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Internal Files and Folders

Project Folder

In Gemini Terrain, we work in drawings (.bim files), in the same way we work in a document (.docx file) in Word and spreadsheet (.xlsx file) in Excel.

Each project in Gemini Terrain is organized in its own project folder. Here we have one *.prj file that serves as a superstructure over all drawings in the project and presents this in the project menu.

The project menu manages all drawings in our project, and we must always open drawings through this menu.

Note

The exception is when we need to draw custom figures that should be common to all projects. In this case, we can create standalone drawings in the User folder via File - New File.

For map, plan, and surveyed data, Gemini Terrain has its own storage structure called application layers. In the properties dialog for application layers, we have dedicated routines for importing from various external digital formats and measurement books. As we can see from the illustration below, application layers are drawing-independent, meaning we can add or remove application layers in all drawings with terrain model type.

Road, tunnel, and ditch data are stored in line definition files we call SFI models, *.sfi files. In the properties dialog for SFI, we have dedicated routines for importing road data from other systems such as VIPS and Anpakke. Roads are, like application layers, drawing-independent. In drawings with terrain model type, we can insert various elements from the SFI model, for example horizontal curvature (line definition), vertical curvature, road body, etc.

File overview

Overview of files in a Gemini Terrain project

It is also possible to insert DWG and IFC files directly into drawings.

File Types and Storage Structures in Gemini Terrain

The following internal file types and storage structures are used in Gemini Terrain:

  • Projects (*.prj)

  • Drawings (*.bim)

  • Application layers (*.aly, *.gmi, ...)

  • Line definition files (*.sfi)

  • Intersection objects (*.xfi)

  • Excavation pits (*.efi)

Note

Except for .bim files, the names of other files can in principle be anything. Note that some special characters are not allowed by Windows. Generally, spaces are also not recommended.

As we can see, we have many files in the project folder. In addition to the internal file formats, you often have external files such as IFC and DWG as well. In large projects, it may therefore be appropriate to create subfolders for some of the files. The functions for creating application layers, line definition files, intersections, and excavation pits support relative paths.

Example of folder structure with subfolders

Example of folder structure in project

Absolute or Relative Paths?

In the example above, we have a project folder named Test, with subfolders Roads, Intersections, and Pits.

  • Absolute path for SFI files: C:\Users\My documents\Gemini\Data\Test\Roads
  • Relative path for SFI files: \Roads

We recommend placing files in subfolders under the project folder if they are to be placed in folders other than directly in the project folder. If you place files elsewhere, the absolute path will be stored when you insert the files into the drawing. This can create problems if there are changes in the folder structures.

With relative paths, we can move the project folder with associated subfolders without encountering problems. Note that application layers can only be located in the project folder or a subfolder of it.

Sys Folder

The Sys folder contains the program's system files. In addition, we also find standard title fields and the figure library here. Figure library, FI0400.lib, contains map symbols, sheets for presentation drawings, and various 3D figures.

Warning

The Sys folder is reserved for factory settings. Therefore, never make changes to files in this directory, as they will be overwritten during new installations. Some files are intended to be customized, and the main rule here is to copy these files from Sys to the User folder. This is described in more detail in the section on user customization.

INI Folder

INI files are regular text files that contain program settings. Below are some important INI files described.

DDSmain.ini

Controls what relates to the program installation. In the file, you will find, among other things, the paths to the various folders.

Example

Example of Gemini installation, where XX stands for Terrain version: 

ExeDir=C:\Program Files\Gemini\TerXX\Exe\
SysDir=C:\Program Files\Gemini\TerXX\Sys\
UserDir=C:\Users\Documents\Gemini\TerXX\User\
ImageDir=C:\Program Files\Gemini\TerXX\Images\
TextureDir=C:\Program Files\Gemini\TerXX\Texture\
ProjDir=C:\Users\Documents\Gemini\TerXX\Data\Demo\
ProjName=demo

DDSpmn.ini

This file controls what relates to the drawing list, beyond the actual drawing files. Dialog boxes where we register information can be customized to our own needs. Note that in this case, the connections in the title fields must also be updated. This is described in more detail in the dialog help for the drawing list.

DDSpmn.ini can be copied to a shared User folder so that all users have access to it.

Ter.ini

This file contains settings for dialogs in Gemini Terrain, including:

  • Last used import format
  • Settings for line definition texting
  • Grid setup in drawings

The statement ProjectIniFileMode=0,2 tells where presentation drawing settings are stored (grid setup, etc.):

  • 0 – settings are stored in terproj.ini in the project directory.
  • 2 – settings are stored in xxxx4nnn.ini. With this choice, we get one file for each drawing, meaning we can have different settings for different drawings in the project.

Ter-project-timelog

The file TER-PROJECT-TIMELOG.TXT logs the times we open and close projects in Gemini Terrain. The file is found in the user's Ini folder. It can be edited in a text editor if we want to delete the content, for example. Alternatively, we can delete the file as the program will create a new one if it doesn't exist.

Example

Example of TER-PROJECT-TIMELOG.TXT:

2022.12.07:  
2022.12.07_10:58:19: Project opened: C:\Users\Documents\Gemini\Ter\Data\Demo-Nor\Demo_Ter.ini  
2022.12.07_12:51:58: Project closed: C:\Users\Documents\Gemini\Data\Demo-Nor\Demo_Ter.ini