AutoCAD 2011 For Dummies

From AutoCAD 2011 For Dummies by David Byrnes

AutoCAD has grown more complex over the years, in part to keep up with the increasing complexity of the design and drafting processes that AutoCAD 2011 is intended to serve. Its not enough just to draw nice-looking lines anymore. If you want to play CAD with the big boys and girls, you need to carefully organize the objects you draw, their properties, and the files in which they reside. This guide provides the basic information and tools for doing all these things, without putting a T-square through your computer screen in frustration.

AutoCAD 2011 Drawing Setup Roadmap

Drawing setup in AutoCAD 2011 can seem a little complicated before you get used to it. The following table lists ten fundamental AutoCAD setup commands in the order you probably use them, explains what they do, and tells you where to find them on the classic pull-down menu system as well as on the Ribbon and Application Menu. If youd rather type than click, you can enter the full command name or its alias or keyboard shortcut (where available shown in parentheses).

Ribbon / Application Menu Model Space 1. Application menuNewDrawing

Classic Menu

Command

Description

FileNew

NEW (Ctrl+N)

Creates a new drawing based on a template drawing (DWT file) Specifies linear and angular units Specifies working area Zooms to drawing extents Specifies snap and grid spacings Sets linetype scale

2. Application menuDrawing UtilitiesUnits 3. None 4. View tabNavigate panelZoom drop-down flyoutExtents 5. None

FormatUnits

UNITS (UN)

FormatDrawing Limits ViewZoomExtents

LIMITS ZOOM (Z), Extents

ToolsDrafting Settings

DSETTINGS (DS)

6. Home tabProperties panel Linetype dropdownOtherShow DetailsGlobal Scale Factor

Format LinetypeShow DetailsGlobal Scale Factor

LTSCALE (LTS)

7. Home tabAnnotation slideout Dimension Style 8. Application menuDrawing UtilitiesDrawing Properties Paper Space 9. None 10. Application MenuSave

FormatDimension Style

DIMSTYLE (D)

Sets dimension style Enters drawing informational properties

FileDrawing Properties

DWGPROPS

ToolsWizardsCreate Layout FileSave

LAYOUTWIZARD QSAVE (Ctrl+S)

Creates a paper space layout Saves the drawing

AutoCAD 2011s Top Keyboard Shortcuts

Over AutoCADs 25-year existence, the one input method thats remained constant is typing into the command line. Most experienced AutoCAD users find typing command aliases and entering Ctrl+key combinations to be the most efficient way of communicating with AutoCAD and if you can find your way around a keyboard, youll probably find the same thing. The following table lists useful keyboard shortcuts.

Keyboard Shortcut Ctrl+S Ctrl+O Ctrl+P Ctrl+Tab Ctrl+PgUp/Ctrl+PgDn F1 F2 F3 F7 F8 F9 F10 F11

Command QSAVE OPEN PLOT None None HELP TEXTSCR OSNAP GRID ORTHO SNAP POLAR None

Purpose Saves the drawing Displays the Select File dialog box Displays the Plot dialog box Switches to the next open drawing Switches to the previous/next tab in the current drawing Displays AutoCADs Help in a Web browser window Toggles the AutoCAD Text Window on and off Toggles running object snap mode on and off Toggles grid mode on and off Toggles ortho mode on and off Toggles snap mode on and off Toggles polar mode on and off Toggles object snap tracking on and off

F12

DYNMODE

Toggles dynamic input mode on and off

AutoCAD 2011's Drawing Scale and Limits Chart: Feet and Inches
It's not a bad idea to set limits for your AutoCAD 2011 drawing. 'Limits in AutoCAD represent the rectangular working area that you'll draw in, which usually corresponds to the paper size. Setting limits correctly lets you display the drawing grid over your working area, use ZOOM All to display that working area, and plot your working area from model space. The following table sets out the dimensions in whole feet or feet and inches of work areas for different paper sizes at different drawing scales.

Drawing Scale 1/16" = 1'0" 1/8" = 1'0" 1/4" = 1'0" 1/2" = 1'0" 3/4" = 1'0" 1" = 1'0" 1-1/2" = 1'0" 3" = 1'0"

8-1/2" x 11" 136' x 176' 68' x 88' 34' x 44' 17' x 22' 11'4" x 14'8" 8'6" x 11' 5'8" x 7'4" 2'10" x 3'8"

11" x 17" 176' x 272' 88' x 136' 44' x 68' 22' x 34' 14'8" x 22'8" 11' x 17' 7'4" x 11'4" 3'8" x 5'8"

24" x 36" 384' x 576' 192' x 288' 96' x 144' 48' x 72' 32' x 48' 24' x 36' 16' x 24' 8' x 12'

30" x 42" 480' x 672' 240' x 336' 120' x 168' 60' x 84' 40' x 56' 30' x 42' 20' x 28' 10' x 14'

36" x 48" 576' x 768' 288' x 384' 144' x 192' 72' x 96' 48' x 64' 36' x 48' 24' x 32' 12' x 16'

AutoCAD 2011s Drawing Scale and Limits Charts: Millimeters

Its not a bad idea to set limits for your AutoCAD drawing. The limits represent the rectangular working area that youll draw in, which usually corresponds to the paper size. Setting AutoCAD's limits correctly lets you display the drawing grid over your working area, use ZOOM All to display that working area, and plot your working area from model space. The following table sets out the dimensions in millimeters of work areas for different paper sizes at different drawing scales.

Drawing Scale 1:200 1:100 1:50 1:20

210 x 297 mm 42,000 x 59,400 mm 21,000 x 29,700 mm 10,500 x 14,850 mm 4,200 x 5,940 mm

297 x 420 mm 59,400 x 84,000 mm 29,700 x 42,000 mm 14,850 x 21,000 mm 5,940 x 8,400 mm

420 x 594 mm 84,000 x 118,800 mm 42,000 x 59,400 mm 21,000 x 29,700 mm 8,400 x 11,880 mm

594 x 841 mm 118,800 x 168,200 mm 59,400 x 84,100 mm 29,700 x 42,050 mm 11,880 x 16,820 mm

841 x 1,189 mm 168,200 x 237,800 mm 84,100 x 118,900 mm 42,050 x 59,450 mm 16,820 x 23,780 mm

1:10 1:5

2,100 x 2,970 mm 1,050 x 1,485 mm

2,970 x 4,200 mm 1,485 x 2,100 mm

4,200 x 5,940 mm 2,100 x 2,970 mm

5,940 x 8,410 mm 2,970 x 4,205 mm

8,410 x 11,890 mm 4,205 x 5,945 mm