Ellen Finkelstein Discover powerful new AutoCAD 3D features Start drawing today with the Quick Start tutorial Learn how to customize and program AutoCAD Finkelstein The book you need to succeed! Shelving Category: COMPUTERS/CAD-CAM Reader Level: Beginning to Advanced Companion Web site: www.wiley.com/go/autocad2007bible Even Autodesk developers keep this book on hand! Six previous editions of readers from novices to experienced pros can’t be wrong. This popular and comprehensive reference is what you need to master the latest AutoCAD software. No features are left out. Each of the book’s seven sections thoroughly focuses on key elements in a logical sequence, so you can find what you need, when you need it. Start drawing today with the one book you need to succeed at AutoCAD 2007. ISBN 0-471-78886-4 • Master the latest features, including new 3D enhancements • Learn the basics of commands, coordinates, and setting up drawings • Draw and edit in 2D with layers and dimensions • Create, edit, and render 3D solids and surfaces • Increase efficiency with dynamic blocks, set sheets, and hyperlinks • Customize and program AutoCAD for maximum return on your effort $49.99 USA $64.99 Canada £31.99 UK CD-Rom Included! • 30-day trial of AutoCAD software • Before-and-after real-world drawings • Stacks of add-on software Value-Packed CD-ROM “ The AutoCAD Bible … is an object lesson in good design, concise and helpful writing, and a near- genius level of organization … Your book has been the single most significant factor in my successful mastering of a new skill … there is not a paragraph I would rewrite.” — Paul O’Kelly Create and display advanced 3D models Incorporate data into your drawings Use real-world drawings to practice what you’ve learned AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD LT ® 2007 AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD LT ® 2007 What's on the CD-ROM? Find the drawings you need to do the exercises in the book, plus a helpful Results folder so you can check your work. You’ll also find useful share- ware, freeware, numerous live links to AutoCAD resources, and more. • 30-day trial version of AutoCAD 2007 • More than 140 before-and- after drawings from working AutoCAD professionals • Extra freeware and shareware • Series of AutoLISP routines (for AutoCAD only, not AutoCAD LT) and VBA programs • Entire book in searchable PDF • Large selection of add-on software System Requirements: See Appendix C for com- plete system requirements for the CD-ROM. For system requirements for using AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD 2007 LT, refer to Appendix A. AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD LT ® 2007 Bible 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page i 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page ii AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD LT ® 2007 Bible Ellen Finkelstein 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page iii LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD ® LT 2007 Bible Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, N.J. 07030 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2006 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada ISBN-13: 978-0-471-78886-7 ISBN-10: 0-471-78886-4 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1O/QY/QW/QW/IN No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, (317) 572-3447, fax (317) 572-4355, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2006924024 Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. Autodesk, AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT and DWF are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the U.S.A. and/or certain other countries. Certain content, including trial software, provided courtesy Autodesk, Inc, ©2006. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page iv About the Author Ellen Finkelstein learned AutoCAD in Israel, where she always got to pore over the manual because it was in English. After returning to the United States, she started consulting and teaching AutoCAD as well as other computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. She has also taught courses on Web writing and usability. Her Web site, www.ellenfinkelstein.com, contains tips and techniques for AutoCAD and PowerPoint, and she publishes a monthly AutoCAD Tips Newsletter. Ellen has written extensively on AutoCAD, including articles for Autodesk’s Web site, such as three white papers on dynamic blocks, and features for AutoCAD’s Help system. She is also the editor of Inside AutoCAD, a monthly newsletter published by Eli Journals. Ellen’s first book was AutoCAD For Dummies Quick Reference. Since then, she has written books on Word, PowerPoint, OpenOffice.org (OpenOffice.org For Dummies), Flash (such as Flash 8 For Dummies), and Web technologies (for example, Syndicating Web Sites with RSS Feeds For Dummies). You’re holding the seventh edition of this book, which previously appeared for AutoCAD releases 14, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, and 2006. 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page v Credits Acquisitions Editor Tom Heine Project Editor Jade L. Williams Technical Editor Lee Ambrosius Copy Editor Marylouise Wiack Editorial Manager Robyn Siesky Business Manager Amy Knies Vice President and Executive Group Publisher Richard Swadley Vice President and Executive Publisher Bob Ipsen Vice President and Publisher Barry Pruett Project Coordinator Ryan Steffen Graphics and Production Specialists Denny Hager Joyce Haughey Lysney Osborn Jill Proll Heather Ryan Alicia B. South Quality Control Technician Brian H. Walls Permissions Editor Laura Moss Media Development Specialist Steven Kudirka Proofreading and Indexing Techbooks 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page vi To MMY for teaching me that there’s more to life than meets the eye and that the deeper levels of life are the most powerful and blissful. 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page vii 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page viii Foreword C ongratulations! You’re about to embark on one of the best guides to AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT available today. By purchasing this book, you have just received a life membership in a society whose members number in the millions worldwide. AutoCAD is a design tool that enables you to communicate your ideas, whatever they may be, and in any professional field. Architects, engineers, drafters, and design-related professionals use AutoCAD to create, view, manage, plot, share, and reuse accurate, information-rich draw- ings. From buildings to bridges, ships to mechanical assemblies, golf courses to new highways, aerospace to automotive, interior design to medical instrumentation; almost every man-made structure or tool has been developed with the help of computer-aided design software — specifically AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. Ellen does a great job of detailing every aspect of the software in a manner that is easy to comprehend, and that makes you productive from the start. She has been an advocate of the product line and a great friend to the product team. Her insights have helped us to make AutoCAD easier to use with each new release. I really wish that I had access to a book like this when I started using AutoCAD many years ago. Don’t let the size of this book intimidate you. Most of us who use AutoCAD each day pick our favorite tools and then proceed with our design work. I don’t believe there is a customer today who uses everything that AutoCAD has to offer. That said, I challenge you to explore this book and find new ways to be inventive and productive with the software. Ellen shows you every feature that we have built into the product. Try something new, and explore a dif- ferent topic each week. You use the software, now be the AutoCAD champion in your office. Whether you’re new to AutoCAD or an experienced user, this book is a must-have for anyone who uses AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT. This is the book that you want in your technical library, and one that will be valuable in the years to come, as we continue to update everyone’s favorite CAD software. Now the only question left is: what will you design? Eric Stover AutoCAD Product Manager Autodesk, Inc. 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page ix [...]... xi Preface W elcome to the AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible Whether you use AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT, you’ll find complete explanations of all of the powerful features that you need to know to design and draw anything This book is designed to be your comprehensive guide to both the AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT programs This book covers every significant AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT feature If you’re a beginning... through any task If you do have AutoCAD and want a more basic book, look at AutoCAD 2007 For Dummies, by Mark Middlebrook AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible covers AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 However, most of the information also applies to Release 2006 of both programs I have used AutoCAD in Windows XP Professional, but almost everything also applies to Windows 2000, although some of the screens... incorporated into the core program; these are available for AutoCAD LT for the first time Other minor changes make drawing easier and faster Is This Book for You? The AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible covers all of the essential features of AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT and includes clear, real-life examples and tutorials that you can adapt to your needs Although I fully cover the basics, I have also included... xix Part I: AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Basics 1 Quick Start: Drawing a Window 3 Chapter 1: Starting to Draw 13 AutoCAD s advantages Comparing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Starting AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Creating a New Drawing Using the AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Interface ... AutoLISP, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), 3D modeling, rendering, and customization (Most of the advanced features apply to AutoCAD only.) The following categories should help you decide whether this book is for you If you are a new AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT user If you are new to AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT, the AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible guides you through all that you need to know to start drawing... for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT users Appendix A gives instructions for installing and configuring AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Appendix B covers further resources for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT users Appendix C explains what you’ll find on the CD-ROM On the CD-ROM The CD-ROM contains a complete copy of this book in nonprintable PDF format How to Use This Book You can use this book in two ways: as a tutorial and. .. which you can execute a command in AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, you’ll find it useful to read this section, which describes this book’s typographical conventions You will find this section helpful for doing the Step-by-Step exercises as well Using commands AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT use standard Windows conventions for menus and toolbars To indicate that you should choose a command from the menu, for example,... users up to a fairly advanced level I have designed this book to be comprehensive and to include every significant feature of AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Therefore, do not be concerned if some of the material seems too advanced It will be there when you are ready for it As a reference The AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible is organized as a reference that you can refer to whenever you are stuck, or... Stover, Bud Shroeder, and many others Many people contributed drawings and software for this book I’d like to thank all of them They have helped to make this book the most comprehensive book on AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT available Finally, I would like to thank my husband, Evan, and two kids, Yeshayah and Eliyah, who helped out around the house while I was writing, writing, and writing (and who wanted to see... AutoCAD 2007, and add-in programs (which are mostly for AutoCAD only) This book should be all that you need to make full use of either program For AutoCAD 2007, the emphasis is on 3D tools, including new 3D objects, new ways of navigating in 3D, and a completely new environment For AutoCAD LT 2007, the emphasis of the new features is on ease of use and automation, including dynamic blocks and object . using AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD 2007 LT, refer to Appendix A. AutoCAD ® 2007 and AutoCAD LT ® 2007 Bible 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page i 01_788864 ffirs.qxp 5/22/06 7:10 PM Page ii AutoCAD ® 2007. Middlebrook. AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007 Bible covers AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD LT 2007. However, most of the information also applies to Release 2006 of both pro- grams. I have used AutoCAD in. information for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT users. Appendix A gives instructions for installing and configuring AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. Appendix B covers further resources for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT users.