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Inside AutoCAD 14

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Before The Drawing Begins: Planning and Organizing Projects

by Craig W. Sharp

You might have been attracted to AutoCAD because this program can save you time in creating the drawings and images associated with your work. In this chapter, you will learn techniques that are not necessarily drawing-based, but that have a lot to do with saving time. This chapter is about the process of organizing your thoughts and your work to save time, both on your current project(s) and on your future projects. Whether your work is organized into work orders, purchase orders, shop drawings, tool and die, CNC, or the AEC industry, it generally is organized around "project delivery" efforts. In this chapter, you will learn to use AutoCAD and Windows 95/Windows NT to help you deliver your projects more effectively and more predictably. Among the topics discussed are:

If you're like most of us, you probably swear each New Year's Eve that you will get organized. You probably swear that you will do some filing, back up old files, save some special drawings for reuse, or learn how to better manage your software and files. This chapter will give you the tools that should become part of your daily work habits and that will automate many of your New Year's resolutions...at least where project and file organization is concerned. By the way, spring cleaning, weight loss, and developing new social skills are beyond the scope of this book.

Getting Started: Key Factors to Organize First

The ultimate goal of project organization is to save time. In general, you can save time in three ways:

These foundations of time saving are part of a larger picture called Total Quality Management. The next sections discuss factors that you can organize to start saving time and help achieve the goals in the preceding bullets. These preliminary organization factors include determining the following: how many drawings are needed, how much detail is required, or what is an efficient method of workflow management, how many different ways the drawing will be displayed, and what elements you can use more than once.

Determining How Many Drawings Are Necessary

When you sit down to start drawing a project, one of your earliest tasks is to determine just how many and what type of drawings you will need. Two important issues should be considered when establishing the number of drawings to create.

First and foremost, you should address the computing power versus drawing size factor. Computing power consists of storage space, both long-term (such as with hard disk, tape, and network server) and short-term (such as how much RAM you have), coupled with the speed of your graphics card and CPU. Autodesk and other experts toss about many factors relating to how much memory and hard disk you need to handle each megabyte of drawing. Unfortunately, no hard-and-fast rule exists. If you use xrefs, extended entity data, attributes, and 3D solids, and if you like to open multiple copies of AutoCAD at once, then your needs vary substantially from someone who stores 2D vector information in a drawing without any bells and whistles. Therefore, you must ascertain your ideal drawing size through experience and simple trial and error. A good set of guidelines, for example, would be to use 32 times your drawing size in memory and 64 times your drawing size in free disk space. When you have a good feel for how large your drawings can be before the performance of your system hinders your work, you can determine how you want to organize your drawing data into drawings. The following examples discuss various options for organizing a project into drawings with AutoCAD:

You will learn more about the use of xrefs in Chapter 13, "External References," and the use of paper space in Chapter 15, "Paper Space." It is important that you consider a variety of approaches when creating your drawings and that you develop a tried-and-true method that delivers exactly what you need a majority of the time. After you develop your approach to building your drawings, you can begin to predict how many drawings you will need and what their contents will be.

Developing Drawing and Task Lists

Using this approach, you should develop a list of drawings and a task list that goes with each drawing. This list of drawings and the associated tasks should be flexible and expandable. One of the best ways to accomplish this feat is to link a spreadsheet into the paper space of each of your drawings. In this way, you can have a central storehouse for your task list that is visible in each of your drawings. You also can plot this task list with your drawing so that you can easily measure your progress when you create progress prints of your project. Finally, you can update this task list as you work in each drawing. Your to-do list probably expands as you work in your drawings and as tasks come to mind. Using a linked spreadsheet enables you to add to your list for any drawings while remaining in the current drawing. You will learn some simple steps for creating a linked spreadsheet task list in an exercise later in this chapter. Figure 2.1 shows a sample task list, and figure 2.2 shows the placement of the spreadsheet task list within a drawing.

Figure 2.1 A sample task list for a series of drawings.

Figure 2.2 You can use the task list in a non-plotting area of the drawing. If you want the task list to appear in your plots, simply pick it up and move it into the plot area of your drawing.

Determining How Much Detail Is Required

Another important factor in the organization of your project is determining how much detail is required for the drawing. Because AutoCAD is so accurate, you can easily fall into the trap of creating minuscule details that might not have anything to do with the actual production of your project from your drawings. It is important that you describe only what the ultimate user of your drawing(s) will need in order to accomplish the specific job. In addition, you should keep in mind that the person actually creating your project might have better, more effective methods of building the product in the field than you do on the drawing. The following list of questions will be discussed in the following section to help you determine the extent of the detail in each drawing and in your project as a whole:

The answers to each of these might seem obvious to you at first glance, but after you take a look at how they affect your project organization, you will realize how many factors are involved in answering each question.

Answering the Questions

In answering the first question, you should not be concerned with only the parts of your project that you will draw. You also should consider how to organize your drawings in a way that describes your project in the most efficient and effective manner. For example, you might need to define a continuous chamfer that surrounds a face plate, as well as the location of the holes in the face plate and the specific location of tooling on the face plate. To adequately describe these conditions, you would need two sections--one horizontal and one vertical through the face plate--as well as a front view of the face plate. Two isometric views can accomplish the same thing with one less drawing required.

The second question might mean that you won't need to draw some details of your project at all because you will get back a set of shop drawings from a vendor who determines how the detailing will be done. Answering this second question also might determine the order of the drawings within a set of project drawings.

It might be obvious to you that the third question concerns the type of drawing (such as isometric and plan and section drawings) that you need. However, you also should think about using photographs, notation, and shaded 3D models as part of the explanation.

This fourth question might mean that you can have a vendor finish your work for you in the form of shop drawings, but it also involves finding a person within the project team to work on a design or a drawing. A conceptual designer, for example, might not have the CAD skills that are ultimately needed to complete a detailed 3D model. Therefore, you might have to alter your preferred choice of drawing technique based upon who is doing the design and drawing.

After you have completed the first four questions, you are prepared to ask the final question, which is the ultimate determination of the organization of your drawings. For example, you must determine whether you have so many details that they must be on their own sheets or whether these details should be included as blow-ups on the same sheet as the larger scale drawing. You also must establish a systematized approach to the order of your drawings that works every time. Furthermore, you should address whether you can readily insert drawings into the drawing sequence if you discover that one is needed well into your project. Two key concepts can help you manage this portion of your effort:

Developing an Efficient Numbering System

You need a way to name or number your drawings that works the same way every time and allows flexibility in the order of your drawings and the number of each type of drawing. A perfect example of a system that works in this way is a library catalogue, better known as the Dewey Decimal System. If you can organize your drawings into categories and sequence the drawings within a category, then this type of system might work for you. For example, in the AEC industry, drawings have categories, such as Cover Sheet and General Information Sheets, Floor Plans, Elevations, and Sections. Each category might contain a sequence of drawings, such as the First Floor Plan and the Second Floor Plan. Following this format, you could define a drawing numbering system that meets the goals of predictability, flexibility, and expandability. The following list details a numbering system you could implement:

0.00, 0.01, 0.02, and so on--Cover Sheets and General Information

1.00, 1.01, 1.02, and so on--Floor Plans

2.00, 2.01, 2.02, and so on--Elevations

3.00, 3.01, 3.02, and so on--Sections

...and so forth.

NOTE: Note that a floor plan can be added into the middle of the set at any time--the limitation here is that only 9 drawing categories and 99 drawings can exist within each category. If you want more, simply add more numbers to your file names, as in 01.000.

Developing a File and Folder Naming System

You can carry this system a bit further and use it to name the drawing files while also adding project numbers and a drawing description. If you design your drawing-numbering and file-naming conventions with some forethought, the file names will sort themselves in the Open or Save File dialog boxes in order, so you will know what a drawing contains without opening the drawing. The only limitation in Windows 95/Windows NT is that the file name can't contain more than 255 characters, and it can't contain any of the following characters: \ / : * ? " < > |. Of course, if you make your file names 255 characters long, you can't have the files in a folder, you will spend a lot of time typing the file names, and many file dialog boxes won't display the entire name within them. Therefore, a responsible file-naming system might include a project or work-order number, a drawing number, and a predictable maximum number of characters for a description. The example illustrates the format of the filename following this system:

<project number>-<drawing number>-<revision number><drawing owner>-<sheet title>.dwg

9701-1.00-01cws-OVERALL BUILDING PLAN.dwg

Note that Windows 95 also remembers the upper-case letters separately from lower-case letters. Using upper- and lower-case letters can help with the legibility of the drawing file name. Also note that the final extension for the file name is always .dwg, because AutoCAD must see the .dwg file extension to load the file. Even if you can see only the first 15 characters of this file name, you would know that the file belongs to project number 9701, that it's a plan of some type, that it's revision number 1, and that someone with the initials "cws" originated the drawing. This file naming convention also first sorts the drawing files by project number, then by drawing number, then by revision, and then by author. Figure 2.3 shows an example of what the results might be.

Figure 2.3 Using file names with built-in intelligence will save you time and help organize your project.

TIP: If you create new drawings on a regular basis, an involved file name might become counter-productive. In other words, the amount of information that you include in your file name is partly based upon the shelf life of your drawings.

If you organize your drawings into folders that have some logical hierarchy to them, the file names also can become simpler. For instance, the previous example could have a folder structure similar to the one shown in figure 2.4.

Figure 2.4 The judicious use of folders can simplify file-naming needs.

Using the folders in figure 2.4, the file name used previously could become 9701-1.00cws-OVERALL.dwg.

It's always a good idea to keep the project number or work order number as part of the drawing file name so that drawings that might be accidentally stranded can be tied to their project with relative ease. You also must consider how many versions of any one portion of the file name you might have. For example, the project number 9701 enables you to have 99 projects in the year 1997. If you think you will have more than 99 projects, you would have to number the projects with 5 digits, as in 97001. Likewise, 1.00 means that only 99 floors can exist in the building (1.01 through 1.99), and using 01 for a revision marker means that up to 99 revisions can exist. Make sure that you don't limit yourself and have to change your file-naming scheme in a year or two. Take the time to study the types and number of events that you need to record in your file name by looking over past projects that you or other members of your company have completed. Don't hesitate to run your ideas by others to see if they can spot any shortcomings.

Determining How Your Drawings Relate

This topic can become very complex, because AutoCAD can be linked to other documents--in addition, complex relationships can exist within your project between drawings. You can organize your thoughts about the interrelationships between your drawings and other drawings or documents by asking a few simple questions:

At this point, it might be a good idea to create a mock-up set of drawings using a standard form. If you have a number of drawings and documents that make up your project and your sheets are standard and uniformly sized, then a mock-up is easy to do and beneficial. If your projects are small in terms of document count or widely varied in document format and size, you may not find a mock-up on a form to be that helpful.

You can create this mock-up as a basis for your drawing set in AutoCAD, or you can free-hand the mock-up using preprinted sheets and a pencil. Creating electronic mock-ups of your project will be helpful in the long run because the effort will contribute to the creation of the final documents.

However you choose to create a mock-up, it should organize key information. In the section, "Determining Which Elements Can Be Used More Than Once," figure 2.8 shows an example of a mock-up form that contains places that provide the information to answer the three questions just reviewed. This shared information is placed in the drawing window on the form by using callouts--or bubbles--that reference another drawing. Lists that describe what documents also will be included from outside the drawing, as will documents that contain the drawing represented by this mock-up page. Additionally, such useful information as drawing number, drawing name, date, project name, and author is included on the form.

If you want to create your mock-ups electronically, you can place the mock-up right on the drawing to aid in its creation. This can be set up ahead of time by using a form in place of a title block in a template drawing. (This process will be discussed a bit later in this chapter.) After the mock-up has served its purpose, you can substitute a real title block for the mock-up form. If you keep your mock-ups separate from your drawings, then it's a good idea to create your mock up as an 81/2 * 11 sheet so that you can plot "mini" sets of your entire project until you complete the mock-up.

Using Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)

When you include your drawing in another document or include a document within your AutoCAD drawing, you use Object Linking and Embedding (OLE). When you link a file within another file, you can stipulate whether you want to update the object each time you open the file that contains the embedded object. In this way, the object is always current, which offers a powerful benefit to you if multiple people are working on a project. When someone makes a change to the embedded object, all the documents containing the embedded object are updated. If you want to freeze the embedded object in time so that it doesn't change within the drawing, you can change the link between the object and the document to a manual link so that you can control the updates. This is done with the OLE Links command found on the Edit pull-down menu. Figure 2.5 shows an example of using OLE in an AutoCAD drawing.

Figure 2.5 OLE either updates or freezes objects in an AutoCAD drawing.

The method shown in figure 2.5 uses Insert OLE Object from the Insert menu in AutoCAD, which is fine as long as you want to place all the objects from a file into your drawing. You also can use the Windows clipboard to insert objects. The following example illustrates how to create a task list and insert it into a drawing.

NOTE: This exercise uses a spreadsheet to create a task list because a spreadsheet makes insertion and numbering of tasks relatively simple. If you don't have a spreadsheet product, you can use WordPad (which comes with Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0) to accomplish the same feat.

USING OLE TO EMBED TASK LISTS IN YOUR DRAWINGS

1. First, create a task list with a few drawings listed. If you have a current project for which you need a task list, that would be a good place to start--otherwise, just make one up. The task list can be any width and length, but Windows products limit the size of the embedded object to approximate a printed 81/2 * 11-inch page size. If you create a large spreadsheet, you must piece it together using more than one object in order to see the entire list in your drawing. For ease, model your task list on the sample shown in figure 2.1, which appears earlier in this chapter.

2. After you have highlighted the tasks, open the Edit pull-down menu and choose Copy to copy the spreadsheet contents to the clipboard.

3. Minimize the spreadsheet and start AutoCAD. The Start-Up dialog box should appear (unless you have disabled this). Click on the Use a Template button. From the Select a Template List, choose Ansi_d.dwt. Then click on OK. For this exercise, you may choose another template if desired.

4. From the Edit pull-down menu, choose Paste Special. Select Paste Link, and you should see only your spreadsheet listed in the dialog box. Click on OK in the Paste Special dialog box and your task list should be inserted into the AutoCAD drawing.

5. Type ZOOM A at the Command: prompt, and press Enter.

6. Move the cursor into the center of the OLE object, and select the object. The object's grips are enabled and the cursor becomes a four-headed arrow. Press and hold down the left mouse button while you move the object to the right of the drawing area.

7. With the object still selected, move the cursor over one of the corners. The cursor will turn into a diagonal two-headed arrow.

8. Hold the Shift key down and grab one of the corners of the object. You can resize the object and maintain the correct aspect ratio of the object by holding down the Shift key.

The result should appear similar to figure 2.2, shown earlier in this chapter. Now you can add any variety of objects to your drawings from the Windows clipboard.

Developing Efficient Workflow Management

If more than one person will work on a drawing, you must determine how each person will know which drawing is the current drawing. This aspect of project delivery is known as workflow management. Consider, for example, the scenario if outside consultants or contractors work on the drawings and you want to make changes to them. How will you know which drawing contains the most recent information? If you do not address this concern, you might have two drawings that each contain some of the information that you need to create the correct drawing. As an even more complicated scenario, two people might need to work on the drawing at the same time.

Proper Network File Control

Your organization of the project and its documents and your management of file access are key to avoiding disaster with multiple document users or authors. If you work on a network that provides multiple access to a drawing, then your network software must support file locking. Most contemporary network products enable you to open files in Read Only mode and won't let you overwrite the file on which someone else is working. Proper network file control means that the first person to open a drawing is the only editor that can actually save changes to the drawing. All subsequent users can open the drawing only in Read Only mode. If someone absolutely must record changes to a drawing that is currently open by someone else, they must save their changes as a new drawing. Recording these changes on a unique layer name and saving the changes as a new drawing enables the changes to be merged with the original drawing later.

Using Redlines

Users also can record redlines on a unique layer that can be merged with a drawing. Redlines record comments, questions, and instructions over a drawing that are acted upon by someone else later. Figure 2.6 shows an example of redlines.

Figure 2.6 Creating redlines as instructions for revision to a drawing does not require the use of sophisticated AutoCAD commands.

TIP: Because redlines can be created using basic AutoCAD commands, you could create your own toolbar that contains basic redlining commands such as text, lines, arcs, circles, and leaders. In this way, individuals who are not sophisticated AutoCAD users still can contribute to your drawings electronically, saving time and paper.

Another way to avoid multiple file-use problems is to xref the drawing into a new drawing and create the redlines in the new drawing. In either event, you should name the drawing file and the layers used for redlines based upon a standard. For example, the file name could include the redliner's initials, a date, and the term redlines in the file name. The layer also could include the redliner's initials and redlines in the layer name.

Determining Which Elements Can Be Used More Than Once

As you saw earlier in this chapter, you can use xrefs to create more than one drawing from the same drawing. Although the use of xrefs can help ensure that numerous drawings contain exactly the same information and reduce total project drawing storage needs, xrefs also can help you avoid drawing elements more than once.

If you use a drawing template, as discussed earlier, you might not want to include a drawing border in the template drawing. Instead, you could devise a project border sheet that contains the project name, issue date, project number, project address, your firm's logo, address, and other information as an xref. Each new project drawing then would include the border as an xref so that changes need to be made only once.

NOTE: Using this method, you should create the xref so that it contains only the information common to all project drawings. You can also use AutoCAD Blocks for the same purpose. The question is, do you expect to make project-wide changes in the repetitive objects in your project. If the answer is yes, then you need to use xrefs.

Using an element more than once can mean more than creating an exact duplicate of objects. You might want to use guides in all your project drawings, such as the format of text, a key plan with different portions hatched in each drawing, or a sheet grid that doesn't plot. For example, you can create a block that contains only attributes that fill in your title block. The drawing author, checker, sheet number, sheet name, and date can be filled in for each drawing, but such elements as the text style, height, and layer will always be the same. (You will learn more about blocks in Chapter 12, "Creating and Using Blocks.") In fact, if your projects usually involve a large number of drawings, you can help the entire project team by creating a template drawing that contains the border and project as an xref, the sheet specific text as attributes, and a grid on layer DEFPOINTS (a default AutoCAD layer that never plots). Figure 2.7 shows an example of a template drawing that incorporates a number of unifying features.

Figure 2.7 A template drawing can contain project-specific information if you create a new template for each of your projects.

An important factor to consider is that, at the start of a project, you must map out as many multiple-use opportunities as you can, including organizing portions from drawings that you can reuse from earlier projects or from standard drawings that you have developed over numerous projects. Using the mock-up set discussed earlier, you also should map out the use of viewports to create numerous views of your model. Figure 2.8 shows an example of a mock-up of a portion of an architectural project.

Figure 2.8 A mock-up of a project.

Determining How a Drawing Will Be Displayed

The final, and possibly most complex, issue to consider when laying out a project is the number of ways that a drawing will be displayed. As discussed in Chapter 27, "Publishing on the Web," Release 14 enables you to publish your drawings on the Internet. In addition, you might need to plot the drawing on a number of different sheet sizes, or you might need to create both drawings and renderings of the drawings for the project. Finally, as is the case for many drawings in this book, you might need to publish your drawings in a shop manual or a technical publication. As you can imagine, large drawings with a significant amount of detail don't publish very well on computer screens (if they did, the AutoCAD Zoom command wouldn't exist).

If you will create documents that will be displayed on the Internet, published in a technical publication, and plotted on a sheet of paper, something will have to give. You might need to create completely different drawings for each type of media due to one single factor: your text and symbols won't work for each and every possible publishing method. Although a perfect solution doesn't exist for these broad publishing requirements, planning for the project's needs from the start can save a lot of time and headaches. If your publication needs vary from project to project, it might be a good idea to obtain a drawing from a previous project that is similar to the one you will use for the current project. Using this drawing, you could try to publish it under all the conditions that you must meet. This process will help you uncover any problems that you might encounter.

Setting Up Your Drawing

After you have pondered each of the issues discussed so far, it is time to set up your drawings. You must follow a sequential set of steps to determine how you can accomplish this task. If you follow these steps, you will avoid revisiting text sizes, drawing configurations, and a number of other complications later in a project:

Determining Paper Size

The first and foremost determination you must make is what size the ultimate product will be. If you will plot your drawings to paper, the paper sizes that your plotter handles define your options for the drawing. Using a mock-up process--whether a formal one, such as the process discussed earlier, or simply figuring out how much paper area is required for an appropriate scale of your drawings--is the first step. Paper comes in an extensive set of sizes, and each industry generally settles upon a set of standard sizes. One important factor to consider about paper is whether you can create a modular approach to your paper sizes. Figure 2.9 shows a progression of paper sizes that will expand or contract between sheet sizes while maintaining the same aspect ratio between sheets. Maintaining the same aspect ratio means that you can blow up or minimize your drawings without concern for whether the drawing will fit the same way on the larger or smaller sheet.

Figure 2.9 Using paper sizes that are modular is an important consideration.

Obtaining modular sheet sizes might not be an easy task. If you are in the AEC industry, for example, nothing about standard AEC sheet sizes is modular. The AEC industry is hopelessly antiquated in this area and is making no rapid movement toward changing the system. While they have a modular set, no copier or standard envelope will use a 9 * 12-inch paper size. Table 2.1 lists standard paper sizes that are available.

Table 2.1 Standard Paper Sizes

Paper Size Standard MM In
Eight Crown IMP 1461*1060 571/2 *41 3/4
Antiquarian IMP 1346*533 53*21
Quad Demy IMP 1118*826 44*321/2
Double Princess IMP 1118*711 44*28
Quad Crown IMP 1016*762 40*30
Double Elephant IMP 1016*686 40*27
B0 ISO 1000*1414 39.37*55.67
Arch-E USA 914*1,219 36*48
Double Demy IMP 889*572 35*22 1/2
E ANSI 864*1118 34*44
A0 ISO 841*1189 33.11*46.81
Imperial IMP 762*559 30*22
Princess IMP 711*546 28*211/2
B1 ISO 707*1000 27.83*39.37
Arch-D USA 610*914 24*36
A1 ISO 594*841 23.39*33.11
Demy IMP 584*470 23*18 1/2
D ANSI 559*864 22*34
B2 ISO 500*707 19.68*27.83
Arch-C USA 457*610 18*24
C ANSI 432*559 17*22
A2 ISO 420*594 16.54*23.39
B3 ISO 353*500 13.90*19.68
Brief IMP 333*470 131/8*181/2
Foolscap Folio IMP 333*210 131/8 *81/4
Arch-B USA 305*457 12*18
A3 ISO 297*420 11.69*16.54
B ANSI 279*432 11*17
Demy quarto IMP 273*216 103/4 *81/2
B4 ISO 250*353 9.84*13.90
Crown quarto IMP 241*184 91/2 *71/4
Royal octavo IMP 241*152 91/2*6
Arch-A USA 229*305 9*12
Demy octavo IMP 222*137 83/4 *53/8
A ANSI 216*279 8.5*11
Legal USA 216*356 8.5*14
A4 ISO 210*297 8.27*11.69
Foolscap quarto IMP 206*165 81/8 *61/2
Crown Octavo IMP 181*121 71/8 *41/4
B5 ISO 176*250 6.93*9.84
A5 ISO 148*210 5.83*8.27
USA 140*216 5.5*8.5
USA 127*178 5*7
A6 ISO 105*148 4.13*5.83
USA 102*127 4*5
USA 76*102 3*5
A7 ISO 74*105 2.91*4.13
A8 ISO 52*74 2.05*2.91
A9 ISO 37*52 1.46*2.05
A10 ISO 26*37 1.02*1.46

Determining Drawing Scale

After the paper sizes have been established, the next step is to determine the appropriate scale for your drawings. The scale of a drawing is a deceptively simple concept, and it involves more than simply figuring out what size your drawing must be to fit on the paper. The real issue about drawing scale is that the information contained on the drawing must be legible, yet the drawing scale must be standard in your industry and the sheet size must be as convenient to handle as possible. Your drawing must place the model, notes, dimensions, hatching, and symbols in their most favorable and legible light. If you have to cram a drawing full of symbols and text, you could lose the linework that represents the object of your drawing. Creating the drawing at the appropriate scale allows for space between text, dimensions, and symbols both within and around your drawing.

Of course, if you always create drawings at full-scale, then the only option is in the selection of sheet size for your paper. Using the appropriate scale might require you to cut your drawing up into sections rather than display the entire model on one sheet of paper. You might think that a drawing spanning more than one sheet seems inconvenient, but legibility is more important in this case.

Using Paper Space Viewports to Scale a Model

You can scale your model in two ways. You can either provide a scale factor at plot time or you can view your model through paper space viewports. Release 14 has eliminated regens when panning and zooming in paper space, so the only intelligent choice is to use paper space. You will learn to set up a paper space viewport later in the exercises for this chapter. The best part about paper space viewports is that you get instant feedback from your drawing as to what drawing scale fits on your sheet. To use a paper space viewport for plotting to scale, you must zoom in on your model at a predetermined scale factor. The following steps summarize the entire process:

1. First, you must calculate the required scale factor. If your drawings use a decimal scale, this is a relatively simple feat. For example, a drawing created at 1:10 uses a scale factor of .10. The AEC industry uses nondecimal scale factors, however, and the calculation requires a few more steps. A 1/8-inch =1 foot scale drawing requires a scale factor of 1/96. To convert AEC scales, simply multiply your drawing scale (in this case, 1/8) by 1/12. Therefore, the scale factor for a 1/4 -inch = 1 foot drawing is 1/48, and a 3-inch = 1 foot drawing is 1/4.

2. Next, from a paper space view (Tilemode=0), make sure that you are in model space by clicking on the Status Bar to display Model, as shown in figure 2.10.

Figure 2.10 Use the Status Bar to access model space through a paper space viewport.

3. You should see the crosshairs in the desired viewport. If you don't, click within the boundaries of the desired viewport to make this the current viewport.

4. Use Zoom Extents so that you can see all your model. Then use Zoom Center and select a point in the approximate graphic center of your model (the center of a rectangle that contains your entire model)(see fig. 2.11).

5. When you are prompted for magnification or height, enter your scale factor, followed by XP (see fig. 2.12).

Figure 2.11 Select the center of the drawing portion you want to view.

Figure 2.12 Enter the scale factor when prompted.

The area of the drawing you selected is centered in the viewport at the desired scale, as seen in figure 2.13.

Using this technique, you can set up numerous plot scales of your drawing for any specific needs that you might have. Note also that any text, symbols, or other elements placed in model space will be scaled as well. If you want to display the same model at different scales, you must create symbols, dimensions, and text on different layers or draw them all in paper space. The great thing about drawing symbols, text, or other elements in paper space is that you can create them at their actual size without having to convert for scale. This means, for example, that text that is 1/8 inch is 1/8 inch high in all drawings, no matter what scale is used to plot the model. Keep in mind, though, that when you put text and symbols in paper space, no permanent lock exists between the model space view and the paper space contents. In this way, the view of your model might somehow shift within the viewport, which will ruin the alignment of the dimensions, text, or other elements in paper space with that of the model.

Figure 2.13 The selection is centered with the correct scale.

Developing Title Blocks

Almost any drawing, whether a work order, a maintenance drawing, or a sophisticated manufacturing document, should have a title block. A title block provides informational--and often legally required--verification of what the drawing represents in terms of the object of the drawing, the time of day the drawing was created, and the origin of the drawing. If you only publish your drawings electronically, then the title block might differ considerably from one that eventually will be used for plotting or printing. For now, it will be assumed that a paper output is the ultimate goal of an AutoCAD drawing. The following list serves as a guide for the elements your title block should include:

The design of title blocks is often the source of great debate within a company. No perfect title block design exists, and your needs might include items not listed in the above guide. Generally, the more information (either critical or organizational in nature) that you can place in the lower-right corner of the sheet, the easier it will be for others to quickly find the desired drawing. The title block should provide the information legibly for all size plots, but not dominate the sheet. You also might need to develop a title block for multiple sheet sizes. Most likely, you will not be able to use the same title block for an 81/2*11-inch sheet as you can for a 34*44-inch sheet. You will need to experiment with different designs until you have a set of title blocks that works for all possibilities.

Additionally, the title block can contain a grid design that promotes the modular development of your drawings. For example, if you typically develop details that can be printed on 81/2*11-inch paper, then you could develop a drawing module that enables you to piece together a number of small modular drawings into a larger drawing. In this case, you should be concerned with the drawing area within the title block for the module size, not the sheet of paper size. This is because you will transfer the drawing area from one sheet to the next. Figure 2.14 shows one example of a modular approach to the drawing area.

Figure 2.14 Using a modular grid for drawing development enables you to use modular drawings more effectively.

As this chapter has discussed, you probably will want to create template drawings for each of your title blocks. The use of template drawings will be discussed later, and you will have the chance to create a template drawing in upcoming chapter exercises.

Determining Units and Angles

The discipline and country in which you work determines whether you'll use fractional inches, feet and fractional inches, decimal feet, decimal inches, meters, or centimeters in the creation of drawings. Additionally, you must determine how accurately to display the dimensions. AutoCAD does not understand any specific system of the division of distance--the program simply draws using units. As a result, you must tell AutoCAD how you want those units displayed. To change the display of units and angles in AutoCAD, you can open the Format pull-down menu and choose Units. The Units Control dialog box will be displayed, as shown in figure 2.15.

You should set up the default units that you will use in your template drawings so that when you save the template drawings, all your new drawings will use the default units and angles settings that you have selected in the Units Control dialog box. You also should note that you can select the precision of the display of your units and angles.

TIP: Don't confuse this setting with the precision of dimensions, because you will set the dimension precision when you create dimensioning defaults. Chapter 18, "Productive Dimensioning," discusses dimensioning in greater detail.

Figure 2.15 The Units Control dialog box is used to set AutoCAD units and angles.

Your primary concern should be how much precision you need to see when you create your AutoCAD drawings. High-precision settings often cause AutoCAD to display the drawing coordinates using scientific notation, such as 1.07E+10, which usually isn't much help. On the other hand, if you're trying to track down a drafting error, high-precision settings can tell you that a line has been drawn at an angle of 179.91846 degrees instead of 180 degrees. The simple process of trial and error can help you determine the best settings for your needs. You also might have noticed that you can set the direction for angles in the Units Control dialog box. The Direction option sets the origin of 0 degrees in your drawing, as well as the direction, Counter-Clockwise or Clockwise, that angles will be positive. When you select the Direction option, the Direction Control dialog box appears, as shown in figure 2.16.

Figure 2.16 The Direction Control dialog box is used to set the origin of 0 degrees, as well as the direction of positive angles.

Converting Between Units

You also should set up the default origin and direction for your angles in template drawings. You will be asked to set up your Units, Angles, and Precision in the exercise that sets up a template drawing later in this chapter.

You should note that if you will need to convert your drawings from feet and inches to metric units, the units in which you create your drawing will not automatically convert. This is because you are drawing in units, not in real-world sizes. For example, when you create a drawing in feet and inches, one unit is an inch. When you convert to a metric drawing, you must change units to decimal units and convert the drawing to a metric drawing by scaling the drawing by the proper conversion factor (2.54 to convert inches to centimeters or 25.4 to convert inches to millimeters). As a result of this component of AutoCAD's design, you must determine what the drawing should represent before you start creating lines, circles, and arcs. You can instruct AutoCAD to dimension objects by scaling them between different units of measure (accomplished by setting a linear scale factor for dimensioning), but the model will not be drawn true to size in the converted units.

Using AutoCAD Features That Help in Project Delivery

In this book, you will learn how to use many AutoCAD features that will help you deliver a project more effectively. When you set up your projects, you must keep the capability of certain AutoCAD features or commands in mind as you develop your approach to a project or to project standards. This chapter also discusses the use of these commands as they relate to project setup, but later on, you should develop your skills for using these commands in later chapters. For now, concentrate on the concepts that are being presented instead of concerning yourself with the detailed use of a command or concept. When you learn how to use these commands later in the book, think about how they relate to project delivery. After you have learned to use these commands, you can return to this chapter to review their use in terms of project delivery.

Drawing Layers

One of the most powerful features offered by AutoCAD--and a feature that can make project delivery more efficient--is the use of drawing layers. Drawing layers are created using AutoCAD's LAYER command and are used to set up drawing data in hierarchical groups that can be turned on or off or locked from editing. In this way, you can, for example, create text that controls how the shop manufactures a part on one layer and text that helps a salesman explain the product on a different layer. By turning one layer or the other off, you can plot two drawings that serve different purposes from the same drawing. You also can use AutoCAD's capability to freeze layers (a condition in which the layer information isn't displayed or loaded into memory) to save drawing load-time, as well as display various portions of the same model. You can freeze layers of drawings that are xref'd into the current drawing, or you can freeze layers within individual paper space viewports. This means that one AEC drawing or viewport could contain a floor plan, while another drawing or viewport could contain a reflected ceiling plan--yet you could use the same model for both drawings. In addition, you can develop nonprinting layers for information that you don't want plotted, but will use with the drawing.

Using the DEFPOINTS Layer

AutoCAD has a default layer called DEFPOINTS that will never plot. The DEFPOINTS layer automatically is added to your drawing when you create an associative dimension. You can draw information for reference purposes, such as floor plan areas, thread counts, or volumes and weights that you won't plot on a drawing. You also can create nonplotting layers. To do so, simply assign a color to the layer on which your plotter won't plot. During the process, use a pen width of 0 or a pen that doesn't have a tip installed, but that is placed in the carousel. Nonplotting areas help you avoid replotting drawings because you won't have to remember to freeze or turn off layers that you don't want to plot.

NOTE: The configuration setup is in the plotter menu. The colors of the drawing are coordinated with the plotter. Not all ink jet and electrostatic plotters have the capability to set a 0 line width, but many do. A very fine line will usually work, too.

Other Uses for Layers

As discussed earlier in this chapter, you also can use layers for redlining purposes. Additionally, you can store information to be used for project data or design on informational layers that can be read by other software. For example, point data from a site survey must be on a specific layer so that the site contours can be generated by a third-party software product. You must take these types of informational layers into account if you use third-party products when you develop your prototype drawings.

Furthermore, you can separate different portions of your model and allocate them to different layers. Using different layers helps you to quickly set a color (as well as plotting pen size) and linetype for all objects placed on any one layer. You also should consider different layers for actual model components versus model linework. For example, hidden lines show something beyond or above the model and are not actually part of the model linework. Thus, you could separate the hidden lines from the actual model lines by putting them on different layers. If you want to create a template to be used for cutting out a plate of a portion of a machine, the hidden lines could easily be ignored yet displayed in a plot of the entire piece of equipment.

Meeting Industry Standards

Finally, your industry might have organizations that have developed layering standards for use in electronic drawings. If your drawings are required to meet certain industry standards, you must set up your layers accordingly. Other industries, such as the AEC industry, might have guidelines only for layer names and use, but these guidelines will help you in developing your own layering standards. The point is that some research is required before you develop your use of layers in your projects. After you have developed layering standards, you can easily store them in your template drawing. Layers in AutoCAD are developed and managed by accessing the Layer tab of the Layer & Linetype Properties dialog box shown in figure 2.17. You will learn more about layer creation and management in Chapter 4, "Organizing Drawings with Layers."

Figure 2.17 The AutoCAD Layer & Linetype Properties dialog box manages layers in AutoCAD.

Defining Linetypes

Linetypes represent different things for different industries. AutoCAD comes with a variety of linetypes, and AutoCAD also enables you to define a wide variety of linetypes that can contain symbols within the linetype or that have varying spacing between line components. Linetypes can be part of an industry drafting standard, so you should create a set of linetypes that meet your industry's requirements and include them in the linetype file. If you don't have a wide variety of rarely used linetypes, you can load them into your template drawing so that they are readily available. It is not absolutely necessary to preload linetypes, however, because they are relatively easy to retrieve from the AutoCAD linetype file. You will learn more about creating and loading linetypes in Chapter 5, "Using Linetypes Effectively." Figure 2.18 shows some examples of the types of lines that you can create and use in AutoCAD.

Figure 2.18 A variety of linetypes can be created within AutoCAD.

Selecting Text Styles

AutoCAD enables you to use any font that comes with Windows, as well as text fonts that are supplied with AutoCAD. You must select the font or fonts that best work with your drawing size and plotter or printer. It is equally important that the fonts that you use are legible for a wide variety of reproduction sizes. For example, many drawings are placed on microfilm as a matter of storage. To ensure that the lettering is visible on the microfilm, you should use text styles that are a minimum of 1/8 inch in plotted height. Establishing text style standards also will make your project delivery more predictable. After you have experimented with a variety of plotted output and text styles, you will want to select a few styles to serve for general text, sheet title block information, drawing titles, and emphasized text. Everyone has distinct taste in text appearance, so AutoCAD supports a host of variations in the appearance of text. Therefore, it might be best for you to find examples of text that you and your firm find acceptable and then find text settings and fonts in AutoCAD that best approximate your desired results. Text can have different angles, line spacing, heights, weights, effects (upside down, backwards, and/or vertical), and width factors. Figure 2.19 shows examples of what can be accomplished with a single text font in AutoCAD. You will learn more about the use of text in Chapter 16, "Text Annotation."

Figure 2.19 The variety of text effects in AutoCAD creates many opportunities for expression.

Saving Views

AutoCAD enables you to save views of your drawings to which you can return time and time again. The reuse of views can result in considerable time savings if you have a predictable set of views upon which all drawing users can rely. For example, everyone will need a view of the entire drawing, including its title block. You could save this view as a view named Overall by using the AutoCAD VIEW command. Views can be saved in either paper space or model space. You might want to save standard views that are 1/4 portions of the drawing and call them UL, UR, LL, and LR for upper-left, upper-right, lower-left, and lower-right. Saving these views in a template drawing ensures that they are available in all your drawings.

Paper Space versus Model Space Viewports

AutoCAD uses paper space for real-world paper sizes and model space for real-world model sizes. The proper use of these two spaces means that you never need to be concerned about scaling a drawing up or down for a plot. In pre-paper space days, users had to remember the scale of each drawing so that when the drawings were plotted, the users could enter the correct scale factor in response to plot setup questions presented by AutoCAD.

Proper use of paper space takes some getting used to because you view your model through ports from paper space to model space. You create your model and work on the model in model space, so you must be able to view the model as close to full-screen as possible. Figure 2.20 shows how a model appears within a paper space viewport that does not fill the screen.

Figure 2.20 A paper space viewport does not always provide a full-screen view of your model.

If you have more than one viewport set up to create a number of drawings on a sheet, then, of course, you must zoom in on each viewport to show the model as full-screen as possible.

TIP: You might want to consider creating a viewport that is as big as the drawing area within your title block to store with your template drawing. This viewport can provide a good starting place for any drawing and can be resized, copied, or turned off as the drawing develops.

Unless your drawings are very predictable, you won't be able to create multiple viewports that will work every time. Using the overall viewport saves some time when you create a drawing, however. You will learn more about the use of paper space in Chapter 15. In addition, you will add a paper space viewport in the next drawing exercise.

AUTOMATING PAPER SPACE VIEWPORTS

Certainly, it would be nice if you didn't have to do all that math in your head to figure out what viewports you can use at what scale. Included on the CD accompanying this book are VPMAKR.LSP and VPMAKR.DCL, both of which automate the process for you. Copy these files to a location on the AutoCAD path.

1. Start a new drawing by choosing File, New. Use the Ansi_d.dwt template drawing that accompanies AutoCAD. Double-click on the Model button on the status line to switch to paper space. Use the ERASE command and select the inside line on the border to erase the existing paper space viewport. To verify that all viewports have been erased, try to double-click the Paper button on the status line--AutoCAD should say: There are no active Model Space Viewports.

2. Zoom .5X and then use the PAN command until your title block rests off to the left-hand side of the screen. Right-click the mouse and select Exit from the pop-up menu to exit the real-time PAN command.

3. Make sure you're in paper space, and use the MVIEW command to create a large viewport, as shown in figure 2.21.

Figure 2.21 Set up a large viewport that shows a model in model space to the side of the title block.

4. Switch to model space by double-clicking on the Paper button on the status bar. Now draw some quick rectangles and circles that are approximately as large as your normal drawings. (For example, if you design buildings, create some that are 200 feet long.) If you have an existing model that you can insert into the new drawing, you can use that, too.

5. Perform a Zoom Extents on the drawing.

6. Choose Load Application from the Tools pull-down menu. Select File from the Load AutoLISP, ADS, and ARX Files dialog box. Locate and select the VPMAKR.LSP file from the accompanying CD. Click on OK to return to the Load AutoLISP, ADS, and ARX Files dialog box. With the VPMAKR.LSP file highlighted in the Files to Load list, click on the Load button and load VPMAKR.LSP, as shown in figure 2.22.

7. Make sure you are still in model space, and type VPMAKR at the Command: prompt.

8. Select a window around the portion of the drawing that you want to display to scale in a viewport, as shown in figure 2.23.

Figure 2.22 Use the application loader to load VPMAKR.LSP.

Figure 2.23 Select a window around a portion of the model.

Figure 2.24 Select a drawing scale for the display of your model in a paper space viewport.

9. Enter a drawing scale, as shown in figure 2.24. You can click on the Settings button to change to a scale chart that suits your needs.

10. Drag the new viewport into position, as shown in figure 2.25. If your viewport is larger than the title block, you must change the drawing scale. In this case, place the viewport, erase it, and start over.

Figure 2.25 Place the new viewport within your title block.

You can zoom in on the model in the large viewport during the selection of the window around the portion of the model that you want to display. This is helpful if you have a large model that is difficult to see in the viewport. You can also adjust the viewport to fine-tune the final view.

Setting Dimension Styles

Each discipline or industry has its own standards and preferences for dimensioning. AutoCAD enables you to store dimensioning standards as dimension styles. You can set the color of individual portions of a dimension, the text style the dimension uses, the arrow style, the way the dimension extension lines work, and the format of the dimension annotation. Each dimension feature, however, must be scaled appropriately for the scale that you use for the drawing. You can set dimensions to be scaled based upon paper space viewport scaling, and AutoCAD will adjust the dimension features for you. You should set up a generic dimension style for each type of dimension that you use (such as radial, leader, and linear) and save them in your template drawing. Figure 2.26 shows the Dimension Style dialog box that grants access to custom dimension styles and sets the dimension scale factor.

Note that you must set up your text style standards in your drawing before you set the dimension text style. You also can create custom blocks for use as arrows. Dimensions are made up from a complex set of options, and it will take some time and study on your part to tailor them for your needs and tastes. You will learn more about using dimension styles and the DDIM command in Chapter 18, "Productive Dimensioning," and Chapter 19, "Advanced Dimensioning."

Figure 2.26 Using the Dimension Styles dialog box enables you to set up custom dimension styles.

Using Xrefs

This chapter has already briefly discussed a variety of situations in which xrefs can be helpful in the delivery of a project. You should be aware of a few when using xrefs. First, xrefs must be located with the drawing so that AutoCAD can find them and include them in the drawing. If you send electronic drawings to consultants or clients, it is easy to forget the required xref--in such a case, the consultant or client could end up with an incomplete drawing. AutoCAD's XREF command has been enhanced to assist in listing attached xrefs in either List View or Tree View.

A second issue arises when problems are found in an xref drawing. In many situations, you will notice that something must be fixed in a drawing while you're working on an entirely different aspect of the drawing. For example, you could be dimensioning walls in a floor plan that is xref'd into the current drawing when you discover that a wall is drawn wrong. You then must open the xref'd drawing in another session of AutoCAD (if you're fortunate enough to have the memory and disk space required for opening multiple sessions of AutoCAD), or you must save your current drawing and open the xref'd drawing. As you might imagine, bouncing back and forth between the current drawing and the xref'd drawing can become quite tedious. If others are using the xref, too, then the problem is compounded because drawing access could be denied from time to time. Your other choice is to make notes to remind yourself that something must be fixed in the xref'd drawing.

If you need to use only part of an xref'd drawing, you can insert and clip the xref so that the desired portion of the drawing remains. You still have the advantages of current updates to the xref'd portion of the drawing, but you won't have the entire xref attached to the current drawing. If you don't anticipate changes to the xref'd drawing, you can attach the xref to make it a permanent part of the drawing. In this case, the xref'd drawing becomes an AutoCAD block that you can explode, modify, and clip as you desire. This chapter discusses blocks in a following section and points out the differences between using blocks and xrefs. You will learn more about xrefs in Chapter 13, "External References."

Creating Multiline Styles

AutoCAD enables you to draw multiple lines, offset at varying amounts from a guide line, at the same time. If you draw streets with curbs, multiple data lines, cavity walls, or other multiple-line objects, you might find it helpful to create standard multiline styles and save them for use in your projects. Multilines have limitations where editing is concerned, because the only changes you can make to the multiline components are via the MLEDIT command rather than standard AutoCAD editing and grip editing options. For example, if you use multilines to create walls, you cannot insert a door or a window into the wall by breaking the multiline except by using the MLEDIT command to break the multiline. If you grip-edit a multiline, you can edit only the outer boundary of the multiline. Because multilines behave as a single object, however, you can save considerable time in drawing creation and edits if you plan for their use. For example, if you must change a room configuration, editing a multiline changes all the wall lines at once.

TIP: In general, any time that you have basic objects that are made up of multiple lines, you can make good use of multilines. If, however, multiple variations exist in the width, composition, and interruptions of the multilines, then you should carefully consider their use.

Figure 2.27 shows an example of creating a custom multiline.

Figure 2.27 Creating custom multilines eases the editing process within a drawing.

Using Blocks

Blocks are primary components that contribute to time-saving in project delivery; they can be used in many ways. The importance of blocks cannot be overstated. Blocks can be used for symbols, components, details, standard text notation, and many other examples that are found in a good project-delivery system. The use of blocks also saves drawing disk space if multiple instances of their use exist because one definition of the block is saved in the drawing, and that definition is copied throughout the drawing without repeating all the block's components for each insertion. You should build a library of blocks that are used for repeating objects in your projects and keep them readily available for use. Or, you could purchase block libraries from third-party vendors.

Blocks can be created on Layer 0 so that they inherit the characteristics of the layer in which they are inserted, or they can contain multiple layer, color, and linetype definitions so that they maintain their appearance regardless of the layer on which they are inserted. Blocks also can be used with the AutoCAD ARRAY, MINSERT, DIVIDE, and MEASURE commands so that multiple copies can be created easily for such things as stair treads, elevations of fences and grilles, and flooring patterns. As with multilines, the use of blocks requires careful planning and repetitive standards for layer names, linetypes, block names, and component design. A sophisticated use of blocks also enables the assembly of projects from a kit of parts. For example, the U.S. Postal Service uses a kit of parts for the assembly of their new branch offices throughout the country. You will learn more about blocks in Chapter 12, "Creating and Using Blocks."

The use of xrefs has also been discussed in this chapter. As a general rule of thumb, you should address two prime considerations when deciding whether to use xrefs or blocks. First, if the need for continual updating isn't required, then blocks are more convenient to use than xrefs. You can update a block from time to time using the INSERT <resident block name>=<disk block name> technique. Second, and more important, if you want to freeze your drawings in time so that the electronic copy on disk matches the last version plotted, you should not use xrefs because they will be updated each time you open the drawing.

TIP: A short AutoLISP routine is included on the accompanying CD that updates selected blocks in your drawing. Copy this file, blkupdt.lsp, to the R14\SUPPORT directory.

You must have the original block on your AutoCAD search path in order for the block on the disk to be found for updating. To run this routine, load the file and type BLKUPDT at the Command: prompt. For more information on using LISP, see Chapter 24, "Introduction to AutoLISP Programming."

The following exercise details the steps for creating a template drawing that you can use for your projects. The steps draw from all the topics discussed in this chapter.

TIP: You will want to keep this drawing and refine it as you are able to more accurately predict key components that are duplicated from project to project.

CREATING A PROJECT TEMPLATE DRAWING

1. Based on previously discussed elements from this chapter, first create a title block for your needs containing as many of these elements as possible.

NOTE: No hard-and-fast rule for title block design exists, so you must start this exercise on your own. Don't worry if you think you might want to change something later. This exercise uses a method that enables you to change all your title blocks in a project at once.

2. Draw everything in the title block as real-world sizes; that is, so that the title block fits on the paper size that you want to use. Don't include any drawing-specific or project-specific information in this drawing. Position the drawing so that (0,0) is placed in the lower left of your drawing sheet. Include an outline of the exact paper size that you will use. You can refer to figure 2.28 as an example.

Figure 2.28 This title block serves as a model for the title block you create in this exercise.

3. Use the LAYER command to create layer names for the title block linework, the title block labels, the drawing labels, and the project labels. Click on New from the Layer & Linetype Properties tab of the Linetype Properties dialog box to create the layers, as shown in figure 2.29.

Figure 2.29 Use the Layer & Linetype Properties dialog box to create a new layer.

Choose an appropriate layer name for each object. Typing a comma after the layer name causes AutoCAD to create the previous layer (with default properties) and starts the next new layer. If you want, you can add any layers that you use throughout your projects. You can include redline layers, nonprinting layers, and layers from your layering standards, as discussed earlier in the chapter.

4. Set up your units and angles as noted earlier in the chapter. Use the DDUNITS command and establish appropriate settings for your work.

5. Use the STYLE command to bring up the Text Style dialog box, as shown in figure 2.30. Click on the New button and enter an appropriate style name to be used for labels within the title block. Click on OK to return to the Text Style dialog box. Type 0 inches in the Height edit box. This enables you to set the text height for each label as you go instead of setting preset text heights and naming a style for each one.

Figure 2.30 Creating a new text style involves selecting the height and style name for your drawing.

6. Put the labels in your title block using real-world text heights. If you always create your drawings using the same scale, you could consider creating your standard dimension styles in this drawing, too.

TIP: Note that setting DIMSCALE to 0 is supposed to scale your dimensions based upon the model space viewport to paper space zoom factor, as well as to enable you to use a single dimension style. However, leaders and text don't have the same relationship to a paper space viewport. In the long run, you should find it simpler to create dimension families for each scale of drawing you will create.

7. Save the title block on your AutoCAD path so that it can easily be found by AutoCAD. You can place this drawing in the AutoCAD SUPPORT directory (if it will be applied to all projects) or in the temporary XREF directory (if it will be applied to specific projects). To determine the directory to use, you can check the Preferences dialog box, which can be accessed from the Tools pull-down menu. Select the Files tab and double-click on the Support File Search Path Folder or the Temporary External Reference File Location folder, as shown in figure 2.31.

NOTE: Note that the XREF directory might change from project to project depending upon how you choose to work. If you use this directory, you must copy your title block drawing to each project's XREF directory. Don't close the title block drawing because you will need it for the next step.

Figure 2.31 You can find AutoCAD's search paths through the Preferences dialog box.

8. If you want to use a different text style for drawing names and sheet numbers (known as drawing-specific labels), create another text style, as you did in step 4. Use the LAYER command to make the drawing-specific label layer (created in step 2) current. Now use the DDATTDEF command or the ATTDEF command to create attributes for each drawing-specific label. You will need your title block so that you can place the attributes in their proper location. If you find that you can use a default attribute value that generally saves you time, you should set defaults for your drawing-specific labels. (Follow this procedure if, for example, 90 percent of what you do is sprinkler plans.)

9. Use the LAYER command to bring up the Layer & Linetype Properties dialog box. In the Name column, right-click the mouse to bring up a pop-up menu and pick Select All. Select any light bulb icon in the O column to turn off all layers. A warning will be displayed that the current layer is off. Click on OK. Select the layer containing the attributes defined in step 6 and pick the light bulb icon in the O column to turn that layer back on. Now use the WBLOCK command to WBLOCK the attributes to a new drawing that is also on your AutoCAD search path.

10. Finally, use the NEW command to start a new drawing, click on the Start From Scratch button, and then click on the OK button, as shown in figure 2.32.

11. Double-click on the TILE button in the status bar to enable paper space. Use the XREF command and select the ATTACH button. Locate your title block drawing, highlight its name, and click on OK to get to the Attach Xref dialog box. Click on OK and insert your title block drawing at 0,0.

12. If you cannot see your entire drawing border, perform a ZOOM Extents. Now use the INSERT command to insert your drawing-specific attributes block at 0,0, leaving all the attributes blank.

13. Create a text style, if you want, for the project title. Then place the project title, project number, and other project-specific information in the proper title block area.

Figure 2.32 Start a new drawing from scratch to get an empty drawing.

14. Use the MVIEW command to create a standard paper space viewport that will serve as a generic window on your model. At this point in time, the best choice is to create the viewport so that it matches the drawing area within your drawing border and also fills most of your screen.

15. Use the SAVEAS command from the File pull-down menu. Use the Save as type drop-down list to save the drawing as a template file, as shown in figure 2.33.

Figure 2.33 Save the drawing as a template file.

You should name the file using the file-naming conventions discussed earlier. This includes addressing the project number and adding appropriate extensions, such as TB for "title block." For example, 9701-1.00css-tb.dwt is for the first project created in 1997. It's revision 1 of the Title Block drawing created by css.

You should create a template drawing for each of your projects, but once you do, the information always will be formatted the same and you will save hours of drawing setup time.

Summary

In this chapter, you learned about the components of an effective project-delivery system. You also learned how to use AutoCAD features to help you in the management of project delivery. You learned the factors needed to get organized before creating a drawing, as well as how to use OLE to create a task list that is embedded in each drawing. You learned how to use a mock-up process to view your entire project as a whole for planning purposes based upon priorities, how much detail is necessary, how your drawings relate to other drawings and documents, and how to account for the people who work on the drawings.

Other sections discussed the use of repetitive elements and considerations for the number of different ways drawings can be displayed or published. You then reviewed the basic factors used in the initial drawing setup, such as paper, scale, units, angles, and precision. Finally, you learned about AutoCAD commands that can help in project delivery, including LAYER, LINETYPES, TEXT STYLE, VIEW, VIEWPORTS, DDIM, XREFS, MLINE, and BLOCK. Then you used some of these skills to set up a prototype drawing that you can use as a starting point for developing your own project-delivery methodology.

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