CAD Articles Text… Custom Linetypes!!! by Tatiana Machado, Being Civil Sometimes we have the need to create a new custom linetype to denote different lines in our drawing, like water lines, gas lines, fences, etc… For those of you that have some custom linetypes with text and have been moving this LIN file alone from older releases, here is something that you may not know. When we talk about text custom linetype we need to consider: Text Styles, Scale, Rotation, X offset, and Y offset. Probably the rotation is being the most painful one, because is not the same to draw a line from left to right, that from right to left…. So we end up with things like this... Click here to keep reading   AutoCAD Tip: Your template doesn’t have to be complicated By Edwin Prakoso Drawing template is a feature that you should optimize to gain more productivity. Read Brian Benton’s article here: why you should use a template. You might be tempted to add everything you use in your template. It would be nice to have everything when we start our drawing, isn’t it? Wrong. It would only make your template become complicated and become corrupt. Only essentials styles and objects in template It’s necessary to prepare your template so you can start drawing immediately. However, you shouldn’t put everything in your template. If you have all AIA layers in your drawing, you will have more than 500 layers. I seriously doubt that you will use all of them. This will only make us difficult when we need to find a layer. If you put everything inside your template, this will make your template become large and inefficient. Too many objects can also make your drawings corrupt. Some suggestions to keep in your templates: 1.Some settings that are kept in drawing files. 2.Necessary objects like frequently used page setup and title block. 3.Most frequently used styles (text, dimension, etc.) 4.Frequently used layers. Click here to keep reading   Properties, Properties, Properties by Todd Shackelford, The Lazy Drafter If you are old enough to remember when AutoCAD didn't have a Properties, window, pallet, dialog, or anything... when a properties anything pops up on your screen you more than likely go full on grumpy geezer. Well, here are the most common ways a properties something injects itself into your workflow grandpa. First if you see this.... Click here to view   Do More with Fewer AutoCAD Tools by Edwin Prakoso, AUGI Library Most Windows applications have common interface and workflow traits. This consistency helps to eliminate steep learning curves and enables users to quickly adapt to other software. Today, we expect to use software in the way we operate other software. It stands to reason that as Windows-compliant software, AutoCAD® has a similar look and feel to other Windows applications. Imagine if you had never used AutoCAD before. When someone asks you to modify an object, what do you do? Here are some possibilities: 1. You will try to select it and see what will come next. You would try to see if there are grips available. 2. You will try to double-click on the object. 3. You will right-click and see what options are available in the contextual menu. Most of us will try to find the edit options or properties-related tool on the list. Click here to keep reading   Considering Low Cost Workstations by Aaron Goldberg The “New Efficiency” that is dramatically impacting all phases of IT equipment has not missed the CAD workstation. As the economy moves forward slowly and budgets are continually pressured, the focus is on lowering capital expenses and costs. For the CAD professional, this means that considering low cost workstations is now de rigueur. Does this mean that designers will be left waiting for drawings to render or to rotate? Clearly the capability of low cost workstations is well past where it has been even a couple of years ago. This recent review of low cost workstations provides an excellent round up. Click here to keep reading   Maintain standards by returning objects to By Layer settings by Ellen Finkelstein You’ve certainly heard the principle that you should use layers to give objects properties. When you create a layer, you give that layer a •Color •Linetype •Lineweight •Transparancy •Plotstyle Also, for 3D drawings, you can apply a material to a layer with the MATERIALATTACH layer. But it is all too easy to make an exception for an object and change it so that a property is not according to its layer. For example, you can select an object, and choose any color for it by going to the Home tab, Properties panel, Object Color drop-down list. Click here to keep reading   Constructing multi-character complex linetypes in AutoCAD. by Ralph Grabowski Yup, even though competitors like MicroStation and TurboCAD have had built-in linetype editors for years now, Autodesk still expects the customers of its $4,100 software to construct linetypes by hand, in writing the cryptic code in Notepad. Reader A.C. last week wrote me: I have been reading your tutorials on linetype files for AutoCAD and I have made an attempt at a complex linetype, but unfortunately I can’t get the coding right. Is there any way you can help? What I am after is combining two to make one. Is it possible to add the crosses from the ‘redundant apparatus’ linetype to the ‘foul water rising main’ linetype? He provided me with the code he had written and screen grabs of what he wanted. I did some experimenting in Notepad, going through this debugging cycle: 1. Write some linetype code in Notepad. 2. Save the file as an LIN file. 3. Use the -linetype command to load the LIN file. 4. Enjoy (not!) decoding the cryptic error messages, all of which read generically like this, no matter the problem: Click here to keep reading   4 ways to modify block definition by Edwin Prakosot Block is very useful as reusable contents. And when you need to create similar objects in your drawing. One of the most popular benefit is when you need to modify all instances, you only need to modify one. All other instance will be automatically updated. We will see four method that you can use to modify your block here. Explode and recreate the block This is the oldest way I know, the old school. The classic. A long time ago, the only way to edit a block is by exploding the block to simpler object. Made any changes necessary, then recreate a block with the same name. This method has become obsolete. If you are still using very old version, you may be still be able to use it. But in the latest version, you can’t do this anymore. I can’t recall in which version Autodesk disabled this. If you know the last AutoCAD version that can do this, please share it in comment section. Click here to keep reading   Thank You! Design & Drafting appreciates your interest in our products. Please forward this newsletter to your friends and associates, however, NO part of this newsletter may be used without permission. © Copyright 2013 by Chicago Stage Equipment Company Inc. D.B.A. Design & Drafting. Autodesk, AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT, DWF, DWG, DXF, ObjectARX are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.© 2012 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved. Rufus W Warren III Editor