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LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After completing this lesson. you will be able to:
1. Start AutoCAD program
2. Understand AutoCAD Workspaces
3. Recognize all of the features in the AutoCAD Window

User lnurfat:$ ofA"toCAD

The AutoCAD User Interface was intended to be instinctive and easy to understand Regardless of
whether you are at the learner's level for AutoCAD, you should even now have the option to
effortlessly explore through the product.

The Start Tab

The Start tab is shown at startup, giving simple access to a. variety ofbeginning activities, including
access to drawing for.mat files, as of late opened drawings and sheet sets, and on the web and
learning alternatives.

Upon first opening the program, you can either begin drawing from a. format of your decision, or
open an ongoing document.
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 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface

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AutoCAD User’s Guide: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AutoCAD/
It is good “drawing management” to draw related objects on the same layer.
layer “walls” and then draw

Then you would select the layer “Electrical” and draw the electrical objects.
Then you would select the layer “Plumbing” and draw the plumbing objects.

selected layer becomes the “ ” layer. All objects will be located on this layer
 I'J ·~·of'. OBJECT UNE

ON or OFF
If a layer is ON it is vmble. If a layer is OFF it is not vilible.
Only layers that are ON can be edited or plotted.

FREEZE or THAW
Freeze and Thaw are very similar to On and Off. A Frozen layer is not visible and a Thawed
layer is visible. Only thawed layers can be edited or plotted.

Additionally:
a. Objects on a Frozen layer cannot be accidentally erased
b. When working with large and complex drawings, freezing saves time because frozen layers arc
not regenerated when you zoom in and out.

HOW TO LOCK OR UNLOCK.UYERS

Locked layers are visible but cannot be edited.

They are visible so they will be plotted.

Unsaved Layer State

9 -~· of .0
9 -~· of • OBJECT ONE

9 -~· of • BORDERLINE Layer Drop

This layer Is ON or OFF
(Yellow=On Blue=Off)
9 -~· of • BRICKS down arrow

\) -~· of • DIMENSION

Highlighted layer
9 -~· of 0 DOOR

name indicates the 9 -~·of 0 HATCH

"current" layer

This layer Is FROZEN --.....

(snowflake)
......_+-- Layer name

This layer Is THAWED - - ,

(sun)

This layer Is LOCKED - ---.. 1

----t-- Layer color swatch

To access the following options you must use the Layer Properties Manager.
You may also access the options listed on the previous page within this dialog box.
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 Inserts a block or drawing into the current drawing

A good practice is. to insert a block from a block library. A block

fibrary can be a drawing file that stores related block defi11itions
or it ca11 be a folder that contains related drawing files, each of
which can be inserted as a block. Wrth either method. bloclcs are
standardized and accessible to multiple users.,

Press Fl for more help

In AutoCAD, a block is a collection of objects that are combined into a single named object.

These blocks can vary from different drawings such as symbols, realistic representation or a title
block.

Upon clicking the insert block. a window will popup where you need to browse the block or
drawing file.
 IJ; Insert

Marne: Heater Fe•d with Ar Outlet

Path:
0 locate using !deogcaphic Data
Insertion point Scale Rotation
~ ~ecify On-screen EJ Sp!l_cify On-screen EJ Spegfy On-screen
~: looooo ~: 1.0000 S/1gle: 0

Y: looooo X: 1.0000 Block Un~

Un~: -
u-,~-
1.-
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~ 100000 ~: 1.0000
Factor; 1.0000
CI !Jn~onn Scale.

EJ ExploQ.e 0~ II Cancel II Help

When imcrtiDg a blook, the blOGk will be at your CIIISOI'. Thi.s is oalled the imertion poiat. By
clefanlt, 1his is 1he origin point (O.O) of the block. The block can be moved or rotated by the grip
shown below.

Creatiq a Block Definition

Creates a block definition fr om selected obj ects

You create a block definition by selecting objects, specifying an

insertion point, and giving it a name.

~ BlOCK
Press Fl for more help

Note: This block defiDition would be limited to 1he current drawing.

AutoCAD User’s Guide
  AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface
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 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface

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Quick Access Toolbar
Quick Access toolbar shown below includes familiar commands such as New, Open, Save, Print,
Undo, and so on.

View Undo and Redo History

Quick Access toolbar displays options to undo and redo changes to your work. To undo or redo a
less recent change, click the drop-down button to the right of either the Undo or the Redo button.

A.dd Commands and Controls

By clicking the indicated drop-down button and clicking your choices from the drop-down menu,
you can easily add commonly used tools to the Quick Access toolbar
 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface
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 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface
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'The n"bbon ia.oompciied oh series oftabi, whieli. m orpnind.into pmela that contain. many of
the tooJa md:l:ODliolS avllillible in toolb~~r~•

.tab

pa nel

The dialog box ~is -~ by UattOW icon k the tower,rigld c~ of ale panel Click
it to display~e reJaklcl c!Wog box.

Righklicltthe ribbon.md \1'&k ot\11CIII"buam;a of'labs orptmc:la listedcn,the ehuneut mt:m! 1o

con1r0l which 'ribbon tabe ad pmela you: Want to display. ·
Yoa~JlUU•p~lotl'anlbantaballd.in.to1be drawilig·orea.oronto111ok~ Tbi::flot!W!g
pmd MJll·opell llDtil ytlltrdum it to the ribbon, :regardl!:lll ofwhedte( yo.u awitA:h lhril:tboo tlibs.

Slkk-iMPanels
~ ;eliekidg the mo~ in tho llliddlo of a pantil tltio,- . th11 panel wjli expand tu iliap1ay addilional
tools lllld ~Is. By defqlt, .slk1eoo.utpeneb artOmlltiqlly ¢los~ wt~nJ'W ¢lkk mQlher panel.
Clli;k the push pin. !!_ in·the'b91iom"lell ~ oflhc slido-out paod tc kcc;p a JJ~~Gl c:xpanilcvt

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.___ _ panel, a<o'f!oded ilnd plohe• I

1.----- panel· ~xpaflde r •oon

t:~ Riblw11 T#b$

A ~ribbon lab is displayed instead of a .IOO!bar or dialo4 box when~· select &.<certain
type.of objeCt qr start certain c:ommands, Whm )'011 etld the ()QJIU!!arw!, '! he COlltutual talf ·etoses·.
 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User
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You can toggle some of these settings with the function keys on your keyboard (Fl- F12).

The Command Window

The Command window shows prompts, options, and messages.

Instead ofusing the ribbon, toolbars, and menus, you can enter commands directly in the Command
window.

AB you start to type a command, notice that an autocomplete menu appears. In the example above,
several options are available. Make your choice by clicking the correct option or using the arrow
keys and then pressing Enter or the Spacebar to confirm your selection.
Basic AutoCAD Commands

Below, you'll find an abbreviated list of common commands that can be used on AutoCAD.

COMMANDS DESCRIPTION

A ARC I Creates an arc.

AA AREA I Calculates the area and perimeter of objects or defined areas.

AL ALIGN I Aligns objects with other objects in 2D.

AR ARRAY I Creates multiple copies of objects in a pattern.

c CIRCLE I Creates a circle.

co COPY I Copies objects a specified distance in a specified direction.

D DIMSTYLE I Creates and modifies dimension styles.

DDI DIMDIAMETER I Creates a diameter dimension for a circle or an arc.

E ERASE I Removes objects from a drawing.

EL ELLIPSE I Creates an ellipse or an elliptical arc.

EPDF EXPORTPDF I Exports drawing to PDF.

EX EXTEND I Extends objects to meet the edges of other objects.

EXIT QUIT I Exits the program.

EXP EXPORT I Saves the objects in a drawing to a different file format.

F FILLET I Rounds and fillets the edges of objects.

G GROUP I Creates and manages saved sets of objects called groups.

HATCH I Fills an enclosed area or selected objects with a hatch pattern,
H
solid fill, or gradient fill.
I INSERT I Inserts a block or drawing into the current drawing.

L LINE I Creates straight line segments.

 M MOVE I Moves objects a specified distance in a specified direction.
MEASURE I Creates point objects or blocks at measured intervals along the
ME
length or perimeter of an object.
MI MIRROR I Creates a mirrored copy of selected objects.

MT MTEXT I Creates a multiline text object.

N NEW I Create a new drawing.

0 OFFSET I Creates concentric circles, parallel lines, and parallel curves.

OS OSNAP I Sets running object snap modes.

p PAN I Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition.

PE PEDIT I Edits polylines, objects to be joined to polylines and related objects.

PL PLINE I Creates a 2D polyline.

PO POINT I Creates a point object.

POL POLYGON I Creates an equilateral closed polyline.

PRINT PLOT I Plots a drawing to a plotter, printer, or file.

PURGE I Removes unused items, such as block definitions and layers, from
PU
the drawing.
Q QSAVE I Saves the current drawing.

QC QUICKCALC I Opens the QuickCalc calculator.

R REDRAW I Refreshes the display in the current viewport.

RE REGEN I Regenerates the entire drawing from the current viewport.

REA REGENALL I Regenerates the drawing and refreshes all viewports.

REC RECTANG I Creates a rectangular polyline.

RO ROTATE I Rotates objects around a base point.

s STRETCH I Stretches objects crossed by a selection window or polygon.

SCALE I Enlarges or reduces selected objects, keeping the proportions of the
sc object the same after scaling.
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Format (or Type): For example, a decimal length of 6.5 can be set to display as a fractional
length of 6-1/2 instead.

PreciJion: For instance, a decimal length of 6.5 can be set to display as 6.50, 6.500, ar 6.5000.
Use the UNITS connnand to set the unit type to Architectural if you plan to work in feet and
inches, and then, specify their lengths in inches when you create the objects. Leave the unit type
set to Decimal if you plan to use metric units. Changing the unit foiD18t and precision affects only
how lengths, angles, and coordinates are displayed in the user interface. It does not affect the
internal precision of your drawing.
In the event that you have to change the UNITS settings, ensure that you save the drawing as a
drawing template file (.dwt). Else, you should change the UNITS settings for each new drawing.

Model Scale
Continuously make your models at full size (1:1 scale). The term model refers to the calculation
of your plan. A drawing incorporates the model math alongside the views, notes, measurements,
callouts, tables, and the title block showed in the layout.

When you create the layout, you can specify the scaling that is necessary to print a drawing on a
standard-sized sheet later,

Press F1, to open Help far information about the command in progress,
 AutoCAD User’s Guide: Explore the User Interface
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