autocad 2004 bible_Ellen Finkelstein

Inside, you’ll find complete coverage of AutoCAD 2004 Shelving Category: Reader Level: USA $49.99 System Requirements: powerful 2D and 3D design capabilities and create quality drawings

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

Shelving Category: Reader Level: USA $49.99 System Requirements:

powerful 2D and 3D design capabilities and create quality drawings for your presentations

Master AutoCAD’s

new text, standards,

security, and W eb

publishing features

Customize and

program commands, toolbars, and menus

to meet your needs

e the

AutoCAD 2004 B ibleright at y

our fingertips.” ayne Hodgins, S eword by W —from the for

trategic F

uturist,

Director of W orldwide Learning S

trategies, A

utodesk, Inc.

ww w.

wi le y.

co m/

co mp bo ok s/

fi nk el st ei n

100

% D RE ND HU E ON

PE RC EN T

CO MP RE HE NS IV E

AU TH OR IT AT IV E

WH AT Y OU N EE D

ON

E HU ND RE

D PE RC EN T

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 bookA

utoCA

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

100

% HE RE MP CO

NS IV E

®

Use real-world drawings to practice what you learn

2004 Bible

AutoCAD ®

2004 Bible

Ellen Finkelstein

Published simultaneously in Canada

Library of Congress Control Number: 2003101902

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 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

STRATE-OF PRSTRATE-OFIT 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.

About the AuthorEllen 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 startedconsulting and teaching AutoCAD as well as other computer programs, includingMicrosoft 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

CreditsAcquisitions Editor

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

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.

Bibles by Ellen Finkelstein As has oft been noted, if nature didn’t make it,someone using Autodesk design software probably did Autodesk understands bet-ter each day that our value proposition is to constantly deliver performance andproductivity improvements to you, the users of our products Delivering on thisproposition requires more than great software — such as the recently releasedAutoCAD 2004 — with the features you need True productivity improvement alsomeans having available additional resources, services and support These additionalresources make you more productive as you apply Autodesk products to solve your

design challenges The new AutoCAD 2004 Bible is a noteworthy addition to this pool

of resources you will want at your fingertips

The creation of Autodesk Professional Services (APS) is a recent example of ourcommitment to continuously improve your design performance APS was organized

to meet your increasing needs for support, training, and consulting Almost thing we do assumes a collaborative partnership-based approach Indeed, “none of

every-us are as smart as all of every-us” is a principle upon which Autodesk was founded In

2002 we were able to truly celebrate our 20th anniversary because of this “greatgroup” model and the magic that happens when committed people collaborate withcommon goals This includes our increased work with the “virtual” Autodesk enter-prise — publishers such as Wiley and experts such as Ellen Finkelstein — to bringyou impressive resources that support your Autodesk software APS is thus able toensure that you increasingly get the best solutions by assembling just the rightcombination of features, support, and learning resources

AutoCAD is a powerful 2D and 3D design and drafting platform that automates yourdesign tasks and provides digital tools so you can focus on the design rather thanthe software itself Architects, engineers, drafters, and design-related professionalsuse AutoCAD to create, view, manage, plot, share, and reuse accurate, information-rich drawings In addition to software improvements, we are focusing more on sup-porting the entire process of collaborative design You’ll appreciate the drawingenhancements we’ve packed into AutoCAD 2004 such as Express Tools whichreduce the steps required to perform a task, and the Publish to Web’s XML-based

support of multisheet Design Web Format (DWF) files for securely exchanging ings over the Internet with team members These new timesaving drawing toolsminimize the number of steps you have to take, freeing you and your team toexplore more design options — and create even more outstanding designs

draw-After 20 years we can say, to paraphrase on old marketing line, “This isn’t yourfather’s AutoCAD!” Your work today is not just about powering great designs withAutoCAD’s productivity and performance tools AutoCAD enables you to collabo-rate with others to extend the value of your designs — and maximize the value ofyour design data across your entire organization You also need to easily acquire,integrate, deploy, and manage your software assets to increase workflow and affectyour bottom line.

However, you can only benefit from what you know and use Introducing these vations also poses new challenges, namely learning how to apply these enhance-ments to the jobs you face We have done much to address these challenges withinAutoCAD, yet the full solution must be more than what Autodesk alone can

inno-provide — hence the critical role of the Autodesk virtual community

We are therefore particularly grateful to Ellen Finkelstein for having written such acomprehensive and reliable guide to AutoCAD, and to the people at Wiley for mak-ing it so widely available Following on the great success of the AutoCAD 2002 Bible,this new version draws upon lessons learned from reader feedback To get maxi-mum value and performance from AutoCAD, you should have the AutoCAD 2004Bible 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 resourcesthat come with your software: AutoCAD Learning Assistance, AutoCAD Today,the Help system, and the online resources of Autodesk Point A and AutodeskProjectPoint which is seamlessly integrated into AutoCAD You will be even moreproductive if you use the AutoCAD 2004 Bible to discover the myriad capabilities ofAutoCAD you probably weren’t aware even existed However you use it, when youcombine the features in AutoCAD with the support of the AutoCAD 2004 Bible, youwill discover daily breakthroughs and productivity boosters as you use AutoCAD topower your designs

Wayne Hodgins

Strategic FuturistDirector of Worldwide Learning StrategiesAutodesk Professional Services

www.autodesk.com & www.discreet.com

CAD software product available for PCs today It can perform nearly anydrawing 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 beenadded that are not even mentioned in this book because you never see them — youjust notice that fewer regenerations occur, drawings load faster, and you spend lesstime waiting while drawing and editing Files are automatically and invisibly com-pressed, so they take up less room on your computer system In addition to theserefinements, of course, are the many new features covered in this book that willmake your drawing easier and faster This book covers every major AutoCAD fea-ture If you’re a beginning AutoCAD user, you’ll find everything you need to startout; 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, atrial version of AutoCAD 2004, and AutoLISP programs This book should be all youneed 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 manyadvanced features, such as external database connectivity, AutoLISP, Visual Basicfor Applications (VBA), 3D modeling, rendering, and customization The followingcategories 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 theupgrade transition as seamless as possible

If you are switching from another CAD program

You already know what CAD is all about This book clearly explains the AutoCADway of drawing the models you have already been drawing In addition, you’ll find agreat deal of essential information about transferring information from other formats

How This Book Is Organized

This book is divided into eight parts

Part I: AutoCAD Basics

Part I provides the background information you need to start drawing It starts with

a “quick tour” that gets you drawing right away, and then covers how to start adrawing, use commands, specify coordinates, and set up a drawing

Part II: Drawing in Two Dimensions

Part II covers all the commands and procedures for drawing and editing in twodimensions In addition, I discuss how to control the drawing process with layers,zooming, and panning Also included in this part is information about dimensioning,plotting, and printing

Part III: Working with Data

Part III covers many ways to organize and share data, including blocks, attributes,external references, and external databases

Part IV: Drawing in Three Dimensions

Part IV explains everything you need to know to draw in three dimensions It also cusses how to present 3D drawings using hiding, shading, and rendering techniques

dis-Part V: Organizing and Managing Drawings

Part V helps you incorporate AutoCAD into your work world by explaining how toset standards, manage drawings, and work with other applications It concludeswith 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, linetypes,hatch patterns, shapes, fonts, and menus You’ll also find a chapter on script files,which you can use to create macros

Part VII: Programming AutoCAD

Part VII introduces you to programming AutoCAD It includes three chapters onAutoLISP and Visual LISP and one chapter on Visual Basic for Applications

Part VIII: Appendix

Part VIII explains what you’ll find on the CD-ROM

The CD-ROM contains a complete copy of this book in PDF format and fourappendixes of useful information for AutoCAD users

How to Use This Book

You can use this book in two ways: as a reference or as a learning tool or tutorial

As a reference

The AutoCAD 2004 Bible is organized as a reference that you can refer to whenever

you get stuck or when you try to do something for the first time Each chapter ers a topic completely, making it easy to find what you’re looking for Each Step-by-Step exercise (with a few exceptions) can be done on its own without doing theother exercises in the chapter You can easily look up a topic and complete arelated exercise without having to go through the entire chapter A complete index

cov-at the back of the book can also help you look up fecov-atures and topics

As a tutorial

The overall organization of the book goes from simple to complex, and each ter has several Step-by-Step sections This enables you to use the book as atutorial — from beginning to end You can then go back and redo any exercise whenyou need to refresh your memory on a particular feature

chap-For newcomers to AutoCAD, Parts I and II are essential After that, you can refer tochapters that interest you Parts III and V are also useful for beginners Intermediateusers will probably be familiar with most of the material in Part I and will be morelikely to skip around looking for the specific topics they need However, don’t forgetthat many of the new features for AutoCAD 2004 are introduced in Part I Enoughmaterial appears in this book to bring intermediate users up to a fairly advancedlevel

Cross-Reference

I have designed this book to be comprehensive and to include every significant ture of AutoCAD Therefore, do not be concerned if some of the material seems tooadvanced It will be there when you are ready for it.

fea-Doing the Exercises

AutoCAD is a very customizable program This book assumes that you are workingwith the default setup However, a number of changes may have been made to yoursystem that could result in menus, toolbars, and drawings appearing or even func-tioning differently from those shown in this book If you installed AutoCAD yourselfand made some adjustments, you know what changes you made However, if youare using a computer that was set up by someone else, it may help to talk to thatperson first, to see what changes were made

In addition, as you work through some of the exercises in this book, you will makecertain changes in AutoCAD’s setup Most of these are minor changes that any userwould make while drawing For safety, Cautions and Tips accompany all changesthat could have serious consequences, such as customizing the menu For example,when customizing the menu, you will be instructed to copy the menu template fileunder a new name, and you will then work with the new menu file, not the originalone Nevertheless, if you are working on a network or sharing AutoCAD with some-one else, it is proper computer etiquette to consult with others who may beaffected by the changes you make

If you do the exercises, I recommend that you do them from the beginning

Important instructions are given during earlier exercises that may affect your tem later For example, one of the first exercises is to create a new folder to holdyour drawings from the exercises This folder keeps your exercise drawings sepa-rate from other drawings created in your office However, each exercise stands onits own so you can go back and do only the exercise you need

sys-You can create your own AutoCAD configuration that helps ensure that somechanges you make will not affect others Instructions for doing this appear inAppendix A, “Creating Multiple Configurations,” on the CD-ROM

The exercises in the AutoCAD 2004 Bible have been carefully checked by a technical

editor to ensure accuracy However, we cannot anticipate all situations, either due

to varying hardware/software configurations or customization within AutoCAD Ifyou have a problem with an exercise, contact me at the e-mail address listed at theend of this Preface so I can correct the problem in the book’s next edition

Cross-Reference

Conventions Used in This Book

Given all the ways in which you can execute a command in AutoCAD, you’ll find ituseful to read through this section, which describes this book’s typographical con-ventions You will find this section helpful for doing the Step-by-Step exercises aswell

AutoCAD commands

AutoCAD uses standard Windows conventions for menus and toolbars To indicatethat you should choose a command from the menu, for example, I say, “ChooseView ➪ Viewports,” which means that you should click the View menu with yourmouse or puck/stylus and then click the Viewports menu item A few of AutoCAD’stoolbar buttons have flyouts, which are equivalent to submenus They are calledflyouts because they fly out when you click and hold the button on the main tool-bar, displaying even more buttons Therefore, to indicate which button to choose, Imay need to tell you to choose (or click) Zoom Extents from the Zoom flyout of theStandard toolbar Although I haven’t found a good alternative, this is not completelysatisfactory for two reasons First, it’s a mouthful! Second, the flyout names do notappear, making it hard to know which is the Zoom flyout However, you can checkAppendix B on the CD-ROM It shows each toolbar and flyout along with its name

Also, in most cases it will be obvious which flyout I’m talking about

AutoCAD is unique in that every command also has a command name that you cantype on the command line, which appears at the bottom of your screen Commandnames are shown in capital letters, as in CIRCLE AutoLISP functions are shown in

AutoCAD prompts, your input, and instructions

In the Step-by-Step exercises, most instructions are presented in the same font andstyle you are reading now However, when I reproduce the AutoCAD command line,

type in appears in bold Other instructions (such as “Type in the first coordinate”)are shown in italic

Here’s a sample Step-by-Step section In this exercise, you click the proper toolbarbutton, type in the X,Y coordinates shown in bold, and press Enter where indicated

1 With your left mouse button (also called the pick button), choose Line from

the Draw toolbar Notice that the command name is repeated on the mand line

com-Command: _line Specify first point: 0,0 ↵ (This arrow means

to press Enter)

Specify next point or [Undo]: 10,0 ↵

Specify next point or [Undo]: 10,7 ↵

Specify next point or [Close/Undo]: 0,7 ↵

Specify next point or [Close/Undo]: 0,0 ↵

Specify next point or [Close/Undo]: ↵

Often I make references to specific elements in a drawing References to these

find the corresponding number in the figure to which the text refers

Mouse and keyboard terms

You can draw in AutoCAD using a mouse or a puck The mouse is familiar to allusers A puck (or sometimes a stylus) is used with a digitizing tablet Because mostAutoCAD users do not have a digitizing tablet, I do not directly refer to it in thisbook If you have one, follow the instructions for using the mouse in the same way,using your puck

A mouse can have two or more buttons Many AutoCAD users like using a mousewith at least three buttons because you can customize the buttons to suit yourneeds However, because many mice have only two buttons, I assume only two Theleft mouse button is used to choose commands and toolbar buttons and to pickpoints in your drawing For this reason, it is sometimes called the pick button Theright button usually opens a shortcut menu

AutoCAD 2004 introduces time-sensitive right-clicking Because this feature is not

on by default, I do not assume that you have turned it on I use the term right-click

when you need to access a shortcut menu If you have time-sensitive right-clickingturned on, you need to hold down the right mouse button more than 250 millisec-onds (by default) to display the shortcut menu See Chapter 3 and Appendix A onthe CD-ROM for more details

If I say one of the following

✦ Choose Tools ➪ Options

✦ Click Line on the Draw toolbar

✦ Select the circle in your drawing

it means to use the left button of your mouse

When I say to press Enter, it means to press the key that is marked Enter, Return, or

should press Enter

I also use the mouse terms listed in the following table

AutoCAD Mouse Terms

pointed It can take a number of shapes, such as crosshairs, pickbox,

or arrow Also known as the mouse pointer.

objects.

mouse, dragging an object on your screen with it.

sometimes choose an item using the keyboard as well.

on time-sensitive right-clicking, hold the right mouse button at least

250 milliseconds (by default) before releasing it

and release it.

and release it.

selection method, or 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

The New Feature icon means that a feature is new to AutoCAD 2004 or has beensignificantly changed.

A Note icon alerts you to some important point that requires special attention oradditional information that may be helpful

A Tip shows you a way to accomplish a task more efficiently or quickly You’ll findplenty of practical advice here

Cross-References refer you to a related topic elsewhere in the book Because youmay not read this book straight through from cover to cover, use cross-references

to quickly find just the information you need

The On the CD-ROM icon highlights references to related material on theCD-ROM

The Caution icon means you should pay special attention to the information orinstructions because a possibility exists that you could cause a problem otherwise

About the CD-ROM

The CD-ROM contains all the drawings you need to do the exercises in this book.These drawings save you time as you learn AutoCAD’s features In addition, theCD-ROM includes the drawings that result after you finish an exercise or tutorial Inthis way, you can check what you have done if you want

The CD-ROM is also chockfull of resource material that I hope you will find usefulfor many years to come The Appendix at the back of the book lists the contents ofthe 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 mostout of AutoCAD, this book will probably not add too much to your already greatstore of knowledge

Caution

On the CD-ROM

Cross-Reference

Tip Note New

Feature

If you want to learn about Windows, look for a book that focuses on Windows Thisbook assumes that you know the basics of Windows, although the instructionsyou’ll read here are usually detailed enough to get you through any task For more

information about Windows, try Windows XP For Dummies, by Andy Rathbone, or try Alan Simpson’s Windows XP Bible (both published by Wiley, Inc.) For Windows

NT, try Teach Yourself Windows 2000 Professional VISUALLY, by Ruth Maran, or

Windows 2000 Professional For Dummies, by Andy Rathbone and Sharon Crawford

(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 Ihave used AutoCAD in Windows XP Professional, but almost everything also applies

to Windows NT (4 and 2000), although some of the screens will look different

Contacting the Author

I would be happy to hear any comments you have about this book The best way to

States postal service (aka snail mail) and write to me in care of Wiley Please notethat I can’t provide AutoCAD technical support for my readers

very supportive throughout the writing of this book

A huge thank you goes to Jade Williams, whose infinite organizing power kept thebook on track Jade kept up with a seemingly infinite number of versions of textdocuments and images, coordinating the writing, editing, and production of theentire book

for his extremely knowledgeable and thorough technical editing Darren’s ments improved the book throughout Darren also updated the customization andprogramming chapters for this book

com-Chapters 34–37 contain contributions by Jerry Coley and the development team atPerceptual Engineering, Inc., an Autodesk Registered Developer, including Stephen

I also thank Jerelind Charles for her precise and careful editing of this very cal book and all the people at Wiley who helped with the production of this bookand its CD-ROM

techni-Thanks to Wayne Hodgins, Strategic Futurist and Director of Worldwide LearningStrategies, for writing the Foreword for this book I also want to express my greatappreciation to the members of Autodesk’s beta and product teams who were verysupportive throughout the alpha and beta period For all their hard work and bril-liance, they have earned some homemade cookies and a free copy of this book.Shaan Hurley (the great), Traci Van Patten, Misha Belilovskiy, Eric Stover, BudShroeder, Kurt Chase, Wayne Fisher, Cynde Hargrave, and anyone else I forgot

Leonid Nemirovsky created two AutoLISP routines for managing single-line text (onthe CD-ROM) at my request Many people contributed drawings and software forthis book I’d like to thank all of them They have helped make this book the mostcomprehensive book on AutoCAD 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 whowanted to see their names in print) Without their support, I could not have com-pleted this book

Contents at a Glance

Foreword ixPreface xiAcknowledgments xxi

Part I: AutoCAD Basics 1

Chapter 1: Starting to Draw 3Chapter 2: Opening a Drawing 17Chapter 3: Using Commands 27Chapter 4: Specifying Coordinates 53Chapter 5: Setting Up a Drawing 89

Part II: Drawing in Two Dimensions 107

Chapter 6: Drawing Simple Lines 109Chapter 7: Drawing Curves and Point Objects 119Chapter 8: Viewing Your Drawing 137Chapter 9: Editing Your Drawing: Basic Tools 175Chapter 10: Editing Your Drawing: Advanced Tools 207Chapter 11: Organizing Drawings with Layers, Colors,

Linetypes, and Lineweights 271Chapter 12: Getting Information from Your Drawing 315Chapter 13: Creating Text 339Chapter 14: Drawing Dimensions 377Chapter 15: Creating Dimension Styles and Tolerances 425Chapter 16: Drawing Complex Objects 467Chapter 17: Plotting and Printing Your Drawing 521

Part III: Working with Data 565

Chapter 18: Working with Blocks and Attributes 567Chapter 19: Referencing Other Drawings 619Chapter 20: Working with External Databases 643

Part IV: Drawing in Three Dimensions 687

Chapter 21: Specifying 3D Coordinates 689Chapter 22: Viewing 3D Drawings 715Chapter 23: Creating 3D Surfaces 763

Chapter 24: Creating Solids and Editing in 3D 805Chapter 25: Rendering in 3D 865

Part V: Organizing and Managing Drawings 901

Chapter 26: Keeping Control of Your Drawings 903Chapter 27: Working with Other Applications 949Chapter 28: Getting on the Internet 975

Part VI: Customizing AutoCAD 1005

Chapter 29: Customizing Commands, Toolbars, and Tool Palettes 1007Chapter 30: Creating Macros and Slide Shows with Script Files 1029Chapter 31: Creating Your Own Linetypes and Hatch Patterns 1041Chapter 32: Creating Shapes and Fonts 1055Chapter 33: Customizing Menus 1069

Part VII: Programming AutoCAD 1113

Chapter 34: Understanding AutoLISP and Visual LISP Basics 1115Chapter 35: Exploring AutoLISP Further 1135Chapter 36: Exploring Advanced AutoLISP Topics 1165Chapter 37: Programming with Visual Basic for Applications 1185

Part VIII: Appendix 1219

Appendix: What’s on the CD-ROM 1221

Index 1229

Foreword ix Preface xi Acknowledgments xxi

Chapter 1: Starting to Draw 3

Getting Acquainted with AutoCAD 3Starting AutoCAD 4Creating a New Drawing 5Using the AutoCAD Interface 5The drawing area 6The menus and toolbars 8The command line 8The status bar 8Creating Your First Drawing 9Toolbars 9Drawing a rectangle 10Saving a Drawing 12Closing a Drawing and Exiting from AutoCAD 15Summary 16

Chapter 2: Opening a Drawing 17

Creating a New Drawing from a Template 17Working with Templates 19Customizing the default template 20Creating your own templates 20Opening a Drawing with Default Settings 21Opening an Existing Drawing 21Using an Existing Drawing as a Prototype 23Saving a Drawing Under a New Name 23Summary 25

Chapter 3: Using Commands 27

The Windows Interface 27Using AutoCAD’s menus 27Using shortcut menus 29

Using dialog boxes 30Using toolbars 32The Command Line 35Understanding command names 36Responding to command options 37Command Techniques 39Repeating commands 39Canceling commands 39Undoing a command 40Redoing a command 42Using one command within another command 43

Of Mice and Pucks 45Getting Help in AutoCAD 47Getting help on a command 47Using the main help system 48Working with help screens 49Using Active Assistance 50Getting more help 51Summary 52

Chapter 4: Specifying Coordinates 53

Understanding the X,Y Coordinate System 53Drawing units 54Types of measurement notation 54Typing Coordinates 55Absolute Cartesian coordinates 55Relative Cartesian coordinates 57Polar coordinates 58Direct distance entry 61Orthogonal mode 61Polar tracking 61Displaying Coordinates 65Picking Coordinates on the Screen 67Snap settings 67Object snaps 72Running object snaps and OSNAP mode 77Locating Points 80Object snap tracking 80Point filters 84From feature 86Summary 88

Chapter 5: Setting Up a Drawing 89

Unit Types 89Setting the drawing units 90Setting the angle type 91Setting the angle measure and direction 92

Drawing Limits 93Setting drawing limits 94Understanding Scales 95Inserting a Title Block 100Common Setup Options 101Setting Snap, Grid, and Ortho 101The MVSETUP Command 103Creating a Customized Template 104Summary 105

Chapter 6: Drawing Simple Lines 109

Using the LINE Command 109Drawing Rectangles 111Drawing Polygons 112Creating Construction Lines 115Creating Rays 116Summary 118

Chapter 7: Drawing Curves and Point Objects 119

Drawing Circles 119Understanding the circle options 119Drawing circles 120Drawing Arcs 123Understanding arc options 123Drawing arcs 124Creating Ellipses and Elliptical Arcs 127Understanding ellipse options 128Drawing ellipses 129Making Donuts 131Understanding DONUT options 132Drawing donuts 132Placing Points 133Changing the point style 133Creating points 134Summary 136

Chapter 8: Viewing Your Drawing 137

Understanding How AutoCAD Displays Drawings 137Panning 138Using the PAN command 138Using the scroll bars 139The ZOOM Command 141Understanding ZOOM options 142ZOOM Dynamic 143

Aerial View 146Zooming and panning with Aerial View 147Understanding Aerial View options 148Using Aerial View 148Named Views 150Saving a view 151Displaying a view 152Using other view control functions 152Using Named Views to Open a Drawing 154

A drawing with a view 154Partially opening a drawing 154Tiled Viewports 155Configuring tiled viewports 157Using tiled viewports 159Saving and restoring viewport configurations 160Snap Rotation 162User Coordinate Systems 164Understanding UCS options 165Saving and restoring a custom UCS 166Controlling the UCS icon 167Using a custom UCS 168Isometric Drawing 171Understanding isometric planes 171Drawing in isometric mode 172Summary 174

Chapter 9: Editing Your Drawing: Basic Tools 175

Editing a Drawing 175Understanding object-selection basics 176Erasing objects 176Moving objects 177Copying objects 181Copying and moving objects from one drawing to another 184Rotating objects 186Scaling objects 189Using the CHANGE command 191Selecting Objects 194Selecting objects after choosing a command 194Cycling through objects 199Selecting objects before choosing a command 199Implied windowing 199Customizing the selection process 201Summary 205

Chapter 10: Editing Your Drawing: Advanced Tools 207

Copying and Moving Objects 207Using the MIRROR command 207Using the ARRAY command 209Offsetting objects 215Aligning objects 218Resizing commands 220Extending objects 224Lengthening objects 228Stretching objects 230Using Construction Commands 233Breaking objects 233Creating chamfered corners 236Creating rounded corners 239Creating a Revision Cloud 242Hiding Objects with a Wipeout 243Double-Clicking to Edit Objects 244Grips 245Stretching with grips 246Moving with grips 248Rotating with grips 248Scaling with grips 249Mirroring with grips 250Customizing grips 253Editing with the Properties Palette 253Managing the Properties palette 254Using the Properties palette 255Selection Filters 257Using Quick Select to select objects 257Using the FILTER command 259Naming and editing filters 262Using filters 263Groups 265Creating and modifying groups 265Changing a group 266Using groups 267Summary 269

Chapter 11: Organizing Drawings with Layers, Colors,

Linetypes, and Lineweights 271

Working with Layers 272Understanding layers 272Creating new layers 273Using layers 282Modifying layers 291

Changing Object Color, Linetype, and Lineweight 297Changing an object’s color 297Changing the current color 299Changing an object’s linetype 300Changing the current linetype 301Changing an object’s lineweight 301Changing the current lineweight 302Working with Linetype Scales 304Changing linetype spacing by using a different linetype 305Changing linetype spacing by changing the global linetype scale 305Changing linetype spacing by changing the object linetype scale 306Importing Layers and Linetypes from Other Drawings 309Matching Properties 310Summary 312

Chapter 12: Getting Information from Your Drawing 315

Drawing-Level Information 315Listing the status of your drawing 315Listing system variables 316Tracking drawing time 318Object-Level Information 319Listing objects 319Calculating distances 320Finding coordinates 321Calculating area and perimeter 322Getting information from the Properties palette 325Measurement Commands 326Dividing objects 326Measuring objects 328AutoCAD’s Calculator 330Calculating numbers 330Using coordinates 331Using object snaps 331Using mathematical functions 333Using CAL’s special functions 334Summary 337

Chapter 13: Creating Text 339

Creating Single-Line Text 339Justifying single-line text 340Setting the height 343Setting the rotation angle 343Adding special characters and formatting 344Using the TEXT command 346Editing single-line text 346

Understanding Text Styles 350Creating a new text style 351Renaming and deleting text styles 353Modifying a text style 354Making a style current or changing a text object’s style 355Importing a text style 355Creating Multiline Text 356Using the Multiline Text Editor 356Editing paragraph text 362Importing text 363Managing Text 365Using Quicktext 366Using AutoCAD fonts 366Freezing text layers 367Using MIRRTEXT 367Finding Text in Your Drawing 371Checking Your Spelling 372Customizing the spelling dictionary 373Summary 375

Chapter 14: Drawing Dimensions 377

Working with AutoCAD’s Dimensions 377The elements of a dimension 377Preparing to dimension 379Drawing Linear Dimensions 380Specifying the dimensioned object 380Using dimension options 383Drawing Aligned Dimensions 388Specifying the dimensioned object 388Using the options 389Creating Baseline and Continued Dimensions 390Drawing baseline dimensions 391Drawing continued dimensions 392Dimensioning Arcs and Circles 394Marking arc and circle centers 394Creating radial dimensions 394Creating diameter dimensions 395Dimensioning Angles 396Creating Ordinate Dimensions 400Drawing Leaders 402Using the Leader Settings dialog box 403Creating a leader 406Using Quick Dimension 409Editing Dimensions 412Editing associativity 412Using the DIMEDIT command 414

Using the DIMTEDIT command 415Editing dimension text 416Using the Object Property Manager to edit dimensions 417Using Quick Dimension to edit dimensions 418Using grips to edit dimensions 419Editing objects and dimensions together 420Summary 423

Chapter 15: Creating Dimension Styles and Tolerances 425

Understanding Dimension Styles 425Defining a New Dimension Style 427Managing dimension lines and arrows 428Managing dimension text 434Fitting dimensions into tight spaces 439Defining primary units 445Defining alternate units 447Formatting tolerances 449Changing Dimension Styles 452Choosing a new current dimension style 453Creating a variant of a dimension style 453Modifying a dimension to use a new dimension style 454Modifying dimension styles 454Overriding a dimension style 455Updating dimensions 456Comparing dimension styles 456Copying dimension styles from other drawings 457Creating Geometric Tolerances 461Starting the tolerance frame 462Inserting the tolerance frame 464Editing a tolerance frame 464Summary 466

Chapter 16: Drawing Complex Objects 467

Creating and Editing Polylines 467Using the PLINE command 468Editing polylines with the PEDIT command 471Editing polylines using the Properties palette 474Drawing and Editing Splines 476Creating splines 476Editing splines 478Creating Regions 483Creating Boundaries 485Creating Hatches with Solid, Gradient, or Patterned Fills 488Understanding hatch patterns 488Defining a hatch 489

Determining the hatch boundary 492Dragging and dropping hatch patterns 496Creating gradient fills 497Editing hatches 498Using the SOLID command 501Creating and Editing Multilines 501Creating a multiline style 502Drawing multilines 507Editing multilines 509Using the SKETCH Command 514Digitizing Drawings with AutoCAD’s

TABLET Command 517Summary 519

Chapter 17: Plotting and Printing Your Drawing 521

Preparing a Drawing for Plotting or Printing 521Doing a draft plot 522Plotting a drawing from model space 522Creating a Layout in Paper Space 522Entering paper space 522Using the Layout Wizard 523Laying out a drawing in paper space on your own 528Working with Plot Styles 542Setting the plot style mode 542Creating a plot style table 543Attaching a plot style table to a layout 548Setting the plot style property for a layer or object 549Plotting a Drawing 551Choosing a plotter/printer 553Previewing your plot 555Creating the plot 557Batch Plotting 557Specifying how to plot 558Selecting a page setup 559Choosing a plotter or printer 559Specifying plot settings 559Plot testing 561Plot logging 561Starting the batch plot 562Creating Plot Stamps 563Summary 563

Part III: Working with Data 565

Chapter 18: Working with Blocks and Attributes 567

Combining Objects into Blocks 568Understanding base points and insertion points 568Creating a block 569Redefining a block 571Saving blocks as files 572Replacing an existing file 574Inserting Blocks and Files into Drawings 576Using the Insert dialog box 576Using the DesignCenter 578Managing Blocks 583Working with layers 583Exploding blocks 586Using the XPLODE command 587Editing blocks 589Organizing blocks 592Using Windows Features 593Manipulating objects with the Windows clipboard 593Using drag-and-drop 594Working with Attributes 598Creating attribute definitions 598Inserting blocks with attributes 603Editing attributes 604Extracting a database from attributes 612Summary 618

Chapter 19: Referencing Other Drawings 619

Understanding External References 619Attaching an external reference 620Opening an xref 622Viewing xref relationships 622Editing an Xref within Your Drawing 625Choosing the xref or block to edit 625Editing the xref 627Controlling Xref Display 629Xrefs and dependent symbols 630Circular references 631Clipping xrefs 631Speeding up the display of large xrefs 633Managing Xrefs 637The Xref Manager 638Xref notification 639DesignCenter 639The Xref log file 640Summary 642

Chapter 20: Working with External Databases 643

Understanding External Database Access 643Preparing for Database Connectivity 645Installing AutoCAD’s database feature 646Organizing the database structure 646Configuring a data source 647Connecting to Your Database 652Connecting a database to a drawing 653Opening a data table 654Editing data in the Data View window 660Linking Data to Drawing Objects 661Creating a link template 661Creating a link 663Creating Labels 670Creating label templates 670Creating attached labels 672Creating freestanding labels 673Querying with the Query Editor 674Using the Quick Query tab 675Using the Range Query tab 677Using the Query Building tab 677Using the SQL Query tab 679Creating selection sets with Link Select 681Working with Query Files 683Storing queries 683Importing and exporting queries 684Converting prior release links to AutoCAD 2004 format 684Summary 685

Chapter 21: Specifying 3D Coordinates 689

Working with 3D Coordinates 690Absolute and relative Cartesian coordinates in 3D 691Cylindrical and spherical coordinates 691Using editing commands with 3D wireframes 694Using point filters, object snaps, and grips in 3D 697Creating 3D polylines 699Using Elevation and Thickness 700Creating surfaces with thickness 700Using the HIDE command 701Adding elevation to objects 704Working with the User Coordinate System 706Using the UCS icon 707UCS options 709Summary 714

Chapter 22: Viewing 3D Drawings 715

Working with the Standard Viewpoints 716Using the VPOINT command 717Looking at a drawing from the standard viewpoints 717Using DDVPOINT 723Working with the Tripod and Compass 726Getting a Quick Plan View 729Shading Your Drawing 732Using the shading options 732Using materials 733Using 3D Orbit 735Starting 3D orbit 735Refining your 3D orbit view 742Using Tiled Viewports 748Defining a Perspective View 748Using DVIEW 750Understanding the DVIEW options 750Laying Out 3D Drawings 758Using SOLVIEW to lay out paper space viewports 758Using SOLDRAW to create hidden lines and hatching 759Using SOLPROF to create profiles 760Summary 762

Chapter 23: Creating 3D Surfaces 763

Drawing Surfaces with 3DFACE 764Using the 3DFACE command 765Making 3D face edges invisible 765Drawing Surfaces with PFACE 772Creating Polygon Meshes with 3DMESH 776Drawing Standard 3D Shapes 779Box 779Wedge 781Pyramid 782Cone 783Sphere 784Dome 785Dish 786Torus 787Mesh 788Drawing a Revolved Surface 791Determining the angle of rotation 792Setting the number of segments 793Using the REVSURF command 794Drawing an Extruded Surface 796Drawing Ruled Surfaces 799Drawing Edge Surfaces 801Summary 804

Chapter 24: Creating Solids and Editing in 3D 805

Drawing Standard Shapes 806Drawing a box 806Drawing a sphere 808Drawing a cylinder 808Drawing a cone 809Drawing a wedge 810Drawing a torus 811Creating Extruded Solids 813Drawing Revolved Solids 817Creating Complex Solids 818Adding solids 818Subtracting solids 819Creating a solid from the intersection of two solids 820Creating a new solid using INTERFERE 820Sectioning and Slicing Solids 824Using the SECTION command 824Using the SLICE command 826Using Editing Commands in 3D 829Mirroring in 3D 829Arraying in 3D 831Rotating in 3D 835Aligning in 3D 838Trimming and extending in 3D 839Filleting in 3D 843Chamfering in 3D 845Exploding 3D objects 848Editing Solids 849Editing faces 850Editing edges 858Editing bodies 858Listing Solid Properties 862Summary 863

Chapter 25: Rendering in 3D 865

Understanding Rendering 865Learning the steps 866Doing a default rendering 866Creating Lights 868Assigning color to a light 869Setting the North location 870Setting the ambient light 870Creating a point light 870Creating a spotlight 872Creating a distant light 874Creating shadows 877

Creating Scenes 881Working with Materials 883Adding materials 883Attaching materials 891Using Backgrounds 892Doing the Final Render 895Statistics 898Saving rendered images 898Unloading Render 899Summary 900

Chapter 26: Keeping Control of Your Drawings 903

Accessing Drawing Components with the DesignCenter 903Navigating with the DesignCenter 904Accessing named drawing components 907Controlling the DesignCenter display 909Accessing Drawing Content with Tool Palettes 911Creating a new tool palette 912Adding content to a tool palette 913Setting tool properties 914Using a tool palette 917Setting Standards for Drawings 920Using symbol libraries 921Using the CAD Standards tools 921Translating layers 927The Communication Center 932Renaming named objects 934Organizing Your Drawings 934Archiving drawings 935Finding drawings 936Finding drawings from within AutoCAD 936Specifying drawing properties 937Maintaining Security 938Password protection 938Digital signatures 940Keeping Track of Referenced Files 942Handling Errors and Crashes 944Taking care of temporary files 944Repairing corrupted drawing files 945Using backup drawings 946Taking care of your hard disk after a crash 947Managing Drawings from Prior AutoCAD Releases 947Summary 948