autocad 2004 bible_Ellen Finkelstein

FINKELSTEIN If AutoCAD 2004 can do it, you can do it too . . . The leading CAD software has the features you need to design and redesign the world. With AutoCAD 2004’s new interface, 80-plus Express Tools for added productivity, text and quality-output enhancements, and new ways to manage drawings, even veteran users need a refresher course. AutoCAD authority Ellen Finkelstein covers every feature, creating a comprehensive guidebook with the clear organization of a reference manual and the practical usability of a tutorial. It’s the only resource that begins with AutoCAD basics and takes you all the way to advanced programming techniques. Inside, you’ll find complete coverage of AutoCAD 2004 • Learn to make maximum use of the new palette interface • Discover the easiest ways to create precision drawings • Explore AutoCAD’s many commands for creating 2D and 3D drawings and renderings • Master editing and dimensioning techniques • Control and manipulate your drawing data using blocks, attributes, and external databases • Share and manage drawing information with the DesignCenter, Web publishing, Tool Palettes, Reference Manager, and cross-application tools • Customize AutoCAD with command shortcuts, unique toolbars, scripts, linetypes, and hatch patterns • Use AutoLISP ® and VBA to program AutoCAD Shelving Category: Computer Graphics/Design Reader Level: Beginning to Advanced System Requirements: Pentium III processor or later running Windows 9X, XP, 2000 or NT 4.0 (sp 6 or later); minimum of 64 MB RAM; 250 MB RAM recommended; 300 MB free hard drive disc space; CD-ROM drive. See the About the CD Appendix for details and complete system requirements. ISBN 0-7645-3992-2 $49.99 USA $74.99 Canada £34.95 UK AutoCAD 2004 AutoCAD 2004 Unleash AutoCAD’s powerful 2D and 3D design capabilities and create quality drawings for your presentations Master AutoCAD’s new text, standards, security, and Web publishing features Customize and program commands, toolbars, and menus to meet your needs A utoCAD 2004 Ellen Finkelstein “To get maximum value and performance from AutoCAD, you should have the AutoCAD 2004 Bible right at your fingertips.” —from the foreword by Wayne Hodgins, Strategic Futurist, Director of Worldwide Learning Strategies, Autodesk, Inc. ,!7IA7G4-fdjjcd!:p;o;t;T;T CD-ROM packed with sample drawings BONUS CD-ROM Includes AutoCAD 2004 trial version, sample drawings from the book, and add-on programs www.wiley.com/compbooks/finkelstein 100% ONE HUNDRED PERCENT COMPREHENSIVE AUTHORITATIVE WHAT YOU NEED ONE HUNDRED PERCENT Develop presentation- quality output Work more quickly with the new palette interface Bonus CD-ROM • Exercise drawings from start to finish • Trial version of AutoCAD 2004 • Multiple freeware and shareware programs, including AccuRender, 3D-Cab, and GeomCurve • Author-recommended Web links • Searchable e-version of the book A utoCAD 2004 Bible Perfect Bind • Trim: 7 3/8 x 9 1/4 • • 4 color process • Yellow prints 110y 15m • + spot varnish (see spot varnish pdf) • Matte laminate *85555-IGIHDb 100% COMPREHENSIVE ® ® ® ® Use real-world drawings to practice what you learn 539922 Cover_rb3.qxp 4/28/03 8:54 AM Page 1 AutoCAD ® 2004 Bible 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page i 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page ii AutoCAD ® 2004 Bible Ellen Finkelstein 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page iii AutoCAD  2004 Bible Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 10475 Crosspoint Boulevard Indianapolis, IN 46256 www.wiley.com Copyright  2003 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada Library of Congress Control Number: 2003101902 ISBN: 0-7645-3992-2 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1B/SS/QV/QT/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) 646-8700. 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) 572-4447, E-Mail: permcoordinator@wiley.com. is a trademark of Wiley Publishing, Inc. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: WHILE THE PUBLISHER AND AUTHOR HAVE USED THEIR BEST EFFORTS IN PREPARING THIS BOOK, THEY MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS BOOK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES REPRESENTATIVES OR WRITTEN SALES MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATE- GIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUR SITUATION. YOU SHOULD CONSULT WITH A PROFESSIONAL WHERE APPROPRIATE. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFIT OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR OTHER DAMAGES. For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, 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. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of Wiley Publishing, Inc., in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. AutoCAD is a trademark of Autodesk, Inc. 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. 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 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. Ellen has written books on Word, Power- Point, and Flash (such as Flash MX For Dummies, published by Wiley). Her first book was AutoCAD For Dummies Quick Reference. You’re holding the fourth edition of this book, which previously appeared for AutoCAD releases 14, 2000, and 2002. 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page v Credits Acquisitions Editor Tom Heine Project Editor Jade Williams Technical Editor Darren Young Copy Editor Jerelind Charles Editorial Manager Rev Mengle Vice President & 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 Beth Brooks, Amanda Carter, Jennifer Click, Sean Decker, Kristin McMullan, Heather Pope Quality Control Technicians Laura Albert, Andy Hollandbeck, Susan Moritz, Angel Perez, Carl William Pierce Permissions Editor Laura Moss Media Development Specialist Gregory Stafford Proofreading and Indexing TECHBOOKS Production Services Cover Image Anthony Stuart 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 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. 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page vii 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page viii [...]... (both also published by Wiley) If you want just the basics, AutoCAD LT might serve your needs better However, if you do have AutoCAD and want a more basic book, look at AutoCAD 2004 For Dummies, by Bud Smith and Mark Middlebrook The AutoCAD 2004 Bible covers AutoCAD 2004 However, most of the information also applies to Release 2002 I have used AutoCAD in Windows XP Professional, but almost everything... www.discreet.com 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page xi Preface W elcome to the AutoCAD 2004 Bible AutoCAD 2004 is the most powerful CAD software product available for PCs today It can perform nearly any drawing task you can give it This book is designed to be your comprehensive guide to the entire AutoCAD program AutoCAD 2004 is the fastest, smoothest AutoCAD yet Certain features have been added that are not even... following categories should help you decide if this book is for you If you are a new AutoCAD user If you are new to AutoCAD, the AutoCAD 2004 Bible guides you through all you need to know to start drawing effectively, whatever your field If you are upgrading to AutoCAD 2004 This book highlights all the new features of AutoCAD 2004 and helps you make the upgrade transition as seamless as possible 539922... is seamlessly integrated into AutoCAD You will be even more productive if you use the AutoCAD 2004 Bible to discover the myriad capabilities of AutoCAD you probably weren’t aware even existed However you use it, when you combine the features in AutoCAD with the support of the AutoCAD 2004 Bible, you will discover daily breakthroughs and productivity boosters as you use AutoCAD to power your designs... AutoLISP programs This book should be all you need to make full use of that expensive program called AutoCAD Is This Book for You? The AutoCAD 2004 Bible covers all the essential features of AutoCAD and includes clear, real-life examples and tutorials that you can adapt to your needs Although I fully cover AutoCAD basics, I have also included material on the many advanced features, such as external database... learned from reader feedback To get maximum value and performance from AutoCAD, you should have the AutoCAD 2004 Bible right at your fingertips It will enable you to respond to the unexpected, which is the norm on the job these days Use it to augment the digital learning resources that come with your software: AutoCAD Learning Assistance, AutoCAD Today, the Help system, and the online resources of Autodesk... Part V: Organizing and Managing Drawings Part V helps you incorporate AutoCAD into your work world by explaining how to set standards, manage drawings, and work with other applications It concludes with a chapter on AutoCAD and the Internet Many of the new features of AutoCAD 2004 are explained in this part Part VI: Customizing AutoCAD Part VI introduces the tools you need to customize commands, toolbars,... covers every major AutoCAD feature If you’re a beginning AutoCAD user, you’ll find everything you need to start out; if you’re already using AutoCAD regularly, the book covers advanced material as well It provides a solid reference base to come back to again and again, as well as short tutorials to get you drawing Finally, the CD-ROM is chockfull of drawings, a trial version of AutoCAD 2004, and AutoLISP... highlight text in a dialog box or text document What the Icons Mean The AutoCAD 2004 Bible is liberally sprinkled with icons — small symbols in the left margin that call your attention to noteworthy points xvii 539922 FM.qxd xviii 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page xviii Preface New Feature The New Feature icon means that a feature is new to AutoCAD 2004 or has been significantly changed Note A Note icon alerts you to... of the book lists the contents of the CD-ROM I am especially pleased to include a 30-day trial version of AutoCAD 2004 on the CD-ROM as well as this entire book in (nonprintable) PDF format Other Information If you are an advanced AutoCAD user but need tips and secrets for getting the most out of AutoCAD, this book will probably not add too much to your already great store of knowledge 539922 FM.qxd . 1 AutoCAD ® 2004 Bible 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page i 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page ii AutoCAD ® 2004 Bible Ellen Finkelstein 539922 FM.qxd 5/2/03 4:12 PM Page iii AutoCAD  2004 Bible Published. commands, toolbars, and menus to meet your needs A utoCAD 2004 Ellen Finkelstein “To get maximum value and performance from AutoCAD, you should have the AutoCAD 2004 Bible right at your fingertips.” —from the. new AutoCAD user If you are new to AutoCAD, the AutoCAD 2004 Bible guides you through all you need to know to start drawing effectively, whatever your field. If you are upgrading to AutoCAD 2004 This