Mastering AutoCAD 2018 and AutoCAD LT 2018

George Omura, Brian C. Benton

• Publisher: Sybex
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781119414254
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Informatica
• Subtopic: Media digitali

30th Anniversary of the bestselling AutoCAD reference - fully updated for the 2018 release

Mastering AutoCAD 2018 and AutoCAD LT 2018 is the complete tutorial and reference every design and drafting professional needs. Step-by-step instructions coupled with concise explanation walk you through everything you need to know about the latest AutoCAD tools and techniques; read through from beginning to end for complete training, or dip in as needed to for quick reference—it's all here. Hands-on projects teach you practical skills that apply directly to real-world projects, and the companion website features the accompanying project files and other bonus content to help you master every crucial technique. This new edition has been updated to include the latest AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT capabilities, so your skills will transfer directly to real-world projects. With expert guidance and a practical focus, this complete reference is your ultimate resource for mastering this powerful software.

AutoCAD is a critical skill in the design fields; whether you're preparing for a certification exam, or just want to become more productive with the software, this book will help you:

• Master the basic drafting tools that you'll use in every project
• Work with hatches, fields, tables, attributes, dynamic blocks, and other intermediate tools
• Turn your 2D drawing into a 3D model with advanced modeling and imaging techniques
• Customize AutoCAD to fit the way you work, integrate outside data, and much more

If you're new to AutoCAD, this book will be your "bible;" if you're an experienced user, this book will introduce you to unfamiliar tools and techniques, and show you tips and tricks that streamline your workflow.

Part 1

The Basics

1. ◆ Chapter 1: Exploring the Interface
2. ◆ Chapter 2: Creating Your First Drawing
3. ◆ Chapter 3: Setting Up and Using the Drafting Tools
4. ◆ Chapter 4: Organizing Objects with Blocks and Groups
5. ◆ Chapter 5: Keeping Track of Layers and Blocks

Chapter 1

Exploring the Interface

Before you can start to use the new capabilities of the AutoCAD® 2018 software, you must become familiar with the basics. If you’re completely new to AutoCAD, you’ll want to read this first chapter carefully. It introduces you to many basic operations of AutoCAD, such as opening and closing files, getting a close-up look at part of a drawing, and changing a drawing. If you’re familiar with earlier versions of AutoCAD, you should review this chapter anyway to get acquainted with the features that you haven’t already used.

Autodesk releases new versions of AutoCAD every year. Part of this strategy is to introduce improvements that focus on a particular category of features. AutoCAD 2018 offers updates that cover a wide range of features. The user interface is easier to customize. There are more ways to access drafting and layer settings. External references have been revamped to allow easy modification to file paths. Font recognition in PDFs has been improved, and display performance has been enhanced. Finally, a new 2018 file format has been updated to accommodate these new features. Before you begin the exercises in this chapter, make sure that you have loaded the sample files from this book’s web page at www.sybex.com/go/masteringautocad2018. See the introduction for details. If you have purchased the e-book version, please see the introduction for instructions on how to download the sample files.

In this chapter, you will learn to

• Use the AutoCAD window
• Get a closer look with the Zoom command
• Save a file as you work
• Make changes and open multiple files

Taking a Guided Tour

First, you’ll get a chance to familiarize yourself with the AutoCAD screen and how you communicate with AutoCAD. As you do the exercises in this chapter, you’ll also get a feel for how to work with this book. Don’t worry about understanding or remembering everything you see in this chapter. You’ll get plenty of opportunities to probe the finer details of the program as you work through the later chapters. To help you remember the material, we have included a brief set of questions at the end of each chapter. For now, just enjoy your first excursion into AutoCAD.

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AUTOCAD REFERENCES IN THIS BOOK

In this chapter and throughout the rest of the book, when we say AutoCAD, we mean both AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT®. Some topics apply only to AutoCAD. In those situations, you’ll see an icon indicating that the topic applies only to AutoCAD and not to AutoCAD LT. If you’re using AutoCAD LT 2018, these icons can help you focus on the topics that are more relevant to your work by letting you skim over items that do not apply.

AutoCAD 2018 is designed to run on Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10. This book was written using AutoCAD 2018 running on Windows 7 Professional.

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Launching AutoCAD

If you’ve already installed AutoCAD (see Appendix B, “Installing and Setting Up AutoCAD”) and are ready to jump in and take a look, proceed with the following steps to launch the program:

1. Choose Start ➢ All Programs ➢ Autodesk ➢ AutoCAD 2018 ➢ AutoCAD 2018. You can also double-click the AutoCAD 2018 icon on your Windows Desktop. AutoCAD LT users will use AutoCAD LT 2018 in place of AutoCAD 2018.
2. The AutoCAD Start tab appears, offering options to open existing drawings or to create a new drawing. You may also see the Design Feed panel, which allows you to use a cloud-based collaboration feature. Click the Start Drawing thumbnail in the left side of the view under “Get Started” (see Figure 1.1).
3. The AutoCAD window displays a blank default document named Drawing1.dwg. Users may see the Sheet Set Manager palette to the left of the AutoCAD window. In brand-new installations, you will see the Design Feed panel. Close the Design Feed panel for now. AutoCAD LT users may see the Info palette to the left of the AutoCAD window.

FIGURE 1.1 The Start tab offers easy access to previous work.

If you’re using the trial version, you’ll see the Product License Activation window before step 2. This window shows you the number of days you have left in the trial version. You can also activate the product here if you purchase a license. Click the Try button to continue opening the program. Now let’s look at the AutoCAD window in detail. Don’t worry if it seems like a lot of information. You don’t have to memorize it, but by looking at all of the parts, you’ll be aware of what is av...