Getting Started

January 2006
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Contents

Make the Transition from Paper to CAD . . . . . . . . .1

Draw to Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Lay Out Your Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Organize Drawing Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Establish Drafting Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Draw Efficiently . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Draw Accurately . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
View Your Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Create Standard Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Create Dimensions and Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Modify Your Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Chapter 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Why You Should Use this Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Prepare for the Tutorials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Get Additional Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Access Related Topics in the Help System . . . . . . . . 25
Tutorial: Use the Help System . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Use Quick Help on the Info Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Navigate the Info Palette Content . . . . . . . . . . 29
Control the Info Palette Display Options . . . . . . . . 30

Chapter 2 Work with Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Use the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Cancel a Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Start a Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Start Commands from Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Start Commands on the Command Line . . . . . . . . 36
Specify a Command Option . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Use the Dynamic Prompt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Undo or Redo Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Chapter 3 Change Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Zoom to Magnify a View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Zoom by Moving the Cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Zoom to a Specified Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Zoom to Display the Entire Drawing . . . . . . . . . 42
 Pan to Reposition a View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Pan by Moving the Cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Tutorial: Zoom and Pan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Chapter 4 Drawing Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Start a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Plan the Drawing Units and Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Choose the Drawing Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Set the Format of Drawing Units . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Understand Models and Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Organize Drawings with Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Assign Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Control Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Tutorial: Tour a Drawing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Chapter 5 Draw Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Object Properties Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Assign Object Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Use the Properties Palette. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Use the Properties and Layers Toolbars . . . . . . . . . 61
Tutorial: Change Object Properties . . . . . . . . . . 62
Use Linetypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Scale Linetypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Assign Lineweights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Draw Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Create Parallel Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Draw Polylines and Polygons . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Draw Polylines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Draw Circles and Arcs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Draw Circles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Draw Arcs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Chapter 6 Precision Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Set Grid and Snap Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Set Grid and Snap Spacing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Set Grid Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Draw with Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Use Cartesian and Polar Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . 76
Draw with Absolute Cartesian Coordinates . . . . . . . . 76
Draw with Relative Cartesian Coordinates . . . . . . . . 77
Snap to Precise Points on Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Use Single Object Snaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Set Running Object Snaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Object Snap Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

vi | Contents
 Specify Angles and Distances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Use Polar Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Specify Distances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Specify an Angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Tutorial: Draw with Precision . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Chapter 7 Make Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Select Objects to Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Object Selection Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Specify a Selection Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Erase, Extend, and Trim Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Erase Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Extend Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Trim Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Duplicate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Copy Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Offset Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Mirror Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Move and Rotate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Move Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Rotate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Fillet Corners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Tutorial: Modify Objects with Precision. . . . . . . . . 97
Tutorial: Create a New Drawing with Precision . . . . . . 103
Match Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Use Editing Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Edit with Grips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Create Revision Clouds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Analyze Drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Chapter 8 Add Symbols and Hatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Overview of Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Benefits of Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Sources of Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Insert Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Tutorial: Adding Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Overview of Hatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Use Standard Hatch Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Associative Hatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Insert Hatches or Solid Fills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Define Hatch Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Tutorial: Add Hatches to a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . 122

Contents | vii
Chapter 9 Add Text to a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Create and Modify Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Work with Text Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128
Create and Modify Text Styles . . . . . . . . . . . .128
Set Text Size for the Viewport Scaling. . . . . . . . . . . .129
Set Text Size in Model Space. . . . . . . . . . . . .129

Chapter 10 Add Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Dimensions Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134
Parts of a Dimension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134
Associative Dimensions and Leaders . . . . . . . . . .134
Create Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
Tutorial: Create Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
Use Dimensioning Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138
Create Center Marks and Lines . . . . . . . . . . . .138
Create Leaders with Annotation . . . . . . . . . . .139
Create and Modify Dimension Styles . . . . . . . . . . . .140
Modify Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142

Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Work with Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
Create a New Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
Use Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Create and Modify Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . . .149
Tutorial: Work with Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . .149
Choose and Configure Plotters . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Add a Plotter Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Change a Plotter Configuration . . . . . . . . . . .152
Use Plot Styles to Override Properties . . . . . . . . . .152
Plot from a Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153
Page Setups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153
Tutorial: Plot a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . .154

Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

viii | Contents
Make the Transition from Paper to
CAD
 

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Draw to Scale
Drawing scale is something you consider when laying out your drawing. You establish scale
differently in CAD than you do with manual drafting.

With manual drafting, you

 must determine the scale of a

5 view before you start
‘ ;
ƒ drawing. This scale compares
‘ the size of the actual object to
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the size of the model drawn
 6$( 3$*)  on paper.

With AutoCAD and
 AutoCAD LT, you first decide
what units of measurement
you will use, and then draw
your model at 1:1 scale.

 For example, when you draw a motor part, the
5; 5
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length of one unit might equal one millimeter
;
or one inch. When you draw a map, one unit
might equal one kilometer or one mile.

Draw the object at 1:1 scale in the units you This drawing of a mechanical carriage uses
choose. millimeters for the length of one unit. Views of
the part were scaled later to create the layout
for the printed drawing.

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When you lay out and plot your drawing, you

can specify any scale.

Draw to Scale | 3
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Lay Out Your Drawing
On paper, a layout is constrained by the sheet size you use. In CAD, you are not limited to one
particular layout or sheet size.

When you draft manually, you

first select a sheet, which usually
includes a preprinted border and
title block. Then you determine
the location for views—plans,
elevations, sections, and details.
Finally, you start to draw.
With AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT,
you first draw your design, or
model, in a working environment
called model space. You can then
create a layout for that model in an environment
You create your basic design, or
model, in a drawing area called model called paper space.
space. A layout represents a drawing sheet. It typically
contains a border, title block, dimensions, general
notes, and one or more views of the model
displayed in layout viewports. Layout viewports are
areas, similar to picture frames or windows,
through which you can see your model. You scale
the views in viewports by zooming in or out.
In this drawing of a cottage, layout viewports
display the model in plan and elevation views.

When you’re ready to print, you can arrange

different views of your model in a layout.

Lay Out Your Drawing | 5

Organize Drawing Information
In both manual drafting and CAD, you need a way to organize your drawing content—a method for
separating, sorting, and editing specific drawing data.

With manual drafting, you can separate

information onto individual transparent
overlays. For example, a building plan might
contain separate overlays for its structural,
electrical, and plumbing components.
With AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, layers are
equivalent to transparent overlays. As with
overlays, you can display, edit, and print layers
separately or in combination.
You can name layers to help track content, and lock layers so
they can't be altered. Assigning settings such as color, linetype, or
lineweight to layers helps you comply with industry standards.
You can also use layers to organize drawing objects for plotting.
Assigning a plot style to a layer makes all the objects drawn on
Turn off layers to hide complex that layer plot in a similar manner.
details as you work. This drawing of a press uses layers to define different linetypes
and colors.

Display layers when you need

to see all components.

Organize Drawing Information | 7

Establish Drafting Standards
Whether you work as a member of a team or on an individual project, developing standards is a
requirement for efficient communication.

Manual drafting requires meticulous

accuracy in drawing linetypes,
lineweights, text, dimensions, and
more. Standards must be established
in the beginning and applied
consistently.
With AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, you
can ensure conformity to industry or
company standards by creating styles
that you can apply consistently.
You can create styles for text, dimensions, and
linetypes. A text style, for example, establishes font and
format characteristics such as height, width, and slant.
You can save styles, layers, layouts, title block and
border information, and some command settings in
drawing template files. Using drawing templates helps
you quickly start new drawings that conform to
standards.
This drawing of a roadway plan uses styles to maintain
drafting standards for text, dimensioning, and
linetypes.

Dimension, text, and linetype

styles can be established in a
template drawing and used for
creating new drawings.

Establish Drafting Standards | 9

Draw Efficiently
Draw with less effort and revise with more speed: these are two primary reasons you use CAD. You
are provided with a complete set of drawing and editing tools to help eliminate repetitive, time-
consuming drafting tasks.

With manual drafting, you use drawing

tools that include pencils, scales,
compasses, parallel rules, templates, and
erasers. Repetitive drawing and editing
tasks must be done manually.
In AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, you can
choose from a variety of drawing tools
You can save drafting time by drawing one that create lines, circles, spline curves,
half of an item and then mirroring it to create and more.
the other half.
You can easily move, copy, offset, rotate, and mirror
objects. You can also copy objects between open
drawings.
In this drawing of a trolley, copying and mirroring were
used to create repeated and symmetrical features.
Offsetting was also used to draw parallel lines more
efficiently.

Draw Efficiently | 11
Draw Accurately
Engineering and architectural drawings require a high degree of accuracy. With CAD, you draft more
accurately than with manual methods.

With object With manual drafting, you must

snaps, when you draw objects carefully to ensure
place your cursor correct size and alignment. Objects
here… drawn to scale must be manually
verified and dimensioned.
With AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT,
you can snap to the
you can use several methods to
center point
obtain exact dimensions.
automatically.
The simplest method is to locate
points by snapping to an interval on
a rectangular grid.
Another method is to specify exact coordinates.
Coordinates specify a drawing location by indicating
a point along an X and Y axis or a distance and angle
from another point.
With object snaps, you can snap to locations on
existing objects, such as an endpoint of an arc, the
midpoint of a line, or the center point of a circle.
With polar tracking, you can snap to previously set
angles and specify distances along those angles.
In this drawing of a pumping station, object snaps were
used to ensure that lines connected perfectly. Polar
The polar tracking feature
displays visual guidelines at tracking was used to draw lines at correct angles.
specific angles and can snap
the cursor to an angle.

Draw Accurately | 13
View Your Drawing
The power of CAD makes it easy for you to quickly view different parts of your design at different
magnifications.

You can zoom out to see more of your

With manual drafting, the size
design, or zoom in to see more detail.
and resolution of your drawing
is fixed.
With AutoCAD and AutoCAD
LT, the size and resolution of
your drawing can be changed as
needed.
To do detailed work, you can
increase display size by zooming
in. You can zoom out to display
more of the drawing. To move to another section
of a drawing, you pan the drawing without
changing magnification.
You can zoom and pan to create the best working
conditions. This can be invaluable when working
on large and detailed drawings, such as this
health spa plan.

You can pan to shift to another area of your

design.

View Your Drawing | 15

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Create Standard Symbols
Symbols have long been used in manual drafting as a way to represent real-world objects in a
simplified way. The ability to create and reuse standard symbols is one of CAD’s greatest strengths.

With manual drafting, you

might use a symbol template
or printed stickers to draw
repetitive landscape,
architectural, mechanical, or
electrical symbols. This
method, however, limits the
possible variations of a
symbol.
With AutoCAD and
AutoCAD LT, you can save
time by inserting copies of
existing symbols anywhere in
your drawing, at any rotation
or scale.
When you need to create a custom symbol,
you combine several objects into a single
object called a block. You then can insert the
block as many times as needed into any
drawing using DesignCenter.
Standard landscaping symbols are used
DesignCenter helps you locate libraries (collections) extensively in this drawing of a residential
of blocks that you can drag onto your drawing or onto landscaping plan.
a tool palette. You can browse and preview blocks
from drawings stored on your computer, on a
company network, or on a website.

Create Standard Symbols | 17

/
Create Dimensions and Text
Creating accurate dimensions and consistent, legible text is a time-consuming task for the manual
drafter. CAD provides ways to streamline this task.

With manual drafting, if you

resize any part of the drawing,
you must erase and then
redraw the dimensions.
Changing text can often
involve relettering the whole
drawing.
If you make dimensions associative, you can update the
dimension size and value automatically when you With AutoCAD and AutoCAD
stretch or scale the dimensioned object. LT, you create associative
dimensions and text on the
layout in paper space.
Associative dimensions are tied to the
underlying model. Changes to the model
automatically update the dimension values.
Standard types of dimensions include linear,
radial, ordinate, angular, baseline, and more.
You can easily revise the content, font, size,
spacing, and rotation of text in dimensions and
notes.
In this detail drawing of a gutter, the text,
You can create leader lines with associated text. If you leaders, and dimensions describe the required
move the text, the leader is adjusted automatically. hardware.

Create Dimensions and Text | 19

Modify Your Drawing
Revisions are a part of any drawing project. Whether you work on paper or with
CAD, you will need to modify your drawing in some way.
On paper, you must erase and redraw to make revisions to your drawing manually.
CAD eliminates tedious manual editing by providing a variety of editing tools. If
you need to copy all or part of an object, you don’t have to redraw it. If you need
to remove an object, you can erase it with a few clicks of the mouse. And if you
make an error, you can quickly undo your actions.
Once you draw an object, you never need to redraw it. You can modify existing
objects by mirroring, rotating, scaling, stretching, trimming, and more. You can
also change object properties, such as linetype, lineweight, color, and layer, at any
time.

Once you draw something, you can easily copy it without

having to re-create it.

These before-and-after drawings show some typical edits to a house elevation. The revision cloud
feature is used to mark areas of change.

Modify Your Drawing | 21

22
Introduction

Why You Should Use this Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Prepare for the Tutorials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Get Additional Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Access Related Topics in the Help System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Tutorial: Use the Help System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Use Quick Help on the Info Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Navigate the Info Palette Content. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Control the Info Palette Display Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Why You Should Use this Guide
This Getting Started guide provides an introduction to the most commonly used features of both
AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. Use it to learn the basic features so you can begin working quickly.
Because you are provided with a rich set of features, there are often many ways of accomplishing a
task. This guide focuses on the following:

■ What do you need to know to get started?

■ What is the recommended method for using the features presented?

After you become more familiar with the features, you will find your own ways of working efficiently
based on the type of work that you do.

Prepare for the Tutorials

The tutorials in this guide assume that you are using default settings for display and behavior. If the
settings have been customized, you might want to ask for help.
In addition, AutoCAD starts with a 3D design interface. To display the interface needed for the
tutorials in this guide, perform the following step:
■ Start AutoCAD and click Tools menu ➤ Workspaces ➤ AutoCAD Classic.

NOTE All screen shots and dialog boxes in this guide display AutoCAD LT in the title bar. For the
explanations and tutorials in the Getting Started guide, there is no difference whether you use AutoCAD
or AutoCAD LT. The features presented are identical.

Get Additional Information

Additional resources are available when you need more information. From the Help menu, you can
access the following resources:

■ Help provides procedures, conceptual information, and command descriptions. You can also
press F1 at the Command prompt, in a dialog box, or at a prompt within a command to display
Help information.
■ Info Palette automatically displays procedures that are relevant to the active command.
■ New Features Workshop provides a series of overviews about new features.
■ Additional Resources provides several options for additional help from the Web.

NOTE The Quick Reference card at the end of this guide provides an easy-to-use graphical key to the
product interface, toolbars, shortcut keys, system variables, command aliases, and basic operations such
as selecting objects.

24 | Chapter 1 Introduction
Access Related Topics in the Help System
Keyword references are displayed at the end of most Getting Started topics. For example, the
following information indicates that you can find concepts, procedures, commands, and system
variables related to LAYOUT by entering layout in the Index tab of the Help window.

Help system
LAYOUT

Try it: Locate a Help topic using a keyword

■ Start AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT and press the F1 key. Then follow the steps in the illustration.

4 Click to display a concept 5 Click to list 6 Click to list

related to the selected topic procedures related to commands related to
the selected topic the selected topic

1 Click the
Index tab
2 Enter a
keyword
3 Double-
click to view
a topic

Tutorial: Use the Help System

In this tutorial, you will use the Help system to find information about how to start a drawing with
a template file and how to create a layout.

NOTE It is important to learn how to use the Help system effectively. The Help system can provide
answers to save you from needless frustration.

1 Start AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT and press F1 to display the Help window.

2 In the left pane of the Help window, click the Contents tab if necessary to display the table of
contents. Then click the plus sign (+) next to User’s Guide.
The User’s Guide expands to display a list of chapters.

Get Additional Information | 25

3 In the left pane, click directly on the title, Start, Organize, and Save a Drawing. The right pane of
the Help window displays links to several topics, with descriptions for each one.
4 In the right pane, click Start a Drawing. Then click Use a Template File to Start a Drawing.
You have navigated to a destination topic in the Help system. Notice that the table of contents
in the left pane displays the topic structure for easy navigation.

5 Click the Procedures tab. Then click the first procedure on the list. Click the Procedures tab to
redisplay the list.
6 Click the Commands tab. The Commands tab lists all commands and system variables that are
associated with this topic.
If you click a link on this tab, the Command Reference is opened in Help, and provides details
about command and dialog box options.
7 Next, in the left pane, click the Search tab.

26 | Chapter 1 Introduction
 You will now locate topics that contain the word layout.
8 Type the word layout and press ENTER.
Several topics that contain the word layout are displayed. For the best results, enter a phrase or a
short sentence. A natural-language lingustics engine analyzes what you enter to determine the
most relevent topics in the Help system. If the information that you are looking for is not
contained in the first few topics, try rephrasing your question.

Note In some languages, the Help system uses the traditional Microsoft search engine that locates
keywords and exact phrases instead. You can click the column labeled Title to sort the list of topics
alphabetically. Then, click the column labeled Location to sort the list of topics by book:
Command Reference, Customization Guide, User’s Guide, and so on.

9 Scroll down to find the User’s Guide topic, Work on a Layout Tab. Then click or double-click the
topic.
The topic is displayed. But how do you know where you are in the table of contents? How can
you display an adjacent, related topic?

10 In the left pane, click the Contents tab. If necessary, click the Concepts tab in the right pane.
The table of contents opens to the current topic. Use this method to find related topics easily.

Note If the table of contents does not automatically open to the current topic, click the Concepts
tab in the right pane.

Get Additional Information | 27

11 In the left pane, right-click any topic and then click Close All.
This is a quick method for collapsing the table of contents when too many subtopics are
displayed.
12 Close the Help window.
For more information, read Use the Help System Efficiently. In the Help system, on the Contents tab,
click User’s Guide ➤ Find the Information You Need ➤ Use the Help System Efficiently.

28 | Chapter 1 Introduction
Use Quick Help on the Info Palette
Quick Help on the Info palette provides convenient access to procedures in the Help system. During
most activities, Quick Help displays a list of procedures that are relevant to the current command.
You can click on a procedure to display it in the palette.

click to prevent the

information currently
display reference displayed from changing
information

title bar

choose a procedure

right-click in the palette

or on the title bar to
display a shortcut menu

Often, the guidance you get from Quick Help is just enough to get you started performing unfamiliar
or rarely used tasks.
Usually, the Quick Help information is updated as you start new commands; however, if you need
to freeze the information so it doesn’t change as you change commands, you can lock the Info
palette.

Navigate the Info Palette Content

You can right-click in the Info palette to display a shortcut menu with navigation commands. Use
these commands to move forward and backward through viewed topics or return to Home in the
Info palette, as you would in a web browser. You can click the title banner at the top of the Info
palette to display a list of all commands and system variables in the product.

Use Quick Help on the Info Palette | 29

Control the Info Palette Display Options
You can access the options and settings for the Info palette from the shortcut menu displayed when
you right-click the title bar of the Info palette. These settings include

■ Anchor Left, Anchor Right. Attach the Info Palette to the left or right side of the drawing area.
Info Palette rolls open and closed as the cursor moves across it. The Allow Docking option must
first be checked.
■ Auto-hide. Automatically roll open or roll away the Info Palette when your cursor moves over the
title bar of the Info palette.
■ Transparency. Change the transparency of the Info Palette so it does not obscure objects under it.

NOTE The title bar can appear on either the left side or right side of the palette, depending on where
the palette is dragged.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Access the Help system Help ➤ Help Standard

Use New Features Workshop Help ➤ New Features Workshop

Find training resources Help ➤ Additional Resources ➤

Online Training Resources

Use Quick Help on the Info palette Help ➤ Info Palette

Print a Quick Help procedure Right-click for shortcut menu

Lock a Quick Help procedure Right-click for shortcut menu

Help system
HELP, ASSIST

Review and Recall

1 What is the purpose of the tabs in the right pane of the Help window?
2 In the left pane of the Help window, when would you use the Contents tab rather than the Index tab?
3 From what menu can you get information about new features?

30 | Chapter 1 Introduction
Menu bar Provides menu Standard toolbar Contains Styles toolbar Displays and
access to all commands. buttons for standard operations. controls text settings.

Draw toolbar
Contains Layers toolbar Displays and Properties toolbar
buttons that controls layer settings. Displays and
create new controls color,
objects. linetype, line-
Drawing area The area of the weight, and plot
application window where you style properties.
create and edit drawings.

Model and layout tabs Provide two working environments.

Command window
Status bar Displays commands in progress,
Indicates options, and command history.
coordinate
values and
the status of
drawing
aids.

Tool Palettes window

Use to drag frequently
used blocks and
hatches into drawings.

DesignCenter Use to
locate and place drawing
content into drawings
and onto tool palettes.
Work with Commands

Use the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Cancel a Command. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Start a Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Start Commands from Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Start Commands on the Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Specify a Command Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Use the Dynamic Prompt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Undo or Redo Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Use the Mouse
Most people use a mouse as their pointing device. On a two-button mouse, the left button is usually
the pick button, used to specify points or select objects in the drawing area. With the right button,
you can display a shortcut menu that contains relevant commands and options. Different shortcut
menus are displayed depending on where you move the cursor.

specify points or select objects display a shortcut menu

rotate to zoom, press to pan

NOTE To see what options are available in any situation, try right-clicking to display a shortcut menu.

A wheel mouse is a two-button mouse with a small wheel between the buttons. This wheel can be
rotated or pressed down to zoom and pan your drawing quickly. It is highly recommended that you
use a wheel mouse.

Cancel a Command
If you accidentally click in the screen, display a shortcut menu, or start a command, you can always
escape by pressing the ESC key on your keyboard.

Try it: Cancel a selection

■ Click in the drawing area and move the mouse. You are now in an object selection mode. Press
ESC to cancel.

Start a Command
You can start a command using a menu, a toolbar, a palette, or the command line. Because AutoCAD
and AutoCAD LT are very flexible, you can work in the way that feels most comfortable to you.
You can choose commands from several different kinds of menus:

■ Pull-down menus are available from the menu bar at the top of the application window. All the
commands for the tutorials in this book are accessible from these menus.

34 | Chapter 2 Work with Commands

■ The Object Snap menu is displayed when you hold down SHIFT and click the right mouse button.
Object snaps facilitate precision drawing by snapping the cursor onto a feature on an object such
as the endpoint of a line or the center of a circle.
■ Shortcut menus are displayed when you click the right mouse button. Different menus are
displayed when you right-click an object, right-click in the drawing area, right-click a toolbar, or
right-click within a dialog box, palette, or window.

Start Commands from Menus

Toolbars contain buttons that start commands. When you move the pointing device over a button,
a tooltip displays its name.

Dock, Resize, and Float Toolbars

A docked toolbar is attached to any edge of the drawing area.

■ You can float a docked toolbar by clicking its move handle and dragging it anywhere in the
drawing area.
■ You can resize a floating toolbar by dragging any edge.
■ You can dock a floating toolbar by clicking its title bar and dragging it to an edge of the drawing
area. Press the CTRL key to prevent docking.

move handle

Hide, Display, and Lock Toolbars

■ You can display or hide toolbars by right-clicking any toolbar and, on the shortcut menu, clicking
the toolbar that you want to display or hide.
■ You can lock toolbars in place using the same shortcut menu and clicking one of the Lock options
at the bottom of the menu.

Try it: Resize and position the Draw toolbar

In this tutorial, you can practice moving, resizing, and docking the Draw toolbar.

NOTE When you are instructed to “drag,” click and hold down the left mouse button, move the cursor,
and then release the mouse button.

1 To make space, close any open palettes in the drawing area by clicking the [x] in their title bars.
2 On the left side of the application window, drag the move handle on the Draw toolbar to the
center of the drawing area.
3 Move the cursor to the bottom of the Draw toolbar, where it changes into an up-down cursor.
4 Drag the bottom of the Draw toolbar to change its shape.
5 Click the [x] in the upper-right corner of the Draw toolbar to close it.
You can easily redisplay the Draw toolbar or any other toolbar.

Start a Command | 35
6 Right-click any toolbar to display a shortcut menu that contains a list of toolbars. On the
shortcut menu, click Draw to redisplay the Draw toolbar.
7 Drag the title bar of the Draw toolbar to the left edge of the application window. When the
toolbar outline changes shape, release the left mouse button to dock the toolbar.

NOTE If you move a toolbar past the edge of your screen, it may be hard to find, but a sliver of the
toolbar will be visible and you can drag it back. If you drag the toolbar behind the Microsoft Windows
taskbar at the bottom of your screen, you need to set the Windows taskbar properties to “Auto-hide” to
retrieve the toolbar.

Start Commands on the Command Line

You can initiate commands by typing them on the command line within the command window instead
of using toolbars or menus. Additionally, some commands must be completed on the command line,
regardless of how they are started.

command window

command line

Some commands have abbreviated names or command aliases. For example, you can enter c as an
alias for CIRCLE. See the Quick Reference card at the back of this guide for more information.
After you type the command on the command line, press ENTER or SPACEBAR to execute the
command. You can also repeat the previous command by pressing ENTER or SPACEBAR.

NOTE In this guide and in the Help system, when you are instructed to enter something, type the bold-
face value on the command line, and then press the ENTER key.

Specify a Command Option

When you start a command, you will often see a set of options on the command line. For example,
when you enter the CIRCLE command, the following prompt is displayed on the command line:
Specify center point for circle or [3P/2P/Ttr (tan tan radius)]:

The default option, “Specify center point for circle,” is displayed before the square brackets. Alternate
options are displayed between the aquare brackets.

■ To accept the default option, enter coordinate values, or use the pointing device to click a center
point in the drawing area.
■ To choose a different option, enter the capitalized letters in the option name. For example, type
2P and press ENTER to choose the Two-Point option.

36 | Chapter 2 Work with Commands

Use the Dynamic Prompt
In addition to the prompt on the command line, a similar prompt is displayed next to the cursor
called the dynamic prompt.

With the dynamic prompt, you can keep your eyes on your work and you don’t have to look down
to the command line.
To display command options in the dynamic input prompt, press the DOWN ARROW key, and then
click an option on the menu.

Try it: Use a menu to draw a line

1 On the menu bar, click the Draw menu and then click Line.
In future steps, this is abbreviated Click Draw menu ➤ Line.
2 At the Specify First Point prompt, click anywhere in the drawing area to locate a point.
The prompt changes: Specify Next Point or [Undo].
3 At the Specify Next Point or [Undo] prompt, click anywhere else in the drawing area to specify the
endpoint of the line segment.
4 Create a second line segment by clicking again to locate another point.
The Specify Next Point or [Undo] prompt is repeated so you can continue to draw segments until
you end the LINE command.
5 Press ENTER to end the LINE command.
The two line segments that you just created share an endpoint, but are separate objects.
6 Click Modify menu ➤ Erase, and click each line. Then press ENTER to execute the erase
command.

Try it: Use a button on a toolbar to draw a line

1 On the Draw toolbar, which is located on the left edge of the application window, click the Line
button.

2 Draw two line segments.

Start a Command | 37
3 On the Modify toolbar, which is located on the right edge of the application window, click the
Erase button.
4 Click each line and then press ENTER to erase the lines.

Try it: Use the command line to draw a line

1 On the command line, type line or the letter L. Press ENTER.
2 Click anywhere in the drawing area to locate a point.
3 At the Specify Next Point or [Undo] prompt, click anywhere else in the drawing area to specify
the endpoint of the line segment.
4 At the Specify Next Point or [Undo] prompt, click anywhere else in the drawing area to specify
the endpoint of the line segment.
5 Type u and press ENTER to undo the last line segment and click another location for the
endpoint.
6 Then type c (Close) and press ENTER to add a third line segment that connects to the initial point
and ends the command.

Try it: Use the command line to draw a circle

1 On the command line, enter circle or the letter c (type c and press ENTER).
2 At the Specify Center Point for Circle prompt, click anywhere in the drawing area to locate a
point.
3 At the Specify Radius of Circle prompt, enter 5 (type 5 and press ENTER).
4 On the command line, press ENTER to repeat the CIRCLE command.
5 Enter 2P to create a circle using two points (type 2P and press ENTER).
6 Click anywhere in the drawing to locate each point.
7 Repeat the CIRCLE command several more times, using each of the other options.
8 When you’re done, enter erase or e, and click each circle to select it. Then press ENTER to erase
the selected circles.

Use the dynamic prompt to draw a circle

1 At the dynamic prompt, enter circle or the letter c.
2 At the Specify Center Point for Circle prompt, press the DOWN ARROW key.
3 Click one of the CIRCLE options on the menu and complete the command.

38 | Chapter 2 Work with Commands

Undo or Redo Commands
Occasionally you will need to undo some of your work. Two Standard toolbar buttons reverse
mistakes in your drawings.

Undo list Redo list

■ Undo. You can backtrack previous actions. For example, click Undo to delete an object that you
just created.
■ Redo. You can reinstate the actions that you backtracked with Undo. For example, click Redo to
re-create the object that you just undid.

You can use the Undo and Redo lists to reverse more than one action at a time. Click the Undo or
Redo list arrow and then click to select the actions.

To get started
Action Menu Keyboard

End a command Right-click ➤ Enter ENTER or SPACEBAR

Repeat a command Right-click ➤ Repeat ENTER or SPACEBAR

Cancel a command Right-click ➤ Cancel ESC

Undo the previous command Edit ➤ Undo <action> U and press ENTER

Help system

OPTIONS, U, UNDO, REDO

Review and Recall

1 What can you do to display a list of all available toolbars?

2 What are three ways that you can start a command?
3 What other key can you use to end or repeat a command in addition to ENTER?
4 What should you do to cancel a command?

Undo or Redo Commands | 39

It will be easier to create or modify objects in
this drawing by zooming in to magnify the
view.

Once you have zoomed in, you can pan the

view to center the objects you are working on.

After you finish working on an area, you can

zoom out to get a better overall view.
Change Views

Zoom to Magnify a View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Zoom by Moving the Cursor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Zoom to a Specified Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Zoom to Display the Entire Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Pan to Reposition a View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Pan by Moving the Cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Tutorial: Zoom and Pan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Zoom to Magnify a View
A view is a specific magnification, position, and orientation of your design. The most common way
to change a view is zooming. Zooming increases or decreases the magnification of the image
displayed in the drawing area.
There are several methods for zooming in your drawings.

Zoom by Moving the Cursor

You can use a pointing device to zoom in real time—that is, to zoom in or out by moving the cursor.
With the Realtime option of the ZOOM command, you drag the cursor up to zoom in; drag it down
to zoom out. If you use a wheel mouse, rotate the top of the wheel forward to zoom in and rotate it
backward to zoom out.

Zoom to a Specified Area

With the Window option of the ZOOM command, you can quickly zoom in on a specific area by
using the mouse to define a rectangular zoom window. The area you define is centered in the new
view.

zoomed out zoomed in

Zoom to Display the Entire Drawing

Use the Extents option of the ZOOM command to display the entire drawing. This is useful when
you need to return to an overall view quickly. This option is also useful if your drawing area is blank
as a result of zooming in too close on a blank area or panning too far off the drawing area.

42 | Chapter 3 Change Views

Pan to Reposition a View
Panning is another common way to change a view. Panning moves the position of the image
displayed in any two-dimensional direction.

before PAN after PAN

Pan by Moving the Cursor

You can pan in real time—that is, use the pointing device to reposition the image in the drawing
area. Within the PAN command, drag the cursor to pan the image to a new location. If you use a
wheel mouse, hold the wheel down and move the mouse to pan.

Tutorial: Zoom and Pan

In this tutorial, you can practice zooming and panning operations using the commands on the View
menu or directly with a wheel mouse.
1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Open dialog box, find the Sample folder in the AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT product folder.
Click on each drawing file and open one that looks interesting.
3 Click View menu ➤ Zoom ➤ Window.
4 Click somewhere near the center of the drawing. Move your cursor to form a rectangular area
and click again.
5 Click View menu ➤ Pan ➤ Realtime.
6 Drag the cursor in any direction to reposition the view. Press ESC to end the operation.
7 Continue to practice zooming and panning with these options:
■ Zoom Realtime (drag the cursor up and down, press ESC to end.)
■ Zoom Previous
■ Zoom Window
■ Zoom Extents
■ Pan Realtime

Pan to Reposition a View | 43

 Practice these options until you are comfortable with zooming and panning. These are the most
common options for drawing in 2D.

Note If you zoom in and you notice that arcs and circles lose their smoothness, or if you can’t zoom
in or out beyond a limit, you can regenerate the display. Click View menu ➤ Regen All. This
command also removes stray pixels.

8 (Optional) If you have a wheel mouse, you can zoom and pan without entering a command. Try
the following operations:

■ Move your cursor to an area in the drawing and rotate the wheel forward and backward to
zoom in and out. Notice that your cursor location determines the stationary reference point
of your zoom operation.
■ Press the wheel down and drag the view to pan it.
■ Double-click the wheel to zoom to the extents of the drawing.

9 Close the sample drawing without saving it.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Pan View ➤ Pan Standard

Zoom View ➤ Zoom Standard

Reset the display limit for zooming View ➤ Regen

Smooth arcs and circles View ➤ Regen

Help system
PAN, ZOOM, REGEN

Review and Recall

1 What ZOOM option should you use to fit your entire drawing into the drawing area?
2 What is a fast way to redisplay the previous view?
3 What command smooths the display of curves and removes stray pixels?

44 | Chapter 3 Change Views

 Establish layers to organize
information as if on transparent
drawing overlays.

Assign standard lineweights to

ensure that lines will plot the
same way regardless of drawing
scale.

Use various linetypes to

help identify different types
of objects.
Drawing Setup

Start a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Plan the Drawing Units and Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Choose the Drawing Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Set the Format of Drawing Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Understand Models and Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Organize Drawings with Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Assign Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Control Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Tutorial: Tour a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Start a Drawing
There are several ways to start a new drawing. The recommended method is to start with a drawing
template file.
A drawing template file contains predefined settings, standards, and definitions that will save you
significant setup time. When you start a drawing with a drawing template, these settings are passed
on to the new drawing. Drawing template files include settings and basic drawing elements that you
will use often, such as

■ Unit type and precision

■ Tool settings and preferences
■ Layer organization
■ Title blocks, borders, and logos
■ Dimension styles
■ Text styles
■ Linetypes and lineweights
■ Plot styles

drawing template file saved

with title block

Your product folder includes many drawing template files, including some that facilitate compliance
with ANSI, DIN, ISO, and JIS standards. Nevertheless, it is very likely that you will customize one or
more of these, or build your own drawing template files to meet your standards and requirements.
You can create a drawing template file by saving a drawing using the .dwt extension.

48 | Chapter 4 Drawing Setup

Try it: Open a drawing template file
1 Click File menu ➤ New.
2 In the Select Template dialog box, click one of the following drawing template files and then
click Open.

■ Tutorial-mArch.dwt. Sample architectural template (metric)

■ Tutorial-mMfg.dwt. Sample mechanical design template (metric)
■ Tutorial-iArch.dwt. Sample architectural template (imperial)
■ Tutorial-iMfg.dwt. Sample mechanical design template (imperial)

The metric template files are scaled to use millimeters as the drawing unit, and the imperial template
files are scaled to use inches as the drawing unit.

Start a Drawing | 49
Plan the Drawing Units and Scale
Unlike manual drafting, you don’t need to worry about setting a scale before you start drawing. Even
though you eventually print or plot to paper at a specified scale, you create the model at 1:1 scale.
However, before you start a drawing, you must first decide what drawing units you will use.

Choose the Drawing Units

In AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, distances are measured in drawing units. In a drawing, one drawing
unit may equal one inch, one millimeter, one meter, or one mile.

Shaft Office plan

1 unit = 1 mm 1 unit = 1 inch
(grid spacing = 2 mm) (grid spacing = 12 inches)

Before you begin drawing, you decide what one drawing unit will represent—there is no setting that
determines the length of a drawing unit.

Set the Format of Drawing Units

After you decide what drawing units to use, you can set the format of the drawing units. The format
settings available for linear units are as follows:

■ Architectural. A length of 15.5 units displays as 1’-3 1/2”

■ Decimal. A length of 15.5 units displays as 15.5000
■ Engineering. A length of 15.5 units displays as 1’-3.5”
■ Fractional. A length of 15.5 units displays as 15 1/2
■ Scientific. A length of 15.5 units displays as 1.5000E+1

For example, if you are a mechanical engineer or architect who normally works in millimeters, you
would set the format for linear units to decimal. If you are an architect who normally works in feet
and inches, you would set the format to architectural.

50 | Chapter 4 Drawing Setup

The drawing unit format controls only the display style of the drawing units on-screen, such as in
the display of coordinates and values in the Properties palette, dialog boxes, and prompts.

Try it: Check the drawing unit format and precision

1 Click Format menu ➤ Units. In the Drawing Units dialog box, notice the display style selected
for linear and for angular units.

Note Think of this dialog box as the Drawing Units Format dialog box.

2 Notice the value displayed under Precision. This represents the decimal or fractional rounding
of values displayed on-screen.
3 Close the dialog box.

Plan the Drawing Units and Scale | 51

Understand Models and Layouts
The Model and layout tabs at the bottom of the application window provide two working
environments. You use the Model tab to draw a full-size model of your subject. With the layout tabs,
you can create a multiple-view layout for plotting.

full-size model of a part layout with title block and rectangular

created at 1:1 scale layout viewports that contain scaled views

■ The Model tab accesses a limitless drawing area. In model space, you first decide whether one
unit represents one millimeter, one meter, one inch, or some other drawing unit. Next, you set
the drawing unit format. Then you draw at 1:1 scale.
■ Layout tabs access drawing layouts. When you set up a layout, you specify the paper size you
want to use. The layout represents a printed drawing sheet in which you can display one or more
views of the model at various scales. This layout environment is called paper space. Here you create
layout viewports that act as windows into model space. Each layout viewport can contain a
different view of the model.

layout with viewports using different scales

52 | Chapter 4 Drawing Setup

Try it: Switch between the Model and layout tabs
1 At the bottom-left of the display area, click the Model tab. This is where you create and modify
the geometry for your model.
2 Click the layout tab to the right of the Model tab.
The layout has already been prepared, including a sample title block and a layout viewport, the
blue rectangle.
3 On the layout tab, double-click anywhere within the rectangular viewport area. This is how you
will later access model space to pan the model space view and to add dimensions.
Notice that the border of the layout viewport becomes thicker and the crosshairs cursor is active
only within the layout viewport.
4 Double-click in a blank area outside the rectangular viewport. This returns you to paper space.
The border of the layout viewport is no longer as thick and the crosshairs cursor is active within
the entire drawing area.

Understand Models and Layouts | 53

Organize Drawings with Layers
Layers are the equivalent of the overlays used in manual drafting. In CAD, they are an important
organizational tool.
Each layer includes an assigned color, linetype, and lineweight. Before you create objects, you set the
layer on which the objects are to be created. This is called the current layer. By default, the current
layer’s color, linetype, and lineweight are assigned automatically to the new objects you create.

Assign Layers
You can organize the drawing by assigning similar components to the same layer. For example, you
can create a layer called Electrical and assign it the color green. Whenever you draw electrical
objects, you switch to that layer. The objects you draw are created on the Electrical layer and are
colored green.
Later, if you don’t want to view or plot electrical objects, you can turn off that layer.

walls
electrical
furniture

all layers

NOTE It is very important to establish a company-wide layer standard. With a layer standard, drawing
organization will be more logical, consistent, compatible, and maintainable over time. Layer standards
are essential for team projects.

Try it: Display the list of layers in a drawing

1 Click Format menu ➤ Layer.
2 In the Layer Properties Manager, notice the name and default properties assigned to each layer.
These layers are just a sample of the types of layers that you will need to use in a well-organized
drawing. There are many layer standards already in use, including those specified in companies
and those recommended by professional organizations.
3 Enlarge the right side of the dialog box to display all of the columns. Click the titles of the Status,
Color, and Name columns to rearrange the order of the layers.
Review the descriptions of each layer in the column on the far right.

54 | Chapter 4 Drawing Setup

Control Layers
To make objects on a layer invisible, you can turn off the layer or freeze it in the Layer Properties
Manager. You can also lock layers to reduce the possibility of modifying objects accidentally.

■ Turn off layers. Use this option rather than freezing if you frequently need to switch a layer’s
visibility.

■ Freeze layers. Use this option if you don’t need a layer to be visible for a long time. Thawing a
frozen layer causes an automatic regeneration of the drawing and is slower than turning a layer
on.

■ Lock layers. Use this option to prevent objects on a layer from being modified. You can still use
the objects on a locked layer for operations that don’t modify the objects. For example, you can
snap to these objects to use them as guides for precision drawing.

Organize Drawings with Layers | 55

Tutorial: Tour a Drawing
In this tutorial, you tour a drawing of an arbor and picket fence design.
1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Select File dialog box, find the \Help\Tutorials folder in the AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT
product folder and open arbor.dwg.
3 Click the Model tab.
4 As you move the mouse over the objects in the drawing, notice that the objects are automatically
highlighted.
5 Zoom and pan in model space to inspect the arbor design.
6 Perform a Zoom Extents to display the entire design.
7 Click the ANSI C Layout tab.
8 Zoom and pan in paper space to inspect the drawing layout.
9 Perform a Zoom Extents to display the entire layout.
10 Click Format menu ➤ Layer. In the Layer Properties Manager, review the list of layers that were
created to organize this drawing.
Notice that the current layer has a green check next to it.
11 Click several lightbulb icons to turn off several layers.
12 Click the column labeled On to arrange the layers according to whether they are on or off. Then
turn the layers back on.
13 Click the Color column to arrange the layers according to color.
14 Click the Name column and click OK.
15 Close the drawing without saving it.

56 | Chapter 4 Drawing Setup

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Start a new drawing File ➤ New Standard

Save a drawing template File ➤ Save As Standard

Set the display style of the units Format ➤ Units

Create a layout File ➤ Page Setup

Create and modify layers Format ➤ Layer Layers

Help system
NEW, SAVEAS, STARTUP, UNITS, MODEL, LAYOUT, LAYER

Review and Recall

1 Why is it important to start a drawing from a drawing template file?

2 What is the difference between choosing drawing units and setting the drawing unit format?
3 What is the difference between the Model tab and a layout tab?
4 What are several benefits to creating a drawing with layers?

Tutorial: Tour a Drawing | 57

 Offset lines to create parallel lines

Create rectangles easily Use polylines to combine

line and arc segments

Use circles and arcs to

create regular curves

Use lines for drawing objects Use splines to create smooth,

and for construction geometry non-uniform curves
Draw Objects

Object Properties Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Assign Object Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Use the Properties Palette. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Use the Properties and Layers Toolbars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Tutorial: Change Object Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Use Linetypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Scale Linetypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Assign Lineweights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Draw Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Create Parallel Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Draw Polylines and Polygons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Draw Polylines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Draw Circles and Arcs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Draw Circles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Draw Arcs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Object Properties Overview
All objects that you create have properties. Object properties are settings that control the appearance
and geometric characteristics of an object. The general properties that are common to all objects are
listed below. All other object properties are specific to the type of object.

Color Linetype scale Hyperlink

Layer Plot style Lineweight
Linetype Thickness

Assign Object Properties

Typically, you assign object properties using one of the following strategies:

■ By layer. Properties are assigned to a layer. Objects that are drawn on that layer automatically use
those properties.
■ Individual properties. Properties are assigned to objects individually, regardless of the layer that
they are drawn on.

Click to change a property.

Click the icon to expand or collapse a

category of properties.

View a description of the selected property.

Right-click to set palette behavior options.

60 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

Use the Properties Palette
The Properties palette is the primary tool for viewing, setting, and modifying the properties of
objects. The Properties palette operates as follows:

■ If no objects are selected, the Properties palette displays the current default property settings, and
you can set the default properties for all subsequently created objects.
■ When you click an object, the Properties palette displays the properties of that object, and you
can change its properties.
■ If you click multiple objects, the Properties palette displays all the properties that they have in
common, and you can change their common properties.

Try it: Display the Properties palette

1 Click File menu ➤ New.
2 In the Select Template dialog box, click one of the drawing template files and then click Open.
3 Click Modify menu ➤ Properties.
Leaving the palette open keeps it handy. You can turn on Auto-hide to make the Properties palette
appear and disappear when your cursor moves over the Properties palette title bar.

Try it: Change the Auto-hide behavior of the Properties palette

1 Right-click the Properties palette title bar. Click Auto-hide on the shortcut menu.
2 Move the cursor on and off the Properties palette. Leave the Properties palette open.

Use the Properties and Layers Toolbars

You can use the controls in the Properties toolbar and the Layers toolbar to view, set, and modify the
properties the same way as the Properties palette. By default, these toolbars are displayed above the
drawing area.
The Properties toolbar provides convenient access to the most important object properties.

Color control Linetype control Lineweight Plotstyle

control control
Properties
toolbar

The Layers toolbar controls layer properties. Use the Layer Properties Manager button to make
adjustments to drawing layers. The Layer control provides a quick method for changing several layer
properties and for changing the current layer.

Object Properties Overview | 61

 make the previous layer
Layers the current layer.
toolbar Layer Properties Layer make the layer of the currently
Manager control selected object the current layer.

Tutorial: Change Object Properties

In this tutorial, you will use several controls to view and change the properties of layers and objects.
1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Select File dialog box, find the \Help\Tutorials folder in the AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT
product folder and open arbor.dwg.
3 Click the Model tab.
4 Move your cursor onto the title bar of the Properties palette.
Examine the current default properties settings.
5 Click a dimension object in the drawing to select it.
Notice that several properties of this object are displayed in the Properties toolbar near the top
of the application window. The layer of the object is Dimension. The color, linetype, and
lineweight properties of the object are set to ByLayer. The color of the Dimension layer is red.
6 Move your cursor onto the title bar of the Properties palette to open it.
Examine the additional properties of the dimension object in the Properties palette.
7 Click several more objects with different colors. Move your cursor onto the title bar of the
Properties palette.
Notice that only the common properties of the objects are listed.
8 Move your cursor off the Properties palette and press ESC to cancel the selection.

Change the default color of a layer

1 Click Format menu ➤ Layer.
2 In the Layer Properties Manager, click the red box under the Color column of the Dimension
layer.
3 In the select Color dialog box, click the green box and click OK. Click OK again to exit the Layer
Properties Manager.
Notice that all the objects on the Dimension layer are now green. Because all of the dimensions
are on a single layer, you can change the properties of all objects on that layer in one operation.

62 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

Change the color of an individual object
1 Click any green dimension object to select it.
2 On the Properties toolbar, click the Color control and click Magenta.

Color control
Properties
toolbar

The color of the selected object changes to magenta, overriding the green color of the object’s
layer. If you change the layer color, the dimension object’s color will remain magenta.
3 Press ESC to exit.
4 Click the same dimension object.
5 Click the Color control and click ByLayer. This restores the color property behavior of the
dimension object.

Change the current layer

1 Click the Layer control on the Layers toolbar.

Layers
toolbar
Layer control

2 Click a different layer to make it the current layer.

All new objects will be created on this layer until you change the current layer to a different one.
3 Click Format menu ➤ Layer
4 In the Layer Properties Manager, click a layer to select it.
5 Click the green check mark button at the top of the Layer Properties Manager. Click OK to make
the selected layer the current layer.
6 On the Layers toolbar, click the Layer control again.
7 Click the lightbulb image for the Dimension layer to turn it off. Then click anywhere in the
drawing area.
All objects on the Dimension layer are now hidden.
8 Use the Layer Properties Manager to turn the Dimension layer back on.
9 Close the drawing without saving it.

Object Properties Overview | 63

Use Linetypes
You can associate a single linetype with all of the objects drawn on the same layer or you can assign
linetypes individually to objects.

CONTINUOUS
HIDDEN

CENTER

PHANTOM

To use a linetype, you must first load it into your drawing using the Linetype Manager.

Try it: Load a linetype and make it current

1 Click File menu ➤ New and select a drawing template.
2 Click Format menu ➤ Linetype.

3 In the Linetype Manager, click Load.

4 In the Load or Reload Linetypes dialog box, scroll down the list of linetypes and click
HIDDENX2. Click OK.
5 Click Show Details.
Several linetype scaling options are displayed. Notice the Use Paper Space Units for Scaling
option. You check this option if you want linetypes automatically scaled in layout viewports.
6 Click the HIDDENX2 linetype and click Current. Click OK.

64 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

 Notice that the Properties toolbar near the top of the application window displays the
HIDDENX2 linetype as current rather than BYLAYER. All subsequently created objects will be
displayed using this linetype. This setting overrides the linetype assigned to the current layer.
7 Click the Model tab.
8 Click Draw menu ➤ Line and click several locations in the drawing area to draw line segments.
Press ENTER to end the command.
9 Use the Linetype Manager or the Properties toolbar to return the current linetype to BYLAYER.
All subsequently created objects will be displayed using the linetype assigned to the current layer.

Scale Linetypes
When you scale views in layout viewports, you can create inconsistencies in the appearance of
linetypes. In noncontinuous linetypes, the length of dashes and dots, and the space between them,
may increase or decrease. You can set the scaling to correspond to the model or layout scale or to
remain the same at any zoom scale.

Dashed linetype Dashed linetype

scaled to the model scaled to the layout

Use the Details area of the Linetype Manager to control the linetype scale in layout viewports.

■ Global Scale Factor. Sets the global scale factor for all linetypes.
■ Current Object Scale. Sets the linetype scale for newly created objects.
■ Use Paper Space Units for Scaling. Scales the linetypes in paper space and model space identically.

To update a linetype scale, you need to regenerate the model space display within a layout viewport
on the layout tab. The steps required are
1 Click a layout tab.
2 Double-click within a layout viewport to enter model space.
3 Click View menu ➤ Regen.
The linetypes within the layout viewport are scaled according to the viewport display scale setting.

Object Properties Overview | 65

Assign Lineweights
Using lineweights, you can create heavy and thin lines to show cuts in sections, depth in elevations,
dimension lines and tick marks, and differences in details. Lineweights are independent of the
current display scale. Objects with a heavier lineweight always appear at the specified line width
regardless of display scale.

Try it: Choose a lineweight and make it current

1 Click the Model tab.
2 Click Format menu ➤ Lineweight.
3 In the Lineweight Settings dialog box, under Lineweights, click a heavier lineweight such as 0.50
mm or 0.020”.
4 Click Display Lineweight and click OK.
Notice that the Properties toolbar near the top of the application window displays the new
lineweight as current. From now on, objects that are created will be displayed using the heavier
lineweight.
5 Click Draw menu ➤ Line and draw several line segments. Press ENTER.
6 Use the Lineweight Settings dialog box or the Properties toolbar to return the current linetype to
BYLAYER.
From now on, objects that are created will be displayed using the lineweight assigned to the
current layer.
7 Practice setting linetypes and lineweights.
NOTE You can assign a color, linetype, or lineweight to individual objects, regardless of the default
layer setting. Whether you choose to assign these properties individually or by layer settings depends on
your drawing organization and company standards.

66 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

Draw Lines
The line is the most basic object that you will use. A line can be one segment or a series of successive
segments, but each segment is a separate line object. If you need to draw a series of line segments as
a single object, such as in a contour map, use a polyline.

Create Parallel Lines

An offset line is an exact replica of a line that is drawn at a specified distance from the original line.
You can use the OFFSET command to create parallel lines as well as concentric circles and parallel
curves.

offset arcs
offset lines

Offsetting objects is one of the most efficient construction methods available in the product.

Try it: Offset a line to create parallel lines

1 Draw a line.
2 Click Modify menu ➤ Offset.
3 At the offset distance prompt, enter 10.
4 Click the line to offset.
5 Click on one side of the line.
6 Press ENTER to end the command.

Draw Polylines and Polygons

A polyline is a connected sequence of line or arc segments created as a single object. Use polylines for
creating objects such as

■ Traces on printed circuit boards

■ Borders
■ Contour lines, roads, and rivers in maps
■ Segments with fixed or tapered widths

Polygons are closed polylines with equal-length sides and angles. The Polygon command is the
simplest method for creating equilateral triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, and so on.

Draw Lines | 67
Draw Polylines
To draw each polyline segment, you specify a start point and an endpoint. To draw additional
segments, continue to specify points in your drawing.

Try it: Create a polyline

1 Click Draw menu ➤ Polyline.
2 At each prompt, click a point. After several points, do one of the following:
■ Press ENTER to end the command.
■ Enter c to create a closed loop.

3 Click the polyline. Notice that the segments all belong to a single object.
You can include arc segments in polylines.

Try it: Create a polyline with arc segments

1 Click Draw menu ➤ Polyline.
2 Draw a polyline segment (1 and 2).
3 At the next prompt, enter a to switch to Arc mode and continue with an arc segment (3).
4 Enter L to return to Line mode, and then draw another line segment.
5 End the command.

1
Endpoint of arc Final segment

Try it: Create a rectangle

1 Click Draw menu ➤ Rectangle.
2 Click a location on the screen.
3 Move the cursor diagonally and click another location.
The resulting object is a closed polyline in the shape of a rectangle.

68 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

Try it: Create a polygon
1 Click Draw menu ➤ Polygon.
2 Enter the number of sides, for example, 6.
3 Click a location for the center of the polygon.
4 Specify either the Inscribed or the Circumscribed option. This determines how the distance that
you enter in the next prompt is measured.

 

 

inscribed radius circumscribed radius

5 To specify a “radius” of the polygon, do one of the following:

■ Move the cursor and click a location.
■ Enter a distance.

The resulting object is also a closed polyline.

You can draw polylines of various widths by using the Width and Halfwidth options after you specify
a starting point for a polyline. You can also make polyline segments taper.

Uniform width Mixed width Tapered segment

Once you create a polyline, you can

■ Separate the polyline into independent segments with the EXPLODE command.
■ Join a polyine to another polyline, line or arc with the JOIN command.

Draw Lines | 69
Draw Circles and Arcs
You can create a variety of curved objects, including circles and arcs.

Draw Circles
To create circles, use one of the following methods:

■ Specify the center and radius (default method).

■ Specify the center and diameter.
■ Define the circumference of the circle with two or three points.
■ Create the circle tangent to two existing objects.
■ Create the circle tangent to two objects and specify a radius.

center radius
radius
3

1 2 1 2 tangent objects

Center, radius Two points Three points defining Tangent, tangent,

defining diameter circumference radius

Draw Arcs
To create arcs, you can specify various combinations of center, endpoint, start point, radius, angle,
chord length, and direction values. The following examples illustrate three ways to specify two
points and an included angle.

1
1
included angle
2
2 1
2
Start, center, angle Center, start, angle Start, end, angle

70 | Chapter 5 Draw Objects

NOTE The FILLET command creates an arc tangent to two existing objects. This is often the preferred
method for creating arcs and will be covered later.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Set properties Tools ➤ Properties Modify ➤ Standard

Properties

Load, scale, and Format ➤ Linetype Properties

manage linetypes

Change lineweight settings Format ➤ Lineweight Properties

Draw lines Draw ➤ Line Draw

Draw parallel lines Modify ➤ Offset Modify

Draw polylines Draw ➤ Polyline Draw

Draw polygons Draw ➤ Polygon Draw

Separate polyline segments Modify ➤ Explode Modify

Join polylines Modify ➤ Join Modify

Draw circles Draw ➤ Circle Draw

Draw arcs Draw ➤ Arc Draw

Help system
PROPERTIES, COLOR, LAYER, LINETYPE, LTSCALE, CELTSCALE, PSLTSCALE, LINEWEIGHT, LINE, OFFSET,
PLINE, POLYGON, RECTANG, PEDIT, JOIN, EXPLODE, CIRCLE, ARC

Review and Recall

1 What is the result of setting the color of an object to ByLayer?

2 What is the fastest way to change the current layer to a different one?
3 What would you do to access a complete list of the properties of an object?
4 What command is recommended for creating parallel lines and curves?
5 What type of object is composed of a series of connected segments?

Draw Circles and Arcs | 71

Enter coordinate values to Turn on polar tracking to draw
locate points precisely along specified angles

Turn on Ortho to draw Turn on Grid and Snap to Use object snaps
horizontal and vertical draw within a predefined to locate precise
lines framework points on objects
Precision Drawing

Set Grid and Snap Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Set Grid and Snap Spacing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Set Grid Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Draw with Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Use Cartesian and Polar Coordinates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Draw with Absolute Cartesian Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Draw with Relative Cartesian Coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Snap to Precise Points on Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Use Single Object Snaps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Set Running Object Snaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Object Snap Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Specify Angles and Distances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Use Polar Tracking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Specify Distances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Specify an Angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Tutorial: Draw with Precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Set Grid and Snap Values
The grid and snap features set up a framework that you can use as a guide while drawing.

■ Grid displays a rectangular pattern of dots that extends over the area specified by the drawing grid
limits. The grid helps you align objects and visualize the distances between them. The grid does
not appear in the plotted drawing.
■ Snap restricts the movement of the crosshairs to intervals that you have defined. When Snap is
on, the cursor seems to adhere, or “snap,” to an invisible grid. Snap is useful for specifying precise
points with the cursor.

Set Grid and Snap Spacing

The grid does not necessarily correspond to the current snap interval. You might set a wide grid
spacing to be used as a reference but maintain a closer snap spacing for accuracy in specifying points.
For example, you might set the grid spacing to 10 times the snap spacing in a metric drawing or 12
times the snap spacing in an imperial drawing.

Try it: Constrain the cursor with Snap

1 Start a new drawing.
2 Click the Snap button on the status bar.

Notice that the button changes to indicate that Snap has been turned on.
3 Move the pointer around in the drawing area while Snap is turned on.
Notice that the cursor seems to adhere, or “snap,” to points at equal intervals in the drawing area.

Try it: Display a grid

1 Click the Grid button on the status bar.

Notice that the grid dots cover a limited area, the grid limits.
2 Turn Grid and Snap off.
If you zoom in or out, you might need to adjust grid spacing to be more appropriate for the new
magnification.

74 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

Try it: Change the Grid and Snap spacing
1 Right-click either the Grid or Snap button on the status bar.
2 Click Settings on the shortcut menu.
3 In the Drafting Settings dialog box, specify new spacings for Grid and Snap. Click OK.
4 Turn on Grid and Snap.

Set Grid Limits

Grid limits shown by

range of grid dots

Try it: Change the grid limits

1 Click Format menu ➤ Drawing Limits.
2 Click two points to represent the lower-left and the upper-right corners of a rectangular area.
3 Repeat using two different points.

Set Grid and Snap Values | 75

Draw with Coordinates
Coordinates represent locations in your drawing. When a command prompts you for a point, you
can use the cursor to specify a point in the drawing area or you can enter coordinate values.

Use Cartesian and Polar Coordinates

In two-dimensional space, you specify points on a plane that is similar to a flat sheet of grid paper.
You can enter two-dimensional coordinates as either Cartesian (X,Y) or polar (distance<angle)
coordinates.

■ Cartesian coordinates are measured from two perpendicular lines, the X axis and the Y axis. The
X value specifies horizontal distance, and the Y value specifies vertical distance. For example, the
coordinates 5,3 represent a point 5 units along the X axis and 3 units along the Y axis. The origin
(0,0) indicates where the two axes intersect.
■ Polar coordinates use a distance and an angle to locate a point. For example, the coordinates
5<30 specifies a point that is a distance of 5 units from the origin and at a 30 degree angle from
the X axis.

You can use absolute or relative values with each method. Absolute coordinate values are based on
the origin. Relative coordinate values are based on the last point entered.

Draw with Absolute Cartesian Coordinates

Use absolute Cartesian coordinates when you know the precise X and Y values of the location of the
point. For example, the line in the illustration begins at an X value of –2 and a Y value of 1 and ends
at 3,4. The entries on the command line were as follows:
Command: line
Specify first point: #–2,1
Specify next point or [Undo]: #3,4

Y
<

3,4

–X; ;X

-2,1 <
-Y 0,0

Entering the # identifies the coordinates as absolute coordinates.

76 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

Draw with Relative Cartesian Coordinates
Use relative Cartesian coordinates when you know the location of a point in relation to the previous
point. For example, to locate a point relative to the absolute coordinates –2,1, start the next
coordinates with the @ symbol.
Command: line
Specify first point: #–2,1
Specify next point or [Undo]: @5,3
Entering @5,3 locates the same point in this example as entering #3,4 in the previous example.

NOTE Absolute coordinates are entered differently if dynamic input (the DYN button on the status bar)
is turned off. In that case, the # is not used to specify absolute coordinates.

Draw with Coordinates | 77

Snap to Precise Points on Objects
Using object snaps is the most important way to specify an exact location on an object without
having to use coordinates. For example, you can use an object snap to draw a line to the exact center
of a circle, to the endpoint of another line segment, or to the tangent on an arc.
You can specify an object snap whenever you are prompted for a point. When you move your cursor
over an object, an active object snap point is identified with AutoSnap markers and tooltips.

Use Single Object Snaps

At any prompt for a point, you can specify a single object snap by holding down SHIFT, right-
clicking, and choosing an object snap from the Object Snap menu.
Once you have specified an object snap, use the cursor to select a location on an object.

Press SHIFT and right-click to

display the object snap menu

object snaps

NOTE To cycle through all the object snap points available for a particular object, press TAB.

78 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

Set Running Object Snaps
To use the same object snap repeatedly, set it as a running object snap. It will stay active until you
turn it off. For example, you might set Center as a running snap if you need to connect the centers
of a series of circles with a line.
You can set multiple running object snaps, such as Endpoint and Center.

Try it: Change the running object snap settings

1 Right-click Osnap on the status bar.
2 On the shortcut menu, click Settings.
3 On the Drafting Settings dialog box, select the object snaps you want to use. Click OK.

Snap to Precise Points on Objects | 79

Object Snap Descriptions
The following table illustrates commonly used object snaps.

Object snap Snaps to

Endpoint Object endpoints

Midpoint Object midpoints

Intersection
Object intersections or, for single object snaps,
locations where intersections would occur if
objects were extended

Center
Center points of circles, arcs, or ellipses

Quadrant
Quadrants of arcs, circles, or ellipses

Perpendicular
Points on objects that form a perpendicular
alignment with the last point specified

Tangent
Point on a circle or arc that, when connected to
the last point, forms a line tangent to the object

80 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

Specify Angles and Distances
You can quickly specify angles and distances using the polar tracking, direct-distance entry, and
angle override features.

Use Polar Tracking

As you draw lines or move objects, you can use polar tracking to restrict the movement of the cursor
to specified angle increments (the default value is 90 degrees). For example, you can create a series
of perpendicular lines by turning on Polar before you start drawing. Because the lines are constrained
to the horizontal and vertical axes, you can draw faster, knowing that the lines are perpendicular.

alignment path
Polar: 1.5<45

tooltip display of distance and angle

Polar tracking restricts cursor
movement to specified angles

Try it: Use polar tracking

1 Click Polar on the status bar to turn it on.

2 Draw several lines at 90 degrees from each other.

Specify Distances
Use direct distance entry to specify an exact line length quickly—by moving the cursor to indicate a
direction and then entering the distance from the first point. When polar tracking is on, using direct
distance entry helps you draw perpendicular lines of a specified length efficiently.

Polar tracking constrains the cursor then direct distance entry determines
to an angle, in this case 180 degrees... the exact length of the line, in this
case, 1000

Specify Angles and Distances | 81

Try it: Draw several lines of specified lengths
1 Click Draw menu ➤ Line.
2 Click a point and then move the cursor to the right (0 degrees).
3 Enter a value.
4 Move the cursor up (90 degrees) and enter another value.
5 Repeat several more times and then press ENTER.

Specify an Angle
If the angle that you want to use is not going to be used frequently, you can enter an angle override.
For example, if you start drawing a line at the coordinates –2,1, and want that line to be at a 10
degree angle with a length of 50, you would enter
Command: line
Specify first point: #–2,1
Specify next point or [Undo]: <10
(Move the cursor in the desired direction)
Specify next point or [Undo]: 50

Tutorial: Draw with Precision

In this tutorial, you will practice using several precision tools to create the following drawing, which
can be the beginning of a design for

■ A health spa with exercise pool

■ A catch for a window lock
■ A housing for a motor assembly

NOTE It is important that you save this drawing as you work. It will be used in several future tutorials
in this guide.

82 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

1 Click File menu ➤ New.
2 Select the tutorial drawing template file that is closest to your intended application and units of
measurement:

■ Tutorial-mArch.dwt. Sample architectural template (metric)

■ Tutorial-mMfg.dwt. Sample mechanical design template (metric)
■ Tutorial-iArch.dwt. Sample architectural template (imperial)
■ Tutorial-iMfg.dwt. Sample mechanical design template (imperial)

3 Click the Model tab.

4 Click File menu ➤ Save. Use MyDesign as the file name.

Use Grid and Snap to create an outline

1 On the status bar, turn on Grid and Snap. Dynamic Input (Dyn) should also be turned on.
2 Click Draw menu ➤ Line and click several locations to create a series of line segments to create
the previously illustrated design. The exact dimensions don’t matter, but use reasonable
distances for the design. Press ENTER to end the command.
3 Click Draw menu ➤ Circle ➤ Center, Radius.
4 Click a point to locate the center of the circle, and then click another point to specify its radius.
5 Turn Grid and Snap off.

Create a line using object snaps

1 Click Modify menu ➤ Erase.
The crosshairs cursor changes into a square pickbox cursor.
2 Click directly on one of the lines that you created and then press ENTER.
The line is erased, but how do you create another line to take its place with precision?
3 Click Draw menu ➤ Line.
4 Press SHIFT and right-click. From the object snap menu, click Endpoint.
5 Move the cursor over an endpoint of a line. When you see an AutoSnap marker, click.
6 Press SHIFT and right-click again. From the object snap menu, click Endpoint.
7 Move the cursor over the opposite endpoint and click. Press ENTER to end the command.
The endpoints of the new line are located exactly at the endpoints of the adjacent lines.

Specify Angles and Distances | 83

8 Do the following:
■ Experiment with creating lines using the following object snaps: Midpoint, Center,
Perpendicular, and Tangent.
■ Turn running object snaps on and create several more lines.
■ Create a line from the center of the circle at a 30 degree angle and 10 units long.

9 Erase any objects that are not part of the illustrated result.
10 Save the drawing. MyDesign should be the file name.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Set Snap and Grid spacing Tools ➤ Drafting Settings, Snap and
Grid tab

Use single object snaps SHIFT+right-click for the Object Snap

object snap menu

Set running object snaps Tools ➤ Drafting Settings, Object Object Snap
Snap tab

Change AutoSnap settings Tools ➤ Options, Drafting tab

Change polar settings Tools ➤ Drafting Settings Polar Tracking

Help system
GRID, SNAP, DSETTINGS, LIMITS, UCS, DYNMODE, OSNAP, OPTIONS

Review and Recall

1 How do you turn off the grid dots in your drawing area?
2 The term origin refers to what coordinate values?
3 Pressing SHIFT while you right-click displays what shortcut menu?
4 What button can you turn on to ensure that the line you are drawing is exactly vertical?
5 What is meant by the term direct distance entry?

84 | Chapter 6 Precision Drawing

 Use TRIM to remove the parts of
objects that extend beyond cutting
Use OFFSET to create parallel edges that you specify
lines and concentric circles

Use FILLET to connect

two lines with an arc

Use COPY to create duplicates

at locations that you specify

Use DIST to measure the distance

between two points

Use MIRROR to create an exact replica

of objects across a mirror line
Make Modifications

Select Objects to Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Object Selection Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Specify a Selection Area. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Erase, Extend, and Trim Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Erase Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Extend Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Trim Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Duplicate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Copy Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Offset Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Mirror Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Move and Rotate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Move Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Rotate Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Fillet Corners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Tutorial: Modify Objects with Precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Tutorial: Create a New Drawing with Precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Match Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Use Editing Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Edit with Grips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Create Revision Clouds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Analyze Drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Select Objects to Edit
When you edit objects, you select one or more objects to specify a selection set of the objects. You can
use two methods to specify which objects to modify:

■ Choose the command first. Choose an editing command and then select objects to modify.
■ Choose the objects first. Select objects and then start the editing command. In addition, when
you use this method, grips are displayed on the objects that you can use to modify the objects
directly. You can clear a selection by pressing ESC.

Object Selection Methods

The two most common methods to select objects are

■ Select individual objects. Click objects individually.

■ Specify a selection area. Click a rectangular area around the objects to be selected.

Specify a Selection Area

You can select objects by enclosing them in a rectangular selection area. You define a rectangular
selection area in the drawing area by clicking opposite corners. The order in which you specify the
corners makes a difference.

■ Drag from left to right to create a window selection, which selects only objects entirely within the
selection area.

Objects selected using window selection

■ Drag from right to left to create a crossing selection, which selects objects within and crossing the
selection area.

NOTE You can remove objects from the selection set by pressing SHIFT and then clicking them.

88 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Erase, Extend, and Trim Objects
These methods delete objects or change their lengths:

■ Erase deletes the entire object.

■ Extend lengthens an object to a precise boundary.
■ Trim shortens an object to a precise boundary and removes the excess.

Erase Objects
You can use all the object selection methods with the ERASE command. The example shows how
you use window selection to erase a section of piping.

Objects selected with Selected objects Result

window selection

Try it: Practice using window and crossing selection

1 Start a new drawing.
2 Create some lines, arcs, and circles.
3 Click Modify menu ➤ Erase.
4 Select several objects using a crossing selection and press ENTER.
Notice which objects are selected and erased.
5 Select several more objects using a window selection and press ENTER.
Again, notice which objects are selected and erased.
6 Select the other objects that you created in step 1 individually and press ENTER to erase them.

Erase, Extend, and Trim Objects | 89

Extend Objects
You can extend objects so that they end precisely at a boundary defined by other objects. If you press
ENTER instead of selecting boundary objects, all visible objects in the drawing become potential
boundaries. The illustration shows lines extended precisely to the circle, which is the nearest
boundary.

Press ENTER to accept Select objects to extend nearest Result

all objects as boundaries to the end to be extended

Try it: Extend an object

1 Create a short line. Then create circle that encompasses the line.
2 Click Modify menu ➤ Extend.
3 At the Select Objects prompt, click the circle.
Notice that you select the boundary objects first.
4 Press ENTER to end boundary selection.
This step is easy to forget.
5 At the next Select Objects prompt, click one end of the line and then the other end of the line.
Press ENTER to end the command.

Trim Objects
Trimming objects is very similar to extending them. To trim, you cut an object at an edge defined
by one or more objects. By default, objects defined as cutting edges must intersect the object to be
trimmed.

2
Cutting edges selected Object to trim selected Result
with a crossing selection

90 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Try it: Trim an object
1 Create two horizontal lines and two vertical lines as shown in the left side of the previous
illustration.
You can use the Perpendicular object snap to make sure that the two horizontal lines intersect
the vertical line.
2 Click Modify menu ➤ Trim.
3 At the Select Objects prompt, click points 1 and 2 as previously illustrated.
Notice that you select the boundary objects first.
4 Press ENTER to end boundary selection.
5 At the next Select Objects prompt, click the vertical line at point 3 as shown. Press ENTER to end
the command.

NOTE With both EXTEND and TRIM, you must accept the selection set of boundary objects by pressing
ENTER, and then select the objects to be trimmed. If you press ENTER without selecting any boundary
objects, all objects become potential boundaries.

Erase, Extend, and Trim Objects | 91

Duplicate Objects
There are several ways to make copies of objects:

■ Copy creates new objects at a specified location.

■ Offset creates new objects at a specified distance from selected objects or through a specified
point.
■ Mirror creates a mirror image of objects around a specified mirror line.

Copy Objects
To copy an object, you select one or more objects to copy, specify a start point, called a base point,
and then specify a second point to determine the distance and direction of the copy. The two points
can be anywhere within the drawing. For example, in the following illustration, the circle is copied
from one rectangle to a corresponding location on the second rectangle.

2 Specify a base point (endpoint object snap)

3 Specify second point (endpoint object snap)

1 Select the circle Result

Try it: Copy an object

1 Create two rectangles and a circle as shown on the left side of the previous illustration.
2 Click Modify menu ➤ Copy.
3 At the Select Objects prompt, click the circle and press ENTER.
4 At the Specify Base Point prompt, press SHIFT and right-click to display the object snap menu.
Click Endpoint.
5 Click the corner of the rectangle at point 2 as shown.

92 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

6 At the Specify Second Point prompt, press SHIFT and right-click to display the object snap menu.
Click Endpoint.
7 Click the corner of the other rectangle at point 3 as shown.
8 Press ENTER to end the command.
The copied circle is at the same location relative to its enclosing rectangle as the original circle.

You can also copy objects specifying a base point followed by direct distance entry, typically with
polar snap turned on.

enter a distance

Objects selected Base point specified Result

and a distance entered

The Copy command automatically repeats so you can easily create multiple copies.

base point

next point

next point
next point

Object selected(bush) Result second point

Offset Objects
Offsetting creates a new object that seems to trace a selected object at a specified distance. Offsetting
circles creates larger or smaller circles depending on the offset side. For an easy way to create parallel
lines or concentric circles, use offsetting.

Duplicate Objects | 93
 original object

object offset

NOTE Offsetting several objects followed by trimming or extending them is a very efficient drawing
technique.

Mirror Objects
You mirror objects around a mirror line, which you define with two points. You then choose to
delete or retain the original objects.

1 4

mirror
line

2 3
Objects selected Mirror line defined Result with original retained

Mirroring is useful for creating symmetrical objects. You can draw half the object and quickly mirror
it rather than draw the whole object.

94 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Move and Rotate Objects
An important drawing technique is to create one or more objects and then move or rotate them into
place.

Move Objects
You move objects the same way that you copy them. You select the object to move, specify the base
point (1), and then specify a second point to determine the distance and direction of the move (2).
In the illustration, these steps move the window higher and away from the door.

1 2

Select objects, specify base point and

new location of the selected objects.

Rotate Objects
You rotate objects by specifying a base point and a rotation angle. You can specify the rotation angle
by specifying a point or entering a value for the angle.
In the following example, you specify the base point (1) and a second point (2) that determines the
angle of rotation (2) for the orientation of a house.

Objects selected Base point and Result

angle of rotation

Instead of specifying the second point in the example, you could have entered -35 to specify the
rotation in degrees. Repeating the rotation with the same base point and angle would result in the
house being rotated a total of 70 degrees from its original orientation.

NOTE By default, a positive angle results in a counter-clockwise rotation. However, this setting can be
changed using the UNITS command.

Move and Rotate Objects | 95

Fillet Corners
Filleting connects two objects with an arc of a specified radius that is tangent to the objects.
Use the Radius option of the Fillet command to specify arc radius of the fillet. Changing the radius
sets the default radius for subsequent fillets. By default, the filleted objects are trimmed as shown in
the illustration.

Objects selected Result

One useful technique is to set the fillet radius to 0. This results in two objects intersecting in a sharp
corner as illustrated. No arc is created.

Radius set to 0, Result

objects selected

NOTE You can hold down SHIFT while selecting the objects to override the current fillet radius with a
value of 0.

You can also fillet circles, arcs, and polylines. More than one possible fillet can exist between circles
and arcs depending on where you select the objects.

96 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Tutorial: Modify Objects with Precision
In the following tutorial, you will use precision drawing techniques to modify part of an assessor’s
map.
The adjoining property owners of an empty city lot persuaded their city council to allow them to
acquire the lot. The only requirement was that the property owners agree on an equitable division.

empty lot

How would you divide the empty lot?

The proposal accepted by the property owners expanded lots 26 and 27 to make their total lot sizes
equal. The fence between lots 38 and 39 was extended. Lot 38 was larger than the others, but this
benefit was offset by its irregular shape.

Fillet Corners | 97
Use the following procedure to change the boundaries of the lots.
1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Select File dialog box, find the \Help\Tutorials folder in the AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT
product folder and open map.dwg.
3 To simplify the display, turn off the Text layer.
You first create a new property line on the left side of the triangular lot. The top end of the new
property line will be displaced 25.73 feet; and the bottom end of the new property will be
displaced by 39.94 feet. These distances were determined using trial-and-error to make lots 26
and 27 about equal in area, but without making lot 38 too narrow or too large.
To accomplish this task, you create some “construction geometry” that makes the task easier.
4 Use the Circle command and object snaps to create a circle with a radius of 25.73 and a circle
with a radius of 39.94 centered on the intersections as shown in the illustration.

98 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

5 Use intersection object snaps to create a new property line as shown in the illustration.

6 Erase the old property line and the two construction circles.

Fillet Corners | 99
 Next, extend the old property line to the new one.
7 Click Modify menu ➤ Extend.
8 Click the new property line. This line is the boundary for extending the old property line.

9 Press ENTER. This action is important and easily forgotten. It separates the objects that serve as
boundaries from the objects to be extended.
10 Click the old property line near the end to be extended as shown.

100 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

11 Press ENTER to end the command.
12 Use the same method to extend the other property line to the lower border.

13 Erase the old property lines to open the long, narrow lot.

Fillet Corners | 101

14 Draw a short property line using the endpoint object snap between the end points of the
property lines as shown.

The new property lines are complete. But how can you find the new areas of the lots?

Find the areas of the lots

1 On the command line, enter boundary.
2 In the Boundary Creation dialog box, click Pick Points. Then click inside each of the lots. Press
ENTER to end the command.
A closed polyline object is created using the property lines for each lot. These closed polylines
are superimposed upon the existing property lines and can later be erased.

102 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

 Note As you move your cursor over the map, different polylines highlight. Where the polylines
share a common boundary, only one of them is highlighted. To avoid these common boundaries,
move your cursor around the outer edges of the map. Alternatively, you can press CTRL and click a
shared boundary repeatedly to cycle through all objects at that location.

3 Click Modify menu ➤ Properties.

4 Click one of the boundaries and find the area listed in the Properties palette.
5 Press ESC to clear the selection.
6 Find the area of each of the other lots.
7 Close the map drawing without saving it.

Tutorial: Create a New Drawing with Precision

In the following tutorial, you will create a detail drawing of a type of jet engine mount used to attach
jet engines to commercial aircraft. You will be happy to know that this part is made of a high-
strength, nickel-chromium-iron alloy.

NOTE Each step in this tutorial is not specified in detail. When in doubt, feel free to review earlier
portions in this guide or use the Help system. You can access all the commands in this tutorial using the
Draw and Modify menus.

Fillet Corners | 103

1 Start a new drawing using the drawing template file, Tutorial-mMfg.dwt.
This template is for mechanical design drawings using metric units. All distances are assumed to
be in millimeters.
2 Click the Model tab.
3 Make sure that the Polar and Osnap buttons on the status bar are turned on. The current layer
should be Model-Front.

Create the front view

1 Create a circle with a diameter (not radius) of 50 mm at the coordinates 180,100.
Note The precise location of this circle is not critical in this tutorial, but it’s a good idea to make sure
that several significant features coincide with snap locations. For single-view drawings or 3D models,
it’s a good idea to have a significant feature located at the origin (0,0). This is convenient when
referencing a drawing from another drawing such as with assembly drawings.

2 Use the Center object snap to draw a circle with a diameter of 24 using the center point of the
previous circle.
The Center object snap may not be a default running object snap. Press SHIFT and right-click to
access the object snap menu.
3 Using PolarSnap to lock the angle at 0 degrees, copy the two circles to a location 125 mm to the
right.
Command: copy
Select objects: Select the two circles and press ENTER
Specify base point or [Displacement]: Click the center of the circles and move your cursor to the right
Specify second point or <use first point as displacement>: 125
Specify second point or [Exit/Undo]: Press ENTER

4 Offset the inner circle on left by 4 mm to the outside.

Command: offset
Specify offset distance or [Through/Erase/Layer]: 4
Select object to offset or [Exit/Undo]: Select the left inner circle
Specify point on side to offset or [Exit/Multiple/Undo]: Click anywhere outside the circles

104 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

5 Create a circle using the tangent-tangent-radius (Ttr) option. The radius should be 250 mm.
Notice that the AutoSnap marker for tangent is turned on automatically.
Command: circle
Specify center point for circle or [3P/2P/Ttr (tan tan radius)]: t
Specify point on object for first tangent of circle: Select an outer circle near the expected tangent location
Specify point on object for second tangent of circle: Select the other outer circle as shown
Specify radius of circle: 250 (only part of the circle is shown in the illustration)

6 Trim the large circle as shown below.

Fillet Corners | 105

7 Use the Mirror command to mirror the arc using the center points of the left and right circles to
define the mirror line. Again, use SHIFT and right-click to access the object snap menu.
There are often alternative methods for each step. For example, to create the lower arc, you could
have used the Fillet command to fillet the two outer circles with a radius of 250 mm.

8 Trim the outer-left circle as shown.

The front view of the part is complete. Next, you will use the objects in the front view to create the
top view of the part.

Create the top view

1 Set the current layer to Model-Top. You can use the Layer control on the Layers toolbar, or the
Layer Properties Manager.
2 Use the Quadrant object snap to create a line starting from the left side of the part. With polar
snap on, move the cursor upward and enter 100 to make the line 100 mm long. Create another
100 mm line on the right side of the part.

106 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

3 Use the Endpoint object snap to create a line connecting the upper ends of the vertical lines.
4 Offset the horizontal line downward by 12 mm.

5 Trim the lower ends of the vertical lines to create the rectangular outline of the top view.
6 Offset the topmost horizontal line upward by 3 mm. Create vertical lines from the quadrants of
the other circles as shown.

7 Trim the four vertical lines representing the silhouette edges of the holes as shown. Don’t forget
to press ENTER after selecting the horizontal boundary line for the trimming.

boundary line
for trim

8 Trim the other vertical lines as shown. Zoom and pan as needed.

Fillet Corners | 107

 boundary line
for trim

9 Trim the topmost horizontal line as shown.

10 Create a vertical line that starts from the endpoint of the arc and ends perpendicular to the
horizontal line as shown. This line will be the trim boundary for the runout on the part.

11 Trim the horizontal line to the boundary line as shown.

boundary line
for trim

12 Erase the vertical trim boundary line.

erase line

108 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

13 Extend the remaining vertical line as shown.

extend line

14 Add 1 mm fillets to the outside corners.

The top view is almost complete. You still need to change the hidden silhouette edges of the holes
to a dashed linetype.

silhouette edges

To change the linetype of the four vertical lines, you will override the linetype property currently
assigned to the lines. As you remember, you can select the objects and then use either the Properties
palette or the Properties toolbar to specify the required linetype.

Change linetypes
1 Select the four vertical silhoutte edges of the holes.
2 Click Modify menu ➤ Properties.
Notice that because you selected more than one object, only the common properties are listed.
3 On the Properties palette, click Linetype. Click the arrow and, from the list, click
ACAD_ISO02W100.
4 Click Linetype Scale. Type 0.3 for the new linetype scale and press ENTER.
5 Move your cursor off the Properties palette and press ESC to clear the selection.
The four lines are now displayed with a dashed linetype.

Note Instead of changing the linetype of the four lines individually, you could have created a new
layer for hidden lines. The linetype property of that layer could then be set to ACAD_ISO02W100.
Then, to change the linetype of the four lines, you would change the layer assignment of the lines to
the new layer.

6 The tutorial is complete. If you want to keep this drawing, save it now.

Fillet Corners | 109

Match Properties
You can easily copy properties of one object to other objects. You can choose to match color, layer,
linetype, linetype scale, lineweight, thickness, plot style, and in some cases dimension styles, text
styles, and hatch patterns.

Try it: Copy the properties from one object to other objects
1 Start a new drawing.
2 Draw several objects with different color properties.
3 Click Modify menu ➤ Match Properties.
4 Click the source object from which you want to copy properties.
5 Click the objects to which you want to copy the properties.

You can also use the Settings option of the command to select the properties you want to match and
clear the ones you don’t.

110 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Use Editing Aids
The following editing aids help you modify drawings efficiently:

■ Grips edit objects using your cursor and a shortcut menu.

■ Revision clouds identify areas that have been updated.

Edit with Grips

Grips are small squares and arrows that appear on an object after it has been selected. They mark
control locations and are powerful editing tools.

move grip to end of

select line click grip horizontal line
2

After you select an object, you can click a grip and move it with your cursor. For more options, click
a grip and right-click to display a shortcut menu. Then choose a grip edit mode.

Grip edit modes

Grip edit mode options

Use Editing Aids | 111

Try it: Edit objects using grips
1 Draw several objects.
2 Click several objects to select them and to display their grips.
3 Click a grip on an object and click its new location. This is the default stretch mode.
■ Notice the grip behavior when object snaps are turned on.
■ Notice the grip behavior when you stretch a grip onto another grip.

4 Click a grip on an object and then right-click.

5 Choose a different grip mode such as Move, Mirror, Rotate, or Scale.
6 Press ESC to exit grip editing.

Create Revision Clouds

If you review or redline drawings, you can increase your productivity by using revision clouds to
highlight your markups. You draw the revision cloud around the objects you want to emphasize,
creating a polyline in the shape of a cloud, as shown in the following illustration.

Try it: Create a revision cloud

1 Click Draw menu ➤ Revision Cloud.
2 Click anywhere in the drawing area and move your cursor to encompass an area.
3 Repeat the command and see whether the revision cloud always creates the arcs outward or if
you can trick it.

112 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

Analyze Drawings
You can extract information from your model using the inquiry commands. The most commonly
used one is the DIST command.
Use DIST to quickly determine the relationship between two points. You can display the following
information for two points you specify:
■ Distance between them in drawing units
■ Angle between the points in the XY plane
■ Angle of the points from the XY plane
■ Delta, or difference, between the X, Y, and Z coordinate values of each point

Try it: Find the distance and angle between two points
1 Click Tools menu ➤ Inquiry ➤ Distance.
2 Use an object snap to locate a point on an object.
3 Use another object snap to locate a point on a different object.
4 Review the data displayed in the command window.
5 Press F2 to see the data in a larger window called the Text window.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Erase objects Modify ➤ Erase Modify

Extend objects Modify ➤ Extend Modify

Trim objects Modify ➤ Trim Modify

Copy objects in a drawing Modify ➤ Copy Edit ➤ Copy Modify

Copy objects between drawings Standard

Offset objects Modify ➤ Offset Modify

Mirror objects Modify ➤ Mirror Modify

Move objects Modify ➤ Move Modify

Rotate objects Modify ➤ Rotate Modify

Fillet objects Modify ➤ Fillet Modify

Edit properties Tools ➤ Properties Standard

Modify ➤ Properties

Analyze Drawings | 113

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Match properties Modify ➤ Match Properties Standard

Create revision clouds Draw ➤ Revision Draw

Cloud

Extract information from objects Tools ➤ Inquiry ➤ Distance Inquiry

Help system
ERASE, EXTEND, TRIM, COPY, COPYCLIP, PASTECLIP, OFFSET, MIRROR, MOVE, ROTATE, UNITS, FILLET,
PROPERTIES, MATCHPROP, OPTIONS, REVCLOUD, DIST

Review and Recall

1 What is the difference between a crossing selection and a window selection?

2 What is the fastest way to create several parallel lines?
3 What is the easiest way to create an arc that is tangent to two other objects?
4 When creating or modifying an object, what do you do to display the object snap menu?
5 What is an easy way to find the distance between two points in a drawing?

114 | Chapter 7 Make Modifications

 Create blocks when you want
These symbols, called blocks, represent
to use drawings or parts of
standard items such as trees or bushes
drawings repeatedly

Hatch to fill areas with patterns or solid colors

that help identify the subject matter or material
Add Symbols and Hatches

Overview of Blocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Benefits of Blocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Sources of Blocks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Insert Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Tutorial: Adding Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Overview of Hatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Use Standard Hatch Patterns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Associative Hatches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Insert Hatches or Solid Fills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Define Hatch Boundaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Tutorial: Add Hatches to a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Overview of Blocks
In AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, symbols are called blocks. A block is a collection of objects that are
associated into a single object. Use blocks to represent objects such as a trees, fasteners, or doors.
Blocks are typically defined and stored in drawings called block libraries, or symbol libraries, from
which they can be inserted into other drawings. An entire drawing can also be inserted as a block.

block references
of fastener
inserted into a
block definition for
drawing
fastener

Blocks may also include block attributes, which store data such as part numbers, dates, and
performance ratings.

Benefits of Blocks
Using blocks makes it easier and faster to get your work done:

■ Create drawings efficiently by inserting, relocating, and copying blocks rather than individual
geometric objects.
■ Build a standard library of frequently used symbols, components, or standard parts.
■ Store associated data with block attributes which can be extracted to create reports.
■ Manage blocks with DesignCenter. DesignCenter provides convenient organization and access to
thousands of symbols on your computer, on your local network, and on the World Wide Web.

Sources of Blocks
There are several sources of blocks that you can use in your drawings.

■ Your computer. Over 300 standard blocks in 15 symbol library drawings are available in the
DesignCenter folder.
■ Your company network. You can also create your own blocks and block libraries, or your
company may already have its own standard libraries.
■ The World Wide Web. Numerous Autodesk and commercial symbol libraries containing
thousands of blocks are available, including several that are available free by using the DC Online
tab in DesignCenter.

118 | Chapter 8 Add Symbols and Hatches

NOTE Creating blocks, block attributes, or block libraries are more advanced topics and are not
covered in this guide.

Insert Blocks
You can choose from the following three methods to insert blocks into drawings:

■ Insert dialog box. Place a block by specifying its insertion point, scale, and rotation angle.
■ DesignCenter. Locate symbol libraries and place or drag a block into a drawing or onto a tool
palette. Use DesignCenter to locate and manage a large number of blocks and block libraries.
■ Tool Palettes window. Place or drag a block into a drawing. Use tool palettes to organize and
access your most commonly used blocks.

Tutorial: Adding Blocks

1 Open MyDesign, the drawing that you created and saved in a previous tutorial.

2 Offset the lines to create walls (if it’s a health spa or motor housing) or ridges (if it’s a catch for a
window lock). Use a value for the offset distance that is appropriate for what you are creating.
Clean up the corners using Fillet with the fillet radius set to 0.

Insert Blocks | 119

Open a block library
1 Click Tools menu ➤ DesignCenter.
The DesignCenter window is divided into the tree view on the left side and the content area on
the right side.
2 On the DesignCenter window, click the Folders tab if necessary. In the tree view, navigate to the
Help\Tutorials\Symbol Libraries folder.
3 Click the plus sign (+) on the block library that’s appropriate for your drawing:
■ Fasteners - Metric.dwg
■ Fasteners - US.dwg
■ Office - Metric.dwg
■ Office - US.dwg

4 Click the Blocks item under the drawing that you just expanded. The blocks become visible in
the Content area of DesignCenter.

Place and relocate blocks with DesignCenter

1 Drag one of the blocks from DesignCenter into your drawing. The precise location is not
important.
2 Click the block. Notice the colored grip that displays. Drag the grip to move the block into place.
3 Click the grip and right-click. On the shortcut menu, click Rotate. Rotate the block either with
the cursor or by entering a rotation angle.
4 In DesignCenter, double-click a different block.
5 In the Insert dialog box, under Rotation, click Specify On-Screen. Click OK.
6 Click a location in your drawing. You are prompted to specify a rotation angle. Rotate the block
either with the cursor or by entering a rotation angle.
7 Close the DesignCenter window.

Place blocks with the Insert dialog box

1 Click Insert menu ➤ Block.
2 In the Insert dialog box, click the arrow next to the Name box. These are the block definitions
currently stored in your drawing. Click one of them and click OK. Specify the location for the
block.
3 Add several more blocks to your drawing. Save the drawing.

Access block libraries from the Web

1 Open DesignCenter again.
2 Click the DC Online tab. If you have an Internet connection, you can explore the commercial
symbol libraries that are available.

120 | Chapter 8 Add Symbols and Hatches

Overview of Hatches
A hatch pattern is a standard pattern of lines or dots used to highlight an area in a drawing, or to
identify a material such as concrete, steel, or grass. A hatch pattern can also be a solid fill.

Use Standard Hatch Patterns

The DesignCenter folder contains more than 60 industry-standard ISO and imperial hatch patterns.
You can also use hatch patterns from hatch pattern libraries supplied by other companies. Hatch
patterns are stored in hatch pattern files with PAT extensions.

ANSI31

INSUL
AR-CONC

Industry-standard
hatch patterns

Associative Hatches
By default, hatches are associative. Associative hatches are linked to their boundaries and are updated
when the boundaries are modified. You can remove associativity from a hatch at any time.

Hatched object Result of editing Result of editing

boundary with boundary with
nonassociative hatch associative hatch

Insert Hatches or Solid Fills

You can hatch or fill objects in a drawing using one of these methods:

■ Choose Hatch from the Draw menu or toolbar to create hatches and solid fills.
■ Use DesignCenter to drag hatches into the drawing or onto a tool palette.
■ Use a tool palette to drag commonly used hatches into a drawing quickly.

Overview of Hatches | 121

Define Hatch Boundaries
Hatch boundaries can be any combination of objects such as lines, arcs, circles, polylines, text, and
blocks. Hatch boundaries must enclose an area, but they can include islands (enclosed areas within
the hatch area) that you choose to hatch or leave unhatched.

internal point

islands

Internal point selected Boundaries detected Result

Tutorial: Add Hatches to a Drawing

In this tutorial, you will hatch part of your drawing to look something like this:

1 Open MyDesign, the drawing that you created and saved in the previous tutorial.
2 Click Draw menu ➤ Hatch.
3 On the Hatch tab, under Type and Pattern, notice the name of the hatch pattern and the swatch.
Choose a different hatch pattern.
4 Under Boundaries, click Add: Pick Points. Then click anywhere between the parallel lines for the
walls and press ENTER.

122 | Chapter 8 Add Symbols and Hatches

5 At the bottom of the dialog box, click Preview.
There are probably several things that you’ll want to change, including the circle being hatched,
the hatch angle, and the hatch spacing.
6 Press ESC to return to the dialog box.
7 Click the > (More Options) button at the bottom-right corner of the dialog box.
8 Under Islands, click Outer. Then click the < (Less Options) button.
9 Under Angle and Scale, change the values for the angle and for the scale. If the hatch is too dense,
increase the value for the scale by a factor of 10.
10 Click Preview. If the hatch is still not acceptable, return to step 6. Otherwise, right-click or press
ENTER to accept the hatch.
11 Save your drawing file.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Insert a blocks Insert ➤ Block Draw

Open DesignCenter Tools ➤ DesignCenter Standard

Open the Tool Palettes window Tools ➤ Tool Palettes Window Standard

Hatch an area Draw ➤ Hatch Draw

Tools ➤ DesignCenter Standard
Tools ➤ Tool Palettes Window
Help system
ADCENTER, BLOCK, EXPLODE, INSERT, TOOLPALETTES, HATCH

Review and Recall

1 What is a block?
2 What is a block library?
3 How can you use object snaps with blocks?
4 What are three ways to hatch an area in a drawing?
5 How do you fill an area with a solid color?

Insert Hatches or Solid Fills | 123

Add Text to a Drawing

Create and Modify Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Work with Text Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Create and Modify Text Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Set Text Size for the Viewport Scaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Set Text Size in Model Space. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Create and Modify Text
AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT provide a text editor to add text to drawings. The In-Place Text Editor
displays the bounding box with a ruler at the top and the Text Formatting toolbar.

display menu options

select the text size or
type in a new value display ruler

first-line indent save changes and

tab stops close

paragraph ruler set width of

indent multiline text
objects

With the In-Place Text Editor, you can choose formatting that affects the entire text object or only
selected text. You can also control indents.
Before creating the text, you define the width of the text by specifying the two opposite corners of
a text boundary. Only the width of the box has an effect. The text you enter is inserted in the dialog
box within the width limit and words that don’t fit wrap to the next line.

When using the text editor, you can easily change the width by dragging the right side of the ruler.

NOTE The fastest way to make changes to an existing text object is to double-click it. This opens the
In-Place Text Editor and displays the text to be changed.

126 | Chapter 9 Add Text to a Drawing

Additional features that are available for text in drawings include

■ A spell checker with customizable dictionaries

■ The Find and Replace dialog box for locating and correcting text
■ The ability to create mirrored text

Try it: Create multiline text objects

1 Start a new drawing.
2 To display the text at a convenient size, zoom into a small area above the title block.
3 Click Draw menu ➤ Text ➤ Multiline Text.
4 Click two points to determine the width of the text object.
5 In the In-Place Text Editor, type your text.
6 Highlight a word and click some of the formatting options.
These options are nearly identical with those in word processing applications.
7 Click OK on the Text Formatting toolbar.

Try it: Modify an existing text object

1 Double-click the text object.
2 Highlight more words or the entire paragraph and click more formatting options.
3 Click OK on the Text Formatting toolbar.

Create and Modify Text | 127

Work with Text Styles
Every text object in a drawing has a text style associated with it. When you enter text, the current
text style is applied, which determines the following properties:

■ Font controls the shapes of the characters

■ Font style controls the italic and boldface formatting for TrueType fonts
■ Height controls the size in drawing units of the text
■ Obliquing angle controls the forward or backward slant of the text
■ Orientation controls the vertical or horizontal alignment of single-line text
■ Other text characteristics controls effects such as wide text and backwards text

Create and Modify Text Styles

Except for the default STANDARD style, you must define any text style that you want to use. Once
you’ve created a style, you can modify its settings, change its name, or delete it when you no longer
need it. When you create or modify a text style, you use the Text Style dialog box.

create a new
choose a different text style
text style
specify a different
text font to be
used by the text
style

sample text
shows the
changes you
make

If you change an existing style’s font, all text in the drawing that uses that style is regenerated using
the new font.

NOTE If you create notes and labels directly on a layout in paper space, no scaling is necessary. Notes
and labels created in model space must be sized to accommodate the scale of the layout viewport.

128 | Chapter 9 Add Text to a Drawing

Set Text Size for the Viewport Scaling
You can create text either in model space or on the layout in paper space. The space in which you
create text depends on the circumstances.

■ If the text is more closely associated with the layout, you should create the text in paper space.
With this option, there are no scaling considerations and you create the text at its full size (1:1).
■ If the text is more closely associated with the model, and you anticipate referencing the model
and the text from other drawings or other views, you should create the text in model space. With
this option, the text must usually be scaled.

Preparing one or more views on a drawing layout usually involves displaying them in layout
viewports at various scales other than 1:1. If you create text in model space, you must size it for
correct display and plotting in paper space.

Set Text Size in Model Space

Set the text size in model space using the following formula:
Text size in model space = desired text size / scale of the layout viewport

■ Example 1: If the desired text size is 3 mm and the viewport scale is 1:4 (0.25),
then use 3/0.25 = 12 mm for the text size in model space.
■ Example 2: If the desired text size is 1/8 inch and the viewport scale is 1”=4’ (1:48),
then use (1/8)/(1/48) = 48/8 = 6 inches for the text size in model space.

Creating text directly on the layout is much easier because no scaling is required. It is recommended
that you create view-specific text in model space, and general notes, tables, and labels in paper space.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Create multiline text Draw ➤ Text ➤ Multiline Text Draw, Text

Modify text Modify ➤ Object ➤ Text Text

Check the spelling in a drawing Tools ➤ Spelling

Find and replace text Edit ➤ Find Text

Creating text styles Format ➤ Text Style Text

Help system
FIND, MTEXT, MIRRTEXT, MTEXTED, SPELL, STYLE, SCALETEXT, JUSTIFYTEXT, STYLE, SPACETRANS

Set Text Size for the Viewport Scaling | 129

Review and Recall

1 What is the fastest way to open the In-Place Text Editor when you need to change existing text?
2 What are some advantages to creating additional text styles?
3 How do you decide whether to create text in paper space or in model space?
4 What text height should you use in model space if the desired text height in paper space is 2.5 mm
and the display scale of the layout viewport is 1/50 (0.02)?

130 | Chapter 9 Add Text to a Drawing

 Quick Leader Angular

Diameter

Radius

Ordinate Aligned

Center Mark

Linear
(Horizontal)
Baseline

Linear
(Vertical)

Continued
Add Dimensions

Dimensions Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Parts of a Dimension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Associative Dimensions and Leaders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Create Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Tutorial: Create Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Use Dimensioning Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Create Center Marks and Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Create Leaders with Annotation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Create and Modify Dimension Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Modify Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Dimensions Overview
Dimensions show the geometric measurements of objects, the distances or angles between objects,
or the location of a feature. Four general types of dimensions are available:

■ Linear. Measures distances using horizontal, vertical, aligned, rotated, baseline (parallel), and
continued (chain) dimensions.
■ Ordinate. Measures the distance of a point from a specified origin point.
■ Radial. Measures the radii and diameters of arcs and circles.
■ Angular. Measures the angle formed by two lines or three points.

Parts of a Dimension
Dimensions have several distinct elements:

■ Dimension line. Indicates the direction and extent of a dimension. For angles, the dimension line
is an arc.
■ Extension line. Extends from the feature being dimensioned to the dimension line.
■ Dimension text. Reflects dimension value and may include prefixes, suffixes, and tolerances.
Alternatively, you can supply your own text or suppress the text entirely.
■ Arrowhead. Indicates an end of the dimension line. Several types of arrowheads are available,
including architectural ticks and dots.
■ Leader. Forms a solid line leading from an annotation to the referenced feature. Depending on
the dimension style, leaders can be created automatically when dimension text won’t fit between
extension lines. You can also create leader lines to connect text or a block with a feature.

dimension text

arrowhead
dimension line
extension line

leader

Associative Dimensions and Leaders

By default, dimensions are associative. The measurements displayed by associative dimensions are
updated automatically as you modify the objects with which they are associated.
Leader objects are composed of text, a leader line, and an arrowhead.

■ If the text portion of a leader object is moved, the leader line is also adjusted.
■ If a leader object is associated with a geometric object, and the object is moved, stretched, or
scaled, the arrowhead and the leader portion of the leader object are also updated.

134 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

Create Dimensions
You can dimension lines, arcs, circles, and several other types of objects. There are two primary
methods for creating dimensions:

■ Select an object to dimension (1) and specify the dimension line location (2) as shown in the
following examples.

2 2

1
1

Result of selecting a line Result of selecting a circle

for a dimension for a dimension

■ Use object snaps to specify the extension line origins, and then specify the dimension line
location. The extension line origin points can be on separate objects.

Tutorial: Create Dimensions

In this tutorial, you will set the scale for your drawing and add several dimensions to your design.
1 Open MyDesign, the drawing that you created and saved in previous tutorials.
2 Click the layout tab near the bottom-left of the application window.

Create Dimensions | 135

Set the display scale of the viewport.
1 Click the blue layout viewport border to select it.
2 Click Modify ➤ Properties.
3 On the Properties palette, click Display Locked and then No.
Note It is strongly recommended that you keep the display in layout viewports locked unless you’re
setting the display scale of the viewport. This prevents you or someone else from accidentally
zooming in or out and changing the display scale.

4 Double-click inside the layout viewport. You are now accessing model space from the layout.
5 Click View menu ➤ Zoom ➤ Extents.
This step centers your view.
6 Double-click outside the layout viewport to return to paper space.
You can now specify the precise scale for the floor plan or part.
7 Click the blue layout viewport border to select it. On the Properties palette, under the Misc
category, click Standard Scale.
8 Click the arrow to display a list of scales. Click the one that seems the most appropriate for the
sheet size and the size of your floor plan or part. You can always choose a different scale if
necessary.
9 Lock the layout viewport.
Add dimensions
1 Change the current layer to the Dimensions layer.
It is a good practice to use a separate layer reserved for dimension objects.
2 Double-click inside the layout viewport to access model space.
There is a good reason why you are creating dimensions from the layout tab rather than the
Model tab. When you dimension in model space from the layout tab, the dimensions are
automatically scaled relative to the viewport scale.
3 Click Dimension menu ➤ Linear. Follow the prompts to create several linear dimensions.

136 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

 

‘






4 Experiment with several other types of dimensions.

NOTE Automatic dimension scaling is not turned on in all drawings or drawing template files. It works
only when the system variable DIMSCALE is set to 0. You can enter DIMSCALE on the command line.
Check the Help system topic on DIMSCALE for more information.

Add Text
1 Double-click outside the layout viewport to return to paper space.
2 Change the current layer to the Text layer.
3 Create several notes using multiline text.
4 Save your drawing.

Create Dimensions | 137

Use Dimensioning Options
In addition to the basic types of dimensions, the following options are available on the Dimension
menu and toolbar:

■ Center marks and centerlines locate the exact center of circles or arcs.
■ Leader lines connect annotation to drawing features.
■ Geometric tolerances show deviations of form, profile, orientation, location, and runout of
drawing features.

Create Center Marks and Lines

You can easily create a center mark or centerline on a circle or arc. The size and style of center marks
and centerlines are controlled by the dimension style.

centerlines

center mark

Try it: Create center marks and lines

1 Start a new drawing and click the Model tab.
2 Draw a small circle.
3 Click Dimension ➤ Center mark and click the circle.
Two lines in the shape of a plus are created at the center of the circle.
You can also create center marks with the radius and diameter dimensions.

138 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

Create Leaders with Annotation
You can create a leader from any point or feature in a drawing. Leaders can be straight line segments
or smooth spline curves. Leader color, scale, and arrowhead style are controlled by the current
dimension style. A small line known as a hook line usually connects the annotation to the leader line.
Leader annotations can be multiline text, a feature control frame, or a block reference.

2
hook line
1
leader line

The simple leader in the example was created by specifying the From (1) and To (2) points of the
leader, pressing ENTER , and then entering the leader text.

Use Dimensioning Options | 139

Create and Modify Dimension Styles
Every dimension has a dimension style associated with it. Dimension styles help you establish and
enforce drafting standards. Dimension styles also make changing dimension formats and behavior
easy. A dimension style defines

■ Format and position of dimension lines, extension lines, arrowheads, and center marks
■ Appearance, position, and behavior of dimension text
■ Rules governing text placement and dimension lines
■ Overall dimension scale
■ Format and precision of primary, alternate, and angular dimension units
■ Format and precision of tolerance values

New dimensions use the current settings in the Dimension Style Manager dialog box. The default
STANDARD style is assigned to dimensions until you set another style as current.

Overrides allow for style modifications to the current dimension style. Overrides apply to all
subsequent dimensions created with that style until you make a new style current. They do not
permanently modify a dimension style. You can also override properties of dimensions using the
Properties palette.
Regardless of whether you choose New, Modify, or Override in the Dimension Style Manager, the
same set of options are available:

■ Lines sets the appearance and behavior of dimension lines and extension lines.
■ Symbols and Arrows sets the appearance and behavior of dimension arrowheads, center marks,
and centerlines.
■ Text sets the dimension text appearance, placement, and alignment.

140 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

■ Fit sets options governing placement of dimension lines, extension lines, and text. It also
includes the setting for automatic dimension scaling.
■ Primary Units sets the format (for example, scientific, decimal, architectural) and precision of
linear and angular dimension units.
■ Alternate Units sets alternate unit format and precision. This feature supports dual dimensions
that display, for example, both metric and imperial units.
■ Tolerances sets tolerance values and precision.

NOTE Creating a dimension style to conform with industry or company standards requires agreement
on over 70 settings. It is important that your organization creates and maintains one or more official
dimension styles.

Create and Modify Dimension Styles | 141

Modify Dimensions
You can modify dimensions with grips or with editing commands. You can also modify or override
dimension styles, as discussed in the previous topic. For significant modifications to a dimension, it
is usually easier to erase and re-create the dimension.
The easiest way to make minor modifications in a dimension is to use grips. For example, you can
easily drag a dimension line to align it with another dimension line.

2 Click grip at end of 3 Move grip to new

1 Click dimension dimension line dimension location
   

 

You can also drag dimension text to a different location.

2 Click grip on 3 Move grip to relocate

1 Click dimension dimension text dimension text

 
 


To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Create linear dimensions Dimension ➤ Linear

Create aligned dimensions Dimension ➤ Aligned

Create ordinate dimensions Dimension ➤ Ordinate

142 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Create radius dimensions Dimension ➤ Radius

Create diameter dimensions Dimension ➤ Diameter

Create angular dimensions Dimension ➤ Angular

Create baseline dimensions Dimension ➤ Baseline

Create continued dimensions Dimension ➤ Continue

Create and modify a Dimension ➤ Dimension Style

dimension style

Update an existing dimension to reflect a Dimension ➤ Update

style change

Create a center mark Dimension ➤ Center mark

Create leaders with annotation Dimension ➤ Leader

Help system
DIMALIGNED, DIMANGULAR, DIMBASELINE, DIMCONTINUE, DIMDIAMETER, DIMJOGGED,
DIMLINEAR, DIMORDINATE, DIMRADIUS, DIMSCALE, DIMSTYLE, DIMEDIT, DIMTEDIT, DIMOVERRIDE,
DIMCENTER, QLEADER, DIMSTYLE, DIMREGEN

Modify Dimensions | 143

Review and Recall

1 What is the behavior of associative leaders and associative dimensions?

2 Why should you lock layout viewports?
3 To ensure that dimensions are scaled according to the layout viewport scale, what dimension variable
should be set to 0?
4 What is the easiest way to modify the location of a dimension feature such as the dimension line or
dimension text?

144 | Chapter 10 Add Dimensions

The model
Created at full size (1:1). Text
and dimensions in model
space are scaled to compen-
sate for the scale factors used
in layout viewports

Layout viewports Plot styles

Display one or more views of the model, each of which Temporaily override properties such as
can be scaled separately color and lineweight when plotting

Layout
Represents a
drawing sheet
that includes a
title block, one
or more layout
Page Setups viewports, and
Save plot settings by name and text objects
associate them with a layout
Create Layouts and Plots

Work with Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Create a New Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Use Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Create and Modify Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Tutorial: Work with Layout Viewports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Choose and Configure Plotters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Add a Plotter Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Change a Plotter Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Use Plot Styles to Override Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Plot from a Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Page Setups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Tutorial: Plot a Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Work with Layouts
You use a layout to compose the plotted page. A layout typically includes the following objects:
■ General notes and tables
■ View-specific label blocks and callout blocks (this is an advanced topic not covered in this guide)
■ Layout viewports

Layouts show the page border and actual printing area. The page size and actual printing area
depend on the printer or plotter assigned to the layout.

layout tab printable page border layout viewport, displays

area a view of model space

Create a New Layout

The two most common reasons for creating a new layout are

■ Creating a new drawing template file that includes a different paper size and orientation.
■ Adding a layout with a different paper size, orientation, and title block to an existing drawing.

The easiest way to create a new layout is to use the Create Layout wizard. Once you create a layout,
you can replace the title block and create or delete layout viewports.

148 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

Try it: Create a layout
1 Start a new drawing.
2 Click Tools menu ➤ Wizards ➤ Create Layout.
3 Follow the steps in the wizard to create a layout with a different paper size and matching title
block.
4 Right-click the layout tab. On the shortcut menu, click Rename. In the Rename Layout dialog
box, enter a new name for the layout. Click OK.
To save this drawing as a new drawing template file, click File menu ➤ Save As. In the Save Drawing
As dialog box, under Files of Type, specify a DWT extension.

Use Layout Viewports

Layout viewports on a layout tab display views of model space. The following points summarize the
relationship of layout viewports and model space:

■ The majority of the objects in your drawings are created in model space on the Model tab.
■ To display and scale views of model space in a layout, you create layout viewports.
■ You enter model space through a layout viewport primarily to pan the view and to set layer
visibility.
■ You can control the visibility of layers separately in each layout viewport.
■ For any significant editing of your drawing, use the Model tab.
■ To create correctly scaled dimensions, enter model space from the layout tab and then dimension
the model.

Create and Modify Layout Viewports

When you create a new layout, a single layout viewport is added by default. You can add more layout
viewports for independent views such as details and 3D views. Each viewport can have its own scale,
plot properties, and layer visibility settings.

Tutorial: Work with Layout Viewports

In this tutorial, you will practice the most common operations used with layout viewports.

Change the display scale of a view in a layout viewport

1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Select File dialog box, find the \Help\Tutorials folder in the AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT
product folder and open arbor.dwg.
3 In the Layer Properties Manager, click the lightbulb icon on the Viewport layer to display the
objects on that layer. Click OK.
The blue borders of the layout viewports are now visible.
4 Click Modify menu ➤ Properties. Then click the blue border of the upper-right layout viewport.
Notice that the Properties palette contains the property settings for the layout viewport.

Work with Layouts | 149

5 In the Properties palette, under Misc, click Display Locked. Click the arrow and click No.
The display properties for the layout viewport are now unlocked. Next, you will change the
precise scale of the view displayed in this layout viewport.
6 In the Properties palette, click Standard Scale.
7 Click the arrow to display a list of scales and click 1:40.
Notice that the view changes immediately to reflect the new display scale.
8 Double-click inside the layout viewport to enter Model Space. Pan the view as needed, but do not
change the view scale with Zoom. Then double-click anywhere outside the layout viewports to
return to Paper Space.
9 Use the Properties palette to lock the layout viewport.
You lock the layout viewport to prevent accidental panning and zooming in it. Thus, the view
position and scale in the viewport are protected.

Erase a layout viewport

1 Click Modify menu ➤ Erase.
2 Click the border of the upper-right layout viewport and press ENTER.
A layout viewport is an object. Like other objects, it can be moved, copied, and erased.

Create a new layout viewport

1 Make the Viewport layer the current layer.
2 Click View menu ➤ Viewports ➤ 1 Viewport.
3 Click two points in a blank area on the layout. The two points are the diagonal corners of the
new layout viewport.
The new layout viewport can overlap an existing viewport.
4 Click the border of the layout viewport to display its grips.
5 Adjust the size of the layout viewport by clicking a grip, moving the cursor, and clicking a new
location. Move the layout viewport with the Move command.
6 Use the Properties palette to set the display scale of the view in the layout viewport.
7 Double-click within the layout viewport and pan the view. Double-click outside of all viewports
to return to paper space.
8 Use the Properties palette to lock the layout viewport.
9 Turn the Viewport layer off.
10 Close the drawing without saving it.
NOTE Always create layout viewports on a separate layer dedicated to viewport objects. When you are
ready to plot, turn off the layer to prevent the viewport borders from being plotted.

150 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

Choose and Configure Plotters
AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT support a wide range of printers and plotters. Devices with a Windows
printer driver installed are available automatically when you plot unless the plotting option to hide
system printers has been selected. Many plotters that do not have Windows drivers (nonsystem
plotters) can be configured using drivers provided either by Autodesk or by the plotter manufacturer.
You can also configure drivers to save drawings in several file formats. Formats include DWF™(Design
Web Format) files to view drawings in a web browser or external viewer, PostScript files for use with
page layout programs, and raster files.
If an output device is not listed in the Plot or Page Setup dialog boxes, or if its settings are incorrect,
you can easily add or edit printer and plotter configurations.

Add a Plotter Configuration

The Plotter Manager is a folder that provides a method for adding, deleting, and changing plotter
configurations. Plotter configuration files have a .pc3 extension and are stored in the Plotters folder.
To display the Plotters folder, click File menu ➤ Plotter Manager.

The Plotter Manager

The Plotter Manager includes plotter configuration (PC3) files for every nonsystem printer that you
install. Plotter configuration files can also be created for Windows® system printers if you want the
program to use default properties different from those used by Windows.
To add a plotter configuration, double-click the Add-A-Plotter wizard in the Plotter Manager. The
Add-A-Plotter wizard prompts you for information about your plotter, including

■ Whether the plotter is attached to your computer or on a network

■ The type of plotter, including manufacturer and model
■ Whether to use a plotter configuration file from previous versions of the product
■ Whether to output to a computer port or file, and which port to use
■ Raster and vector graphics quality settings

Choose and Configure Plotters | 151

■ Custom properties that depend on the plotter type
■ A unique name for the new plotter configuration

Once a new PC3 file is created, the plotter configuration is available for layouts and plotting.

Change a Plotter Configuration

The Plotter Configuration Editor is used to

■ Edit the port or file output information

■ Change or add paper sizes and layouts
■ Control vector and raster graphic output
■ Calibrate your plotter

Set any of your plotter’s custom propertiesTo start the Plotter Configuration Editor, either double-
click the PC3 file or choose Properties in the Plot dialog box.

Use Plot Styles to Override Properties

A plot style is an optional method to control how each object or layer is plotted. Assigning a plot style
to an object or layer overrides properties such as color and lineweight for plotting. Only the
appearance of plotted objects is affected.
Plot style tables collect groups of plot styles and save them in a file that you can later specify when
plotting. The Plot Style Manager is a folder that contains all the available plot style tables and the
Add-A-Plot Style wizard.
There are two types of plot style tables:

■ Color-dependent plot style tables. An object’s color determines how it is plotted. The files have
the extension .ctb. You cannot assign color-dependent plot styles directly to objects. Instead, to
control how an object is plotted, you change its color. For example, all red objects in a drawing
can be set to plot with a 0.50 mm lineweight.
■ Named plot style tables. Plot styles are assigned directly to objects and layers. The files have the
extension .stb. Using them enables each object in a drawing to be plotted differently, independent
of its color.

Use the Plot Style Manager to add, delete, rename, copy, and edit plot style tables. You can access the
Plot Style Manager from the Files menu.

152 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

Plot from a Layout
After you have completed your drawing, you are ready to plot. In the Plot dialog box, you select the
printer or plotter and many other settings.

specify a plot
style
select a
printer
or a
plotter

select a
page size
specify a plot
select the scale
area of the
drawing to select a
plot page
generate a orientation
preview
position the layout on display or hide options
the page

Before you plot your drawing, it is a good practice to generate a full plot preview. If the image is not
correct, make changes to the plot settings, page setup, and the plot style table attached to the layout.

Page Setups
To manage plot settings, you can name and save them as a page setup using the Page Setup Manager.
When you are ready to plot, you can specify the name of the page setup in the Plot dialog box.
For example, let’s say you switch to a different plotter for color output. You can quickly restore all
settings associated with that plotter by specifying the name of a previously saved page setup. To
switch back, you can specify the name of the original page setup.
Each layout tab can have an associated named page setup. Page setups are saved in the drawing.

Try it: Create a page setup

1 Start a new drawing. If necessary, click a layout tab.
2 Click File menu ➤ Page Setup Manager.
3 Click New.

Plot from a Layout | 153

4 In the New Page Setup dialog box, enter My_New_Plotter. Click OK.
5 Change some settings in the Page Setup dialog box. Click OK.
The new page setup name is displayed in the Page Setup Manager.
6 Click My_New_Plotter and click Set Current.
The My_New_Plotter page setup is now associated with the current layout tab.
7 Click Close.
If you don’t specify all the settings in the Page Setup dialog box when you create a layout, you can
set up the page just before you plot.

Tutorial: Plot a Drawing

In this exercise, you edit the page setup for an existing layout, create a new layout, insert a title block
into the new layout, and plot the drawing.

Edit an existing layout

To prepare for plotting from a layout tab, you set up a layout, set up a viewport, and create
dimensions.
1 Click File menu ➤ Open.
2 In the Select File dialog box, locate the \Help\Tutorials folder and select plan.dwg.
3 Click Open.
This is a drawing of a floor plan and elevation.
4 Click the Elevation layout tab.
The Elevation layout uses a page setup that defines the plot area and page size. A specific plotter
configuration is also associated with the Elevation layout.
5 Click File menu ➤ Page Setup Manager.
6 In the Page Setup Manager, click Modify.
7 Under Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments), open the drop-down list and click the monochrome.ctb
file. If prompted, choose not to apply the plot style table to all other layouts.
8 Select Display Plot Styles. Click OK.
9 Click Close to close the Page Setup Manager.
The drawing is now black and white because the layout shows a preview of the drawing as it will
be plotted with the monochrome plot style table.
10 Click the Model tab. Note that the model is still displayed in color.

Create a new layout

1 Make the Viewport layer the current layer.
2 Click Tools menu ➤ Wizards ➤ Create Layout.

154 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

 The Create Layout wizard guides you through the creation of a layout.
3 In the Create Layout wizard, on the Begin page, enter a name for the new layout. Type Elevation
and Floor Plan. Click Next.
4 On the Printer page, select the printer that you want to use to plot this layout. Select DWF6
ePlot.pc3. Click Next.
For this tutorial, you will plot the drawing to a DWF file rather than to a plotter. DWF (Design
Web Format) files are convenient for distributing drawings using email, FTP sites, project
websites, or CDs. They can be viewed using the free Autodesk® DWF Viewer. DWF files are
smaller, faster, and provide greater resolution than other popular options.
5 On the Paper Size page, the paper sizes available in the list are based on the printer that you
selected. Select Letter or ANSI A (8.5 × 11.0 inches) for the paper size. Make sure that Paper Size
in Units lists a width of 11.0 inches and a height of 8.5 inches. Click Next.
6 On the Orientation page, click Portrait for that orientation. Click Next.
7 On the Title Block page, click None from the list of available title blocks. Click Next. (You insert
a title block once the layout is created.)
8 On the Define Viewports page, under Viewport Setup, click Array. Leave the Viewport Scale as
Scaled to Fit. (You change the scale later.) In the Rows box, type 2. In the Columns box, type 1.
In the Spacing Between Rows box, type 0.25. In the Spacing Between Columns box, type 0.1. This
creates two viewports, vertically aligned, with a gap between them. Click Next.

select the
Array option.

specify 2 rows
with 1 column.

9 On the Pick Location page, select Select Location. In the drawing area, click and drag to create a
rectangular layout viewport that is just inside the printable area (the dashed lines).
10 On the Finish page, click Finish to complete the creation of the new layout and viewports.
Notice that two viewports have been created.

Plot from a Layout | 155

Insert a title block into a layout
1 Make sure that you are on the Elevation and Floor Plan layout tab.
2 Make the Title Block layer the current layer.
3 Click Insert menu ➤ Block.
4 In the Insert dialog box, in the Name list, click Letter (portrait).
5 Under Insertion Point, make sure that the Specify On-screen check box is checked.
6 Under Scale, make sure that the Specify On-screen check box is cleared. If necessary, in the X, Y,
and Z boxes, type 1 to set the layout to be plotted full scale.
7 Under Rotation, make sure that the Specify On-screen check box is cleared. If necessary, in the
Angle box, type 0 to keep the title block horizontal.
8 Click OK.
9 Move the cursor to center the title block, and then click to place it on the layout.

Set up the viewports to plot

Now that the layout viewports have been created, you specify the scale of the model space view
displayed in each viewport. To change the scale of a viewport, you change the zoom magnification
of the view. To change the portion of the model space drawing displayed in the viewport without
changing the scale, you pan the view.
1 Select both of the viewports by clicking their borders.
2 On the Modify menu, click Properties.
3 In the Properties palette, click Layer and select the Viewports layer from the drop-down list.

156 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

4 In the Properties palette, click the Standard Scale box and select 3/32"=1' from the drop-down list
of scales.
5 The model space objects are scaled correctly for plotting at 3/32"=1' (1:128).
6 Double-click inside the top viewport to switch to model space. Pan the image in the viewport
until only the elevation view is displayed.
7 Click inside the bottom viewport to make it current. Pan the image in the viewport until only
the floor plan is displayed.
8 Click Format menu ➤ Layer.
9 In the Layer Properties Manager, in the Name column, select the Viewports layer. In the Plot
column, click the Plot/No Plot icon to turn off plotting for the Viewport layer. Click OK.
10 Double-click anywhere outside the viewports to return to paper space. Then lock both viewports.
Plotting is turned off for the viewport borders, but the objects displayed in the viewport are still
plotted. Alternatively, you could have turned off the Viewport layer.

Plot the layout

Now that you have created a layout and have prepared the layout viewports for plotting, you are
ready to plot the drawing.
1 Click File menu ➤ Plot.
The plotter you chose in the wizard is still selected.

Plot from a Layout | 157

2 If necessary, click the > button at the bottom-right corner of the Plot dialog box to display more
plot options.
3 Under Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments), in the Name list, select the monochrome.ctb file.
4 Under Plot Area, click Extents.
This option plots all objects on the layout tab regardless of location.
5 Under Drawing Orientation, click Portrait.
6 Under Plot Scale, set the scale of the plot to 1:1.
7 Under Plot Offset, click Center the Plot.
8 Click Preview at the bottom of the dialog box. After previewing the plot, press ESC. Click OK to
close the Plot dialog box and plot the drawing to the DWF file.
You could now send the DWF file to a client for review with the Autodesk DWF Viewer, which is
available free on the Autodesk website.
9 Click File menu ➤ Save As. In the Save Drawing As dialog box, enter Plan Complete in the File
Name box, and then click Save.

To get started
Action Menu Toolbar

Create a new layout Insert ➤ Layout Layouts

Create a layout viewport View ➤ Viewports ➤ 1 Viewport Layouts or

Viewports

Scale a view in a layout viewport Tools ➤ Properties Viewports

Add a plotter or modify a plotter File ➤ Plotter Manager

configuration

Override properties when plotting File ➤ Plot Style Manager

Restore saved settings for plotting File ➤ Page Setup Manager Layouts

Plot a layout File ➤ Plot Standard

Help system
LAYOUT, LAYOUTWIZARD, MVIEW, PLOTTERMANAGER, OPTIONS, PAGESETUP, PLOTSTAMP, PLOT,
STYLESMANAGER, PLOTSTYLE, CONVERTPSTYLES, CONVERTCTB

158 | Chapter 11 Create Layouts and Plots

Review and Recall

1 What types of objects are commonly found on a layout tab?

2 How do you specify the scale of a layout viewport?
3 How do you turn off the display of layout viewport borders?
4 How can you use a plot style table?
5 What is a fast way to save plot settings by name?

Plot from a Layout | 159

160
Glossary

Commands associated with definitions are shown in parentheses at the end of the definition.

Term Definition
absolute coordinates Coordinate values measured from a coordinate system’s origin
point. See also origin, relative coordinates, user coordinate
system (UCS), world coordinates, and world coordinate system
(WCS).
aligned dimension A dimension that measures the distance between two points at any
angle. The dimension line is parallel to the line connecting the
dimension’s definition points. (DIMALIGNED)
angle override Locks the cursor for the next point entered. To specify an angle
override, enter a left angle bracket (<) followed by an angle
whenever a command prompts you to specify a point.
angular dimension A dimension that measures angles or arc segments and consists of
text, extension lines, and leaders. (DIMANGULAR)
angular unit The unit of measurement for an angle. Angular units can be
measured in decimal degrees, degrees/minutes/seconds, grads, and
radians.
annotation Text, dimensions, tolerances, symbols, or notes.
array 1. Multiple copies of selected objects in a rectangular or polar
(radial) pattern. (ARRAY) 2. A collection of data items, each
identified by a subscript or key, arranged so a computer can
examine the collection and retrieve data with the key.
arrowhead A terminator, such as an arrowhead, slash, or dot, at the end of a
dimension line showing where a dimension begins and ends.
associative dimension A dimension that automatically adapts as the associated geometry is
modified. Controlled by the DIMASSOC system variable. See also
exploded dimension.
associative hatching Hatching that conforms to its bounding objects such that modifying
the bounding objects automatically adjusts the hatch. (BHATCH)
attribute definition An object that is included in a block definition to store alphanumeric
data about the block. Attribute values can be predefined or specified
when the block is inserted. Attribute data can be extracted from a
drawing and inserted into external files. (ATTDEF)
Term Definition
Auto-hide A palette setting that causes palettes to hide automatically when the
cursor moves off of it and to open automatically when the cursor
moves onto its title bar.
baseline dimensions Multiple dimensions measured from the same baseline. Also called
parallel dimensions.
base point 1. In the context of editing grips, the grip that changes to a solid
color when selected to specify the focus of the subsequent editing
operation. 2. A point for relative distance and angle when copying,
moving, and rotating objects. 3. The insertion base point of the
current drawing. (BASE) 4. The insertion base point for a block
definition. (BLOCK)
block A generic term for one or more objects that are combined to create
a single object. Commonly used for either block definition or block
reference. See also block definition and block reference. (BLOCK)
block definition The name, base point, and set of objects that are combined and
stored in the symbol table of a drawing. See also block and block
reference.
block definition table The nongraphical data area of a drawing file that stores block
definitions.
block instance See block reference.
block reference A compound object that is inserted in a drawing and displays the
data stored in a block definition. Also called instance. See also block
and block definition. (INSERT)
B-spline curve A blended piecewise polynomial curve passing near a given set of
control points. (SPLINE)
BYBLOCK A special object property used to specify that the object inherits the
color or linetype of any block containing it. See also BYLAYER.
BYLAYER A special object property used to specify that the object inherits the
color or linetype associated with its layer. See also BYBLOCK.
command alias A shortcut for a command. For example, CP is an alias for COPY, and
Z is an alias for ZOOM. You define aliases in the PGP file.
command line A text area reserved for keyboard input, prompts, and messages.
command window A text area that displays the command line and a history of prompts
and messages.
continued dimension A type of linear dimension that uses the second extension line origin
of a selected dimension as its first extension line origin, breaking one
long dimension into shorter segments that add up to the total
measurement. Also called chain dimension. (DIMCONTINUE)
crosshairs A type of cursor consisting of two lines that intersect.

162 | Glossary
Term Definition
crossing selection A rectangular area drawn to select objects fully or partly within its
borders. See also window selection.
cursor See crosshairs.
cursor menu See shortcut menu.
CTB file A color-dependent plot style table.
default A predefined value for a program input or parameter. Default values
and options are denoted by angle brackets (<>).
definition table The nongraphical data area of a drawing file that stores block
definitions.
DesignCenter Browses, finds, and previews content, and inserts content, which
includes blocks, hatches, and external references (xrefs).
(ADCENTER)
digital signature Identifies an individual or an organization through a digital ID
(certificate), and enables you to validate (verify the authenticity of) a
file. (SIGVALIDATE)
dimension style A named group of dimension settings that determines the
appearance of the dimension and simplifies the setting of dimension
system variables. (DIMSTYLE)
dimension text The measurement value of dimensioned objects.
dimension variables A set of numeric values, text strings, and settings that control
dimensioning features. (DIMSTYLE)
direct distance entry A method to specify a second point by first moving the cursor to
indicate direction and then entering a distance.
drawing area The area in which your drawings are displayed and modified. The
size of the drawing area varies, depending on the size of the
application window and on how many toolbars and other elements
are displayed.
drawing extents The smallest rectangle that contains all objects in a drawing,
positioned on the screen to display the largest possible view of all
objects. (ZOOM)
drawing limits See grid limits.
drawing template file A drawing file with preestablished settings for new drawings.
Drawing template files have a DWT extension.
drawing units The unit of measurement that is used in a drawing. Depending on
the drawing, one drawing unit may equal one inch, one millimeter,
one kilometer, one mile, or some other distance.

Glossary | 163
Term Definition
DWF For Design Web Format. A highly compressed file format that is
created from a DWG file. DWF files are easy to publish and view on
the Web. See also DWG, DWT, and DXF.
DWT For drawing template. A drawing file that contains standard settings
to be used when creating new drawings. See also DWG.
DXF For drawing interchange format. An ASCII or binary file format of an
AutoCAD drawing file for exporting drawings to other applications
or for importing drawings from other applications. See also DWF,
DWG, and DWT.
explode To disassemble a complex object, such as a block, dimension, or
polyline, into simpler objects. In the case of a block, the block
definition is unchanged. The block reference is replaced by the
components of the block. See also block, block definition, and
block reference. (EXPLODE)
extents See drawing extents.
external reference (xref) A drawing file referenced by another drawing. (XREF)
fill A solid color covering an area bounded by lines or curves. (FILL)
floating viewports See layout viewports.
font A character set, which includes letters, numbers, punctuation marks,
and symbols of a distinctive proportion and design.
freeze A setting that suppresses the display of objects on selected layers.
Objects on frozen layers are not displayed, regenerated, or plotted.
Freezing layers shortens regenerating time. See also thaw. (LAYER)
geometry All graphical objects such as lines, circles, arcs, polylines, and
dimensions. Nongraphical objects, such as linetypes, lineweights,
text styles, and layers are not considered geometry. See also named
object.
graphics area See drawing area.
graphics screen See drawing area.
grid An area covered with regularly spaced dots to aid drawing. The
spacing between grid dots is adjustable. Grid dots are not plotted.
See also grid limits. (GRID)
grid limits The user-defined rectangular boundary of the drawing area covered
by dots when the grid is turned on. Also called drawing limits.
(LIMITS)
Grip modes The editing capabilities activated when grips are displayed on an
object: stretching, moving, rotating, scaling, and mirroring.

164 | Glossary
Term Definition
grips Small squares that appear on objects you select. After selecting the
grip, you edit the object by dragging it with the pointing device
instead of entering commands.
i-drop A method by which a drawing file can be dragged from a web page
and inserted into another drawing.
Info palette Quick Help in the Info palette continually monitors the commands
in progress and displays information that is directly related to the
active command or dialog box. (ASSIST)
instance See block reference.
island An enclosed area within a hatched area.
layer A logical grouping of data that are like transparent acetate overlays
on a drawing. You can view layers individually or in combination.
(LAYER)
layout The tabbed environment in which you create and design paper
space layout viewports to be plotted. Multiple layouts can be
created for each drawing.
layout viewports Objects that are created in paper space that display views. See also
paper space. (VPORTS)
limits See grid limits.
line font See linetype.
line width See lineweight.
linetype How a line or type of curve is displayed. For example, a continuous
line has a different linetype than a dashed line. Also called line font.
(LINETYPE)
lineweight A width value that can be assigned to all graphical objects except
TrueType® fonts and raster images.
mirror To create a new version of an existing object by reflecting it
symmetrically with respect to a prescribed line or plane. (MIRROR)
mode A software setting or operating state.
model A two- or three-dimensional representation of an object.
model viewports A type of display that splits the drawing area into one or more
adjacent rectangular viewing areas. See also layout viewports and
viewport. (VPORTS)
model space One of the two primary spaces in which objects reside. Typically, a
geometric model is placed in a three-dimensional coordinate space
called model space. A final layout of specific views and annotations
of this model is placed in paper space. See also paper space.
(MSPACE)

Glossary | 165
Term Definition
named object Describes the various types of nongraphical information, such as
styles and definitions, stored with a drawing. Named objects include
linetypes, layers, dimension styles, text styles, block definitions,
layouts, views, and viewport configurations. Named objects are
stored in definition (symbol) tables.
node An object snap specification to locate points, dimension definition
points, and dimension text origins.
NURBS For nonuniform rational B-spline curve. A B-spline curve or surface
defined by a series of weighted control points and one or more knot
vectors. See also B-spline curve.
object One or more graphical elements, such as text, dimensions, lines,
circles, or polylines, treated as a single element for creation,
manipulation, and modification. Formerly called entity.
object properties Settings that control the appearance and geometric characteristics
of objects. Properties that are common to all objects include color,
layer, linetype, linetype scale, and 3D thickness. (PROPERTIES)
Object Snap markers A geometric symbol that is displayed when the cursor moves over
an object. See also object snap mode.
object snap menu The menu that is displayed in the drawing area at the cursor
location when you hold down SHIFT and right-click the pointing
device. Also called a shortcut menu, it is defined in the POP0 section
of aclt.mnu. See also shortcut menu.
Object Snap mode Methods for selecting commonly needed points on an object while
you create or edit a drawing. See also running object snap and
object snap override.
object snap override Turning off or changing a running Object Snap mode for input of a
single point. See also Object Snap mode and running object snap.
origin The point where coordinate axes intersect. For example, the origin
of a Cartesian coordinate system is where the X, Y, and Z axes meet
at 0,0,0.
Ortho mode Limits pointing device input to horizontal or vertical (relative to the
current snap angle and the user coordinate system). See also snap
angle and user coordinate system (UCS). (ORTHO)
page setup A method of naming and saving plot settings. See also zoom.
(PAGESETUP)
pan To shift the view of a drawing without changing magnification. See
also zoom. (PAN)

166 | Glossary
Term Definition
paper space One of two primary spaces in which objects reside. Paper space is
used for creating a finished layout for printing or plotting, as
opposed to doing drafting or design work. You design your paper
space viewports using a layout tab. Model space is used for creating
the drawing. You design your model using the Model tab. See also
model space. (PSPACE)
pick button The button on a pointing device that is used to select objects or
specify points on the screen. For example, on a two-button mouse,
the pick button is the left button.
pickbox The square cursor used to select an object in the drawing area.
plan view A view orientation from a point on the positive Z axis toward the
origin (0,0,0). (PLAN)
pline See polyline.
point 1. A location in three-dimensional space specified by X, Y, and Z
coordinate values. 2. An object consisting of a single coordinate
location. (POINT)
pointing device A device, such as a mouse or a digitizing puck, that can be used to
interact with the interface and create and edit drawing objects in
the drawing area. A pointing device usually has several buttons,
some of which may be customized to perform commands you
specify.
polar array Objects copied around a specified center point a specified number
of times. (ARRAY)
PolarSnap A precision drawing tool used to snap to incremental distances
along the polar tracking alignment path. See also polar tracking.
polar tracking A precision drawing tool that displays temporary alignment paths
defined by user-specified polar angles. See also Polar Snap.
polyline An object composed of one or more connected line segments or
circular arcs treated as a single object. Also called pline. (PLINE,
PEDIT)
plot style An object property that specifies a set of overrides for color,
dithering, gray scale, pen assignments, screening, linetype,
lineweight, endstyles, joinstyles, and fill styles. Plot styles are applied
at plot time.
plot style table A set of plot styles. Plot styles are defined in plot style tables and
apply to objects only when the plot style table is attached to a
layout or viewport.
prompt A message on the command line that asks for information or
requests action such as specifying a point.
properties See object properties.

Glossary | 167
Term Definition
properties palette Lists and changes properties of the selected object or set of objects
or, if no objects are selected, the values of default properties
common to all objects. (PROPERTIES)
purge A feature that removes unused definitions such as block definitions,
layers, and text styles from a drawing. (PURGE)
relative coordinates Coordinates specified in relation to previous coordinates.
running object snap Setting an Object Snap mode so it continues for subsequent
selections. See also Object Snap mode and object snap override.
(OSNAP)
scale 1. The proportional size of an object compared with other objects.
2. The display size of the components of noncontinuous linetypes
and hatches. 3. The apparent size of objects in a view with respect
to a drawing sheet. (SCALE, HPSCALE, LTSCALE, CELTSCALE,
ZOOM)
selection set One or more selected objects that a command can act upon at the
same time.
shortcut keys Keys and key combinations that start commands; for example,
CTRL + S saves a file. The function keys (F1, F2, and so on) are also
shortcut keys. Also known as accelerator keys.
shortcut menu The menu displayed at your cursor location when you right-click
your pointing device. The shortcut menu and the options it provides
depend on the pointer location and other conditions, such as
whether an object is selected or a command is in progress.
snap See snap angle, snap grid, snap resolution, and Polar Snap.
snap angle The invisible grid that locks the pointer into alignment with the grid
points according to the spacing set by Snap. Snap grid does not
necessarily correspond to the visible grid, which is controlled
separately by GRID. (SNAP)
snap grid The invisible grid that locks the pointer into alignment with the grid
points according to the spacing set by Snap. Snap grid does not
necessarily correspond to the visible grid, which is controlled
separately by GRID. (SNAP)
Snap mode A mode for locking a pointing device into alignment with an
invisible rectangular grid. When Snap mode is on, the screen
crosshairs and all input coordinates are snapped to the nearest point
on the grid. The snap resolution defines the spacing of this grid. See
also Object Snap mode. (SNAP)
spline See B-spline curve and NURBS.
status bar The area at the bottom of the application window that contains
buttons controlling the mode of operation of the program and
displays the coordinates of the cursor location in the drawing area.

168 | Glossary
Term Definition
strings A sequence of text characters entered at a prompt or in a dialog
box.
STB file For plot style table file. Contains plot styles and their characteristics.
symbol A representation of an item commonly used in drawings. See block.
symbol library A collection of block definitions stored in a single drawing file. See
also block library.
symbol table See definition table and block definition table.
system variable A name similar to a command used as a mode, size, or limit. Read-
only system variables, such as DWGNAME, cannot be modified
directly by the user.
template drawing A drawing file with preestablished settings for new drawings such as
aclt.dwt and acltiso.dwt; however, any drawing can be used as a
template.
text style A named, saved collection of settings that determines the
appearance of text characters—for example, stretched, compressed,
oblique, mirrored, or set in a vertical column.
thaw A setting that displays previously frozen layers. See also freeze.
(LAYER)
tiled viewports See model viewports.
tool palette tabbed areas within the Tool Palettes window that provide an
efficient method for organizing, sharing, and placing blocks and
hatches.
toolbar Part of the interface containing icons that represent commands.
tree view A hierarchical list that can be expanded or collapsed to control the
amount of information displayed. Tree views are available in
DesignCenter, the Purge dialog box, and the Help system.
UCS See user coordinate system (UCS).
UCS icon An icon that indicates the orientation of the UCS axes. (UCSICON)
user coordinate system A user-defined coordinate system that defines the orientation of the
(UCS) X, Y, and Z axes in 3D space. The UCS determines the default
placement of geometry in a drawing. See also world coordinate
system (WCS).
vertex A location where edges or polyline segments meet.
view A graphical representation of a model from a specific location
(viewpoint) in space. See also viewport. (VPOINT, DVIEW, VIEW)
viewport See model viewports and layout viewports See also view.
(VPORTS)

Glossary | 169
Term Definition
window selection A rectangular area specified in the drawing area to select multiple
objects at the same time. See also crossing selection and polygon
window selection.
xref See external reference (xref).
zoom To reduce or increase the apparent magnification of the drawing
area. (ZOOM)

170 | Glossary
Index

associative dimensions, 19, 134, 161

A associative hatches, 121, 161
absolute coordinates, 76, 161 attribute definitions, 161
accelerator keys (shortcut keys), 168 Autodesk DWF Viewer, 155
actions, undoing, 39 Auto-hide feature, 30, 36, 61, 162
Add-A-Plotter wizard, 151 AutoSnap markers, 78, 83
aliases, command, 36, 162 axes for coordinates, 76
aligned dimensions, 132, 142, 161
aligning text, 128
analyzing drawings, 113
angles B
angle overrides, 82, 161 B-spline curves, 162
angular units, 161 backwards-reading text, 128
calculating, 113 base points, 92, 95, 162
hatch patterns, 123 baseline dimensions, 132, 143
polar coordinates, 76 black-and-white plotting, 154
polar tracking, 81 blank areas within hatches (islands), 122, 165
rotation angles, 95 block attributes, 118
specifying for arcs, 70 block definition tables, 162
text characters, 128 block definitions, 162
angular dimensions, 132, 134, 143, 161 block instances (block references), 162
angular units, 161 block libraries, 118, 120
annotations, 134, 139, 161 block references, 162
architectural drawing unit format, 50 blocks, 116, 118, 162
architectural templates, 49 block attributes, 118
arcs block definition tables, 162
drawing, 70 block definitions, 162
drawing polylines with, 68 block references, 162
filleting, 71, 96 inserting, 119
regenerating view of, 44 moving, 120
areas overview, 17
finding for objects, 102 sources of, 118
selection areas, 88 title blocks, 156
arrays, 155, 161 typical uses, 118
arrowheads, 134, 140, 161 See also block libraries
bold fonts, 128 coordinates and coordinate systems (continued)
boundaries origin point, 76, 104
editing, 98 overview, 76
extending objects, 90 polar coordinates, 76
hatched areas, 122 specifying, 13
polylines, 103 COPY command, 86
text objects, 126 copying
trim boundaries, 108 multiple copies of objects, 93
buttons, toolbar, 35 objects, 86, 92
BYBLOCK property, 162 properties to other objects, 110
BYLAYER property, 63, 65, 66, 162 corners, filleting, 96
counter-clockwise rotation, 95
crosshairs, 162
See also cursors
C crossing selection areas, 88, 163
calculating distances, angles, or coordinates, 113 CTB files (color-dependent plot style tables), 152,
calibrating plotters, 152 163
callouts (leader lines), 19, 134, 139 current layers, 54, 63
Cancel command, 39 current linetypes, 64
Cartesian coordinates, 76, 77 current object scale settings, 65
center marks, 132, 138, 140 cursor menus. See shortcut menus
center snap, 80 cursors
centering views, 136 dynamic prompts displayed by, 37
centerlines, 138, 140 panning with, 43
chain dimensions (continued dimensions), 132, pickbox cursor, 83
143, 162 snapping to a grid, 74
chord length, specifying for arcs, 70 zooming in or out with, 42
circles, 38, 44, 70, 96, 105 cutting edges, 90
circumscribed polygons, 69
closing polylines, 68
color-dependent plot style tables (CTB), 152, 163
colors
D
applying to objects, 63 DC Online tab (in DesignCenter), 120
assigning to layers, 7, 54, 62 decimals
color-dependent plot style tables, 152, 163 drawing unit format, 50
command aliases, 36, 162 rounding on screen, 51
command line, 36, 162 defaults
command window, 32, 36, 162 defined, 163
commands property settings, 61
aliases, 36, 162 definition tables, 163
canceling or undoing, 39 deleting objects, 89
choosing, 34 delta, calculating, 113
dynamic prompts, 37 deselecting objects, 88
editing commands, 88 Design Web Format (DWF) files, 151, 155
ending, 39 DesignCenter, 32, 163
help and information, 26 accessing and inserting blocks, 17
options, 36 DC Online tab, 120
repeating, 39 hatch patterns in, 121
starting at command line, 36 sources of block libraries, 118
context-sensitive Help, 29 diameter dimensions, 132, 143
continued dimensions, 132, 143, 162 diameters, 70
coordinates and coordinate systems digital signatures, 163
absolute and relative coordinates, 76, 77, 161, dimension lines, 134
168 Dimension Style Manager dialog box, 140
calculating delta, 113 dimension styles, 140, 163
Cartesian coordinates, 76 dimension text, 134, 163
dynamic input and, 77 dimension variables, 163

172 | Index
dimensions and dimensioning drawing templates. See templates
accuracy, 13 drawing units, 3, 49, 50, 163
associative dimensions, 19, 134 Drawing Units dialog box, 51
center marks and centerlines, 138, 140 drawings and drawing files
creating, 135, 142 coordinate systems, 76
dimension styles, 140, 163 displaying entire drawings, 42
dimension variables, 163 grids, 74
editing dimensions, 142 inserting blocks, 119
editing properties, 62 new drawings, starting, 48
elements of dimensions, 134 panning view, 43
grips, 142 plotting, 153
layers for, 135, 136 revising, 21
moving dimensions, 142 revision clouds, 112
overview, 134 Snap mode, 74
saving styles in templates, 9 templates, 48
scaling, 149 touring, 56
standards for, 141 zooming in or out, 15
text, 140, 163 drivers, printer, 151
types of, 19, 134, 142 DWF (Design Web Format) files, 151, 155, 164
units of measurement, 141 DWT files. See templates
DIMSCALE system variable, 137 DXF files, 164
direct distance entry, 81, 93, 163 DYN button, 77
displaying dynamic input, 77
command options, 37
display scale, 136
grid, 74
Info palette, 30 E
layers, 55 editing objects
properties, 61 associative hatches and, 121
Properties palette, 61 copying properties, 110
regenerating jagged display, 44 dimensions, 142
toolbars, 35 duplicating objects, 92
viewport properties, 150 erasing objects, 89
DIST command, 86, 113 extending objects, 90
distances filleting, 96
calculating, 113 grip edit mode, 111
direct distance entry, 81, 163 mirroring, 94
measuring, 86 object boundaries, 98
polar coordinates, 76 offsetting copies, 93
polar tracking, 81 overview, 21
dividing polylines, 69 precision editing, 97
docking properties, 61, 109
toolbars, 35 revising drawings, 21
Drafting Settings dialog box, 75, 79 revision clouds, 21, 112
Draw toolbar, 32 selecting objects to edit, 88
drawing area, 32, 163 text, 126
drawing extents, 163 text styles, 128
drawing interchange format (DXF) files, 164 trimming objects, 90
drawing limits (grid limits), 74, 164 editing plotter configurations, 152
drawing objects editing text, 126, 128
arcs, 70 ellipses, 96
circles, 38, 70 ending commands, 39
filleting, 96 Endpoint object snap, 80, 107
lines, 37, 67 endpoints, 68, 70
overview, 11 engineering drawing unit format, 50
polygons, 67, 69 entities. See objects
polylines, 67 ERASE command, 89
rectangles, 68 erasing layout viewports, 150
drawing scale. See scales and scaling

Index | 173
ESC key, 34 hatches and hatch patterns (continued)
EXPLODE command, 69 points for creating, 122
exploding objects, 69, 164 sources of, 121
EXTEND command, 90 height of text characters, 128
extending objects, 90, 100 Help
extension lines, 134, 140 command Help, 26
extents, drawing, 164 Help system, 25
external references (xrefs), 164 procedural, 26, 29
Quick Help feature, 29
table of contents (Contents tab), 27
tutorials, 25
F hiding
FILLET command, 71, 86 Info palette, 30
filleting objects, 71, 86, 96 layers, 55, 63
fills, 121, 164 Properties palette, 61
fitting options for dimensions, 141 toolbars, 35
flipping objects (mirroring objects), 86, 94, 106 hook lines, 139
floating toolbars, 35 horizontal alignment of text, 128
floating viewports (layout viewports), 146, 165 horizontal dimensions, 132
fonts, 128, 164
formatting
dimensions, 140
drawing units, 50
I
Text Formatting toolbar, 126 i-drop, 165
fractions, 50, 51 imperial measurement drawing template files, 49
freezing layers, 55, 164 Info palette, 24, 30, 165
In-Place Text Editor, 126
inquiry commands, 113
inscribed polygons, 69
G Insert dialog box, 120
geometry, 164 inserting blocks, 119, 120, 156
global scale factor for linetypes, 65 instances (block references), 165
graphics area of screen (drawing area), 32, 163 intersection snap, 80, 99
grid limits, 74, 164 islands, 122, 165
grids, 164 ISO standards, 48, 121
creating outlines with, 83 italic fonts, 128
displaying or hiding, 74
grid limits, 74, 164
overview, 74
spacing, 74
J
turning off and on, 74 jagged display, 44
grip modes, 164 JIS standards, 48
grips, 165 JOIN command, 69
block grips, 120 joining polylines, 69
displaying, 88
editing dimensions, 142
editing objects, 111
grip modes, 164 K
viewport grips, 150 keyboard shortcuts (shortcut keys), 168
keywords in Help system, 25

H
handles (move handles), 35 L
hatches and hatch patterns, 116, 121 labels in model and paper space, 128
associative hatches, 121 Layer Properties Manager, 54, 55, 63, 149
inserting, 121
islands within boundaries, 122

174 | Index
layers, 165 lines (continued)
color assignments, 7, 54, 62 parallel, 67
current layers, 54, 63 perpendicular, 81
dimensions on, 135, 136 polylines, 67
editing properties, 62 tapering, 69
freezing, 55 Linetype Manager, 64
hiding or displaying, 55, 63, 149 linetypes, 165
Layer Properties Manager, 54, 55, 63, 149 editing properties, 109
Layers toolbar, 32, 61 global scale factor, 65
linetype assignments, 7, 65 identifying objects with, 46
locking, 55 layer assignments, 7, 65
naming, 7 Linetype Manager, 64
organizing drawings with, 46, 54 overview, 64
overview, 7, 54 saving styles in templates, 9
plot styles, 7 scaling, 64, 65
properties and, 60, 62 Lineweight Settings dialog box, 66
rearranging, 54 lineweights, 7, 46, 66, 165
viewports layer, 156 locking
Layers toolbar, 32, 61 layers, 55
layout tab, 52 toolbars, 35
layout tabs, 32
layout viewports, 146, 165
layouts, 146, 165
compared to models, 52 M
display scale, 136 magnifying view in viewports. See zooming in or out
linetypes in, 65 markup revision clouds, 112
overview, 5, 52 matching properties between objects, 110
page setups and, 153 measurement units, 3, 49, 50, 141
plotting from, 153 mechanical drawing templates, 49
scale vs. drawing units, 3, 50 mechanical drawing unit format, 104
switching to model space, 53 menu bar, 32
text size and, 129 menus, 34, 35, 168
viewports, 146, 165 metric measurement template files, 49
leader lines (callouts), 19, 134, 139 midpoint snap, 80
leader objects, 134 mirroring objects, 86, 94, 106, 165
left mouse button, 34 Model tab, 32, 52
lengthening objects, 90 model viewports, 165
libraries models and model space, 5, 146, 165
block libraries, 17, 118 analyzing drawings, 113
DesignCenter, 120 compared to layouts, 52
DesignCenter Online, 120 dimensioning and, 136
limits, grid, 74, 164 drawing in model space, 52
line fonts. See linetypes formulas for text size, 129
line widths (lineweights), 7, 46, 66, 165 linetypes in, 65
linear dimensions, 132, 134, 142 notes and labels in, 128
linear measurements, 50 scale vs. drawing units, 3, 50
lines switching to layouts, 53
angles, 82 switching to paper space, 150
centerlines, 138, 140 text size in, 129
dimension styles, 140 viewports, 165
drawing, 37, 67 zooming in or out, 156
exact length, 81 modes, defined, 165
extension lines on dimensions, 134 mouse devices, 34, 167
filleting, 96 move handles on toolbars, 35
hook lines, 139 moving
leader lines, 134, 139 blocks, 120
linetypes. See linetypes dimensions, 142
lineweights, 7, 46, 66, 165 objects, 95
offsetting, 11

Index | 175
moving (continued) objects (continued)
panning view, 43 linetypes, 64
rotating objects, 95 lineweights, 66
text in dimensions, 134 mirroring, 94
toolbars, 35 moving, 95
multiple copies of objects, 93 offsetting copies, 93
properties, 60, 109, 166
rotating, 95
selecting, 88
N trimming edges, 90
named layers, 7 oblique text, 128
named objects, 166 OFFSET command, 67, 86
named plot style tables, 152 offsetting objects, 11, 67, 86, 93, 104
navigation opening
Help system display, 26 block libraries, 120
Info palette information, 29 templates, 49
New Features Workshop, 24 ordinate dimensions, 132, 134, 142
New Page Setup dialog box, 154 orientation
nodes, 166 pages, 153
nonuniform rational B-spline curves, 166 text, 128
notes, in model and paper space, 128 origin points, 76, 104, 166
NURBS (nonuniform rational B-spline curves), 166 Ortho mode, 166
overlays, 7
overriding dimension styles, 140

O
object properties, 166
object snap markers, 166
P
Object Snap menu, 35, 78, 166 page orientation, 153
Object Snap mode, 166 Page Setup Manager, 153
object snap overrides, 166 page setups, 146, 153, 166
object snaps page size, 153
accuracy and, 13 PAN command, 43
AutoSnap markers, 83 panning, 15, 43, 166
creating outlines with, 83 paper size, 152, 155
cycling through snap points, 78 paper space, 5, 167
dimensions and, 135 compared to model space, 52
markers, 166 notes and labels in, 128
overriding, 166 scaling linetypes in, 65
overview, 74 switching to model space, 53, 150
running object snaps, 79 text size and, 129
snap angles, 168 parallel dimensions (baseline dimensions), 132, 143
snap grid, 168 parallel lines, 67
Snap mode, 166, 168 PAT files, 121
spacing, 74 PC3 files, 151
types of, 80 perpendicular lines, 81
objects, 166 perpendicular snap, 80
associative dimensions, 134 pick button, 34, 167
colors, 63 pickbox cursor, 83, 167
copying properties, 110 plan views, 167
displaying on layers, 149 plines. See polylines
drawing, 11 Plot dialog box, 153
duplicating, 92 plot scales, 153
editing properties, 61, 62 Plot Style Manager, 152
erasing, 89 plot style tables (STB) files, 152, 167, 169
filleting, 96 plot styles, 7, 146, 152, 167
grips, 111 plotter configuration (PC3) files, 151
hatch patterns, 121 Plotter Configuration Editor, 152

176 | Index
Plotter Manager, 151 pull-down menus, 34
plotters and plotting purging, 168
calibration, 152
configuring plotters, 151
driver support for, 151
page setups, 153 Q
plot styles, 146, 152 Quadrant object snap, 80, 106
Plotter Configuration Editor, 152 Quick Help feature, 29
plotting from layouts, 153 Quick Leader dimensions, 132
previewing, 153 Quick Reference card, 24
printing viewport borders, 150
scaling in model space, 157
setting up, 153
Plotters folder, 151 R
pointing devices, 34, 42, 44, 167 radius
points, 167 filleting objects, 96
absolute coordinates, 76, 161 specifying for arcs, 70
AutoSnap markers, 78, 83 specifying for circles, 70
calculating distance or coordinates, 113 specifying for polygons, 69
coordinate systems. See coordinates and radius dimensions, 132, 134, 143
coordinate systems raster files, 151
origin points, 76, 104, 166 raster graphics quality, 151
polar coordinates, 76 rectangles, 68
relative coordinates, 77, 168 rectangular selection areas, 88
specifying for arcs, 70
redline drawings, 112
specifying for circles, 70
regenerating jagged display, 44
polar arrays, 167
relative coordinates, 77, 168
polar coordinates, 76
relative values, 76
polar tracking, 13, 81, 167
removing objects, 89
PolarSnap, 104, 167
repeating commands, 39, 93
polygons, 67, 69
resizing
polylines, 67, 167
linetypes, 65
closing, 68
text objects, 126
dividing or joining, 69
toolbars, 35
filleting, 96
viewports, 150
highlighting boundaries, 103
revising drawings, 21, 112
widths, 69
See also editing objects
ports, 152
revision clouds, 21, 112
PostScript files, 151
right mouse button, 34
previewing plot areas and settings, 153
right-clicking actions, 34
printers
rotating objects, 95, 120
calibrating, 152
running object snap, 79, 168
plot styles and plot style tables, 152
Plotter Configuration Editor, 152
selecting plotters, 153
support for, 151
procedural Help, 26, 29
S
prompts, 36, 37, 167 saving
properties, 60 files as DWF files, 155
assigning, 60 files in other formats, 151
copying to other objects, 110 scales and scaling, 168
editing, 62, 109 dimensions, 137
layer assignments, 60 drawing units compared to scale, 3, 50
matching, 110 hatch patterns, 123
Properties palette, 61, 109, 168 linetypes, 64, 65
Properties toolbar, 32, 61, 109 lineweights and, 66
viewing, 62 overview, 3
Properties palette, 61, 109, 168 plot scales, 153
Properties toolbar, 32, 61 setting display scale, 136

Index | 177
scales and scaling (continued) symbols
text, 129 defined, 17, 169
views in viewports, 5 in dimensions, 140
scientific drawing unit format, 50 See also blocks
secondary dimension styles, 140 system variables, 169
Select Template dialog box, 49
selecting
deselecting objects, 88
objects, 88 T
selection areas, 88 table of contents in Help system, 27
selection sets, 88, 168 tangent method for drawing circles, 70, 105
sharp corners on objects, 96 tangent snap, 80
shortcut keys, 168 tapering lines, 69
shortcut menus, 34, 35, 168 templates, 48, 163, 169
shortcuts drafting standards and, 9
cycling through snap points, 78 DWT files, 164
editing text, 126 opening, 49
shortcut keys, 168 sample files, 49
sizing text
linetypes, 65 annotations, 134, 139
text objects, 126 dimension text, 134, 140, 163
toolbars, 35 In-Place Text Editor, 126
viewports, 150 model vs. paper space, 128
slant of text characters, 128 saving styles in templates, 9
smoothing display, 44 styles, 128, 169
Snap and snapping. See object snaps Text Formatting toolbar, 126
snap angles, 168 viewports and, 129
snap grids, 168 width of, 126
Snap mode, 168 Text Formatting toolbar, 126
solid fills, 121, 164 Text Style dialog box, 128
spacing text styles, 9, 128, 169
grid and snap settings, 74 thawing, 55, 169
hatch patterns, 123 tiled viewports (model viewports), 169
splines, 96, 162, 166 title blocks, 156
STANDARD style, 128, 140 tolerance options for dimensions, 141
Standard toolbar, 32 tool palettes, 32, 169
start points, 68, 70 Tool Palettes window, 32
starting drawings, 48 toolbar buttons, 35
status bar, 32, 168 toolbars, 32, 169
STB files (named plot style tables), 152, 169 hiding or displaying, 35
strings, 169 Layers toolbar, 61
styles locking, 35
dimension styles, 140, 163 moving, 35
drafting standards, 9 overview, 35
extension lines, 140 Properties toolbar, 61
overriding, 140 resizing, 35
plot styles, 152 toolbars docking, 35
text styles, 128 tooltips, 35, 78
Styles toolbar, 32 topics in Help system display, 26
switching transparency of palettes, 30
between model space and paper space, 150 tree views, 169
between models and layouts, 53 trim boundaries, 108
between page setups, 153 TRIM command, 86, 90
symbol libraries, 118, 169 TrueType fonts, 128
DesignCenter Online, 120 tutorial drawing templates, 49
opening, 120

178 | Index
 viewports (continued)
U plotting borders, 150
UCS (user coordinate system), 169 properties, 150
UCS icon, 169 scaling views, 5, 42
undoing actions, 39 sizing, 150
units of measurement zooming in or out, 156
in dimensions, 141 views, 42, 169
drawing units, 3, 50 displaying entire drawings, 42
template files, 49 panning, 15, 43
updating dimensions and leader lines, 134 repositioning, 43
upside-down text, 128 See also viewports
user coordinate system (UCS), 169 visibility of layers, 55
user interface elements, 32

W
V wheel mouse, 34, 42, 44
variables width
dimension variables, 163 polylines, 69
system variables, 169 text characters, 128
vector graphics quality, 151 text objects, 126
vertical alignment of text, 128 window interface elements, 32
vertical dimensions, 132 window selection areas, 88, 170
vertices, 169 Windows printer drivers, 151
viewports, 146
changing settings, 155
creating, 149
display scale, 136 X
displaying layered objects, 149 X and Y values, 76
erasing, 150 xrefs (external references), 163, 170
grips, 150
linetype scaling in, 65
model space and paper space overview, 52
modifying, 149 Z
multiple viewports, 155 ZOOM command, 42
overlapping, 150 zooming in or out, 170
overview, 5 overview, 15, 42
panning, 43 scaling views in viewports, 5, 156

Index | 179
180