# Block Referencing for Noobs **URL:** \ **Category:** Civil 3D\ **Created:** [June 2, 2022, 2:11pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229 "2022-06-02T14:11:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 2:11pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/1 "2022-06-02T14:11:01Z")
I’m totally new at this and thought the best way to learn was to try and build something I could use. I would like to extract data from an attribute block and then use that information to insert an object specified by the attribute along a control line. First I’m trying to collect the attribute data from the block, I seem to be able to select the block but anything past that has an empty list? Can someone explain why? ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 2:24pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/2 "2022-06-02T14:24:41Z")
Hi @craig.dunninghamCM5U, Can you upload a screenshot? ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 2:41pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/3 "2022-06-02T14:41:30Z")
Sorry I thought I did ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/uploads/dynamobim/original/3X/8/f/8f974dfc6f559c8354d7c1df347a0f912ffb58b5.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 3:07pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/4 "2022-06-02T15:07:48Z")
OK. It’s because it’s a dynamic block. Give me a sec and I’ll show you a workaround. ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 3:50pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/5 "2022-06-02T15:50:48Z")
Here are some options for you. Similar discussions are linked below. ![blocks](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/uploads/dynamobim/original/3X/3/f/3f7da4bbebcc67ec0f226c2046e52d2916d50127.png) > [@Block.Blockreference not working](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-blockreference-not-working/52946/5): > > @VAparici this happens frequently with dynamic blocks and is caused by anonymous block names. If you select a block and do the LIST command, you’ll see that some of them have an anonymous name: [Anonymous Block] When the dynamic properties of a dynamic block are manipulated, the changes are stored behind the scenes as anonymous blocks. An anonymous block is created for each different state of the dynamic block in the drawing. The anonymous naming allows the same block to be different by changi… > [@Creating a new BlockReference doesn't copy DynamicProperties along](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/creating-a-new-blockreference-doesnt-copy-dynamicproperties-along/56510/2): > > There are a few things going on here. Dynamic blocks have an additional name called the anonymous name that kicks in as soon as you change any dynamic attribute. This is because there can’t be multiple instances of a block reference in AutoCAD that have different values. You can test this by using the INSERT command to insert a new instance of the A$Ce3b14a25 block into the drawing. If you select the block and run LIST, there is no anonymous name: [OriginalName] But once you change any dynamic… ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 9:59pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/6 "2022-06-02T21:59:39Z")
Thanks for a great reply and the block issue makes sense in principle However, I can’t seem to find the Camber anonymous block name function, I have been through every subfolder and can’t find it. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/uploads/dynamobim/original/3X/d/6/d6485a4e836edd95dac4361273c76a9599264731.png) I can only embed 1 screen shot ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 10:02pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/7 "2022-06-02T22:02:39Z")
I noticed that you have released the Camber pack - thank you For some reason I don’t think I have everything, could this be because of versioning? ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 10:26pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/8 "2022-06-02T22:26:00Z")
Yes, most likely. Which version of Civil 3D are you using? ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 11:49pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/9 "2022-06-02T23:49:49Z")
2021 ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2022, 11:54pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/10 "2022-06-02T23:54:33Z")
OK, you’ll need to update to 2021.3 for everything to work properly. ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2022, 3:03am UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/11 "2022-06-03T03:03:58Z")
I can install 2.0 but have issues with the latest 3.0 version of Camber What heading is the AnonymousBlocks function under? ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/uploads/dynamobim/original/3X/7/2/7239a0c06135a28614245a5731698baf70d96d87.png) ---
**Author:** ![WrightEngineering](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/user_avatar/forum.dynamobim.com/wrightengineering/32/115676_2.png) [@WrightEngineering](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/WrightEngineering)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2022, 3:09am UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/12 "2022-06-03T03:09:47Z")
You’re having trouble installing 3.0? You should be able to search for any node in the search box by name. You can find what tab it is by selecting the category after you find it. ---
**Author:** ![craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5fc32e/32.png) [@craig.dunninghamCM5U](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/craig.dunninghamCM5U)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2022, 3:10am UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/13 "2022-06-03T03:10:57Z")
I have loaded 2021.2 (only version I can get) ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex022/uploads/dynamobim/original/3X/4/7/475aba79bfae6286c1917622a7b7648dc3b852bb.png) ---
**Author:** ![mzjensen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b77776/32.png) [@mzjensen](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/mzjensen)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2022, 5:06am UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/14 "2022-06-03T05:06:58Z")
Sorry it’s inconvenient, but 2021.2 won’t work. It needs to be 2021.3. ---
**Author:** ![gozdeekavas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gozdeekavas](https://forum.dynamobim.com/u/gozdeekavas)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2025, 5:43pm UTC](https://forum.dynamobim.com/t/block-referencing-for-noobs/77229/16 "2025-03-20T17:43:23Z")
Hi, I have Civil 3D 2024 and camber package 5.0.0. There is no Block.AnonymousBlocks function? Is there any solution to solve this issue.