“acad.dwt” for inch users, or “acadiso.dwt” for metric users. These are the standard template files that are automatically installed on your system when you install the AutoCAD software.
How to start a new drawing file.
1. Start AutoCAD.
2. Left click on the large “A” in the top left-hand corner.
3. Left click on New.
4. In the Select Template dialog box, either click on “acad.dwt” if you are an inch user, or click on “acadiso.dwt” if you are a metric user.
5. Select Open if the drawing file hasn’t already opened.
The drawing file will open showing you the Workspace. I have changed certain colors on the Workspace. If you wish to do the same refer to the next page for instructions.
The default color scheme for AutoCAD is dark and the main drawing area is black. I prefer to have a light color scheme and a white drawing area. If you wish to change the color scheme or the drawing area color do the following.
1. Right click in the main drawing area and select Options from the list.
2. In the Options dialog box select the Display Tab.
3. To change the color scheme, select the Color scheme drop-down list and select either Dark or Light.
4. To change the color of the main drawing area select Colors.
5. In the Drawing Window Colors dialog box select 2D Model space (2D means 2-dimensional) in the Context window.
6. Select your preferred color in the Color drop-down list.
7. When you are happy with your choices select Apply & Close.
8. Select Apply and then OK in the Options dialog box.
Note: When you change either the color scheme or the drawing area color, the settings remain in the system regardless of which drawing file you use.
Also during the lessons and exercises you will be asked to change the drawing view to SE Isometric (the SE means South East). The default drawing view is Top. To change the drawing view do the following.
1. Left click on the word “Top” in the top left-hand corner of the main drawing area.
2. Select SE Isometric from the list.
You may use any of the drawing views but the SE Isometric view is the one used most in the lessons and exercises throughout this Workbook.
The example below shows a 3D solid model using the SE Isometric view.
If you were to change the drawing view to NE Isometric (North East) view your 3D solid model would look like the example below.
As well as changing the drawing view in the lessons and exercises, you will also be asked to change the Visual Style to Conceptual style. The default Visual Style is 2D Wireframe. To change the Visual Style do the following.
1. Left click on the word “2D Wireframe” in the top left-hand corner of the main drawing area.
2. Select Conceptual from the list.
You may wish to experiment with different Visual Styles such as Realistic style.
Note: You will notice that when you switch to Conceptual style, the main drawing area will revert back to a black color. You will need to open the Options dialog box and change the color for 3D parallel projection, similar to what you did for the 2D Model space.
You will also notice that in the main drawing area it displays Grid Lines.
If you prefer not to display the Grid Lines do the following.
1. Left click on the Grid Display button on the Status Bar at the bottom of the drawing area. Blue is ON and Grey is OFF. You can also use the Function key F7 on your keyboard to toggle the Grid Display on or off.
The Status Bar is located at the bottom of the drawing area and contains commonly used drawing tools. You can turn each tool off individually by clicking on the required button or by using the corresponding Function key on your keyboard such as F8 to turn on or off Ortho Mode (Ortho is short for Orthographic). A brief description of the Status Bar tools used throughout this Workbook is given below.
Ortho Mode (You may also use the F8 key to toggle Ortho Mode ON or OFF.)
Ortho Mode restricts the movement of the cursor to Horizontal or Vertical. When Ortho Mode is ON the cursor moves only in the horizontal or vertical directions. When Ortho Mode is OFF the cursor moves freely in any direction.
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