Setting up a Project the Maine DOT way

Follow these instructions if you intend to set up a project template with the same folder and file structure that MaineDOT uses internally. This structure has a number of seed files built in and should work best with MaineDOT's macros, Settings Manager files and other customizations.

Please note that MaineDOT does not use the Project pulldown in the MicroStation Manager window to create projects. This is due to the fact that we organize our projects in a different way than Bentley's built-in setup.

The procedure described here is somewhat simplified from the actual procedure used by MaineDOT, which uses VB application to copy in the template, build the .PCF file, and set access permissions to the various folders.  These instructions are written for projects with US Customary units (feet and inches).  See note below for metric projects.

One Time Setup Steps

First, extract the mast_us.zip file to the root of the drive you are using for projects. With WinZip installed, an easy way to do this is to "drag" the zip file with the right mouse button to the folder where you extract the contents, then take the first choice in the pop-up menu to extract directly to the root of the drive. This should create a PINMASTER folder, which in turn should contain a tree of folders under MAST_US. This template is the one that we now use for all projects.

If you haven't already, create a PIN folder at the root level of your project drive.

Also, if you haven't already, set the PROJDISK1 variable in the NORMAL.UCF file in your MicroStation user profile to point to your project disk.

Per Project Steps

To set up a project, copy the MAST_US folder into your PIN folder. Then rename the new copy of MAST_US to the whole number of the PIN you are setting up. Next, rename the 00 folder to the decimal number of the PIN (if it is other than 00). Make edits to a copy of a .PCF file in your !MSPROJ folder for the new project. (The PROJPATH variable especially needs to be set.)

Note for Metric Projects:

The mast_m.zip file contains the template for metric projects.  Use it in the same way as described above, except that you will have a MAST_M folder.

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This page updated July, 2007