60 AutoCAD Tips in

60 Minutes
Lynn Allen
Autodesk Technical Evangelist

Objective:
Show you some tips and techniques that will
increase your productivity and help you
work smarter!

2005 Autodesk

User Interface Tips

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
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8)
9)
10)
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13)
14)

Workspaces
AutoComplete (Tab to cycle)
Move Model space/Layout tabs
Easy Copy of Layout Tabs New!
Drag and Drop to Sheet Set New!
New 2D Dashboard New!
Status Bar and Tray customization
Anchored Palettes
Clean Screen (or Ctrl 0)
Taskbar to 1
Lock Toolbars
Double click toolbars to float
Lock/Unlock Viewport on Status Bar New!
VP Scale on Status Bar New!
3

2005 Autodesk

Quick Customizing Tips

15)
16)
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20)

CUI now customizes the Dashboard New!

Drag and drop toolbars to the Dashboard New!
Easier to Search and Create New Commands New!
Get rid of F1!
Quickly create a Tool Palette of your blocks in Design Center
Customize the File dialog

2005 Autodesk

Layer Tips
21)

22)
23)
24)
25)

Layer properties per viewport New!

Control of visual properties

Easy reset to global properties

Customize your Layer Columns New!
Deactivate the Status Column to save time
Speedy Layer State Manager Access New!
Applying Layer States per Viewport New!

2005 Autodesk

Misc. Layer Tips

SETBYLAYER New!
Layer Isolate now fades layers New!
LAYUNISO is back New!
Layer Translater (LAYTRANS)
Translates layers to a standard (dws, dwg or dwt)

Force objects to bylayer

30) LAYWALK (View layers individually)
31) LAYDEL (Delete even the most stubborn layers!)
26)
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2005 Autodesk

TimeSavers!
32)
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39)

SCALELISTEDIT Plot, Page Setup, Vport

toolbar, Properties, etc.
JOIN Command (Glue)

works on plines, lines, arc, elliptical arcs

and splines

Use to turn an arc into a circle

LAYERFILTERALERT (Set to 3)
FILTERS command
PEDITACCEPT
IMAGEFRAME
JPGOUT, BMPOUT, PNGOUT, TIFOUT
OVERKILL

AutoCAD 2006

2005 Autodesk

Text Tips
40)
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43)
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Word Docs maintain spacing, font,

etc. New!
Text wraps automatically over
multiple columns New!
Tab styles and paragraph line
spacing control for selected lines
New!
New Spell Checker Improvements
Multiline Attributes! New!
Control the Text Sample string

46)
47)
48)

(MTJIGSTRING)

Click outside of the dialog box to

exit command quickly
Control+Enter to exit command
MTEXT
TEXTTOFRONT command
8

2005 Autodesk

Table Tips
49)
50)
51)

AutoFill available in AutoCAD Tables

Tables wrap automatically over multiple columns
Insert blocks and text in same cell

2005 Autodesk

Dimensioning tips (all new)

53)
54)

Multiple Leaders

Multiple segments

Leading or trailing
position on text

Options for placement

of leader with respect to
text
MLEADERALIGN
MLEADERCOllECT

55)
56)
57)

DIMBREAK
DIMJOGLINE
DIMSPACE

52)

10

2005 Autodesk

Misc. Tips in AutoCAD 2008

58)
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Inverse Xclip
Layer control for attached DWF files
Create smaller PDFs with DWF
PUBLISHCOLLATE multipage PDF
Import/Export DGN
Recover for Xrefs

11

2005 Autodesk

Keys, Keys, Keys

64)Control+R to cycle through all of your viewports
65)Control+A to select all the objects in your drawing
66)Control to cycle through objects
67)Tab to cycle through object snaps
68)Navigate through layouts with Control+PageUp and Control+PageDown
69)Hold down right mouse button to clear grips
70)Shift for more than one hot grip
71)Arrow up and down through commands
72)Control+Tab to cycle through open drawings
73)OSNAP Tracking to find the center of a box
74)M2P or MTP to find the midpoint between two points

12

2005 Autodesk

Tip #75: Embed Drawings into PPT!

Insert menu Object > Autodesk DWF Viewer Control

Right click on image Autodesk DWF Viewer Control ->Properties
Select
DWF File
DWF will only display when the Slide Show is playing
13

2005 Autodesk

Tip #76 Autodesk Labs: labs.autodesk.com

(commandcomplete)

14

2005 Autodesk

Tip #77: DWG TrueView (now

includes True Convert)
Supports viewing and plotting of DWG files, and publishing to DWF
Batch converts drawings to previous releases
Stand alone product no need for ACAD to be installed
Same fidelity as Save as in AutoCAD
Conversion of pen widths to line weights and the addition of page
setups.
www.autodesk.com/trueview

Pricing
FREE

15

2005 Autodesk

Autodesk Design Review 2008

www.autodesk.com/designreview

Pricing
FREE

16

2005 Autodesk

17

2005 Autodesk

Tip # 78: Autodesk Design Review 2008

www.autodesk.com/designreview

Pricing
FREE

18

2005 Autodesk

Tip # 79: Autodesk Design Review

Drawing Version Compare Feature
Highlight
additions/
deletions
Select Tools >
Compare
2. Browse and load
the DWF files
3. Select sheets to
overlay and click
OK
1.

Free Download:
autodesk.com/designreview
19
2005 Autodesk

Tip # 80: Introducing Autodesk Freewheel

Share designs
online - Free
Publish DWF
2. Upload & Email Link
3. View & Print 2D & 3D
designs online without
install software
4. Utilize for drawing
catalogs and archives
1.

freewheel.autodesk.co
m

20

2005 Autodesk

lynn.allen@autodesk.com
www.autodesk.com/lynnallen
21

2005 Autodesk