Move the cursor to the location of the “first” endpoint (1) then press the left mouse button and release. (Click and release, do Click and Drag) Move the cursor again to the “next” endpoint (2) and press the left mouse button. Continue locating “next” endpoints until you want to stop drawing lines.
There are 2 ways to Stop drawing a line: press the <Enter> key or press the <Spacebar>
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To quickly repeat the Line command, press the <Spacebar>. |
Horizontal and Vertical Lines
To draw a Line perfectly Horizontal or Vertical select the Ortho mode by selecting the Ortho button on the Status Bar or pressing the <F8> key.
Try the following example:
1. Select the Line command. (Refer to the previous page.)
2. Place the First endpoint anywhere in the drawing area.
3. Turn Ortho on by selecting the Ortho button or <F8>. (The “Ortho” button will change to a neon blue when on.)
4. Move the cursor to the right and press the left mouse button to place the next endpoint. (The line should appear perfectly horizontal.)
5. Move the cursor down and press the left mouse button to place the next endpoint. (The line should appear perfectly vertical)
6. Now turn Ortho off by selecting the Ortho button. (The “Ortho” button will change to gray when off.)
7. Now move the cursor up and to the right on an angle (the line should move freely now) and press the left mouse button to place the next endpoint.
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Ortho can be turned on or off at any time while you are drawing. It can also be turned on or off temporarily by holding down the <Shift> key. |
Closing Lines
If you have drawn 2 or more line segments, the endpoint of the last line segment can be connected automatically to the first endpoint using the Close option.
Try the following example:
1. Select the Line command.
2. Place the First endpoint
3. Place the next endpoint
4. Place the next endpoint
5. Type C <Enter>
Or
5. Press the right mouse button and select Close from the Shortcut Menu.
What is the Shortcut Menu?
The Shortcut Menu gives you quick access to command options.
Using the Shortcut Menu:
Press the right mouse button. The Shortcut Menu will appear. Select an option.
Using the Dynamic Input down arrow:
You may use the right mouse button or press the down arrow
Many AutoCAD commands prompt you to “select objects”. This means select the objects that you want the command to effect. There are 3 methods.
Method 1. Pick, is very easy and should be used if you have only 1 or 2 objects to select. Method 2. Window selection, is a little more difficult but once mastered it is extremely helpful and time saving. Method 3. Lasso Selection, is a little more difficult than Window Selection but again, once mastered it is very useful and will save you time. Practice the following examples:
Method 1. Pick
Place the cursor on the object but do not press the mouse button yet. The object will highlight. This appearance change is called "Rollover Highlighting”. This gives you a preview of which object AutoCAD is recognizing. Press the left mouse button to actually select the highlighted object.
Method 2. Window selection, Crossing and Window
Crossing:
Place your cursor in the area up and to the right of the objects that you wish to select (P1) and press the left mouse button. (Do not hold the mouse button down. Just press and release) Then move the cursor down and to the left (P2) and press the left mouse button again. (Note: The Window will be green and the outer line is dashed.)
Only the objects that this Window crosses will be selected.
In the example above, all 4 rectangles have been selected because the Crossing Window crosses a portion of each.
Window:
Place your cursor in the area up and to the left of the objects that you wish to select (P1) and press the left mouse button (Do not hold the mouse button down. Just press and release.) Then move the cursor down and to the right of the objects (P2) and press the left mouse button. (Note: The Window will be blue and outer line is solid.) Only the objects that this Window completely enclosed will be selected.
In the example below, only 2 rectangles have been selected.
(The other 2 rectangles are not completely enclosed in the Window.)
Method 3. Lasso Selection, Crossing, Window and