I have learned how to make a personal profile. I know how to export it and import it. What I would like to know what to do is how to make it the 'default profile' that automatically loads when I start AutoCAD.
It depends on how you start AutoCAD. Most people will start AutoCAD by clicking on the shortcut either in the Start menu or on the desktop. In each of these shortcuts, there is an option to specify the default profile to be used and AutoCAD will generally install with their generic one. If you change the default profile in the options and then use the standard shortcut, then the AutoCAD default profile will be used.
To solve this problem you have actually 2 options.
You can create a new shortcut to the Acad.exe file with no profile set as current, then set the current profile in the options dialog. You will need to do this for the shortcut on the desktop and the one in the start menu.
OR
You can open the shortcut properties of each of the two shortcuts and on the shortcut file where the target file name is located, it will have a command line option for a profile that will be similar to this:
/p "C:\Program Files\Autodesk Architectural Desktop 3\adt.arg"
If it does, you will need to change/verify the path to the *.arg file you created when you exported your new profile and make sure the new profile name is correct in the shortcut.
The above example is the standard for ADT 3.3, and others are similar. Pre 2002 releases of common AutoCAD did not to the best of my knowledge have the profiles in the shortcuts, but desktop packages such as ADT and LDD do use them in the default shortcuts.
Now, if you double click on files to open them rather than open AutoCAD first, then if you set a profile current, it will always remain current.
I think you can do this without the quotes.
But Striker is right ... add the "/p" plus the file path AFTER the execute command in your SHORTCUT on your desktop.
Mine looks like this ...
C:\Acad2000\acad.exe /P H:\ACAD\RICH.arg
The "H:\acad\" is my personal folder were I store my pereferences.
And again, make sure it's in the "TARGET" line of the shorcut.
you say you know how to import & export.
then copy "<<Unnamed Profile>>" , give name like "<<Unnamed Profile>>-back-up" then delete "<<Unnamed Profile>>".
re-name the one you want to be auto-loaded to "<<Unnamed Profile>>".
you can just re-name and it will ask to over-write previous.
hope this helps
Intel P4 1.7 GHZ
768 RDRAM
Win 2000 Pro
Autocad 14, 2002 with EP 2.3.1