SYMBOL_DESCRIPTION_FILE

The SYMBOL_DESCRIPTION_FILE holds the Symbol Description Language (SDL) required to describe the symbols which will be generated to represent the part. It can be a plain text file or  a  comma separated values (csv) file which is easy to edit and manipulate in a spreadsheet editor.  If the selected SDL file is a plain text file, partBuilder will create a .csv version of that file in the OUTPUT_FILES directory can be copied up to the part directory and used for future editing. The user might want to take advantage of this if they prefer to edit in a spreadsheet. 

The SYMBOL_DESCRIPTION_FILE can be named anything, but is typically named symbolOrder.txt or symbolOrder.csv. If the user wants to experiment with a new symbol layout, they can copy the existing file and change the name and then select the new one using the file browse button. 

Simple example of a Symbol Description Language File

EXPANDED SYMBOL DESCRIPTION FILE

If the SDL in the SYMBOL_DESCRIPTION_FILE contains LOOP_DIRECTIVES, PartBuilder will create an expanded copy of the file prefixed with exp_{file_name}. The user should be careful not to edit the expanded file because it gets regenerated each time the MAP_PINS_TO_SYMBOLS operation is run. The expanded file is a good place to look to make sure the SDL LOOP_DIRECTIVES are doing what they are intended to do. The expanded file has been moved to the OUTPUT_FILES directory in the v2.1.2 version of the PartBuilder tool to avoid confusion.