Autodesk 15606-011408-9008 User Guide - Page 120

Creating a Design Spreadsheet One very effective technique for keeping track of all your data for a map is to create a spreadsheet of all of the layers you create, consisting of the legend layer name, which data sources they reference, the display range, and display styles, such as color or line style, and notes. For example, you could create a spreadsheet or table that looks something like this: Layer Name Layer Name Data Source in Legend Display Range Display Notes Style roads_1 roads roads_coarse.sdf 40K-10M thin green lines Visible only when zoomed out. Shows coarser data. roads_2 roads roads_fine.sdf 0-40K thick green lines Visible only when zoomed in. Shows finer data. roadsbytype1 roads by type roads_coarse.sdf 40K-10M thin red lines Visible only when zoomed out. Shows coarser data. Linked to SQL and themed. roadsbytype2 roads by type roads_fine.sdf 0-40K thick red lines Visible only when zoomed in. Shows finer data. Linked to SQL and themed. In this example, there are four layers. The first two layers use different data to show the same area at different levels of detail when zoomed in or out. The second two are set up the same way. Note that the first and third layers use the same SDF, and the second and fourth layers use the same SDF. As you might imagine, as you start adding several layers to achieve different results at various scale ranges, it can become difficult to manage the process, so taking an organized approach is critical during planning. In addition to the columns shown in the example, you could also add columns that indicate which server each layer uses, whether it is selectable, the layer type, the layer group to which a particular layer belongs, and more. 120 | Chapter 6 Planning and Designing Maps