Using AutoCAD 2000 : International Edition

by House, Ron; Richardson, Paul W.; Brooks, John; Vance, Dylan

• ISBN13: 9780789722683
• ISBN10: 0789722682
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-03-01
• Publisher: Pearson P T R

Summary

Special Edition Using AutoCAD 2000 allows you to quickly become acquainted with the AutoCAD software, even if you have no previous AutoCAD experience. The extensive use of case studies throughout the book familiarizes you with the numerous commands, as well as where they are accessed and how they work. There is a strong emphasis on the "heads-up" design of the interface carried through the book, making you less reliant on the keyboard and more efficient using the software. New features and changes to the software are clearly marked from cover to cover, highlighting exactly what is new in the software.

Author Biography

Ron House is an AutoDesk Certified Instructor who has worked with AutoCAD for over 12 years, including consulting, application development, training, and help-desk support. He is currently the GIS/CAD Supervisor in the Real Estate Technology Group at Sprint, where he is considered the resident expert on autoCAD.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(2)
Who Can Use This Book	2	(1)
How This Book Is Organized	2	(1)
Getting Started	2	(1)
Object Construction	2	(1)
Editing Your Drawing	3	(1)
AutoCAD Mechanics	3	(1)
Becoming a Master of AutoCAD	3	(1)
Beyond AutoCAD	3	(1)
Appendixes	3	(1)
Conventions Used in This Book	4	(3)
I Getting Started
Working with the Interface	7	(24)
The AutoCAD 2000 Interface	8	(18)
Toolbars	8	(2)
Pull-Down Menus	10	(1)
Using the Command Line	11	(3)
The Screen Menu	14	(1)
The Status Bar	14	(1)
Icon Menus	15	(1)
Model and Layout Tabs	16	(1)
UCS Icon	16	(1)
Right-Click or Context Menus	16	(2)
The Various Ways to Open a Drawing	18	(4)
Multiple Design Environment	22	(3)
Partial Open and Load	25	(1)
Saving a Drawing in Another Format	26	(3)
The DWG File Options with the SaveAs Command	27	(1)
Options for Converting a Drawing File to DXF Format	28	(1)
Summary	29	(2)
Drawing Setup	31	(24)
Using Templates	32	(4)
Creating Your Own Template	33	(3)
Walking Through the Drawing Setup Process	36	(3)
The Units Command	36	(1)
The Limits Command	37	(2)
Drafting Settings	39	(7)
Snap and Grid	40	(1)
Ortho	41	(1)
Object Snaps	41	(2)
Autotrack	43	(1)
Polar Tracking	44	(2)
Working with the Line Command	46	(5)
Placing Lines by Coordinates	48	(1)
Direct Distance Input	48	(3)
Navigating the Drawing	51	(2)
The Dynamic Viewing Commands	51	(2)
Summary	53	(2)
Working with Layers and Linetypes	55	(16)
Layers	56	(10)
Layer Properties Manager	56	(2)
Layer Property Types	58	(2)
Loading Linetypes	60	(2)
Plot Styles	62	(1)
Layer Display States	62	(1)
Changing Layer Display Properties	63	(1)
Named Layer Filters	64	(2)
The Properties Window	66	(2)
Modifying the Properties of the Overall Drawing	66	(1)
Modifying Object Properties by Selection Set	67	(1)
Summary	68	(3)
II Object Construction
The Basic Drawing Objects	71	(12)
Working with Construction Lines	72	(4)
Xlines	72	(2)
Rays	74	(2)
The Basic Drawing Commands	76	(1)
The Circle Command	76	(2)
Additional Options Available with the Circle Command	77	(1)
Creating a Tangent, Tangent, Radius Circle	77	(1)
Creating Arcs	78	(4)
Creating Arcs via a Known Center Point and Angle	79	(1)
Creating Arcs via a Known Center Point and Chord Length	80	(1)
Creating Arcs via a Known Center Point and Angle	80	(1)
Drawing Arcs with a Known Starting Point, Endpoint and Either Angle, Direction, or Radius	81	(1)
Summary	82	(1)
More Drawing Objects	83	(14)
Drawing Objects	84	(1)
Building Multisided Polygons	84	(2)
Creating Whole and partial Ellipses	86	(6)
Drawing Elliptical Arcs	88	(4)
Using Setting Variables to Define the Size and Shape of Drawing Objects	92	(3)
Donuts and the Fillmode Setting	92	(2)
Marking the Drawing with Points	94	(1)
Summary	95	(2)
Complex Drawing Objects	97
Drawing Objects	98	(1)
Drawing Polylines	98	(4)
Modifying Polylines with Pedit	102	(7)
Editing the Vertices of the Polyline	107	(1)
Turning Off the Fill for Polylines	108	(1)
Working with Rectangles	109	(2)
Using Polylines in Three-Dimensional Space	111	(1)
Converting Older AutoCAD Drawing Files Containing Polylines	111	(1)
Splines	112	(3)
Creating Splines from a Polyline	115	(3)
Editing Splines with the Splinedit Command	116	(2)
Multilines	118	(9)
Placing Multilines in the Drawing	119	(1)
Multiline Styles	120	(1)
Multiline Element Properties	121	(1)
Multiline Properties	122	(2)
Multiline Editing	124	(3)
Summary	127
III: Editing Your Drawing	3	(754)
Editing Commands	131	(18)
Erasing Objects	132	(1)
Removing Objects from the Drawing	132	(4)
Undoing What Was Done	133	(2)
The Appropriately Named Oops Command	135	(1)
Moving Objects Around in the Drawing	136	(2)
Grips: Another Way of Editing	138	(5)
Types of Grips	140	(1)
Modifying the Grip Options via the Preferences Dialog Box	141	(2)
Copying Objects Within the Drawing	143	(4)
Summary	147	(2)
More Editing Commands	149	(20)
Advanced Editing Commands	150	(1)
Rotating Objects	150	(7)
Modifying the Rotate Command with Setting Variables	150	(1)
Rotating with Grips	151	(2)
Rotation via a Reference Angle	153	(1)
Changing the Size of Objects with the Scale Command	154	(2)
Using a Reference Length to Scale an Object	156	(1)
Mirroring Objects in the Drawing	157	(2)
Mirror Text or Mirrtext	159	(1)
Creating Arrays	159	(3)
Creating an Array at a Rotated Angle	161	(1)
Offsetting Objects at a Specified Distance	162	(3)
Offsetting Variables	163	(2)
Align: Move and Rotate in One Command	165	(3)
Working with Source and Destination Points	165	(3)
Summary	168	(1)
Not All Objects Can Be Edited This Way	169	(26)
More Editing Commands	170	(1)
The Stretch Commands	170	(4)
Stretching with Grips	171	(1)
Stretching More Than One Grip	171	(1)
Stretching with the Move Command	172	(1)
Stretching Dimensions	173	(1)
The Lengthen Command	174	(3)
The Trim Command	177	(2)
Trimming to Implied Intersections	178	(1)
Extending Objects to a Boundary	179	(3)
Extending to Implied Intersections	181	(1)
The Break Command	182	(3)
Breaking a Portion of a Circle or an Arc	183	(2)
Smoothing and Rounding Corners	185	(3)
Filleting Two Parallel Lines to Create a Slot	187	(1)
Using the Fillet Command to Round 3D Edges	188	(1)
Chamfering Edges	188	(5)
Applying a Chamfer to All Vertices of a Polyline	190	(1)
Chamfering Solid Models	190	(3)
Summary	193	(2)
Selecting Objects	195	(20)
Selection Set Filters	196	(2)
Object Cycling	198	(1)
Creating Quick Selection Sets	198	(10)
Using Wildcard Characters to Search Specific Text Strings in a Drawing	202	(2)
Object Selection Filter	204	(2)
More Advanced Filter Queries	206	(1)
Applying Multiple Edits to Objects with Grips	207	(1)
Creating Groups	208	(2)
Modifying Object Properties	210	(1)
Summary	211	(4)
IV: AutoCAD Mechanics
Viewing the Drawing	215	(18)
Viewing Drawings	216	(1)
The Zoom Commands	216	(5)
Panning Around in the Drawing	221	(1)
Aerial Viewer	222	(2)
Views	224	(2)
Viewports	226	(5)
Applying Viewports to a Drawing	227	(2)
Deleting and Renaming Viewport Configurations	229	(1)
Checking a Viewport Configuration	230	(1)
Joining Viewports to Form One	231	(1)
Restoring the Screen to a Single Viewport	231	(1)
Refreshing the Viewports	231	(1)
Regenerating the View	232	(1)
Regen and RegenAll	232	(1)
Summary	232	(1)
Annotating the Drawing	233	(42)
Annotating Drawings	234	(1)
Adding Line Text	234	(16)
Text Style	236	(1)
Justification and Alignment	237	(2)
Calculating the Appropriate Text Height	239	(3)
Rotating Text	242	(1)
Adding Multiple Line Text Objects	243	(1)
Formatting Line Text	244	(1)
Editing Line Text	245	(5)
Multiline Text	250	(15)
Adding Multiline Text	250	(3)
Adjusting the Mtext Window	253	(1)
Using an External Editor for Multiline Text	253	(1)
Formatting and Editing Multiline Text	254	(6)
Changing Mtext Globally	260	(4)
Using the AutoCAD 2000 Spelling Checker	264	(1)
Creating Text Styles	265	(8)
AutoCAD Standard Fonts and True Type Fonts	265	(2)
Specifying Text Height	267	(1)
Creating a New Text Style	268	(2)
Sharing Text Styles	270	(3)
Summary	273	(2)
Hatching	275	(24)
The Hatch Command	276	(12)
Defining the Hatch Pattern Style	277	(2)
Looking at the Advanced Hatch Options	279	(5)
Setting Hatch Options via the Shortcut Menu	284	(4)
Editing a Hatch Pattern	288	(3)
Editing Hatch Boundaries	290	(1)
Using the Convert Command to Optimize Your Drawing	291	(1)
Creating Your Own Hatch Patterns	291	(5)
Using the Super Hatch Command to Create Hatch Patterns	293	(3)
Using Polylines to Create Boundaries	296	(1)
Summary	297	(2)
Dimensioning	299	(58)
Dimensioning Basics	300	(15)
Linear Dimension	302	(5)
Aligned Dimension	307	(1)
Ordinate Dimension	308	(3)
Other Dimension Commands	311	(4)
Dimensioning with Style	315	(20)
Creating a New Dimension Style	315	(13)
Updating Dimensions	328	(1)
Dimension Style Families	329	(2)
Importing and Exporting Dimension Styles	331	(4)
Making Changes in Dimension Styles	335	(4)
Modifying a Style	335	(1)
Overriding Dimension Styles	336	(3)
Dimension System Variables	339	(4)
Speeding Up Dimensioning	343	(4)
Continue Dimension	344	(1)
Baseline Dimension	345	(1)
Quick Dimension	346	(1)
Leaders and Tolerances	347	(4)
Setting Up a Dimension Style for Leaders	347	(1)
Quick Leader	348	(2)
Tolerance	350	(1)
Editing Dimensions	351	(3)
Editing the Text in a Dimension	351	(1)
Editing Dimensions	351	(2)
Grip Editing	353	(1)
Changing Dimension Properties	354	(1)
Dimensioning in Paper Space or Model Space?	354	(2)
Summary	356	(1)
Making Drawing Easier	357	(58)
Using the Inquiry Tools	358	(8)
Measuring a Distance	359	(1)
Calculating a Specified Area	360	(2)
Using the Mass Properties Command	362	(1)
The List Command	363	(1)
Locate Point	364	(1)
Other Inquiry Tools	365	(1)
Express Tools	366	(47)
Installing the Express Tools	366	(3)
The Express Layers Menu	369	(8)
The Express Blocks Menu	377	(6)
The Express Text Menu	383	(10)
The Express Dimension Menu	393	(3)
The Express Selection Tools Menu	396	(2)
The Express Modify Menu	398	(6)
The Express Draw Menu	404	(5)
The Express Tools Menu	409	(4)
Summary	413	(2)
Creating and Using Blocks	415	(26)
Introduction to Blocks	416	(1)
Blocks Versus Wblocks	416	(8)
Defining Blocks	416	(4)
Using the Wblock Command to Create New Drawings	420	(2)
Inserting Your Newly Created Blocks	422	(2)
Inserting Multiple Blocks with Minsert	424	(1)
Editing and Redefining Blocks Using Refedit	424	(4)
Exploding a Block	426	(1)
Purging Unused Blocks from the Drawing	427	(1)
Using AutoCAD DesignCenter	428	(4)
Starting DesignCenter	428	(2)
Inserting Blocks with DesignCenter	430	(1)
Exploring Other Object Definitions Using DesignCenter	431	(1)
Attaching Attributes to Blocks	432	(8)
Extracting Attribute Information	438	(2)
Summary	440	(1)
External Reference Files and Importing Images	441	(40)
Understanding External References	442	(33)
Attaching an External Reference in Model Space	443	(5)
The XREF Manager	448	(2)
Missing Reference Files	450	(1)
External References and Search Paths	451	(2)
Attachment Versus Overlay	453	(2)
Xref Drawing Content	455	(4)
Referencing a Title Block in a Layout	459	(3)
Unloading and Reloading External References	462	(1)
Setting Xref Clipping Boundaries	463	(4)
Enabling Demand Loading	467	(2)
Editing External References	469	(4)
Binding an External Reference	473	(2)
Importing Images in AutoCAD Drawings	475	(4)
Attaching an Image	475	(3)
Clipping an Image	478	(1)
Manipulating Image Display	479	(1)
Summary	479	(2)
Plotting and Layouts	481	(50)
Plotting in AutoCAD 2000	482	(1)
The Basics of Plotting in AutoCAD	482	(29)
Using the Add-A-Plotter Wizard	483	(3)
Creating a Simple Plot with Your Plotter Configuration File	486	(2)
Using the Create Layout Wizard	488	(6)
Setting Up the Page	494	(4)
Working with Page Layouts	498	(6)
Making New Layouts	504	(1)
Model Space and paper Space	504	(1)
Working with Title Blocks	505	(3)
Plotting	508	(3)
Changes to Plotting in Release 2000	511	(2)
New Plotter Drivers	511	(1)
Plotting Configuration	512	(1)
Using Advanced Plotting Features	513	(17)
Plot Styles	513	(14)
Plotting Raster Files	527	(1)
Making Your Drawing Files Viewable from the Internet	528	(1)
Outputting Your Drawing in Other Ways	529	(1)
Summary	530	(1)
Internet Publishing	531	(24)
Using the Internet to Access and View Drawings	532	(3)
Web-Enabled File Dialog Boxes	532	(1)
Attaching an External Reference File from the Internet	533	(2)
Opening Internet-Based Files Using AutoCAD DesignCenter	535	(1)
Inserting Hyperlinks into Drawing Files	535	(7)
Defining the Hyperlink	537	(2)
Hyperlinking to a File by Area	539	(1)
Accessing Multiple Hyperlinks Within a Nested Block	539	(1)
Hyperlink Editing	540	(2)
Removing a Hyperlink from a Drawing	542	(1)
Drawing Web Format	542	(3)
Setting the File Resolution and Compression of a DWF File	545	(1)
Introduction to Volo View Express	546	(4)
Manipulating the File Within Volo View Explorer	548	(1)
Using Volo View Express to View a Drawing File in Microsoft Word	549	(1)
Project Collaboration and Buzzsaw.com	550	(1)
Summary	551	(4)
V: Becoming a Master of AutoCAD
Customizing Made Easy	555	(34)
Customizing AutoCAD to Fit the Way You Work	556	(4)
Using Scripts to Automate AutoCAD	556	(2)
Modifying the Keyboard Shortcuts	558	(2)
Customizing the AutoCAD Interface	560	(20)
Dynamically Customizing the Toolbars	560	(2)
Adding Commands to Your New Toolbar	562	(1)
Loading a Modified MNU File	563	(1)
Customizing a Button's Appearance	564	(2)
Changing a Button's Macro	566	(2)
Assigning an AutoLISP Routine to a Button	568	(2)
Modifying the ACAD MNU File	570	(1)
Modifying the Button Menu Group	571	(2)
Creating Your Own Pull-Down Menu	573	(1)
Modifying the Tablet Menu Section	574	(2)
Helpstrings	576	(1)
Accelerator Keys	576	(4)
Loading Partial Menus	580	(3)
Embedding Data From Other Sources Using OLE	583	(4)
Exporting an AutoCAD Drawing Using the Clipboard	585	(1)
Editing an Embedded AutoCAD Drawing Object	586	(1)
Summary	587	(2)
A Primer for AutoLISP and VBA	589	(64)
Using VBA and AutoLISP	590	(1)
Once and Future LISP	590	(33)
Getting Started with AutoLISP	591	(7)
Using the Visual LISP Editor	598	(8)
Interacting with the AutoCAD Drawing Database	606	(9)
Adding a Dialog Box in AutoLISP	615	(8)
Visual Basic for Applications	623	(28)
An Overview of the VBA Model	624	(2)
Exploring the VBA Integrated Development Environment	626	(4)
Starting a New VBA Project	630	(5)
Running and Debugging Your VBA Program	635	(2)
Using More Objects, Methods, and Properties	637	(4)
Creating a Form in VBA	641	(4)
Event-Driven Programming	645	(5)
Running VBA Programs	650	(1)
Summary	651	(2)
External Database Connection	653	(34)
Accessing External Data with db Connect	654	(1)
Connecting to a Database	654	(1)
Using ODBC to Make the Connection	654	(1)
Connecting to a Database Using OLE DB	655	(1)
Connecting to a Database via the dbConnect Manager	655	(6)
Creating a New Query	661	(10)
Working with the Data View Window	667	(4)
Using a Link Template to Link Objects to a Database	671	(8)
Linking Drawing Objects to the Table	673	(4)
Exporting Links	677	(2)
Creating Labels As You Link Drawing Objects	679	(4)
Attached Labels	680	(1)
Creating Freestanding Labels	680	(1)
Attaching a Label to a Drawing Object	681	(1)
Creating Freestanding Labels	682	(1)
Reloading Labels to Update Your Drawing	682	(1)
Editing Individual Links in the Drawing	682	(1)
Synchronizing Database Links in the Drawing	683	(1)
Deleting Links from the Drawing	684	(1)
Exporting Link and Query Sets	684	(1)
Summary	684	(3)
Visualization	687	(32)
AutoCAD's 3D Capabilities	688	(1)
Creating Solids from 2D Polylines	689	(9)
Defining the User Coordinate System	691	(1)
Creating a Complex Primitive	691	(2)
Placing Objects Along the Z-Axis	693	(4)
Using the Fillet Command to Smoothe Edges	697	(1)
3D Orbit	698	(2)
The 3D Orbit Viewing Options	699	(1)
Generating 2D Working Drawings from a 3D Model	700	(1)
Enhancing Your 3D Image	701	(2)
Hidden Line Images	702	(1)
Shaded Images	702	(1)
Creating Rendered Images	703	(12)
Lighting Up Your Model	705	(4)
Using Materials to Provide Rendered Detail	709	(2)
Mapping	711	(3)
Additional Rendering Effects in AutoCAD 2000	714	(1)
Using Scenes in Rendering	714	(1)
Saving, Printing, and Exporting Rendered Models	715	(1)
Related Applications	715	(1)
Summary	716	(3)
VI: Beyond AutoCAD
Introduction to Architectural Desktop	719	(18)
Introduction to Part VI	720	(1)
Transitioning to Architectural Desktop	720	(5)
Conceptual Design	721	(3)
Working with Objects	724	(1)
View-Dependent Display	725	(4)
Multiview Blocks	727	(1)
Display Representations	727	(2)
Specific Features of Architectural Desktop	729	(7)
Layer Groups	729	(2)
Grids	731	(1)
Walls	732	(1)
Doors and Windows	732	(1)
Stairs	733	(1)
Roofs	733	(1)
Design Content Library and Annotation Symbols	734	(1)
Scheduling	735	(1)
Elevations	736	(1)
Generate Perspectives	736	(1)
Summary	736	(1)
Introduction to Mechanical Desktop	737	(20)
From Concept to Reality	738	(3)
Constructing a 3D Solid Model	741	(1)
Surface Modeling	742	(1)
Assembly	743	(1)
Degrees of Freedom	743	(1)
The Desktop Browser	744	(1)
Why You Need a Desktop Browser	744	(1)
Visualization	745	(1)
Stereolithography and Rapid Prototyping	746	(1)
Exporting Drawings in STL Format	747	(1)
Manufacturing Concurrent Engineering	747	(1)
Computer Numerical Control (CNC)	748	(1)
Concurrent Engineering	748	(1)
Case History	748	(4)
Using Mechanical Desktop to Facilitate the Project	749	(1)
Reworking the Model	750	(1)
The End Result	751	(1)
The History of Autodesk's Solid Modeling Software	752	(1)
Summary	753	(4)
VII: Appendixes
A Taking Advantage of AutoCAD's Keyboard Shortcuts	757	(10)
Quicker Access to Your Favorite Commands	758	(9)
B AutoCAD Environment Options	767	(8)
Options at a Glance	768	(7)
The Files Tab	768	(1)
The Display Tab	768	(1)
The Open and Save Tab	769	(1)
The Plotting Tab	769	(1)
The System Tab	770	(1)
The User Preferences Tab	770	(2)
The Drafting Tab	772	(1)
The Selection Tab	772	(1)
The Profiles Tab	773	(2)
C AutoCAD Migration Assistance	775
Converting Files with the Migration Assistant	776