For Dummies AutoCAD 2011
Contents
1. Autodesk acquired them and incorporated them into its own products When you compare all the resources including the add ons exten sions training courses books and so on AutoCAD doesn t have much PC CAD competition The Importance of Being DWG To take full advantage of AutoCAD in your work environment you need to be aware of the DWG file format the format in which AutoCAD saves drawings Here are some DWG facts to keep in mind 1 In some cases an older release of AutoCAD can t open a DWG file that s been saved by a newer AutoCAD release vy A newer release of AutoCAD can always open files saved by older versions 1 Some previous AutoCAD releases can open files saved by the subse quent one or two versions For example AutoCAD 2007 and AutoCAD 2008 can open DWG files saved by AutoCAD 2009 That s because Autodesk didn t change the DWG file format between those releases However the drawing file format did change with AutoCAD 2010 so drawings created in the current release must be saved in an older format to be openable in AutoCAD 2009 and earlier vy You can use the Save As option in newer releases to save the file to some older DWG formats In fact AutoCAD 2011 can save as far back as AutoCAD Release 14 which dates all the way back to 1997 Table 1 1 shows which versions described later in this chapter use which DWG file formats Table 1 1 AutoCAD Versions and DWG File Formats AutoCAD Version A2. But even the command line oops command window is kinder and gentler in AutoCAD 2011 This book guides you around the bumps and minimizes the bruises Why AutoCAD AutoCAD has been around a long time since 1982 which I suspect dear readers is longer than some of you AutoCAD ushered in the transition from really expensive mainframe and minicomputer CAD systems costing tens of thousands of dollars to merely somewhat expensive microcomputer CAD pro grams costing a few thousand dollars AutoCAD s 3D abilities have grown by leaps and bounds over the last several releases and 3D modeling is becoming a common way of checking designs before they re drafted Nevertheless AutoCAD is first and foremost a pro gram for creating two dimensional technical drawings drawings in which measurements and precision are important because these kinds of drawings Chapter 1 Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT 13 often get used to build something The drawings you create with AutoCAD must adhere to standards established long ago for hand drafted drawings The up front investment to use AutoCAD is certainly more expensive than the investment needed to use pencil and paper and the learning curve is much steeper too So why bother The key reasons for using AutoCAD rather than pencil and paper are Precision Creating lines circles and other shapes of the exact dimen sions is easier with AutoCAD than with pencils Modifiability Drawi
3. now returned to the dark side not black but very dark gray And the old dot grid has been sidelined by a new graph paper style linear grid Chapter 1 Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Navigation bar Pan Zoom SteeringWheel Orbit and ShowMotion the last two not in AutoCAD LT are removed from the status bar and relo cated to the new floating Navigation bar The ViewCube near neighbor to the Navigation bar is now on screen even in the 2D Wireframe visual style it was formerly visible only in 3D visual styles Since AutoCAD LT has virtually no 3D capabilities it doesn t get the ViewCube I introduce the Navigation bar in Chapter 2 and cover its 2D tools in Chapter 12 New Visual Styles Visual styles let you quickly view 3D models with sur faces and a minimal degree of rendering AutoCAD 2011 comes with ten visual styles the four new ones include Shades of Gray and X Ray Visual styles which are not included in AutoCAD LT are described in Chapter 21 Y Object visibility This one is probably my favorite new feature You no longer have to turn an entire layer off in order to hide the display of one particular object you can now select the object you don t want to see right click and choose Hide Objects You can also isolate objects so what you select is the only thing you see I cover hiding isolating and unisolating objects in Chapter 10 New selection tools Two new commands on the right click menu
4. offer their assistance in selecting objects and drawing new ones Select Similar prompts you to select an object and then displays all objects with the same properties Add Selected prompts you to pick an object AutoCAD then starts whatever command was used to create that object and draws a new object using the source object s properties I describe these new tools in Chapter 10 1 Inferred constraints A new status bar button toggles this feature off and on When enabled parametric constraints are added to points you pick using object snaps or points to which object snaps are automati cally applied For example if you draw a series of lines using the LINE command and inferred constraints is enabled the lines get coincident constraints at their adjoining endpoints and behave exactly like a poly line I introduce you to parametrics in Chapter 19 1 Hatches and gradients The old Hatch and Gradient and Hatch Edit dialog boxes are still there but the new way of adding hatching to draw ings is by using the new Hatch Creation and Hatch Editing contextual Ribbon tabs Start the HATCH command and as you pass your cross hairs over drawing geometry different enclosed areas will highlight and a preview hatch pattern will appear You just click to confirm the area you want I cover hatching in Chapter 15 Polyline and spline editing This might be my second favorite new feature Polylines and splines have become much easier to edit wi
5. that one various flavors of UNIX and even Apple s Macintosh By far the most popular of those early versions was for MS DOS your dad can tell you about that one Eventually Autodesk settled on Microsoft Windows as the sole operating system for AutoCAD 2 Part I AutoCAD 101 AutoCAD 2011 and AutoCAD LT 2011 are supported in the following Windows flavors including both 32 and 64 bit versions 1 Windows 7 and Windows Vista Home Premium YY Windows 7 Professional Windows 7 and Windows Vista Enterprise 1 Windows 7 and Windows Vista Ultimate Windows Vista Business 1 Windows XP Professional 1 Windows XP Home 32 bit only Although it s not officially supported it can also run in Windows XP Tablet 2005 Edition and make use of the tablet functionality included in Windows Vista and Windows 7 Trying to do production drafting on a tablet isn t a great idea due to limitations in the graphics system but I know it works because I m running it that way myself Because of AutoCAD s MS DOS heritage and its emphasis on efficiency for production drafters it s not the easiest program to master but it has gotten easier and more consistent over the past decade or so AutoCAD is pretty well integrated into the Windows environment now but you still bump into some vestiges of its MS DOS legacy especially the command line that text area lurking at the bottom of the AutoCAD screen see Chapter 2 for details
6. with people probably from other com panies who use AutoCAD releases as old as AutoCAD 2006 or even older Many programs claim to be DWG compatible that is capable of converting data to and from AutoCAD s DWG format But achieving this compatibility is a difficult thing to do well Even a small error in file conversion can have results ranging in severity from annoying to appalling Every time you open a drawing file AutoCAD checks its parentage and warns you if the drawing was created by a non Autodesk program If you exchange DWG files with people who use other CAD programs you may have to spend time finding and fixing transla tion problems Seeing the LT AutoCAD LT is one of the best deals around a shining example of the old 80 20 rule roughly 80 percent of the capabilities of AutoCAD for roughly 20 percent of the money Actually with recent price creep it s now more like a 70 30 rule Like AutoCAD AutoCAD LT runs on mainstream Windows computers 15 16 Part I AutoCAD 101 and doesn t require any additional hardware devices With AutoCAD LT you can be a player in the world of AutoCAD the world s leading CAD program for a comparatively low starting cost AutoCAD LT is a very close cousin to AutoCAD Autodesk creates AutoCAD LT by starting with the AutoCAD program taking out a few features to jus tify charging a lower price and adding a couple of features to enhance ease of use versus full AutoCA
7. Chapter 1 Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT In This Chapter Getting the AutoCAD advantage Using AutoCAD and DWG files Meeting the AutoCAD product family Using AutoCAD LT instead of AutoCAD Finding out what s new in 2011 M aybe you re one of the few remaining holdouts who continue to prac tice the ancient art of manual drafting with pencil and vellum If so I must tell you you re a dwindling breed Or maybe you re completely new to drafting and yearn for the wealth and fame would I lead you on of the drafter s life Maybe you re an engineer or architect who needs to catch up with the young CAD hotshots in your office Maybe you tried to use AutoCAD a long time ago but gave up in frustration or just got rusty Or maybe you currently use an older release such as AutoCAD 2006 or even if you re into antiques AutoCAD 2000 Whatever your current situation or motivation I hope that you enjoy the process of becoming proficient with AutoCAD Drawing with AutoCAD is chal lenging at first but it s a challenge worth meeting AutoCAD rewards those who think creatively about their work and look for ways to do it better You can always find out more discover a new trick or improve the efficiency and quality of your drawing production AutoCAD first hit the bricks in the early 1980s around the same time as the first IBM PCs It was offered for a bewildering variety of operating systems including CP M ask your granddad about
8. D As a result AutoCAD LT looks and works much like AutoCAD The drawing areas Ribbons and Application Menu of the two programs are nearly identical LT is missing a few Ribbon tabs panels and commands In fact the major difference between the programs has nothing to do with the programs themselves The major difference is that AutoCAD LT lacks sup port for several customization and programming languages that are used to develop AutoCAD add ons So almost none of the add on programs or utilities offered by Autodesk and others are available to LT users AutoCAD LT also has only limited 3D support You can view and edit 3D objects in AutoCAD LT so you can work with drawings created in AutoCAD that contain 3D objects However you can t create true 3D objects in LT Although you may hear claims that AutoCAD LT is easier to master and use than AutoCAD the truth is that they re about equally difficult or easy depending on your NQ nerd quotient The LT learning curve doesn t differ significantly from that of AutoCAD AutoCAD was originally designed for max imum power and then modified somewhat to improve ease of use AutoCAD LT shares this same heritage Fortunately the minimal differences between LT and AutoCAD mean that after you climb that learning curve you have the same great view You have almost the full range of the AutoCAD 2D drafting tools and you can exchange DWG files with AutoCAD users without data loss This b
9. ngs are much easier to modify on the computer screen than on paper CAD modifications are a lot cleaner too 1 Efficiency Creating many kinds of drawings is faster with a CAD pro gram especially drawings that involve repetition such as floor plans in a multistory building But that efficiency takes skill and practice If you re an accomplished pencil and paper drafter don t expect CAD to be faster at first Figure 1 1 shows several kinds of drawings in AutoCAD 2011 Toy Train dwg D QAE 2 1 W Conceptual gt m 5 RE bl f Ge L 6 Q 7 D A vens S ls k EE 05 0 2 0 IEI Tool Properties Sheet Set El L2 SWord ER FS Palettes Manager M r Navigate Views Coordinates Visual Styles a Viewports Palettes N Toy Train dwg Figure 1 1 Cities houses little toy trains what do you wantto tinmnts TOS draw today conmana _ 798 1160 147 3573 0 0000 14 Part l AutoCAD 101 Why choose AutoCAD AutoCAD is just the starting point of a whole industry of software products designed to work with AutoCAD Autodesk has helped this process along immensely by designing a series of programming interfaces to AutoCAD but not alas to AutoCAD LT see the Seeing the LT section later in the chapter that other companies and Autodesk itself have used to extend the application Some of the add on products have become such winners that
10. ook covers AutoCAD 2011 but most of the information in it except for the 3D chapters in Part V applies to AutoCAD LT 2011 as well The icon that you see to the left of this paragraph highlights significant differences Checking System Requirements If you re upgrading from AutoCAD 2010 or another recent release and you work mostly or entirely in 2D you re probably already current with system requirements In fact if your work is mostly or entirely 2D and therefore this applies especially for LT users AutoCAD 2011 will run fine on pretty well any computer that will run Windows 7 Vista or XP Chapter 1 Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT 7 AutoCAD s requirements for running in Windows 7 or Vista are substantially higher than for running in XP This section covers the details You should know the following before you upgrade from any older AutoCAD release YY Wash those old Windows AutoCAD 2011 does not support older ver sions of Windows such as Windows 2000 NT 98 or Me For AutoCAD 2011 you have three choices of operating system e Windows XP Home or Professional SP2 or later e Windows Vista Enterprise Business Ultimate or Home Premium SP1 or later e Windows 7 Enterprise Ultimate Professional or Home Premium If you like to be cutting edge there are 64 bit versions of AutoCAD 2011 and AutoCAD LT 2011 that run in the 64 bit versions of XP Vista and Windows 7 1 DWG file compatibilit
11. or better chip and 2 GB of RAM if running in Windows Vista or Windows 7 Multiple processors and dual core are supported You also need a 1024 x 768 or higher display resolution with True Color graphics 1 GB to 1 6GB of available hard disk space an Internet connection and Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 0 or later 18 Part I AutoCAD 101 NG Additional requirements for working in 3D AutoCAD recommends a 3 GHz or better processor 2 GB or more of RAM a workstation class Direct3D capable graphics card with at least 128 MB of memory and an additional 2 GB of hard disk space beyond the 1 GB required for installation I find even the recommended system requirements on the minimal side For example my desktop computer runs at a screen resolution of 1280 x 1024 and my tablet computer runs at 1400 x 1050 The figures in this book were shot at a resolution of 1024 x 768 and as you can see things can get pretty crowded at that resolution Suddenly It s 2011 There s been a new release of AutoCAD every spring since AutoCAD 2004 was launched in 2003 That s not much time for even an army of programmers to deliver a compelling new feature set that s going to convince all users that they just have to upgrade What seems to have been happening is a concen tration on particular areas in recent releases For example AutoCAD 2007 was a 3D release the 3D modeling engine was made much easier to use but there was relatively lit
12. th the addition of secondary grips at the midpoints of segments Ctrl Click actions on the secondary grips let you add or remove vertices or change line segments to arc segments 20 Parti AutoCAD 101 1 3D Features AutoCAD 2011 gains a new 3D Basics workspace that pres ents a not quite so overwhelming panoply of buttons and lists as the regular 3D Modeling workspace New features include NURBS surfaces and a vast material library Perhaps best of all for the 3D crowd is the addition of a set of 3D object snaps AutoCAD LT users you know the scoop by now In this edition of AutoCAD For Dummies an entire new section presents an introduction to viewing creating and editing 3D models in AutoCAD
13. tle to please the 2D crowd By contrast AutoCAD 2008 was deemed to be the drafter s release because of the number of enhance ments to 2D drawing capabilities above all the introduction of annotative documentation objects In AutoCAD 2009 the new interface got the lion s share of development suddenly it s Office 20071 major new features were limited to some 3D navigation tools the very useful Quick Properties tool and a palettized Layer Properties Manager AutoCAD 2010 offered significant enhancements to both 2D and 3D users in parametric drafting tools and free form mesh modeling AutoCAD 2011 again has presents for both the 2D and the 3D crowds in the new transparency object property object visibility controls and a new suite of surface modeling tools I introduce transparency in Chapter 6 and object isolation in Chapter 10 you find out about network surfaces blends and G2 continuity in Chapter 22 and rendering with materials in Chapter 23 In the meantime here s a short list of some of the other new features along with where you can go to find out more 1 AutoCAD s drawing screen After a quarter century of out of the box black backgrounds Autodesk s programmers decided to kick the pro gram into the 21st century by lightening up the drawing area making it more like Inventor and Revit Autodesk s newer 3D design programs AutoCAD 2010 appeared with an off white drawing background but the program has
14. utoCAD LT Version Release DWG File Year Format AutoCAD 2011 AutoCAD LT 2011 2010 Acad 2010 AutoCAD 2010 AutoCAD LT 2010 2009 Acad 2010 AutoCAD 2009 AutoCAD LT 2009 2008 Acad 2007 NING RY Chapter 1 Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT AutoCAD Version AutoCAD LT Version Release DWG File Year Format AutoCAD 2008 AutoCAD LT 2008 2007 Acad 2007 AutoCAD 2007 AutoCAD LT 2007 2006 Acad 2007 AutoCAD 2006 AutoCAD LT 2006 2005 Acad 2004 AutoCAD 2005 AutoCAD LT 2005 2004 Acad 2004 AutoCAD 2004 AutoCAD LT 2004 2003 Acad 2004 AutoCAD 2002 AutoCAD LT 2002 2001 Acad 2000 AutoCAD 2000i AutoCAD LT 2000i 2000 Acad 2000 AutoCAD 2000 AutoCAD LT 2000 1999 Acad 2000 AutoCAD Release 14 AutoCAD LT 98 and 97 1997 Acad R14 AutoCAD Release 13 AutoCAD LT 95 1994 Acad R13 AutoCAD Release 12 AutoCAD LT Release 2 1992 Acad R12 The new file format in AutoCAD 2010 was necessary to handle new features especially parametric drafting The new format is also more efficient at saving files and can handle much larger objects Best of all from the user s perspec tive it s noticeably faster to work with than AutoCAD 2009 Working with AutoCAD is easier when your coworkers and colleagues in other companies all use the same release of AutoCAD and AutoCAD related tools That way your DWG files add on tools and even the details of your CAD knowledge can be mixed and matched among your workgroup and part ners In the real world you may work
15. y AutoCAD s DWG file format changed with AutoCAD 2010 Users of that version can open drawings created in AutoCAD 2011 but you have to use the Save As option on the Application Menu or the SAVEAS command to create DWG files for users of AutoCAD 2009 and earlier versions You can save as far back as Release 14 and if you need to go even further back you can save to the Release 12 DXF format Visit the online help index for instructions Application compatibility If you use third party applications with a pre vious AutoCAD release they may not work with AutoCAD 2011 AutoCAD applications developed with the NET or the ObjectARX AutoCAD Runtime eXtension interfaces will probably need to be recompiled Many LSP AutoLISP programs written for the last several versions of AutoCAD should work without change Built in support for VBA applications is not included in AutoCAD 2011 For this release only you can continue to run VBA applications but you first have to download and install the VBA installer from Autodesk s Web site At the time this book went to press the URL has not been finalized just go to www autodesk com and enter VBA installer in the Search box There are 32 and 64 bit versions so make sure you down load the right one for your system Computer system requirements For AutoCAD 2011 Autodesk recom mends a 1 6 GHz or better Intel or AMD processor with at least 2 GB of RAM if running in Windows XP and a 3 0 GHz
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