Design Journal

A document called Design Journal.docx is embedded in SOLIDWORKS documents. The document has the following properties:

  • Appears in the Design Binder folder in the FeatureManager design tree.
  • Is a Microsoft Word® document.
  • Resembles an engineering journal, with headings for File Name, Description, and Material. These fields are linked to document properties and updated whenever the journal is opened. File Name is the actual file name and Description and Material are SOLIDWORKS document custom properties.
  • Appears initially as <Empty>, a designation that disappears when you activate the journal.
  • Is added to the SOLIDWORKS file when you activate it, so the SOLIDWORKS file size is not affected unless you activate the journal.
  • Accepts both text and embedded images.
  • Can be deleted, in which case it is again listed as <Empty>.
  • Can be printed.
You must have Microsoft Word on your computer to use the design journal.

Editing the Design Journal

To edit the design journal:

  1. In the FeatureManager design tree, double-click Design Journal.docx in the Design Binder folder .
    To view the Design Journal when the Design Binder folder is not visible, right-click the part, assembly, or drawing and click Hidden Tree Items > Design Binder > Design Journal.docx > Open.
  2. Enter text, paste in images, and format text.
    You can copy images from SOLIDWORKS, screen capture software, and image-editing software.
  3. Close the journal.
    Changes are saved automatically.
You can attach other documents to SOLIDWORKS documents by adding them to the Design Binder folder .

Design Journal Template

You can specify the file location for the design template in Tools > Options > System Options > File Locations . In Show folders for, select Design Journal Template to add or delete a location. The default journal template folder is install_dir\lang\language\.

To edit the design journal template:

  1. In install_dir\lang\language\, open journal.docx.
  2. Edit the document in Microsoft Word.
  3. Save and close the document.
    Your changes appear when you open a new embedded Design Journal.docx in a SOLIDWORKS document.