Familiarize yourself with how to navigate through AutoCAD.

1. Drawing A Line In Autocad
2. Autocad How To Draw L Shape
3. Autocad How To Draw An Ellipse In Perspective
4. Autocad How To Draw Cloud
5. Autocad How To Draw Straight Line

The workspace in AutoCAD is divided into 2 distinct areas. The drawing area covers most of the screen and toolbars are anchored above and below the drawing area. They include:

Mar 29, 2019  Familiarize yourself with how to navigate through AutoCAD. The workspace in AutoCAD is divided into 2 distinct areas. The drawing area covers most of the screen and toolbars are anchored above and below the drawing. Click Home tab Draw panel Line. Specify the start point and end point of the line segment. Continue specifying additional line segments. Press Enter or Esc to end the command,.

• Application button: The large, red A at the top, left-hand corner of the screen is the application button. Use it to print files and to exit the program.
• Quick-access toolbar: This toolbar sits next to the application button and contains common commands like 'Save' and 'Open.'
• Ribbon: Located below the quick-access toolbar, the ribbon is comprised of a series of tabs (e.g., 'Home,' 'Insert,' 'Annotate,' 'View,' etc.) that contain groups of standard commands and tools.
• Status bar: The toolbar across the bottom of the screen is the status bar. It mostly consists of control settings that allow you to monitor changes in the drawing.
• Command/prompt toolbar: Directly above the status bar is the command/prompt toolbar. This is where the software communicates with you.

Issue:

An AutoCAD drawing or some objects within it need to be flattened because one or more of the following is not working correctly:

• Selecting objects.
• Using the OSNAP (the marker jumps to the wrong place).
• Using TRIM, EXTEND, HATCH.
• Measure or dimensions (distance and angles).
• FILLET.

Solution:

To flatten a drawing automatically in AutoCAD:

• Use the FLATTEN (not available in AutoCAD LT) command to change the Z values of all lines, arcs, and polylines to 0 (requires Express Tools to be loaded). Although it is possible to select and flatten everything in a drawing all at once, it might be necessary to use the QSELECT command to select each group of object types and then run the FLATTEN command on them.
  1. Turn off or freeze any hatch layers with hatch patterns so they are not included in the selection.
  2. Type FLATTEN at the command line.
  3. Select all objects and press the Enter key.
  4. Type N for No when prompted to remove hidden lines.
• For 3D objects, the FLATSHOT command can be used to create 2D views (not available in AutoCAD LT).

• Replace the Z value For 3D objects in layout viewports:

  1. Enter OPTIONS in the command line.
  2. On the Drafting tab.
  3. Under Object snap options.
  4. Check Replace Z value with current elevation (not available in AutoCAD LT).

To flatten a drawing manually (or as is needed in AutoCAD LT):

• Select objects with the QSELECT command:
  1. Type in the QSELECT command.
  2. Select the object type.
  3. Choose the Elevation (or Start Z or End Z), and then Not Equal To > 0 (zero).
  4. In the Properties palette, change Elevation (or Start Z or End Z) to 0 (zero). Note: To use this method with certain objects such as blocks and groups, they must be first exploded.
• Use the CHANGE command:
  1. Type in the CHANGE command.
  2. Type ALL to select all objects and then Enter.
  3. Type P for Properties.
  4. Type E for Elevation.
  5. Type 0 and then a final Enter to end the command.

Alternate options:
One or both of the following LISP routines, pasted into the command line in AutoCAD will flatten a drawing.

• This command changes the elevation of all objects to zero:

Drawing A Line In Autocad

(command '_change'_all''p'e'0'')

• This command moves objects very high and then back down to zero:

(command '_move'_all'''0,0,1e99'_move'_all'''0,0,-1e99')
A couple buttons for this can be created in the CUI. These will work in AutoCAD LT:

• To flatten selected objects:

^C^C_UCS;;_select;_move;_p;;0,0,1e99;;_move;_p;;0,0,-1e99;;

• To flatten the entire drawing:

^C^C_UCS;;_move;_all;;0,0,1e99;;_move;_all;;0,0,-1e99;;
The ZIP file attached to this article is a script file that can be run in AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT which will remove the elevation of all objects in the drawing.
PDF workaround:

Plot a PDF or DXB file and then import that into a new or existing drawing and the geometry will be flat. AutoCAD 2017 and above have the PDFIMPORT

Autocad How To Draw L Shape

command. Plot a drawing to PDF and then import the PDF. To create a DXB file, a DXB PC3 printer must first be created using the Add-A-Plotter Wizard. Enter the PLOTTERMANAGER command to open the folder that contains the wizard. Once the DXB printer is created, plot the drawing to DXB and then import it using the DXBIN command.

Autocad How To Draw An Ellipse In Perspective

Autocad How To Draw Cloud

Note: The DXB plotter converts all color data to black and white and places all drawing geometry on layer 0. A PDF will retain color and layers as long as a color plot style is selected and the PDF layers options is selected when creating the PDF.

Autocad How To Draw Straight Line