Mastering AutoCAD

Name the filename extension for an AutoCAD drawing standards file.

.dws

Name some of the versions of AutoCAD that you can export to using the Save As option.

2018, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2004, 2000, and R12.

What would you type to indicate a relative distance of 14 units at a 45° angle?

@14<45↵

Name a few of the more unusual features offered by the QuickCalc calculator.

Add feet and inch lengths; find percentages of lengths; and obtain coordinates, lengths, and angles graphically from a drawing.

Describe the method for saving a file as a template.

After setting up a blank drawing with the settings you use most frequently, choose Save As from the Application menu. In the Save Drawing As dialog box, choose AutoCAD Drawing Template (*.dwt) from the Files Of Type drop-down list, give the file a name, and click Save. In the Template Options dialog box, enter a description, and click OK to save the template.

Why is eTransmit important for sending AutoCAD drawings electronically?

An AutoCAD drawing can have many different external files associated with it, such as fonts, Xrefs, and image files. eTransmit offers a quick way to gather these files into one place or into a single archive file.

Describe an island as it relates to boundary hatch patterns.

An island is an enclosed object that is found in an area to be hatched.

Name some of the types of objects for which a linear dimension isn't appropriate.

Arc and angle between two lines. Linear dimensions can be used for circles in certain situations.

What is the name of the object that you must include in a block to store data?

Attribute definition.

What option do you select in the Check Spelling dialog box when it finds a misspelled word and you want to accept the suggestion it offers?

Change.

How do you open the Hatch And Gradient dialog box?

Choose Hatch from the Home tab's Draw panel, and then click the Hatch Settings tool in the Hatch Creation tab's Options panel title bar.

Name at least two ways of zooming into a view.

Choose options from the Zoom flyout in the View tab's Navigate panel. You can also right-click and select Zoom from the shortcut menu and select Zoom options from the Navigation bar's Zoom flyout.

Describe the process to import a raster image of your choice and the AutoCAD drawing tools you would use to trace over your image.

Click Attach from the Insert tab's Reference panel, or type Attach↵ to open the Select Reference File dialog box. Locate and select the raster image file that you want to import. Click Open to open the Attach Image dialog box and then click OK. Specify an insertion point and scale factor.

Describe the process to import a raster image of your choice and how you would fade the image so that it appears to blend into the background with less contrast.

Click a raster image's border to expose the Image tab. Click and drag the Fade slider to the right so that it's near the middle of the slider scale, or enter 50 in the Fade box to the right of the slider. Click OK. The raster image appears faded.

How do you start the data-extraction process?

Click the Extract Data tool in the Insert tab's Linking & Extraction panel to open the Data Extraction Wizard.

Describe a way to create a page setup. Describe how to retrieve a setup.

Click the Page Setup Manager tool in the Output tab's Plot panel; then click New in the Page Setup Manager dialog box. Enter a name for your page setup in the New Page Setup dialog box and then click OK. When you plot your drawing, you can retrieve a page setup by selecting it from the Page Setup drop-down list in the Plot dialog box.

How do you start the Add-A-Plotter Wizard?

Click the Plotter Manager tool on the Output tab's Plot panel, and double-click the Add-A-Plotter Wizard application in the Plotters directory in Windows Explorer.

Describe the methods for starting the single-line text command.

Click the Single Line tool in the Annotate tab's Text panel or the Home tab's Annotation panel. Enter T↵ at the Command prompt.

How do you open the Geometric Tolerance dialog box?

Click the Tolerance tool in the Dimensions panel or type TOL↵.

When a block uses the Visibility parameter to set up different shapes, how do you select a different block shape in the drawing?

Click the block, and then click the Visibility grip. A list appears showing the different shapes that are available.

In a PDF that includes layers, how do you gain access to the layer settings?

Click the imported PDF object, and then click the Edit Layers tool that appears in the PDF Underlay tab. You can then control layer visibility through the Underlay Layers dialog box.

Name a few of the dimension components.

Dimension line, dimension text, extension line, and arrow.

What is the simplest way to gain access to a block's attribute data?

Double-click the block to open the Enhanced Attribute Editor.

How do you start the command to edit dimension text?

Enter ED↵ at the Command prompt.

By default, how often does the AutoCAD Automatic Save feature save your drawing?

Every 10 minutes

What is the name of the tool used to "unblock" a block?

Explode Tool

True or false: The Find And Replace feature in AutoCAD works very differently from the find-and-replace feature in other programs.

False.

True or false: The Export command saves only blocks as drawing files.

False. You can use Export on any type of object or set of objects in a drawing.

What type of text object lets you add formulas to cells?

Field.

Name two uses for fields that you learned about in the first part of this chapter.

Fields can be used to update text that labels a block. They can also be used to update text and report the area enclosed by a polyline.

What tool can you use to join two lines end to end?

Fillet.

Name the three locations for which you are prompted when placing a linear dimension.

First extension line origin, second extension line origin, and dimension line location.

Describe the process of creating a layer.

First, click the Layer Properties Manager tool in the Home tab's Layers panel. Second, click the New Layer button at the top of the palette. Finally, type the name for your new layer.

Name at least two of the settings available in the Plot Scale panel of the Plot dialog box.

Fit to paper, Scale, inches, mm, Scale lineweights.

Name some of the features of the Block Editor that let you add additional grip-editing functions to a block.

Geometric constraints, dimensional constraints, parameters, and actions.

Which AutoCAD feature would you use to find the area of an irregular shape, such as a pond or lake, quickly?

Hatch.

How do you select multiple grips?

Hold down the Shift key while clicking the grips.

Describe the process for creating a circular viewport.

In paper space, draw a circle. Next, click Object from the Viewport flyout in the Layout tab's Layout Viewports panel, and then follow the prompts.

What is the name of the dialog box that appears when you click the Table tool in the Annotate tab's Tables panel?

Insert Table.

What does the Customizations In All Files group display?

Interface elements such as toolbars, menus, Ribbon panels, and so on.

Name some of the items that you see in a layout view.

Layout views show the paper orientation, plotter margins, and the location of your drawing on the final plotted output.

What two types of objects does the multileader combine?

Leader lines (arrowhead and line) and text.

Name the two tools that you can use to mark off exact distances along a curve.

Measure and Divide.

What is the name of the feature that lets you select exact locations on objects?

Object Snap, or Osnap.

Describe how drawing files are attached as external references.

Open the External References palette, click the Attach DWG tool at the upper left, and then locate and select the file you want to attach.

Describe at least two methods for hiding a layer.

Open the Layer Properties Manager, select a layer, and click the Freeze icon for the layer. You can also open the layer drop-down list in the Home tab's Layers panel and click the Freeze icon for the layer you want to hide. You can also use the On/Off (lightbulb) icon in the Layer Properties Manager or the layer drop-down list to change a layer's visibility.

Describe how to import a spreadsheet from Excel into AutoCAD.

Open the spreadsheet, and select the cells you want to import. Right-click and select Copy to copy the spreadsheet data into the Clipboard. In AutoCAD, choose Paste Special from the Paste flyout of the Home tab's Clipboard panel. In the Paste Special dialog box, select AutoCAD Entities and click OK.

Name some file formats, by filename extension or type, that page layout programs can accept.

PDF (.pdf), WMF (.wmf), EPS (.eps), and a wide variety of bitmap image files.

To link imported data to a source program through OLE, what dialog box would you use?

Paste Special.

Name the tool that causes the cursor to point in an exact horizontal or vertical direction.

Polar Tracking or Ortho Mode

Name the components of the AutoCAD interface that you can use to select a function.

Quick Access toolbar, the Application menu, Ribbon panels, the Navigation bar, and the Status Bar

What names are given to the three types of arrays offered in the Modify panel?

Rectangular, polar, and path.

What is the difference between relative and absolute coordinates?

Relative coordinates move objects based on its current position. Absolute coordinates move objects to the exact coordinates you specify.

How do you get to the Cell Border Properties dialog box?

Select the cell or cells in the table, right-click, and choose Borders.

How do you open the Properties palette for a particular object?

Select the object, right-click, and select Properties. Or select the object, and type in "Prop"

Name two things that you need to do to prepare a drawing for text.

Set up a layer for your text. Create a text style for your drawing.

Name the four groups in the New Table Style dialog box.

Starting Table, General, Cell Styles, and Cell Style Preview.

What is the name of the action used to produce copies of a block object at regular intervals in both the x- and y-axes when the block is stretched?

The Array action.

Name the dialog box used to create a block from objects in a drawing, and also name the tool used to open this dialog box.

The Block Definition dialog box can be opened using the Create tool.

What feature do you use to set up a list of options for a block?

The Block Table.

What text formatting tool can you use to change text to boldface type?

The Bold button

Name the tab where you can find the DWG Compare tool.

The Collaborate tab.

What is the name of the dialog box that lets you manage dimension styles and how do you open it?

The Dimension Style Manager is the name of the dialog box. You can open it by clicking the Dimension Style tool in the Annotate tab's Dimensions panel title bar.

What dialog box lets you set both the grid and snap spacing?

The Drafting Settings dialog box.

What feature lets you store your own searchable information about a drawing file, and how do you get to this feature?

The Drawing Properties dialog box. You can open it by choosing Drawing Utilities ➢ Drawing Properties from the Application menu.

How do you turn on the Dynamic Input display?

The Dynamic Input button on the AutoCAD status bar turns Dynamic Input on and off. You can also press F12 to toggle it on/off

What does the Edit Block Definition dialog box allow you to do?

The Edit Block Definition dialog box lets you select the block that you want to edit from a list of blocks in the drawing.

What key do you press for context-sensitive help?

The F1 key.

What part of the Layer States Manager dialog box lets you control the layer properties that are affected by a saved layer state?

The Layer Properties To Restore group in the expanded view of the Layer States Manager.

Describe the Point Selection cursor and the Pickbox cursor.

The Point Selection cursor is a simple crosshair. The Pickbox cursor is a small square, or pickbox.

Name a command that displays its results in the AutoCAD Text Window.

The Textscrt command

Name the dialog box used to save views in AutoCAD. Describe how to recall a saved view.

The View Manager dialog box allows you to save views. You can recall views by selecting them from the Views flyout on the View tab's Views panel.

Where do you find the Customize option for workspaces?

The Workspace drop-down menu or the Workspace Switching tool.

In a sentence or two, briefly describe the purpose of the annotation scale feature. Name the tool that you use to add text to a drawing.

The annotation scale feature converts your text size to the proper height for the scale of your drawing. To add text to a drawing, use the Mtext tool.

What is the keyboard alias for the command that changes the length of objects?

The command is Lengthen. You can also use len.

Name at least six of the geometric constraints available in AutoCAD.

The constraints are coincident, collinear, concentric, fix, parallel, perpendicular, horizontal, vertical, tangent, smooth, symmetric, and equal.

Name at least four dimensional constraints.

The dimensional constraints are linear, horizontal, vertical, aligned, radius, diameter, and angular. In addition, a tool allows you to convert a normal dimension into a dimensional constraint.

Describe the different methods available in AutoCAD for converting paper drawings into CAD files.

The methods are scaling directly from a hard-copy drawing, scanning and converting with a third-party program, and scanning to a raster file that can then be imported into AutoCAD to be traced over.

When an object is selected, what key lets you shift between the different dimensions?

The tab key

True or false: DesignCenter has the capacity to scale a block automatically to the correct size when moving from metric to Imperial drawings.

True.

True or false: The Publish feature can be used to plot multiple drawings in the background.

True.

True or false: The Quick Select tool lets you select a set of objects to limit your selections.

True.

What AutoCAD feature do you use for ordinate dimensions that aren't strictly associated with dimensions?

UCS.

With two drawings open, how can you copy parts of one drawing into the other?

Use Windows Copy and Paste. Select the parts you want to copy, right-click, and select Clipboard and then Copy. Go to the other drawing, right-click in the drawing area, and select Clipboard and then Paste.

What do you need to do to have one grip perform two functions?

Use a single parameter to control two actions.

What does UCS stand for?

User Coordinate System

Name some of the ways that you can enlarge a view in a viewport.

You can double-click inside a viewport and then use the Zoom tools to enlarge the view. You can also use the Viewport Scale tool in the status bar to set the scale of the view.

How are groups different from blocks?

You can easily edit objects in a group by turning groups off with a Shift+Ctrl+A keystroke. Also, unlike blocks, groups don't have a single definition that's stored in the drawing and that defines the group's appearance. You can copy a group, but each copy is independent of the other groups.

Name three types of information that you can use to find a site in the Geographic Location dialog box.

You can enter latitude/longitude, street addresses, or name of a site.

What are three ways of moving from model space to paper space?

You can hover over the drawing tab above the drawing area to display the Model and Layout preview panels, or you can use the Model and Layout tabs in the lower-left corner of the drawing area. Finally, you can use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+PgUp and Ctrl+PgDn.

Name two ways to set up the area of your work (In Model Space).

You can use the Limits command to define the work area, otherwise known as the limits of the drawing. You can also draw a rectangle that is the size of your work area.

Where do you go to turn on the log-file feature?

You can use the Logfilemode. system variable.

Name the two dialog boxes that you must use to display lineweights in a layout view.

You use the Layer Properties Manager (to set up lineweights) and the Lineweight Settings dialog box.