CadLearning

AutoCad 2015

11. Modify Objects Alteration Commands

1101 Introducing Alteration Commands

Alteration commands are modify commands that physically alter or change the objects from their
original form. These commands include the BREAK command, which enables you to take a single
object, such as a line or arc, and to break it into two separate pieces. You can also use the BREAK
command to remove a portion of an object. The TRIM command enables you to remove part of an
object where it crosses or intersects another object. And the companion to the TRIM command is
the EXTEND command. You can extend objects that are too short so that they touch a specified
boundary object. The FILLET command enables you to place a radius or a round between any two
non-parallel objects. You can also use the FILLET command to extend any two line segments to
their intersecting point. The CHAMFER command is similar to the FILLET command. It enables you
to place a line segment between any two non-parallel objects and you can also specify the length of
the chamfer from the intersection points or the angle of the chamfer line. The BLEND command
creates a spline in the gap between two selected lines or curves. The STRETCH command is
similar to moving an object, but with the trim and extend feature built in. It allows you to move
specific objects, while extending other objects to make them shorter or longer at the same time. The
JOIN command enables you to take multiple objects that either meet at endpoints or overlap and to
combine them into a single object. LENGTHEN enables you to take a line segment, an arc, or a
polyline and increase its length by a specific amount, so that it becomes a specific total length. You
can also lengthen objects by a percentage. The EXPLODE command enables you to reduce an
object, such as a block, a polyline, a rectangle, or a polygon, and convert it back into its base
objects, such as lines, arcs, and circles. The Delete Duplicate Objects tool cleans up overlapping
geometry by removing deleted or unneeded objects. And finally, the SCALE command enables you
to take one or more objects and increase or decrease their size based on a scale factor.

1102 Breaking an Object At One Point

The BREAK command enables you to break an object into two separate pieces. You can also use
the BREAK command to remove a portion of an object. Each of the objects in this drawing is a
single object. When you move the cursor over the arc, you can see that it is a single arc object, and
when you move the cursor over a line, you can see that each is a line object. To break an object
into two separate pieces, on the Home ribbon, expand the Modify panel and choose Break at Point.
The program prompts you to select an object. Notice the difference between this and most other
modify commands. The prompt says "object." It is singular, not plural. Therefore, you can only pick
one object at a time. Click to pick the line on the left. As soon as you do, the program prompts you
to specify the first break point. Move the cursor over the line again. When you see the Midpoint
AutoSnap marker and tooltip, click to pick that point, thus breaking the line exactly in half. As soon
as you do that, the command ends. Click to expand the command line, so you can see what just
happened. When you clicked the tool on the ribbon, you started the BREAK command and
automatically selected the First point option. Then, once you selected the midpoint of the line, the
program automatically added the AT symbol (@), which caused it to use the same point as both the
first and second break points, thus breaking the object at the first point that you selected. Collapse
the command line and then move the cursor over the line on the left. The line is now two separate
line segments. Repeat this to break the arc. Expand the Modify panel, click the Break at Point tool,
and select the arc. When the program prompts you to specify the first break point, snap to the
midpoint of the arc. The arc is immediately broken into two separate arc segments. On the Home
ribbon, in the Modify panel, click the Move tool and move one of the arc segments away from the
other. Repeat this with one of the line segments. You can do this because the original line and arc
have been broken into two separate objects. Suppose you wanted to break the two lines on the right
into four segments that meet at their intersection. To repeat the BREAK command, in the command
line, expand the Recent Commands tool and choose BREAK. The program prompts you to select
an object. Click to select one of the lines. This time, the program does not prompt you to specify the
first break point; it prompts you to specify the second break point. The First point is actually an
option. When you click the Break at Point tool in the ribbon, the program automatically selects that
option. But when you simply start the BREAK command, you must specify the desired option. Select
the First point option. Now the program prompts you to specify the first point. Since you want to
break the line where it intersects the other line, press the SHIFT key and right-click to display the
Object Snap Overrides shortcut menu and choose Intersection. Then, move the cursor over the
point where the two lines intersect. When you see the Intersection AutoSnap marker and tooltip,
click to select that point. Now the program prompts you to specify the second break point, and as
you move the cursor, the command preview function shows you the gap that would result if you
were to click to pick that point as the second break point. But since you want to simply break the line
into two pieces without creating a gap, you need to specify the same point as the second break
point. Remember from the previous example, however, that the AT symbol (@) was added
automatically when you chose the Break at Point tool. The AT symbol (@) stores the most recent
point you select in the drawing. So when the program prompts you to specify the second break
point, type "@" and press ENTER. The line is immediately broken into two separate segments. Do
this again to break the other line. Press the SPACEBAR to repeat the BREAK command. When the
program prompts you to select an object, select the other line. Then, right-click and choose the First
point option. When the program prompts you to specify the first break point, move the cursor over
the intersection of the lines until you see the Endpoint AutoSnap marker and tooltip. Since you
already broke one line, you do not need to use the intersection object snap override this time. You
can simply snap to the endpoint of the broken line segment and click to select that point. Then,
when the program prompts you to specify the second break point, type "@" and press ENTER. That
line segment is now also broken into two separate pieces.

1103 Breaking an Object Between Two Points

The BREAK command enables you to break a selected object between two points. You can use this
command to remove a portion of an object. On the Home ribbon, expand the Modify panel and click
the Break tool. The program prompts you to select an object. The prompt is not plural. You can only
break one object at a time. Click to select the circle on the left. By default, the point you use to pick
the object becomes the first break point, and then the program prompts you to specify the second
break point. Before you select that point, on the Status bar, toggle off Object Snap so that you do
not inadvertently snap to a point. Then, move the cursor back toward the circle. As you move the
cursor, the command preview function shows you the gap that will result. The gap is determined by
moving in a counter-clockwise direction from the first point you selected. When you are satisfied
with the gap, click to select the second break point. The program immediately removes a portion of
the circle, turning the circle into an arc. On the Quick Access Toolbar, click Undo. Then, repeat the
BREAK command, but this time reverse the order of the points. Expand the Modify menu and click
the Break tool. When the program prompts you to select an object, toggle off Object Snap and then
click to select the circle at the 10 o'clock point. Then, when it prompts you to specify the second
break point, move the cursor toward the 2 o'clock position. Again, with command preview enabled,
you can see what will happen. The program will start at the 10 o'clock position and work counter-
clockwise, creating a gap in the circle. Click at the 2 o'clock position. Only the small arc near the top
of the previous circle remains. Obviously, the sequence in which you pick the points is important,
but with command preview, you can see the results and change the first and second break points if
necessary. Consider another example. Suppose you wanted to remove the lower portion of the
circle where it intersects the vertical lines. Expand the Modify panel and click the Break tool. The
program prompts you to select an object. Since you do not want to accidently select one of the
lines, click to select the circle. Of course, by default, the program uses the point you just picked as
the first break point, but you do not have to use that point. Choose the First point option. The
program prompts you to specify the first break point. Remember that when breaking an arc or circle,
the program works in a counter-clockwise direction. Toggle on Object Snap, and then move the
cursor over the upper-end of the line on the left. When you see the Endpoint AutoSnap marker and
tooltip, click to select that point. The program then prompts you to specify the second break point.
Move the cursor over the upper-end of the line on the right. The command preview shows you the
portion of the circle that will be removed. When you see the Endpoint AutoSnap marker and tooltip,
click to select that point. As soon as you do, the circle is broken and the desired segment is
removed. Here is one more example. Suppose you want to break the two lines on the right and
completely remove their upper portions. Expand the Modify panel, click the Break tool, and then
click to select one of the lines. You do not want to break the line at the point where you selected it,
so right-click and choose First point. Then, press SHIFT and right-click to display the Object Snap
Override shortcut menu and choose Intersection. Then, click to select the intersection of the two
lines as the first break point. Then, when the program prompts you to specify the second break
point, simply move the cursor out beyond the end of the line. Command preview shows you what
will happen. When you click beyond the end of the line, the program simply removes the remainder
of the line segment. Press the SPACEBAR to repeat the command. When the program prompts you
to select an object, select the other line. Then, right-click and choose the First point option. When
the program prompts you to specify the first break point, move the cursor over the end of the broken
line segment until you see the Endpoint AutoSnap marker and tooltip and click to select that point.
Then, when the program prompts you for the second break point, move the cursor beyond the end
of the line. Again, you can preview what will happen. When you click beyond the end of the line, the
program removes that entire portion of the line.

1104 Understanding Practical Uses for the Break Command

The BREAK command breaks a selected object between two points, and you will find many
practical, real-world applications for this command. For example, in this drawing, several doors were
added after the walls were created. So you will need to break the lines representing the walls to
create an opening at each door. You can use the BREAK command to do this. Before you begin,
however, it is pretty obvious that you are going to need to use the intersection object snap, so on
the Status bar, make sure Object Snap is toggled on. Then, click the arrow to the right of the Object
Snap button, clear the Endpoint, Midpoint, and Center object snap modes, and select Intersection,
and then click away from the menu to close it. Now, you are ready to proceed. On the Home ribbon,
expand the Modify panel and click the Break tool. The program prompts you to select an object.
Click to select one of the lines representing the wall. Since you do not want to break the line at that
point, however, right-click and choose the First point option. Then, when the program prompts you
to select the first point, move the cursor over a door jamb until you see the Intersection AutoSnap
marker and tooltip and click to select that point. Then, when the program prompts you for the
second break point, move the cursor over the other door jamb. You can preview the results. When
you click to select that point, the line is broken to create a gap for the door. Press the SPACEBAR
to repeat the BREAK command and then repeat this process for the second wall line. Start the
BREAK command again and then repeat this process again for the second door. Again, remember
that after picking the line as the object you want to break, you need to choose the First point option
and then use the intersection object snap to pick the two door jambs. When you are prompted to
specify the second point, thanks to command preview you can see the results. Then repeat the
process again for the second line. You can clean up the final door opening on your own. You can
also use the BREAK command to create precise openings even when there is no existing geometry
to snap to. Suppose you want to create an opening in the horizontal wall that is exactly 60 units
wide, positioned precisely 48 units from the wall on the left. When you move the cursor over the
horizontal wall, you can see that each line is a single continuous line, so there is no intersecting
geometry in the wall that you can snap to. But you can use the BREAK command in conjunction
with object snap tracking to precisely position the break points. Before you begin, on the Status bar,
click the arrow adjacent to the Object Snap button, and then enable Endpoint, and clear the
Intersection object snap. Also make sure that Object Snap Tracking is toggled. Now, expand the
Modify panel and click the Break tool. When the program prompts you to select an object, click to
select one of the horizontal wall lines. Then, when the program prompts you to specify the second
break point, right-click and choose the First point option. Next, the program prompts you to specify
the first break point. Move the cursor over the left end of the wall, but do not click. When you see
the Endpoint AutoSnap marker and tooltip, move the cursor to the right along the 0-degree
alignment line, type "48", and press ENTER. The first break point is positioned 48 units from the end
of the wall. Next, the program prompts you to specify the second break point, and with command
preview, you can see the gap that will be created. Move the cursor to the right, type "60", and press
ENTER. The opening is immediately created. To break the second line, you do not have to repeat
this entire process. Start the BREAK command again, select the other line, right-click, and choose
the First point option. When the program prompts you to select the first break point, snap to the
endpoint of the opening on the other line. Then, when the program prompts you to specify the
second break point, snap to the endpoint of the other line. Thanks to command preview, you can
see the gap that will be created. The program makes a perpendicular projection from the other line
and uses the X-coordinates to create the desired opening. You can then switch to the wall layer and
draw the necessary lines to cap off the ends of the walls.

1105 Using the Trim Command with Pick Selection

The TRIM command enables you to remove a portion of an object where it crosses or intersects
another object. For example, suppose you want to remove the top half of the line segment in the
upper-left where it crosses the horizontal line. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, click the
Trim tool. In the command line, the program displays the current settings, prompts you to select
cutting edges, and then says "Select objects or So the first objects you select are the objects that
cross the objects you want to trim, which in this case is the horizontal line. Click to select the
horizontal line. Then, since that is the only cutting edge you need, either right-click or press ENTER.
That line is now highlighted and the program prompts you to select the object to trim. When you
move the cursor over the top portion of the vertical line, you see a preview of the resulting object.
The portion of the line that will be removed is dimly displayed and a cursor badge indicates that it
will be deleted. Click to select that portion of the line. Then, press ENTER to end the command. So
when using the TRIM command, you first select the cutting edge and then, after completing that
step, you choose the objects that you want to trim or remove. Suppose you want to trim the portion
of the line that is inside the circle. In that case, the circle will be the cutting edge. Start the TRIM
command again. When the program prompts you to select the cutting edges, click to select the
circle, and then right-click to go on to the next step. The program prompts you to select the object to
trim. When you move the cursor over the portion of the line inside the circle, the preview clearly
indicates what will be removed. Click to select the line. The portion of the line inside the circle is
immediately removed, leaving the two outside segments. If you change your mind or realize that
you trimmed the wrong object, you can use the Undo option to restore what you just trimmed and
then try again. Trim the line inside the circle. The command remains active so that you can trim
another object using the same cutting edges. When you move the cursor over the lines that remain
outside the circle, however, the program tells you that the object does not intersect with the cutting
edge. But on the command line, there is an erase option. Choose erase. You can then select one of
the lines outside the circle. The line highlights and the prompt repeats. Right-click or press ENTER
to erase that line segment. The command is still active, so you can continue to trim other objects
using the same cutting edges. When you are finished, press ENTER or ESC to end the command.
Consider another example. Suppose you wanted to remove the inner portions of the horizontal lines
where they cross the vertical lines and the inner portions of the vertical lines where they cross the
horizontal lines. So all four lines will be cutting edges as well as objects being trimmed. Start the
TRIM command again. When the program prompts you to select cutting edges, since all four objects
will be cutting edges, you can press ENTER or right-click to select all objects in the drawing as
cutting edges. The program then prompts you to select the objects you want to trim. Now you can
simply click the portions of the lines you want to trim. As you move the cursor over the line, the
portion to be removed is clearly indicated. Click to select it and then go on to the next object to trim.
Once you have trimmed the four lines, press ENTER or ESC to end the command. Although you
could always select all objects as cutting edges that can become confusing. You should therefore
only select the cutting edges that you actually need. For example, to use the TRIM command to
change the objects in the top portion of the drawing to create the shape at the bottom, only the two
outer lines and the upper arc need to be selected as cutting edges. Start the TRIM command. When
the program prompts you to select cutting edges, select the upper arc and the two outer lines. Then,
right-click to complete the cutting edge selection and go on to the next step. The program prompts
you select the object to trim. As you move the cursor over an object, you can preview the result.
Click to remove the upper portion of the two outer lines, the lower portion of the middle line, and the
lower portion of the circle. When you are finished, press ENTER to end the command.

1106 Using the Trim Command with Fence Selection

When using the TRIM command, you may find that you need to select a large number of objects
and trim them back to one cutting edge. You can easily do this by using the Fence selection method
in conjunction with the TRIM command. For example, there are a series of lines radiating out from
the center of the circle. Suppose you wanted to trim them all back to the circle so that the circle will
be the cutting edge. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, click the Trim tool. In the command
line, the program displays the current settings and prompts you to select cutting edges. Click to
select the circle, and then right-click to complete the cutting edge selection and go on to the next
step. The circle highlights and the program prompts you to select the object to trim. When you move
the cursor over the object you want to trim, the segment to be removed is dimly displayed and a
cursor badge indicates that it will be deleted. And when you click that segment, the line is trimmed
and the prompt repeats. While you could certainly repeat this to trim each object individually, that
could take a while and would be quite tedious. Instead, choose the Fence option. Remember that
you can click the option in the command line, right-click and choose from a shortcut menu, or press
the DOWN-ARROW and choose the Fence option. The program prompts you to Specify the first
fence point or pick/drag cursor. A fence is simply a series of line segments that you create by
picking points. Any object that crosses one of those fence segments will be selected. Before picking
fence points, it is a good idea to go to the Status bar and toggle off Object Snap, Polar Tracking,
and any other drawing aids that might cause the cursor to snap to the wrong points by mistake.
Then, start picking points to define the fence line. As you create each fence segment, you can see a
preview of the resulting object. The segments crossing the fence line are dimmed and a cursor
badge indicates that those objects will be deleted. Once the fence passes through all of the objects
you want to trim, press ENTER. The command is still active so that you could trim other objects.
Choose the Undo option to reverse what you just did and then choose the Fence option again.
Instead of clicking to specify individual fence points, you can click and drag to quickly sketch a fence
line. Press and hold down the left mouse button and drag to sketch a fence line that crosses all of
the lines that extend beyond the outside of the circle. As you do, you can preview the results. When
you release the mouse button, all of the lines are trimmed. When you are satisfied, press ENTER to
end the command.

1107 Using the Trim Command with Edge Extend Mode

When using the TRIM command, there may be times that you want to trim objects that do not
actually touch. For example, suppose you wanted to trim the two vertical lines, using the horizontal
line as the cutting edge. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, click the Trim tool. In the
command line, the program displays the current settings and prompts you to select cutting edges.
Click to select the horizontal line and then either right-click or press ENTER to complete the
selection of the cutting edge and move to the next step. The program prompts you to select the
object to trim. When you move the cursor over the end of the vertical line, however, the preview
shows you that the line does not intersect with the cutting edge. By default, the TRIM command will
only work if the object you want to trim actually intersects the cutting edge. But there is an option
called Edge that alters this behavior. To select the Edge option, you can click that option on the
command line, press the DOWN-ARROW and select Edge, or right-click and choose the Edge
option from the shortcut menu. The program then prompts you to enter an implied edge extension
mode. You can choose either Extend or No extend. The default is No extend. Choose Extend. With
the edge extension mode set to Extend, the program treats the cutting edge as if it extends to
infinity in both directions. Now, when you move the cursor over the portion of the vertical line you
want to trim, the preview shows that the line will be trimmed. Click to trim the upper portion of the
line on the left and the lower portion of the line on the right. While the edge extension mode can be
quite powerful, it can have unwanted consequences. Zoom out so that you can see the objects to
the left. Since the cutting edge extends to infinity, the program now considers it to pass through the
objects to the left, so you could inadvertently trim the circle and the lines to the extension of this line
if you were not careful. Of course, if you were to do this, you could right-click and choose Undo to
reverse the most recent trim action.

1108 Using the Extend Command

The EXTEND command extends objects to meet the edges of other objects. It is basically the
opposite of the TRIM command. You would use the EXTEND command to extend an object that is
too short until it intersects with the edge of a selected boundary object. Suppose that you wanted to
extend the two vertical lines so that they intersect with the horizontal line segments. On the Home
ribbon, in the Modify panel, expand the Trim split button and choose Extend. These two commands
are related, and whichever tool you choose floats to the top of this button. In the command line, the
program displays the current setting, prompts you to select boundary edges, and then says "Select
objects or [select all]". So the first objects you select are the objects to which you want to extend
other objects, which in this case are the two horizontal lines. Click to select each horizontal line. As
you select each line, they highlight. Then, since those are the only boundary edges you need, either
right-click or press ENTER. Now the program prompts you to select the object to extend. When you
move the cursor over the vertical line on the left, a preview of the resulting object is displayed. Click
to extend the line up until it meets the first horizontal line. When you move the cursor over the
vertical line again, you see a preview showing the line extending to the next horizontal line. Click to
extend the line up to the next horizontal line. When you move the cursor over the vertical line on the
right, however, the program tells you that the path does not intersect with the bounding edge. By
default, objects will not extend unless they would actually touch the boundary edge. But you can
change that behavior by changing the edge extension mode. Right-click and choose Edge. The
program prompts you to enter an implied edge extension mode and gives you two choices: Extend
and No extend. No extend is the default. Choose Extend. When set to extend mode, the program
treats the boundary edge as if it extended to infinity. Now, when you move the cursor over the
vertical line on the right, the preview shows that it would extend up to the first horizontal line. Click
to extend the line. Then, move the cursor over the line and click again to extend it up to the second
horizontal line. When you are finished extending objects, press ENTER or ESC to end the
command. What happens, however, when there are boundary edges both above and below an
object, or to the left and to the right? Zoom out a bit so you can see the horizontal lines drawn both
above and below the vertical lines. Then, start the EXTEND command again, pick both of these
lines as boundary edges, and then right-click. Note that when you move the cursor over one of the
vertical lines, the direction in which it will extend depends on where the cursor is located in relation
to the line. If the cursor is located closer to the upper end of the line, the line will extend to the top
boundary. If the cursor is closer to the bottom end of the line, the line will extend to the bottom
boundary. So the point you use to select the object to extend determines the direction in which it will
be extended. When you are finished extending lines, press ENTER or ESC to end the command.

1109 Using Extend and Trim Together

The TRIM command and the EXTEND command are complimentary commands. They work in
conjunction with each other and you can actually toggle between them by simply pressing the
SHIFT key. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, expand the Extend split button and click the
Trim tool. The program prompts you to select the cutting edges. Use a crossing window to select all
four objects and then right-click to complete the cutting edge selection. Next, the prompt says,
"Select object to trim or shift-select to extend." In other words, if you simply select objects they will
be trimmed, but if you press the SHIFT key while selecting objects, they will be extended rather than
trimmed. Press ESC to cancel the command. Then, on the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel,
expand the Trim split button and click the Extend tool. The program prompts you to select boundary
edges. Again, use a crossing window to select all four objects and then right-click to complete the
boundary edge selection. Next, the prompt says, "Select object to extend or shift-select to trim." In
other words, now when you select objects they will be extended, but if you press the SHIFT key
while selecting objects, they will be trimmed rather than extended. So it does not really matter which
command you start with. You can always switch between trim and extend in the middle of the
command. And this can be very powerful. For example, if you have ever drawn an orthographic
projection, you know that you project up from the front view and project over from the side view. And
then you can trim back the construction lines to create the final geometry. You can do the same
thing with the TRIM and EXTEND commands. You can very quickly build a rectangle based on the
projection of these four simple lines. In the ribbon, click the Extend tool, use a crossing window to
select all four line segments as the boundary edges, and then right-click to complete the selection.
The program prompts you to select objects to extend. Move the cursor over the vertical line on the
left. You can see a preview of how the line will be extended. Click once to extend it to the first
horizontal line, and then click it again to extend it to the second. When you move the cursor over the
line on the right, the program tells you that the path does not intersect with the bounding edge, so
you will need to change the edge extend mode. Right-click and choose the Edge option and then
change the implied edge mode to Extend. Now, when you move the cursor over the line on the
right, you can see a preview of how that line will be extended. Click once to extend it to the first
horizontal line and then click again to extend it to the second. Now you can trim off the unneeded
portions of the lines. Press and hold the SHIFT key to switch to the TRIM command. Now, when you
move the cursor over a portion of the line, you can see how the line will be trimmed. Trim off the left
sides of the horizontal lines. Then, release the SHIFT key to switch back to the EXTEND command
and extend those two horizontal lines to right. Then, press and hold the SHIFT key again, and trim
away the bottom portions of the vertical lines to complete the rectangle. When you are done, press
ENTER or ESC to end the command.

1110 Understanding Practical Uses for the Trim and Extend Commands
The TRIM and EXTEND commands are a powerful pair of commands, and you will find many
practical, real-world applications for these commands. For example, you can use TRIM and
EXTEND to modify the lines on the left to create the shaft shown on the right. Start with the
EXTEND command. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, click the Extend tool. In the
command line, the program displays the current settings. Note that Edge mode is currently set to
None. The program displays the current modes when you first start the command, and it is
important to take note of these settings. When Edge mode is set to none, you can only trim or
extend objects that would actually intersect the boundary or cutting edges. In this example, you will
need to change the Edge mode to Extend, but before you can do that, you must first select the
objects that will be the boundary or cutting edges. In this particular example, everything is going to
be either a boundary edge or a cutting edge, except for the short horizontal line segments. Those
are already in the proper location and will not be used to extend or trim other objects. So there is no
need to include them. When you select cutting edges or boundary edges, you do not need to select
everything. Just select those objects that actually need to be used as cutting or boundary edges.
Use a crossing window to select the boundary edges and then right-click or press ENTER to
complete that selection. The objects you selected as boundary edges are highlighted. Now the
program prompts you to select the objects to extend and also displays additional options. Now you
can change the edge mode. Right-click and choose Edge and then choose Extend. Now you can
start choosing the objects you want to extend. Each time you move the cursor over an object, you
can see a preview of how the object will be extended. The direction in which the object will be
extended depends on where you select it. Each line will be extended in the direction closest to the
end at which you pick the object. If you click the object again, it will extend to the next boundary
edge. Once you have extended all the lines that need to be extended, you are ready to start
trimming. Even though you started with the EXTEND command, you can press and hold down the
SHIFT key to immediately start trimming lines. And here is a tip: when extending objects, the best
approach is usually to start from the inside and work your way out. When trimming lines, it usually
works best to reverse the process: start from the outside and work your way back toward the inner-
most portions of the object. Because if you were to start at the inside, you might accidently leave
some smaller line segments out at the end. For example, when you move the cursor over the
vertical line on the left, if you do not start from the end of the line, the command preview shows you
that you would end up with a short segment left behind that you would then need to erase. The
command preview makes it very easy to see the results of your actions before you click. When
trimming, the segment to be removed is dimly displayed, and a cursor badge indicates that it will be
deleted. Continue trimming objects, always working from the outside in. Remember, that you are
pressing and holding the SHIFT key as you click to select objects. Once you have finished trimming
objects, you can release the SHIFT key and then press ENTER or ESC to end the command.

1111 Using the Fillet Command with Fillet Radius

The FILLET command enables you to place a radius or a round between any two non-parallel or
parallel objects. In the Modify panel on the Home ribbon, click the Fillet tool. When you start the
FILLET command, first look at the command prompt at the bottom of the screen. Notice the current
modes. The Trim mode means that if an object is too long or too short, the program will either trim
or extend the object as needed before applying the fillet. Also notice that, by default, when you first
start the FILLET command, the radius is set to 0. If the radius is set to 0, the FILLET command
won't actually apply any radius or round at all. In that case, if I select these two line segments, my
first segment, and then select the second line segment, the command will simply extend those two
lines to the point where they meet. Let's say that I would like to actually apply a round. I'll press the
SPACEBAR to repeat the command, right-click, and choose the Radius option, and set the radius
value to .5. Now let's go select the next two line segments. Notice that after I select the first
segment, when I hover the cursor over the second segment, I can see a preview of the fillet that is
about to be created, and before I select the second line segment, I can change the radius. I'll right-
click, choose the Radius option, and change the radius to 1. Now, when I move the cursor over the
second line segment, I can see a preview of the new fillet, and when I click on that line segment, the
command places a round between those two line segments. And notice that the program
automatically extended this line segment a bit, and trimmed this one back a bit. So the FILLET
command can actually extend or trim objects as well. But if you prefer, you can change this option,
so that the FILLET command does not trim objects, but rather leaves the original segments. I'll
press the SPACEBAR to repeat the FILLET command, right-click, and choose the Trim option.
Notice that the default option is to trim or extend the objects, but I can change it to No Trim, which
essentially leaves the objects in their original form. If I choose No Trim and then select these two
segments, the program will place the radius or round between them, but it leaves the original
objects intact. Although this may not seem terribly useful, there may be times where you want to see
the original corner, for example, over here, where I want to show the radius or round that would be
machined in this corner. So there is a very good use for this. You can also use the FILLET
command to simply extend two line segments to the point at which they would meet. I'll start the
FILLET command again. Notice that the fillet radius is still set to a value of 1. I'll press and hold the
SHIFT key and then click on one of these line segments, and then on the other. Notice that the two
line segments have been extended to the point at which they meet and no round was added. When
you press the SHIFT key while selecting the fillet objects, the program automatically uses a fillet
radius of zero regardless of the current fillet radius. I'll pan up a bit, and notice that I've drawn two
parallel lines. I'll start the FILLET command one more time, select one of these line segments, and
then select the other. Notice that the program immediately adds an arc connecting the two lines.
And also notice that I never changed the fillet radius. When you select two parallel lines, the
program automatically calculates the radius and adds a fillet so that the arc is tangent to the two
lines.

1112 Adding Fillets to Multiple Segments and Polylines

You can also use fillets on multiple segments and polylines. Here are some examples. In the first
example over here on the left, I'll place a fillet radius of zero on multiple segments at one time. From
the Modify panel on the Home ribbon, choose the Fillet command. Once I choose the FILLET
command, I want to make sure that I have the radius set to 0. So I look at the command prompt and
the radius is already set to 0, the mode is set to Trim. And remember, Trim also works like Extend
for any segments that are too short. So for these segments that do not physically meet or intersect,
it will either extend them or trim them if they're too long or too short. There is also an option called
Multiple. And if I right-click and choose the Multiple option, this will enable the command to continue
without having to press SPACEBAR every time I need to create another fillet. So with the Multiple
option selected, let me pick these two line segments here, and then I'll pick these two segments
here. I'll still have to go around and select the individual pairs of line segments, but you can see how
powerful this is. Unlike TRIM and EXTEND, I don't have to hold down the SHIFT key to determine
which object needs to be extended or trimmed. The FILLET command will do this for me. Once I'm
done, I simply press the ESC or ENTER key. I'll press the SPACEBAR again to repeat the
command. Let's do it again, this time with a radius. Let's set the radius to 1. Right-click and choose
the Multiple option. And now, let's go place multiple fillets by selecting the pairs of line segments.
Once I've gone around the object, and I've selected all of the segments for placing the fillets, I
simply press the ENTER key or the ESC key. The last example I'll show you is the power of doing
this with a polyline. We know that a polyline exists as a single object. If I move the cursor over any
segment, you can see that it highlights the entire object. Well, if the entire shape is one object, it
makes sense that you should be able to place a fillet on all of the corners at once. I'll press the
SPACEBAR to repeat the FILLET command. I'll keep the Trim mode set. The radius set to 1. And
notice that I'm going to right-click and choose the Polyline option. By choosing the Polyline option, I
can now select any 2D polyline and it will place that fillet at each corner of the polyline.

1113 Using the Chamfer Command with Distance and Angle

A chamfer is a line segment that can be placed at the corner between any two non-parallel objects.
You can place a chamfer by specifying the distance measured back from the corner or by specifying
the angle from one of the line segments. Let's start with the chamfer by distance. In the Modify
panel on the Home ribbon, I'm going to choose the Chamfer command. Notice that the CHAMFER
and FILLET commands appear in the same drop-down. That's because they're very similar
commands. They both modify the intersecting corners of objects. Notice in the diagram here in the
extended tooltip, that there will be two segments to pick. Segment number 1 and segment number
2. You specify the distance measured back from the intersecting corner. The first object that you
pick will be distance number 1 and the second object that you pick will be distance number 2. So
let's create a chamfer similar to what's shown in the tooltip. When I choose the CHAMFER
command, notice that I have the option now of setting the chamfer distance. Also notice at the
command prompt that the Trim mode is also set to trim. Trimming works like extending when you're
using FILLET and CHAMFER commands. So if the lines are too long, they'll be trimmed back. And if
they're too short, they'll be extended. I'll right-click and set the distance. I'll set the first chamfer
distance to a value of 1 and press the ENTER key. Notice that the distance I entered for the first
chamfer distance is shown as the default value for the second chamfer distance, and I can simply
press ENTER again to accept that value. Notice that when I move the cursor over the second line
segment, I see a preview of the resulting chamfer, and if I wish, I can change the chamfer distance
or angle before completing the command. I'll right-click and choose the Distance option again. I'll
press ENTER to accept the first chamfer distance of 1, and then set the second chamfer distance to
a value of 2. The prompt repeats for me to select the second line. Now I can see that the first line I
picked will be trimmed back 1 unit from the intersection and the second line will be trimmed back 2
units from the intersection. Another thing you should note, is that even though the program prompts
you when you're asked to select a distance, you don't have to type in a value. You could also pick
two points on the screen to specify the chamfer distance. For the next example, let's specify the
chamfer based on an angle. I'll press the SPACEBAR to repeat the CHAMFER command and then
right-click and choose the Angle option. The program prompts for a chamfer length based on the
first line segment. In other words, if I pick this line as the first line, the chamfer length will be the
distance that it trims back from the intersection, whether the objects physically intersect or not. This
could be a projection point. I'm going to set this distance to 2 units. Type 2 and press ENTER. And
then it's going to ask me for the chamfer angle. This is measured from the first line. So the chamfer,
when I pick the second line segment here, is not going to be based on the distance, but rather the
angle measured from the first line. So if I set this angle to 45-degrees, the line segment will always
be 45-degrees from the first line regardless of the angle of the second line. I'll type 45 and press
ENTER. I'll pick the first line and then, when I move the cursor over the second line, I can see a
preview of the chamfer, and I could change the chamfer distance or angle again. When I click the
second line, the program trims the lines back and adds a 45-degree chamfer. And to show you that
what I'm saying is correct, I'll draw another line segment up here at an odd angle. I don't even know
what the angle of that line segment is. And now, I'll start the CHAMFER command again. Notice that
the length is 2 units and the angle is 45-degrees. If I choose this line segment and then this as the
second, notice that the chamfer that it applies is at a 45-degree angle from the first line. So these
two lines are parallel. It didn't matter what the angle of this line was. I'll use the UNDO command to
undo those lines. Now, if you want, you can also create a chamfer with no trimming, essentially
leaving the original corners. I'll start the CHAMFER command, right-click and choose the Trim
option, and set it to No Trim. Then I'll select the first line segment and then the second line segment,
and notice that it places a 45-degree chamfer and leaves the original lines intact. Another trick that
you can do with the CHAMFER command is to simply use it to extend any two objects to their
intersection. I'll start the CHAMFER command again. Note that I could set the chamfer distance to
zero, but I actually don't need to do that. Notice that the chamfer angle is still set to 45-degrees. If I
press and hold the SHIFT key and then click to select the two lines, notice that they are simply
extended until they meet. I don't even have to change the Trim mode. When you press the SHIFT
key while selecting the two objects you want to chamfer, the program automatically uses a chamfer
distance of zero regardless of the current chamfer distance or angle. Nothing has been added to the
lines. The lines have simply been extended until they meet.

1114 Adding Chamfers to Multiple Segments and Polylines

You can apply chamfers continuously. You can also apply chamfers to polyline segments or to the
entire polyline at once. I'd like to place chamfers with a distance of .5 units at each corner of this
polyline. I can do it one of two ways. If I start the CHAMFER command, the first thing I want to do is
specify the distance. Notice at the command prompt that the current distance is set to 0. I'll right-
click, set the chamfer distance, type a value of .5, and press the ENTER key. Notice that the default
value for the second chamfer distance is whatever you entered for the first one. That's perfect. Just
press ENTER. Then, I'll right-click and choose the Multiple option. The Multiple option enables me
to stay in the CHAMFER command so I can pick multiple pairs of lines without having to restart the
command. Notice that as I pick the first and second lines, after it places the chamfer it continues to
prompt me for another first line. I can continue to pick points around the perimeter of this shape until
I have applied chamfers to all of the intersecting edges. Press the ENTER key or the ESC key when
done. Now, this object was a polyline. So I really didn't have to go around and pick the individual
line segments to add those chamfers. I would have to do that if they were individual line segments.
But since it's a polyline, I'll click Undo and show you how I would approach this again. In the Modify
panel on the Home ribbon, I'll click the Chamfer tool. Once I start the CHAMFER command,
remember to read the command prompt. Set the distances and Trim mode, so that it will apply the
chamfer correctly. Again, my chamfer distance is .5 units. This time, I'll right-click and choose the
Polyline option. The polyline option allows me to simply select a 2D polyline, closed or open, and
the program will automatically apply the chamfer to all the vertices at once.

1115 Using the Blend Command

The BLEND command creates a spline in the gap between two selected lines or curves. You can
use this tool to connect lines, arcs, elliptical arcs, helixes, open polylines and open splines. Here's
how it works. In this drawing, I've created two splines. I can use the BLEND command to fill the gap
between those two splines with a new spline so that they look like one continuous curve. And I can
control the type of continuity. I'll start the BLEND command by clicking the arrow to the right of the
Chamfer tool. Notice that the Blend tool shares the same split button as the FILLET and CHAMFER
commands, because all three tools perform similar types of actions. And like most split buttons,
whichever tool I use last floats to the top of the split button. When I start the command, the program
prompts me to select the first object, or I can first choose the Continuity option. I'll right-click and
choose Continuity from the shortcut menu. The program then prompts me to enter the continuity,
and I can choose either Tangent or Smooth. Tangent continuity will create a degree 3 spline with
tangency or G1 continuity to the selected objects at their endpoints, while Smooth continuity will
create a degree 5 spline with curvature or G2 continuity to the selected objects at their endpoints. I'll
choose Smooth continuity. After I specify the continuity, the prompt to select the first object repeats.
I'll click to select the first spline. Be careful to select the object near the end where the new spline
should start. As soon as I select the first object, the program prompts me to select the second
object, and if I move the cursor over the other spline, I can see a preview image of the resulting
spline. Again, I'll click to select the second spline, again being careful to select it near the end where
the new spline should end. As soon as I do, the new spline is created and the command ends.
Notice that when I select the new spline, I can see that it currently uses control vertices. Do not
switch the display from control vertices to fit points. Notice that if I click this grip and change the
display from control vertices to fit points, the new spline changes shape. It actually changes from
smooth or G2 continuity to tangent or G1 continuity. Also notice that once you have used the
BLEND command to add the new spline segment, you could use the JOIN command to join the
three spline segments together to create one continuous spline.

1116 Using the Stretch Command

The STRETCH command provides a combination of a few different commands. It allows us to move
objects, while stretching and trimming any connecting objects at the same time. In the first example,
what I would like to do is simply take this line segment here and move this line segment over, say,
12 units. But I want these line segments, the horizontal line segments, to stay connected to it. If I
move the cursor over this object, you'll see that it's a polyline shape. So in that regard, you might
thing, well, that's fairly easy to do, since they're connected anyway. So to prep this, I'll explode this
shape back into individual line segments. Then, in the Modify panel on the Home ribbon, I'll choose
the Stretch command. It's extremely important to note, when using the STRETCH command, as
opposed to other modify commands, that this only works when you select objects using a crossing-
window or crossing-polygon. If you look at the command prompt, you'll see it tells us that. So if you
pick objects, window objects, or select objects by any method other than a cross-window or
crossing-polygon, the STRETCH command will not work. And the reason for that is this. Over here,
on this particular shape, if I select with a crossing-window like this, by picking points from right to left
to specify a crossing-window, anything that's completely inside the window will move. Anything that
crosses the window will also be selected, but since the other endpoint of those objects has not been
selected, those endpoints will act as anchor points and they will not move. The endpoints of the line
segments that are inside the crossing-window will move. So the lines will stretch. Once I've made
the selection, you can also not de-select any objects. Doing so could cause the STRETCH
command to not work. So I've completed my selection, I right-click, and the program prompts me to
specify a base point. In this example, I'm just going to pick a point at random on the screen. And
now, as I move the cursor to the right, you can see that the vertical line is being moved, and the
horizontal lines are being stretched. Depending on the distance and direction that I move the cursor,
I can also specify those segments at a different angle. To get that to lock in, I'm simply going to
come down and toggle on Polar Tracking to get that to lock in at the angle of 0. Now as I move the
cursor to the left or to the right, you can see that I can make those segments longer or shorter. And
if I want to make those segments longer by 12 units, I'll just type in the number "12" and then press
the ENTER key. And as you can see, that object has now been stretched. Let's use the STRETCH
command over here, except let's do a stretch to move this door to a different location in the wall.
After creating this drawing, I realize that the door is not in the correct location. Some people might
come up and use the MOVE command to fix this. So they'd come up to the Modify panel, choose
the Move command, select the geometry that represents the door, move the door to a new location,
and then use TRIM and EXTEND in order to clean up the opening. There's no need to do this. I'll
undo what I've just done, and use the STRETCH command instead. By using the STRETCH
command, I'll be able to move the door and extend these walls while trimming the others at the
same time. Remember to select with a crossing-window. I want the door completely inside the
window because I want the door to move and I want the walls to stretch. By selecting with a
crossing-window, it allows these endpoints to stay fixed while these points here will actually move
with the door. Press the ENTER key or right-click and now the program prompts me to specify a
base point. Now, I could just pick a point at random, and then move the cursor to the left or to the
right. Notice that the door moves and the wall stretches. So that works. That's pretty good. But let's
take it one step further. What I'd like to be able to do is to move this door very precisely, so that the
corner of the door here is exactly 6 units from the inside corner of this wall. So this time, I'm going to
do a stretch, but I'm also going to use a combination of object snaps with object snap tracking as
well. Let's come down and check the object snap settings. Snapping to the endpoint of the wall is
perfect, or to the endpoint of the door. And I also need to use Object Snap Tracking so I can specify
the distance away from the corner. I'll start the STRETCH command again, select the door with a
crossing-window, making sure that I cross over the wall segments. When I right-click with the
mouse, I can now either pick the endpoint of the door or I can move the cursor to the endpoint on
the door and track a specific distance away from it. If I track away from here, there is no need to
track away from the corner of the wall. So it doesn't matter which point you track from. Let's track
over from here and then specify a base point exactly 6 units away from the corner of the door. So I
type in the number 6 and press ENTER. Now, as I move the mouse, you can see that the cursor is
exactly 6 units away from the hinge point of the door. Which means, to get this precisely 6 units
away from the corner of the room, I can just snap to the endpoint of the wall. That door is now
exactly 6 units away from the inside corner. I've saved myself a whole series of steps of first moving
the door and then cleaning up the intersections by using the STRETCH command instead.

1117 Using the Join Command

The JOIN command enables you to join similar objects to form a single, unbroken object. For
example, you can combine a series of overlapping line segments or line segments with gaps into a
single line. The type of object that results depends on the types of objects selected, the type of
object selected first, and whether the objects are coplanar. Notice that I have a series of polyline
segments that were created on the A-WALL layer. They're individual polylines, not one continuous
polyline object. I'll expand the Modify panel and choose the Join command. When I start the JOIN
command, the program prompts me to select the source object or I can select multiple objects to
join at once. If I'm selecting different types of objects, then the object I select first will determine the
type of object created, but since all four objects are polylines, I can simply use a crossing window to
select all four polyline segments. Then, I can right-click to complete my object selection. Notice that
all of those objects have been joined to form one polyline object. Now I can edit this object as one
polyline, so I can change its width, add a closing segment, or edit its vertices. When working with
line segments, it's not uncommon to have two line segments with an unneeded gap resulting from
some cleanup operation. So these line segments are no longer continuous. By using the JOIN
command, I can unify these so that they're one continuous line. Again, since both objects are lines, I
can simply use a crossing window to select both segments. Then, I'll right-click, and notice that the
gap is filled in and I now I have one continuous line. There may also be times when you have
overlapping objects. If I start the ERASE command and use a window to select this line, notice that
in the command window, I can see that it's not one line segment. The program has found 6 objects,
and they may not all be lines. There may be some polylines. The objects may be a series of short
segments that were snapped to their endpoints to make the illusion of a continuous line, or they
could even overlap each other. This could result in problems, not only when printing and plotting,
but also when editing the drawing. Rather than trying to erase objects and clean this up manually,
I'm going to use the JOIN command. In this case, since I don't know if all of the segments are lines,
I'll click to select a line segment. Then, the program prompts me to select objects to join. I'll use a
crossing-window to select all the other segments that are either on top of each other or end-to-end.
Then, I'll right-click. Notice that in the command window, the program tells me that there were a total
of 6 lines that were joined into 1 line. If I move the cursor over this, you'll see that it is now one
unified object, and if I try to erase it now and use a crossing-window, you'll see that, sure enough,
it's one continuous line. Let's see how I might use this in a practical application, where somebody
came in and made some modifications to these walls. Obviously there's been some trimming and
editing that's gone on. A door has probably been moved to a different location. And even though the
opening hasn't been cleaned out or trimmed, the door was probably moved from this location here.
So there's a lot of repair work that needs to be done. The JOIN command is going to be the easiest
way to do this. I'll start the JOIN command and pick one of these line segments. Then, I'll use a
crossing window to select the other objects and then right-click to complete my selection. Notice that
the program has cleaned up all of those individual segments so that I now have one continuous line.
I'll press the SPACEBAR to start the JOIN command again, click to select one line segment, and
then again use a crossing window to select the remaining geometry and then right-click. Now if I
move the cursor over this, it's one continuous line. If I use the ERASE command and select using a
crossing-window over where I had all of those individual segments before. Notice that now, the
command prompt comes back and tells me that there are only two objects there, the inside and
outside of the wall. So the JOIN command is perfect for whenever you've worked on existing
geometry, major changes have occurred, and you've got fragmented segments. The JOIN
command is the easiest and quickest way to clean up the drawing.

1118 Using the Lengthen Command

The LENGTHEN command enables you to take a line segment and either make it longer or shorter
without using commands such as BREAK or TRIM or having to use boundary or cutting edges.
Expand the Modify panel on the Home ribbon, and choose the Lengthen command. When I start the
command, it's going to prompt me to select an object. If I move the cursor over an object and simply
pick it, at the command prompt, it shows me the current length of that object. Then, I have the
choice of either specifying the Delta length, which would be either the X or Y length increase only,
the percentage, which lets us make the line longer or shorter based on a percentage of its current
length, the total length, or I can dynamically change the length of the line. Let's right-click and start
with the Dynamic option. I'll choose Dynamic, then pick the top of this line, and move the cursor
over. Notice that if I move the cursor off to the right, notice that it's basing the new length on the
delta-Y. The change in the Y. You can see that. The Y-location of the line determines the length of
the line segment. I can't change the direction of the line, but I can change the delta-Y. So by moving
the cursor up and picking the point when I like the distance, I've set a new length for the line. Let's
start the command again. This time, I'll right-click and choose Total. The Total option let's me
specify the total length of the line. I'll specify a new total length of 15 units and then press ENTER.
Then I'll select the line segment. The segment will either be lengthened or shortened so that its total
length is 15. Any new object that I select at this point will also have its length changed to 15 units.
Over here, where I have a series of intersecting line segments, it will make it easier to actually get
all of these lines at the exact same length, by using the LENGTHEN command. Press the
SPACEBAR to end the command. Then press the SPACEBAR again to repeat the command. This
time, let's use a percentage. Right-click and choose Percent. Let's increase the length by 10-
percent. So I'll type in 110 and press ENTER. Every time I click on this line, its length will increase
by another 10-percent. Remember that there are two ends to this line. So whichever end I click
closest to will be lengthened. So it's always important to remember that you need to pick beyond the
midpoint on the end you want to lengthen. Press the SPACEBAR one more time and then press the
SPACEBAR to repeat the command again. The last example I want to show you is the Delta option.
By right-clicking and choosing Delta, we can specify the delta or change in the length or the angle.
Let's say that I want to increase the length, the delta length, by 5 units. So I type in 5, and press
ENTER. If I select this line segment now, I just increased its length by 5 units. Remember that I had
previously set that line to be exactly 15 units. If I want to verify that the last command added 5 units
to it, I can use the LENGTHEN command. Remember that when you select an object to lengthen,
the first thing the command tells you is how long the object is: its current length. Notice that now, at
the command prompt, it tells me that length of that object is 20 units. So the LENGTHEN command
lets me make objects longer or shorter without having to use BREAK, TRIM, or EXTEND.

1119 Using the Explode Command

The EXPLODE command lets you take a unified object, such as a block or a polyline, and turn it
back into its base objects, such as lines, arcs, and circles. The EXPLODE command is located here,
in the Modify panel on the Home ribbon. Notice that when I pause the cursor over the command, the
extended tooltip shows me the types of objects that can be exploded. I'll click on the Explode
command and then move the cursor over this object. You can tell that it's one unified object. It
happens to be a polyline. If I select that object, and then right-click with the mouse, the object has
now been exploded. It doesn't look any different, but if I move the cursor over the object, you can
see that it's now made up of individual line segments. It's no longer a polyline. I could use various
commands to modify these objects, and then, if I wanted, I could use the PEDIT or JOIN commands
to join the segments back to form one polyline again. But there is a danger in exploding a polyline,
particularly when the polyline segments have width. Notice that when I choose the Explode
command from the Modify panel and explode this polyline that has width, you'll immediately see that
the polyline loses its width. That's because line segments cannot have a pre-set width. So any of
the properties that can be specifically assigned to a polyline will be lost when you explode it. This is
also true when exploding blocks and regions. So when you use the EXPLODE command on these
objects, you will lose any properties directly associated to that type of object.

1120 Deleting Duplicate Objects

You can use the Delete Duplicate Objects tool to remove duplicate or overlapping lines, arcs and
polylines. There may be times when you've created several copies of the same object, or have
segments of lines, arcs, and polylines that overlap, essentially creating multiple copies of the same
geometry. While the drawing may look just fine, all of the overlapping geometry can make it more
difficult to edit the drawing. For example, if I start the ERASE command and use a window to select
this line, notice that in the command window, I can see that there are actually 4 objects selected.
There may be several copies of the same line, or several short line segments. If I press the ESC key
and move the cursor over the line, the entire line highlights, so I know that there is indeed one long
line, but there are obviously either multiple copies of that line or several other shorter line segments
all drawn in the same location. Similarly, if I start the ERASE command and use a window to select
this circle, notice that in the command window, I can see that there are 3 objects selected. Again,
there may be several copies of the circle, or several overlapping arc segments. It really doesn't
matter how either of these objects were created or how many duplicate or overlapping copies there
may be. If I know that what I want is one circle or one line, I can use the Delete Duplicate Objects
tool to clean up this drawing. I'll expand the Modify panel on the Home ribbon and choose the
Delete Duplicate Objects tool, and note that this tool is actually the OVERKILL command. The
program prompts me to select objects, and I can use any convenient object selection method. In
this case, I'll simply use a window selection to select the circle and the line. Notice that in the
command window, I can see that 7 objects were found. When I'm done selecting objects, I can
press ENTER or right-click. The program immediately displays the Delete Duplicate Objects dialog. I
can use the controls in this dialog to control how the command will behave. For example, the
Tolerance setting controls the precision used to make numeric comparisons. If this value is 0, the
objects must match completely before the command modifies or deletes one of them. The check
boxes in the Ignore object property area enable me to choose what object properties are ignored
during comparison. Notice that I can ignore the color, layer, linetype, and so on. If none of these
check boxes are selected, then the object properties must match completely before the command
modifies or deletes the objects. The controls in the Options area provide additional controls. For
example, you can optimize the segments within polylines, combine co-linear objects that partially
overlap and combine co-linear objects when aligned end to end, just like the JOIN command, and
also insure that associative objects are not deleted or modified. Once you're happy with these
settings, click OK to complete the command. Notice that in the command window the program
reports that 5 overlapping objects or segments were deleted. Now, if I start the ERASE command
and select the line using a selection window, I can see that only one object was found. And if I start
the command again and select the circle using a selection window, I can also see in the command
window that only one object was found. The program has deleted or combined the duplicate objects
so that there is now just one circle and one line.

1121 Using the Scale Command

You can use the Scale command to enlarge or reduce the size of selected objects while maintaining
the proportions of the objects. Since you should always create geometry at full-scale, actual size,
you may wonder why a Scale command is even necessary. Rest assured that there will likely be
situations when you need to change the size of objects to scale them up or down, either because
you need a larger or smaller version of an object, or because a drawing was created at the wrong
scale. For example, here is a simple drawing of a hex bolt. Bolts come in many different sizes.
Rather than draw each one, I've simply made several copies of the object and can then use the
Scale command to change the size of those copies. On the Home ribbon, in the Modify panel, I'll
click the Scale tool. Since this is a modify command, the program first prompts me to select objects.
I'll use a selection window to select both the hexagon and the circle. Then, I'll right-click to complete
the object selection. Next, the program prompts me to specify a base point. The base point is the
point from which the objects will be scaled. The base point remains fixed while the objects being
scaled get larger or smaller in relation to that point, so you should choose the point carefully. In this
example, the obvious base point is the center of the bolt, so I'll use the center object snap to select
the center of the circle representing the bolt. Now, the program prompts me to specify the scale
factor. You can see that the objects will scale up or down depending on the scale factor, which
changes as I move the cursor. A scale factor of less than 1 reduces the size of the objects while a
scale factor of greater than 1 enlarges the objects. To create a bolt that is half the size of the
original, I'll enter a scale factor of .5 and press ENTER. Let's do that again. I'll press the
SPACEBAR to repeat the Scale command, use a selection window to select the bolt on the right,
press ENTER to complete the object selection, and then select the center of the circle as the base
point. This time, when the program prompts me to specify the scale factor, I'll type 2 and press
ENTER. I've just changed the scale of the bolt on the right so that it's twice the size of the original.

1122 Using the Scale Command with Scale Reference

You can use the Scale command in conjunction with the reference option to scale objects in
reference to another object based on a reference length and a specified new length. Here is an
example that illustrates a very common situation that can easily be solved using the Scale
command. I've been working on the floor plan for a house addition. I subsequently receive a copy of
the survey from my civil engineer. When I insert his drawing into my floor plan, I discover that he
drew the survey using decimal units, with one drawing unit equal to one foot. But my floor plan was
created using architectural units, with one drawing unit equal to one inch. So when I insert his
drawing, it's the wrong scale. But I can easily fix this problem by using the Scale command. I'll click
the tool in the ribbon to start the Scale command. When the program prompts me to select objects,
I'll click to select the survey, and then right-click to complete the object selection. When the program
prompts me to specify the basepoint, I'll click to select the lower-right corner of the house. Since that
point matches the corner of the house in the survey, I don't want that point to move. Next, the
program prompts me to specify the scale factor. If I knew the scale factor, I could enter that value
now. But let's see how the Reference option could be used in this situation. I can see that the civil
engineer has drawn the outline of the house. I'll right-click and choose the Reference option. The
program prompts me to specify the reference length. I'll click to select the point in the lower-right
corner of the house at which both my floor plan and the survey currently match. Then, the program
prompts me to specify the second point. I'll click to select the point at the lower-left corner of the
house outline in the survey. Once I do that, the program prompts me to specify the new length, and
as I move the cursor, I can see that the size of the survey changes. All I need to do now is to zoom
out and snap to the lower-left corner of the house in my floor plan to scale the survey up to match
the floor plan.