Vol 5, Issue 1, August 2002

What's Inside :  Late Edition Changes are noted in GREEN and were updated on:  September 30, 2002

• Current Versions of Eagle Point  and CAD Software 
• Check out the CRAB Eagle Point Knowledge Base
• 2002 Road Design Conference Announcement
• CRAB's 2002 Eagle Point Training Schedule
• On-Line training from Eagle Point
• AutoDesk acquires CAiCE Software Corporation
• AutoCAD Tips, Tricks, and Links
• Washington's DOE Stormwater Manual Update
• Washington Counties Project Showcase - (None Submitted)
• Eagle Point Software “Wish List”
• Software Users Survey

INSTALLING A NEW CD
On the subject of CD’s, many people ask, "I received the latest CD, what now?" First you should read the information that comes with the CD. There may be some important release notes or special installation instructions. If this is the first time that you are installing Eagle Point, you will want to look over the Getting Started manual. Eagle Point Corp. have done their best to make it clear and concise. Nearly 50% of my support calls are generated from questions about setup and installation. Many of these questions could be answered by taking a few minutes to plan out how you intend to get the software from the CD to your computer(s).

2002 Road Design Conference Update  

It's that time once again to mark your calendar for the annual CRAB Road Design Conference. This will be the 13th design conference that CRAB has sponsored this event and we would like to extend an invitation to you to join us in the Tri-Cities. Our continually and never ending quest to improve the level of coverage for CRAB’s Design Systems conferences is evident in the content and focus of this year's conference. The new level of coverage means we are no longer a users conference for just one design package but are striving to serve the entire civil engineering design audience of the entire 39 counties'. We begun the process of completely revamping the content and the breadth of scope of the design conference last year and will continue to do so in years to come.

In aid of this goal, take a look at just SOME of what’s up for this year:

Day One Wednesday, the 25th focuses on issues of interest to many design professionals

1. Stormwater, Stormwater, Stormwater: I'm sure everybody's heard by now about the Department of Ecology's revision to the stormwater manual. Well, we called in the experts to come and give us the low down on the who, what, and where's on how to interpret the new, and I might add significant, changes to the stormwater manual for both the Western and Eastern parts of the state.

2. From the Highways & Local Programs side: Al King, Operations Engineer - he’s going to give us a window into the challenges for local agency's in the
design and construction requirements for federal aided projects. Including relevant federal requirements such as acquiring property, environmental, and DBE.

3. and much more... such as, Legal Issues regarding Fish Passageways, Hydraulic Design for scour and river mechanics, PS&E preparation and LandXML

4. Evening Social: For your evening dining entertainment we are pleased to have back, upon popular demand, our good friend Frank Catalano. Frank will give us the skinny on what’s on the horizon for new technologies. We're now entering the second half of the year, when many industry observers had predicted the tech recovery would finally take hold. Has it or will it ever return? Frank will give us his thoughts on that prediction.

And that’s just the first day!…on Day Two, Thursday the 27th: Is our opportunity to focus on the design systems which help support our design and construction efforts.

On Day Three we will wrap it up with a few presentations and then convene into user groups with vendors. Here's your chance to sit down with representatives from Eagle Point, CAiCE, and AutoDesk in an unconstrained format to discussion any and all issues with them. Be sure to bring your questions and requests!

 

AND a whole lot more!…from a vendor showcase area, a Computer Lab with actual hands-on experience. We will have three computers available for trials of the 3
major engineer programs at this conference; Eagle Point, CAiCE, now AutoDesk's CAICE, (see article below), and AutoDesk's LDD. The computers will be loaded with a CBT (Computer Based Training) program
utilizing their new features. This will allow attendee's a chance to see all the new bell's and whistle's from all the different design systems.

All and all, a little bit of something for everyone, including a new alliance with the WSDOT to include them more closely in what we’re doing and hear more about what they’re doing to push the technological envelope. Oh, did we mention the golf tournament of Tuesday the 24th co-hosted by Franklin and Benton County? Check it out  here for tee times, green fees and other details

We want to encourage everyone who sees this invitation to make a concerted effort to come to this year’s conference. It’s new, it’s different, it has new players and new information to share from a multitude of perspectives. Make it a POINT to be there.

^{For full details on the conference agenda visit us at: Agenda}  

^{Then sign up at our Online Registration  site and then visit us in Richland.}

Schedule of Classes for Fall & Winter of 2002 and Winter/Spring of 2003:

Just updated. Mark your calendars for the up and coming training season

• November 5th - 8th Eagle Point Fundamental's - class outline.

• December 3rd - 6th Eagle Point Fundamental's - class outline.

• December 18th - 19th Advanced RoadCalc and Intersection Design - class outline

• February 4th - 7th Eagle Point Fundamental's - class outline.

• February 26th - 27th Advanced RoadCalc and Intersection Design - class outline.

• March  12th - 13th Eagle Point Civil RoadCalc  - Basic - class outline.

• March  26th - 27th Advanced RoadCalc and Intersection Design - class outline.

• April 9th - 10th Eagle Point Survey - Basic - class outline.

• April 23rd - 24th Eagle Point Hydraulics/Hydrology - class outline.

Eagle Point training classes at CRAB are being held in our spacious new training room which is located on the same floor as CRAB's main offices, two doors down from the main office door. The old slow computer training machines have been replaced with brand new Micron Pentium III's with 800mhz of power, 256 Megs of RAM and 19" monitors. Oooohhhhh ahhhhhh...more POWER!!!

CRAB prides itself on offering to the county’s training courses suited for both the engineering and surveying professionals. These courses reaffirm our commitment to our county partners. No one can match the level of knowledge and real life experience that our certified and licensed trainer can provide. For details, take a look at our 

CRAB’s Eagle Point Training Advantages:
• Learning curve is sharply decreased so you become more productive to your County organization.
• Each student has their own computer
• Instructor is a licensed engineer as well as having more than 13 years of professional experience.
• Working relationship with the people that designed the software

In addition to step-by-step instruction using practical design solutions, users learn timesaving shortcuts. Each student also receives a comprehensive training manual and data files that can be taken back to the office to be used as a valuable reference guide. Small class sizes insure that students receive the maximum amount of attention from the instructors. Students are taught using real-life examples, providing them with skills that can be applied immediately upon return to the office.

All classes use the latest release of the Eagle Point 2002 Software and AutoCAD 2002, as well as the latest Microsoft Operating Systems (Windows 2000). Our aim is to expose you to the best technology available and for you to take back with you valuable information not only on the design software, but other aspects of computing too.

Reserve your seat today! To make it as easy as possible, email Gail at gail@crab.wa.gov and provide her with the following information; Name, Title,  County, Phone number, Class title & dates you wish to attend, Eagle Point Version your currently using along with CAD platform CAD Version, and your Experience in both. If your information that you submit is incomplete, it may delay your chances on attending the class that you want to go to. 

Or go to our Online registration page and make your reservation the quick and easy way...just fill out the form and you're good to go.  I'll confirm your reservation as soon as it is processed.

Class dates are subject to change, so to guarantee that you have the most up to date list call us or email me and we will make sure to provide you with the latest training schedule.

As always, the coffee is plentiful and the donuts are always served fresh. The only cost to you is if you don't attend!

Web Training through Eagle Point Corp. 
Too busy to attend CRAB's training classes in Olympia? Perhaps Eagle Point's on-line training is for you. As a valued VIP Subscriber, Eagle Point provides two hours of FREE Internet training to all Counties that are currently sub-licensed VIP users through CRAB, each quarter. Eagle Point will be providing this service beginning next week.
To register, contact Jen Bushaw by phone, email, or fax. 
mailto:jen.bushaw@eaglepoint.com
www.eaglepoint.com
1-800-678-6565

AutoDesk has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the software and related assets of CAiCE Software Corporation, a developer of surveying and engineering applications for transportation agencies and consultants, for approximately US$10 million cash. AutoDesk anticipates that the acquisition will add complementary functionality to its existing civil engineering solutions for highways, airports, railroads, and other transportation-related segments.

For more information on this transaction and how it will effect County's that have use their software, please click on the following link http://www.caice.com/pressreleases/Autodesk%20CAiCE%20FAQ.pdf.

AUTOCAD TIP: ADD A PLUS SIGN TO PROMPT FOR TABS
Previous AutoCAD versions, you can precede some commands with a hyphen (-) to make them run from the command line, not through a dialog box. Examples include -dimstyle, -insert, -layer, and -view. In what appears to be an undocumented feature, some commands also let you place a plus (+) sign before the command name. When you do so, AutoCAD first asks you to enter the number of the tab to make active, then displays the dialog box open to the tab you request. Examples of commands that do this are +dsettings, +options, +ucsman, and +vports. This feature can be used to customize menus, as AutoCAD itself does in the Named UCS and Orthographic UCS/Presets items in the Tools menu.

Stormwater Manual Workshops

This past fall the Department of Ecology (Ecology) released its Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington. The manual has been updated to contain new information and technical standards, and to expand the applicability beyond Puget Sound to all of western Washington. This updated manual replaces the document initially developed and published by Ecology in 1992.
The workshops are geared for those responsible for implementing the provisions of the Stormwater Manual. This includes local and state officials responsible for permitting, planning, and/or design related to stormwater requirements. Developers, commercial and industrial companies, and consulting engineers involved in stormwater management requirements in western Washington may also want to attend the workshops. For more information click here Stormwater Workshop

WSDOT, Ecology, SWPAC - Stormwater Management Study

The Washington State Department of Transportation in collaboration with the Department of Ecology and the Stormwater Policy Advisory Committee (SWPAC), conducted a stormwater management study to develop recommendations about how to improve stormwater management in Washington state. Click above for more information and a link to download the study. (If a password dialog box appears, just hit cancel)

Eastern Washington Stormwater News

Ecology is partnering with eastern Washington communities and other stakeholders to develop improved stormwater management tools for eastern Washington and a Model NPDES Phase II Municipal Stormwater Program for Eastern Washington. Click above for additional information and upcoming events. 

Washington Counties Project Showcase.

None submitted :(

If you have a County project that showcases your work utilizing Eagle Point for the design and you would like to submit it for others to see, then email me with the design data along with before and after construction digital photos at jima@crab.wa.gov

CRAB SEEKS INPUT FOR EAGLE POINT SOFTWARE WISH LIST

CRAB is still maintaining a wish list of features users want to see in future versions of Eagle Point. You can submit your wish by emailing me directly at jima@crab.wa.gov 

CRAB will send your suggestions to Eagle Point for their review and comments.  This is guaranteed under the terms and conditions of the Client Care subscription that we currently have with them.  Please keep in mind that they receive hundreds of customer requests, but as a group, we have historically had an influential voice with Eagle Point.  When we have spoken in the past, they have listened and our requests have often made the software better for us...and for them.

We would like to get your input on the CAD/Civil/Survey software that each of you at the counties are currently using. This will help us here at CRAB to better serve all the needs of the counties. If you have a second please fill out this online form. Thank you in advance.  Software Users Survey 

Remember...you are the point. This is YOUR Point, and CRAB is only here to help sharpen your skills. And that's the Point!

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