Create drawings from models (Creo Elements/Direct Annotation) > Modify drawings > Add and modify OLEs > Work with OLE objects
  
Work with OLE objects
You can embed objects from other applications in your drawings. For example, you could display a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet containing a BOM.
To embed an OLE object in a drawing,
1. Click File > Open. The Load dialog box opens.
2. In File Type, select OLE. The Load OLE dialog box opens.
3. If needed, click Owner and specify the owner of the OLE object.
4. Enter the name of the OLE object in the OLE Name box. If you choose not to enter a name, Creo Elements/Direct Annotation generates a name.
5. Click Adjust or use the Adjust box to select the point where the OLE object is attached to the cursor.
6. Select a file to load.
7. Click Load.
8. Place the object on the drawing.
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• The embedded OLE objects are displayed as thumbnail images in the drawing. If the OLE object is a Microsoft Excel sheet, the contents displayed in the thumbnail image may differ from the actual sheet depending on the font size, the row height and the number of rows and columns used in the actual sheet. The size of the thumbnail image remains the same even after you add rows or columns to the actual sheet. However, there is no loss of information in the Microsoft Excel sheet even if not all the rows and columns are displayed in the thumbnail image.
• Adobe Acrobat documents cannot be embedded in a 64 bit Creo Elements/Direct Annotation running on a 64 bit Windows 7 operating system and hence, a new OLE object of type Adobe Acrobat document cannot be created. Creo Elements/Direct Annotation allows you to select an already existing PDF to be embedded as an OLE object in a drawing, but this operation results in the following error message:
“'A :check-function must return a keyword, NIL is illegal”.
• Adobe PDF and eDrawing data can be loaded and viewed, but not created using the Annotation OLE capabilities.
To change OLE properties,
1. Click Insert and then, in the OLE group, click Properties.
2. Select an OLE object in the viewport. The OLE Properties dialog box opens with the name and type of the OLE object in the upper section.
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Alternatively, you can select the OLE object in the viewport, right-click, and select OLE Properties. Set the focus to OLE or All to preselect the OLE object. You can also select the OLE object in the viewport and click on the Command Mini Toolbar (CMT).
3. You can resize the object, adjust its name, and place it in front of or behind other drawing objects or in the forward or backward directions.
To edit an embedded OLE object,
1. Click Insert and then, in the OLE group, click Edit.
2. Select an OLE object in the viewport.
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Alternatively, you can select the OLE object in the viewport, right-click, and select OLE Edit. Set the focus to OLE or All to preselect the OLE object. You can also select the OLE object in the viewport and click on the Command Mini Toolbar (CMT).
3. Edit the item in its native software application and update the object (usually via the File menu).
To reposition an embedded OLE object,
1. Click Insert and then, in the OLE group, click Move. The Modify OLE Position dialog box opens.
2. Select the OLE object in the viewport.
3. If necessary, change the owner of the OLE object.
4. If necessary, specify a number of repeat occurrences of the object.
5. Click again to place the object.
6. Click to complete the operation.
Or, you can use one of the following methods.
• Select the OLE object in the viewport, move the cursor, and click again to place the object, or
• Select the OLE object in the viewport, right-click, and select OLE Move, or
• Click (Move Elements) in the Utilities group on Annotation, Geometry, or Insert tab.
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• To delete an embedded OLE object, select the OLE object in the viewport, right-click, and select Delete OLE. Alternatively, you can click (Delete) in the Utilities group on Annotation, Geometry, or Insert tab.
• To hide an embedded OLE object or make it visible,
1. Click Insert and then, in the Utilities group, click the arrow next to (Hide).
2. Click (Hide) or (Unhide).
• Set the focus to OLE or All to preselect the OLE object.
To create an OLE object,
1. Click Insert and then, in the OLE group, click New. The Create OLE dialog box opens.
2. If necessary, click Owner and specify the owner of the OLE object.
3. In the Object Type box, select the type of OLE object.
4. Enter a name for the new OLE object in the Name box.
5. Specify a reference point for the position of the new OLE object in one of the following ways:
◦ Enter coordinates for the point in the user input line.
◦ Click a point in the viewport.
6. Click to complete the operation.
Limitations
• Creo Elements/Direct Annotation excludes OLE objects from export to eDrawings, DXF, DWG, and IGES 2D.
• Creo Elements/Direct Annotation contains OLE client, not OLE server functionality, so you cannot embed Creo Elements/Direct Annotation objects via other software applications' OLE functionality.