Doddle    DWGcolumn.dll    DWGicon.dll    ScanDir    TDwgPreview    c_prev    Linnet    Slide2    PLFC    DefaultUser    Moonstruck    Wieldy

This is the DWGcolumn.dll download page.

What is a column provider?

DWGcolumn.dll is a Windows shell extension that provides information on the AutoCAD version a drawings has been saved as in the Title column of the Windows Explorer. You don't need to have CAD software installed on your machine for it to work.

Right click on the column header area of your explorer window and select the Title column:

The Title column will show the version of AutoCAD for each drawing. Recognised versions of AutoCAD are version 1 up to AutoCAD 2007.

Tell me more

Other information given in this column is 'invalid drawing', 'unknown version', and also 'new verion?', which might indicate that you are dealing with a newer version of AutoCAD than 2007. If you see that, it is time to get a new version of DWGcolumn.dll.

DWGcolumn also works great in FileOpen dialogs. A good example is your CAD software's very own FileOpen dialog: chances are it gives no information on a selected drawing's format.

Another great thing about DWGcolumn.dll is that you can now sort your drawings by revision! It is also possible to search your hard drive for a specific file format, e.g. R14 drawings. Just enable the Title column and sort by it.

DWGcolumn.dll will not scan .BAK files, because this is considered to slow the whole explorer down. If you have any suggestions, please email me. I might experiment with BAK files after all. (But then again, they could be anything.)

Installation

To install the DWG shell extension you need administrator privileges. Ask your administrator if you are not one yourself.

• Unzip the downloaded file into a directory of your choice, e.g. DWGcolumn under Program Files.
• Run reg.bat to register the DLL. Do not attempt to run reg.bat from within winzip.
• Restart shell either ny rebooting your computer or by logging off/logging in.

NB: DWGcolumn.dll will not be copied into your System32 folder. It will stay put, and you must not remove this directory.

History

April 2006: release of version 0.1.

Download

DWGcolumn.dll has passed the beta testing phase. It runs fine under NT/2000/XP. DWGcolumn is freeware. By downloading the installation file you accept the license agreement.

DWGcolumn.dll installation files: DWGcolumn1.0.zip (233kB)
Some sample drawings: dwgs.zip (4kB)