can add a dimension prefix scoped to just the current view frame (avoiding the global, all-projects impact of the global option), use the special placeholder syntax to prefix, suffix, hide, stack, or replace dimension text, and build prefixes that combine Data tree references with translated messages — including calculating one value in two units at once.
Next Step