PUSO, JOHN CARL S. Ar. Elcano, Elsinore B.

BSECE-ECE12S1 B20 AutoCAD Interface

AutoCAD User Interface

1.) Quick Access toolbar-The quick access toolbar contains tools such
as open, save, plot, layer, workspace, sheet set manager, properties, and the menu bar. Some of these
tools are also available in the application menu of AutoCAD.
This toolbar contains most of the frequently used tools from the application button. To add or remove an
option from the quick access toolbar, simply click on the arrow pointing downward at the end of the toolbar and check
or uncheck the option you want to keep or hide:

2.) The ribbon area -The ribbon

area contains all the tools and commands properly arranged into different tabs and
panels. Home, Insert, Annotate, Parametric, and so on are the tabs in which different panels are placed in a
meaningful order. For example, the Home tab contains the Draw and Modify panels, which in turn contain

most of the frequently used commands:

PUSO, JOHN CARL S. Ar. Elcano, Elsinore B.
BSECE-ECE12S1 B20 AutoCAD Interface

3.) File Tabs- The file tabs show the drawing files that are open in the current session of AutoCAD. You can
open as many file tabs as you want and to open any new blank drawing, you can click on the + icon right
next to the last file tab:

4.) The Selection cursor- This is the cursor that shows up on the AutoCAD screen it is basically two
perpendicular lines with a small cube at the center of the intersection of the lines. This is the default state of
the cursor and depending on the selection, your cursor might look different and sometimes additional icons
will also show next to the cursor. These are the three most basic cursor modes:

5.) The command line / Palette - Just at the bottom of the drawing area, you will see the command line or
command palette. All your typed commands will show up in this command line; you don't need to click on
the command line to start typing any AutoCAD command, just start typing without selecting anything and the
input will be added to the command line directly.
In its default state, the command line will show the Type a command message and when you select any
command, it will show the name of the command and, next, a set of instructions in the command line, as in the
following screenshot:

6.) The User Coordinates System(UCS)- The user coordinate system (UCS) shows the X, Y, and Z directions
of the Cartesian coordinate system in the drawing area. Usually, the UCS will be visible at the bottom-left
corner of the drawing area.

In the default state of the 2D workspace, the UCS will only show the X and Y axis; the Z axis, which points
outward from the AutoCAD screen, will not be visible. The point of intersection of the X and Y coordinates in this UCS
is the origin, or (0,0) point. 
PUSO, JOHN CARL S. Ar. Elcano, Elsinore B.
BSECE-ECE12S1 B20 AutoCAD Interface

7.) The layout tabs- The layout tabs are like the sheets of your drawing on which you can arrange different
views of the drawing and finally plot multiple sheets. For example, if you have a house plan in a model
space where the floor plan, elevations, section, and detail drawings are all made in the model space, then
you can use the layout tabs to place them separately on different sheets, such as a layout for plan view,
another for all elevations, and another for all detail drawings. 

8.) The Status Bar Toggles- The options in the status bar help in making precise drawings. The tools in the
status bar, such as Object Snap, help you to select precise points, such as the midpoint and endpoints of
any geometry, and tools such as polar and ortho mode help you to make lines that are inclined at any angle
or horizontal and vertical lines. 

9.) View cube- Control Position, Size, Opacity and Other Settings. The ViewCube is a navigation tool that is
displayed when you are working in 2D model space or 3D visual style. With ViewCube, you can switch
between standard and isometric views. The ViewCube is a persistent, clickable and draggable interface that
you use to switch between standard and isometric views of your model.

10.) Navigation Bar- The navigation bar is a user interface element where you can access both unified and
product-specific navigation tools. Unified navigation tools are those that can be found across
many Autodesk products. Product-specific navigation tools are unique to a product.