How to draw a line This tutorial shows you how to draw a line by using the Line symbol from the Draw tool bar and the line command. PDF trim How to trim a line This tutorial shows you how to trim lines by using the trim symbol from the tool menu and the trim command. PDF circle drawing How to draw a circle This tutorial shows you how to draw a circle by using the circle symbol from the tool menu and the circle command. PDF extend How to extend a line This tutorial shows you how to extend a line by using the extend symbol from the modify tool menu. PDF rectangle Drawing a rectangular Polyline This tutorial teaches you how to draw rectangular Polyline by using the Rectangle symbol from the draw tool menu and the Rectang command. PDF rotate background image Working with a rotated background This tutorial teaches you how to work with a rotated background when XREFing it a into your drawings. PDF fillet Creating a Fillet This tutorial teaches you how to create a Fillet by using the Fillet symbol from the modify menu and the Fillet command.
How to draw a line: In this tutorial we will draw a straight line segment by using the Line symbol from the Draw tool bar and the line command Method 1: Select the line symbol from the draw menu Select a starting point for the line Select an end point for the line Hit Enter Method 2: Type Line or L in the command line Hit Enter Select a starting point for the line Select an end point for the line Hit Enter Method 3: Select the line symbol from the draw menu or type Line or L in the command line Select a starting point for the line Move the cursor in the line direction Enter the length of the line, for example: type 3’ or 3” Hit Enter Hit Enter again to get out of the command If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved How to trim a line: An AutoCAD line can be shortened by trimming the edges In this tutorial we will trim a straight line segment by using the trim symbol from the modify tool bar and the trim command Method 1: Select the trim symbol from the modify menu Select the intersected object you want to trim from Hit Enter Select the line you want to trim Method 2: Type Trim or TR in the command line Hit Enter Select the intersected object you want to trim from Hit Enter Select the line you want to trim If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved How to draw a circle: Method 1: Select the circle symbol from the draw menu Click on the screen where you want to specify the center point for the circle Drag the mouse across to specify a node of the circle Click Method 2: Type Circle or C in the command line Hit Enter Click on the screen where you want to specify the center point for the circle Drag the mouse across to specify a node of the circle Click Method 3: Select the circle symbol from the draw menu or type Circle or C in the command line Click on the screen where you want to specify the center point for the circle Specify the radius or diameter of the circle by typing R or D Hit Enter Input the numeric value Hit Enter If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved How to extend a line: A Line can be extended to meet other lines or objects precisely at their boundaries In this tutorial we will use the extend symbol from the modify tool bar Method 1: Select the extend symbol from the modify menu Select the intersected object to extend to Hit Enter Select the line you want to extend Method 2: Select the line you want to extend (The grip will be automatically highlighted in blue) Pick a grip from the line Drag the line from the end grip or side that you want to extend (This is also a stretch method) If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Drawing a rectangular Polyline: Method 1: Select the Rectangle symbol from the draw menu Specify on the screen the first corner for the rectangle you want to draw Type D to specify the dimension for the rectangle Input the length Input the width Click anywhere inside the rectangle area to get out of the command Method 2: Type RECTANG or REC in the command line Specify on the screen the first corner for the rectangle you want to draw Type D to specify the dimension for the rectangle Input the length Input the width Click anywhere inside the rectangle area to get out of the command If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved Working with rotated background Let’s assume, you have received a rectangle as an XREFed background plan that is rotated at some unknown angle (See fig 1) and you need to work on the overlay plan, for instance input text notes, draw ductwork, etc The problem is: it’s hard to all that at an angle and align them to the background plan Therefore, you need the plan to show at a 0⁰angle without changing the coordinate (x,y,z) of the original background Keep in mind that the background should not be rotated as other trades are using it as is Figure © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Follow these Steps: Type UCS in the command prompt Select Named 3point and select corners of the rectangle (see fig 2) Figure © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Type UCSMAN On the UCS list, rename the Unnamed (double click) to whatever you want For example UCS90 and that would be your custom view Click OK to finish (see fig 3) Figure © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Type PLAN Select Current or UCS to input the named view that you have just created The view should look like your custom view and you are ready to work (see fig.4) Figure © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Now look what happens when you type PLAN and select WORLD in the command line (See fig.5) Figure The original background stays the same All your texts and work follow the unknown rotation of the background If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Under Base Point, choose pick point or Specify on-screen and use your mouse device to specify the block attribute insertion point You can also enter the X,Y,Z coordinate of the point manually (but not recommend) In the Description box, enter a description for the block attribute definition This will be displayed in AutoCAD DesignCenter Under Behavior, check Allow exploding if you want to disassemble them later Select OK to close the block definition dialogue box If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Creating AutoCAD text style: In AutoCAD you can define many different text styles that will set unique fonts, sizes, angles, orientations and other characteristics To create a text style: 3 In AutoCAD, go to Format Select Text Style When the Text style dialogue box appears: You can either select Standard style or create a new style Enter the name for your new style Select a Font Name and Style from the drop down menu Check the Annotative box if you want annotation text Enter the Text Height for your style This is the size of the text that will be displayed each time you apply your style Enter a Width Factor Click Apply You can edit the style at any time by repeating the steps above © 2010 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Method 2: Select the text style symbol from the format menu or type Style in the command line You can either select Standard style or create a new style Enter the name for your new style Select a Font Name and Style from the drop down menu Check the Annotative box if you want annotation text Enter the Text Height for your style This is the size of the text that will be displayed each time you apply your style Enter a Width Factor Click Apply If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2010 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Creating AutoCAD Hatch Patterns: When drawing objects you can use the hatch command to fill areas It creates block patterns that can represent materials such as earth, insulations, or grass You can also create solid fill the same way you create hatch patterns Although AutoCAD comes with custom standard patterns, you can also create your own hatch patterns or use the external pattern library displayed in the hatch Pattern Palette dialogue box You can define a simple hatch pattern based on the current linetype You define the pattern by changing the angle and spacing of the hatch lines To use a predefined hatch pattern from AutoCAD From the Draw Menu, choose Hatch or type Hatch in the command prompt At the right of the Boundary Hatch and Gradient fill dialog box, choose Pick Points or Select Objects © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Specify an internal point for the hatch area or select the object Hit the Tab bar or press Enter to go back to the Hatch dialogue box Select Predefined in the Type box Select a Pattern From the Pattern box If you select an ISO pattern, you can specify a pen width, which determines the lineweight in the pattern Choose OK To create User-Defined Hatch Patterns From the Draw Menu, choose Hatch or type Hatch in the command prompt At the right of the Boundary Hatch and Gradient fill dialog box, choose Pick Points or Select Objects Specify an internal point for the hatch area or select the object Hit the Tab bar or press Enter to go back to the Hatch dialogue box © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Select User-defined in the Type box Specify the angle and spacing of the hatch pattern Select Double to use intersecting lines in the pattern Choose OK If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Creating AutoCAD Dimension style: When using dimensions we constantly have to modify the standard style from AutoCAD to fit our needs Creating a dimension style is one of the answers to this problem By creating a dimension style we can have different styles for specific scales, etc Plus we can always transfer the style to another drawing or save it as a template for future use Not to mention, that also saves you time To create a dimension style, follow the steps below: Go to Format then select Dimension style or type Dimstyle in the command line Select New to start from scratch, otherwise select any existing styles on the left to modify For this tutorial we will create a new style When prompted, specify a name for the new style or create the style based on the existing standard from AutoCAD by default or any other existing styles Use the Standard one for now Specify the use for this new style on the pull down list Use All dimensions for now, and no annotative for this tutorial Click on Continue © 2012 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved NB: There are many things to change in there For this tutorial we will go over the most important ones The tab Lines is divided into two categories: The Dimension lines and the Extensions lines Under each section you can change their color and their linetype for the style Select Suppress Dim line or to hide dimension lines from left to right Select Suppress Ext line or to hide extension lines from left to right Under Extension lines category: Change Extend beyond dim lines accordingly 10 Edit Offset from origin to adjust how far you want the dimension from the object 10 © 2012 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved 11 On Symbols and arrows select what kind of arrow heads you like for first, second dimensions and leader 12 Specify how big the arrow head should be under Arrow size 13 Under the Text tab you can select a text style if you have already created one or you can specify a font style You can use that in conjunction with our handy scale table list if you are not sure what size to use for your drawing scale 11 12 14 Specify a height for your text 15 Specify text placement and orientation under the Text placement category 16 Select your Text alignment 13 15 16 © 2012 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved 17 Under Fit tab select either text or arrows (best fit) for fitting 17 18 18 18 Use for overall scale dimension 19 Under Primary units tab, select your format unit from the pull down list Those are the most essential parts of creating the dimension style You can change the values for the rest of the categories to fit your needs It should not be that difficult since as you change the values the screen preview on the top right changes automatically to confirm your changes If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2012 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved Creating eTransmit: Sending CAD files sometimes might turn out to be a hassle, especially if you have a lot of xrefs attached to the drawings, have special font types or your own plot file (CTB) Creating an eTransmit is your best option for this inconvenience By creating an eTransmit AutoCAD will package all your references and custom files in one package or zip file and spare you the process of numerous file browsing and attaching A good thing about this method is you can also save your preferred setup as a template for later To create an eTransmit, follow the steps below: Go to File then select eTransmit or type etransmit in the command line Click the Add File button to add the files that you wish to transmit Select Transmittal Setups to modify the default one At the Transmittal Setups’ prompt, you can either create a new setting or modify the standard one by default from AutoCAD If you choose to create a new one, the next menu will ask you to give it a new name and the setting will be based on the existing standard default from AutoCAD or any other existing settings Use the Standard one for now © 2013 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved 3 4 4 5 Now, either you are modifying or creating a new transmittal setting, when you are at the Modifying Transmittal Setup, modify all the settings you wish Select zip, folder or executable file I recommend zip if you are going to send it to someone Pay attention where the eTransmit folder will be saved or browse and change that location by clicking on the little dotted box at the right of the drop down menu In the path options, you have three possibilities to choose from: a) Use organized folder structure Source root folder, it duplicates the folder structure of the files being transmitted with the root folder as the top level © 2013 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved b) You can Place all the files including references into one folder (Best option if you want one folder, a clean packaging!) c) Or Keep files and folders as is, if you want your files to be arranged in folders the way you currently have them saved on your computer 6 9 7 8 10 11 On the right side, for Actions, check all the options you wish I recommend to Purge the drawings That helps to reduce the transmittal file size Bind, if your xref paths are not relative 10 Optional, you can give transmittal a description 11 Hit OK, Close, OK and the AutoCAD will start creating the eTransmit for you If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum. © 2013 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved Creating Batch Plot for PDF, DWF or Plotter: When working with large projects, plotting becomes a hassle It takes time to open individual drawings and send them to the plotter or generating PDF or DWF files Using the batch plot capabilities of Autocad is very practical It saves you a lot of time and is fast and easy to setup 2 12 11 To create batch plot files for PDF, DWF or Plotter, follow the steps below: Go to File then select Publish or type Publish in the command line Select the plus sign button on the left to add new files When prompted, select all the files that need to be printed (You can use the CTRL or hold and shift button on your keyboard) Then select all the sheets/files listed in the left column under the Sheet Name and go to the right column under Page Setup Select your preferred printer setup from the down menu (Assuming you have already created your page setup) Select the Publish Options button © 2012 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved 6 7 8 10 Click on the right of the location field and browse to where you want to save your plot files For Type, choose Multi-sheet file if you want one PDF file that combines all the drawings or Single-sheet file if you prefer one PDF file for every single drawing Specify the name for your batch PDF or DWF file on the Name field (You can always rename it later) The other fields are rarely used and self-explanatory 10 When you are done with all the settings, click OK 11 Select Publish to finish 12 Your batch plot should start creating in the background and will pop up if you select “Open in viewer when done” once it is done 13 Also, you can save the setting for later if you need to plot the same drawings (Assuming you have not changed the name of the files and locations) NB: If you did not create a page setup you can select PDF under the “Publish to:” drop menu If you need any further help, contact me using the contact page or visit the discussion forum site http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2012 ‐ 2LearnCAD.com ‐ All rights reserved ... http://www.2learncad.com/forum © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved XREF – AutoCAD tutorial: Xref is the most useful command from AutoCAD If you are going to use the software for work or you are looking... © 2009 - 2LearnCAD.com - All rights reserved CAD Layers – AutoCAD tutorial The Layer command is a very important tool of AutoCAD It lets you create layers to separate your drawing objects... - All rights reserved CAD table – AutoCAD tutorial Although working with tables in Microsoft Excel is easier and more convenient than the table features in AutoCAD, sometimes you might want to