autocad

• Computer-aided design (CAD), also known as Computer-Assisted Design, Computer-Aided Drafting, or a similar phrase. Can be defined as using computer systems to assist in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design.
• AutoCAD is used by AEC (Architecture,

  Engineer, and Construction) to generate and

  optimize 2D and 3D designs.
• AutoCAD is a widely used software program

  that can help you draft construction

  documentation, explore design ideas,

  visualize concepts through photorealistic

  renderings, and simulate how a design

  performs in the real world.
• AutoCAD was first released in December 1982 as a desktop app. In 2010, AutoCAD was released as a mobile and web app. marketed as AutoCAD 360. by Autodesk.
• The first thing you might see after launching AutoCAD is the Application Menu, in the far upper left corner. It generally contains a big red "A".
• what does the big red A button mean in the picture?

  Application Menu

  
• The command line is a palette where you can type in command names and/or command responses, and view the history of both.
• Quick Access Toolbar - is located along the top of the application window (above or below the ribbon) and provides direct access to common or defined set of commands like New, Open, Save, and Plot.
• What is this part of AutoCAD?

  Quick access toolbar

  
• search box

  
• Menu Bar - is the horizontal strip across the top of an application's window. Each word on the strip has a context-sensitive drop-down menu containing features and actions that are available for the application in use.
• Toolbars/Ribbon - provide a single, compact placement for operations/tools that are relevant to the current workspace. By default (in its original setting), it contains the Standard, Layers, Properties and Styles toolbars.

  
• Command Line Bar - is where you enter the commands from the keyboard and where the prompts are displayed. It has a text area where all the previous

  commands are displayed.
• Tray Settings/Info Bar - quickly search for a variety of information sources, access product updates and announcements, and save topics in the Info Center.

  
• UCS is found at the bottom left-hand corner of the AutoCAD drawing window. You will see a

  symbol like the one shown on the right. This is called the UCS (User Coordinate System) icon and it is there to remind you which is the X axis and which is the Y axis.

  
• WCS - By default when you start a new (blank) drawing you use the World Coordinate System (WCS). This indicates your (0,0,0) point.

  
• Draw Toolbar - Draw commands can be used to create new objects such as lines and circles. Most AutoCAD drawings are composed purely and simply from these basic components.

  
• Modify Toolbar is used to modify the basic drawing objects in some way to suit the image you need. AutoCAD provides a whole range of modify tools such as Move, Copy, Rotate and Mirror.

  
• Working/Drawing Area - is the place where your drawings are displayed and modified.
• Crosshairs - a type of cursor consisting of two lines intersecting and are used to locate points and select objects in your drawing.

  
• Status Bar - displays the coordinate location of your crosshairs and the current settings of grid, snap, and other drawing aids.

  
• Dialog Box Launcher - is a button in the Ribbon of autoCad used to reveal additional tools available for use in that section of the Ribbon. Because there isn't

  room to show all tools in the Ribbon, you can click the dialog box launcher to see the features and options that are hidden.

  
• absolute coordinates are the x and y values of a point relative to the origin of the coordinate system
• 1st step to enable absolute coordinates:

  COMMAND: OSNAP

  Click Dynamic input>Pointer Input>

  Settings and then mark the absolute

  coordinates>Ok> Ok
• relative coordinates relate to the current or previous point you picked or typed. The specify a relative coordinate you need to use the “@” symbol as a prefix Cartesian coordinate looks like this: @4,0 which means that 4 is the distance traveled in X axis and 0 is the distance traveled in Y axis
• polar coordinates use one distance and one angle to describe the position of a point. It uses the @ sign to specify distance and less than sign (<) to specify the angle
• The Draw commands can be used to

  create new objects such as lines and

  circles.
• With the Line command you can draw a simple line from one point to another.
• The Polyline or Pline command is similar to the line command except that the resulting object may be composed of a number of segments which form a single object. In addition to the two ends a polyline is said to have vertices (singular vertex) where intermediate line segments join.
• The Rectangle command is used to draw a rectangle whose sides are vertical and horizontal. The position and size of the rectangle are defined by picking two diagonal corners.
• The Polygon command can be used to draw any regular polygon from 3 sides up to 1024 sides. This command requires four inputs from the user, the number of sides, a pick point for the center of the polygon, whether you want the polygon inscribed or circumscribed and then a pick point that determines both the radius of this imaginary circle and the orientation of the polygon.
• The Polygon command can be used to draw any regular polygon from 3 sides up to 1024 sides. This command requires four inputs from the user, the number of sides, a pick point for the center of the polygon, whether you want the polygon inscribed or circumscribed and then a pick point that determines both the radius of this imaginary circle and the orientation of the polygon.

  
• Donut command draws a solid donut shape, actually it's just a closed polyline consisting of two arc segments which have been given a width. AutoCAD asks you to define the inside diameter i.e. The diameter of the hole and then the outside diameter of the donut.
• The Circle command is used to

  draw circles.
• The Arc command allows you to

  draw an arc of a circle.
• The Spline command creates a type of spline known as a non-uniform rational B-spline, NURBS for short. A spline is a smooth curve that is fitted along a number of control points.
• crossing selection: right to left (the line should be green). All objects inside the window frame, the ones which window frame crosses or simply touches will be selected.
• window selection: Draw a window from left to right. All objects INSIDE the window frame will be selected. (window should be blue)
• erase command: is one of the simplest AutoCAD

  commands and is one of the most used. The command erases (deletes) any selected object(s) from the drawing.
• The Copy command can be used to create one or more duplicates of any drawing object or objects that you have previously created. Copy is a very useful and time-saving command because you can create very complex drawing elements and then simply copy them as many times as you like.