AutoCAD & AutoCAD LT All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies (2006)

592 Getting Familiar with the Status Bar

Powering the status bar with DIESEL

DIESEL — Direct Interpretively Evaluated String Expression Language — is a macro language that allows you to control the behavior of menu macros and display text on the status bar. This can be a great way to display information about drafting settings that is not normally displayed on the status bar, like Linetype Scale or the current elevation for new objects to be drawn at. The system variable MODEMACRO is used to display a DIESEL macro on the status bar. The result of the macro is displayed on the far left side of the status bar (see Figure 2-4).

Figure 2-4:

Running a DIESEL macro on the status bar.

The DIESEL expression used to generate the results shown in Figure 2-4 is

$(eval, “LtScale: “ $(getvar, “ltscale”) “ Elevation: “ $(getvar, “elevation”))

Because DIESEL is a macro language, you can use a number of functions with it. DIESEL offers functions for manipulating strings, performing mathematics, and getting system variable values. Some of the more common functions that are available in DIESEL are

Eval: Passes the DIESEL expression to the evaluator and returns a value.

Upper: Converts the string to all uppercase letters.

If: A conditional statement that returns one of two values based on whether the conditional expression is true or false.

Getvar: Returns the current value of the specified system variable.

+: Returns the sum of all the provided numbers.

–: Returns the results of subtracting all the provided numbers from each other.

For more information on other DIESEL functions, refer to the topic “Catalog of DIESEL Functions” in the AutoCAD Help system.

Follow these steps to display the results of a DIESEL expression on the status bar:

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1.At the command line, type MODEMACRO.

AutoCAD displays the command prompt:

Enter new value for MODEMACRO, or . for none <””>:

Enter the DIESEL expression that you want evaluated and displayed on the status bar, or enter just a period (.) at the command prompt to end the evaluation of the current DIESEL expression and to reset the value back to no DIESEL expression (“”). Then press Enter to start evaluation.

2.AutoCAD updates the status bar with the results of the DIESEL expression or returns an error message (see Figure 2-5) in its place.

The figure shows that the + function can’t be evaluated by displaying $(+, ??) on the status bar. This is because a string (A) can’t be added to a number (2).

Figure 2-5:

Oops, the + function isn’t evaluating correctly.

Training Your Toolbars and Dockable Windows to Stay

Have you ever tried to click a toolbar or dockable window (palette) only to accidentally move it? This can cause all sorts of cascading effects to happen: The toolbars can be rearranged or the toolbar or dockable window can even disappear off the screen. Most of us like everything to stay as it is after we come up with the perfect layout of toolbars and windows.

This is where the user interface (UI) lock option comes into play. With the UI lock option, you can make toolbars and dockable windows that are floating or docked stay put on-screen. When the option is turned on, you can’t accidentally move them from their current position. This is especially useful if you are using a dual monitor setup, where you might have the toolbars and dockable windows on a separate monitor.

Locking UI toolbars and dockable windows

To lock toolbars and dockable windows, use one of these methods:

Window menu: Choose Window Lock Location and select one of the available options.

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Icon Tray: Click the Toolbar/Window Position icon on the status bar and click one of the available options from the shortcut menu.

Keyboard input: Type LOCKUI at the command line and specify a value based on the sum of the allowed bitcodes for the system variable.

Table 2-3 lists the bitcodes for the LOCKUI system variable.

Table 2-3	LOCKUI Bitcodes
Value	Description
0	Toolbars and dockable windows are not locked.
1	Docked toolbars are locked.
2	Docked dockable windows are locked.
4	Floating toolbars are locked.
8	Floating dockable windows are locked.

Because the value is the sum of the bitcodes, to lock both docked toolbars and dockable windows, you would use a value of 3 (1 + 2).

Locking and unlocking toolbars and dockable windows

Follow these steps to lock and unlock toolbars and dockable windows in the AutoCAD user interface:

1.From the menu bar, choose Window Lock Location

Docked Toolbars.

The grip handles on the left side of the toolbar (see Figure 2-6) are removed and the toolbar can’t be undocked or relocated. A check mark should be next to Docked Toolbars.

Figure 2-6:

The toolbar grip handles have been removed.

2.From the menu bar, choose Window Lock Location and click Docked

Toolbars again.

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The grip handles on the left side of the toolbar should be visible again. The toolbar can be undocked and relocated once again. The check mark next to Docked Toolbars should disappear.

Controlling the Appearance and Displays of AutoCAD

AutoCAD allows you to not only customize the display of tools and icons on the status bar, but it also allows you to customize the color scheme that is used. The color scheme can range from the background color of the drawing window to the crosshair color. The latest release offers many additional options to control the color for 3D-related elements.

3D drafting has been largely enhanced in the latest version. To make it easier to use, a new set of options has been introduced to identify whether you are working in 2D or 3D drafting mode.

AutoCAD LT does not support 3D drafting, so some of the color options aren’t available.

To change the display settings for AutoCAD in the Options dialog box, choose Tools Options. In the Options dialog box that appears, click the Display tab. Specify the desired changes to the display options and click OK to save the changes and close the Options dialog box. In the next several sections, we cover many of the options found on the Display tab.

Window elements

The options for AutoCAD’s window elements (see Figure 2-7) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Window Elements section holds settings for controlling the color scheme of AutoCAD, the display of the screen menu, and whether toolbar buttons are displayed as normal or large buttons, among other settings.

Figure 2-7:

The Window Elements section of the Options dialog box.

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Here is an overview of the options found under the Window Elements section:

596 Controlling the Appearance and Displays of AutoCAD

Display Scroll Bars in Drawing Window: Toggles the display of the vertical and horizontal scroll bars in the drawing window.

Display Screen Menu: Toggles the display of the legacy screen menu (side bar menu).

Use Large Buttons for Toolbars: Toggles the display setting of whether toolbars should be displayed with icons that are 16 × 16 or 32 × 32 pixels.

Show ToolTips: Toggles the display of tooltips when the cursor is hovering over a toolbar button.

Show Shortcut Keys in ToolTips: Toggles the display of shortcut keys that are associated with a command as part of the tooltip when the cursor is hovering over a toolbar button.

Colors: Opens the Drawing Window Color dialog box (see Figure 2-8) and allows you to change the color for the defined interface elements of the different application contexts.

Figure 2-8:

The Drawing Window Colors dialog box.

Fonts: Opens the Command Line Window Font dialog box (see Figure 2-9) and allows you to specify the attributes of the font that should be used for text in the command line and text window.

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Figure 2-9:

The Command Line Window Font dialog box.

Layout elements

The options for AutoCAD’s layout elements (see Figure 2-10) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Layout Elements section holds settings for controlling the appearance of layout tabs other than model space, and the visibility of both model and layout tabs at the bottom of the drawing window, among other settings.

Figure 2-10:

The Layout Elements section in the Options dialog box.

Here is an overview of the options found under the Layout Elements section:

Display Layout and Model tabs: Controls the display of the model and layout tabs at the bottom of the drawing window.

Display Printable Area: Controls the display of the printable area. The printable area when enabled is represented by the area within the dashed line on a layout tab.

Display Paper Background: Controls the display of the area that represents the size of the paper. The paper background is determined by the selected paper size and the specified plot scale.

Display Paper Shadow: Controls the display of a shadow around the bottom and right edges of the paper background to give the appearance that it is floating.

Show Page Setup Manager for New Layouts: Controls the display of the Paper Setup Manager when a new layout is added to a drawing. The dialog box is only displayed if the layout has not been initialized yet.

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Create Viewport in New Layouts: Controls whether a single viewport is created when switching to a layout that has not been initialized yet.

Crosshair size

The options for AutoCAD’s crosshair size (see Figure 2-11) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Crosshair Size section allows you to specify a percentage of how large the crosshair is compared to the total screen size. The default size is 5, but the range is from 1 to 100.

Figure 2-11:

The Crosshair Size section in the Options dialog box.

Display resolution

The options for AutoCAD’s display resolution (see Figure 2-12) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Display Resolution section holds settings for how arcs and circles should appear on-screen and settings that control the appearance of renderings, among other things.

Figure 2-12:

The Display Resolution settings in the Options dialog box.

Here is an overview of the options found under the Display Resolution section:

Arc and Circle Smoothness: Controls the display of arcs, circles, and ellipses. The higher the number, the smoother the objects display onscreen, but a high number negatively affects performance.

Segments in a Polyline Curve: Controls the number of line segments to display a curve on a polyline. The higher the number, the smoother the objects appear, but it impacts performance negatively.

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Rendered Object Smoothness: Controls the display of rendered and shaded curved surfaces. The value is multiplied by the value specified for arc and circle smoothness to come up with the factor used for rendering and shading.

Contour Lines per Surface: Controls the number of contour lines for a single surface.

Display performance

The options for AutoCAD’s display performance (see Figure 2-13) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Display Performance section holds settings for whether raster images are displayed during real-time pan and zoom operations, whether text is represented by rectangular boxes to improve regeneration time, and whether hatch objects are displayed in the drawing, among other settings.

Figure 2-13:

The Display Performance section in the Options dialog box.

Here is an overview of the options found under the Display Performance section:

Pan and Zoom with Raster & OLE: Controls whether raster images and OLE objects remain on-screen while either real-time pan or zoom are active.

Highlight Raster Image Frame Only: Controls whether just the raster image frame is highlighted when the raster image is selected, or the entire raster image.

Apply Solid Fill: Controls whether hatch, polylines with width, or 2D solids are displayed as filled, or simply their outlines are displayed.

Show Text Boundary Frame Only: Controls whether text is represented as a rectangular box to show just position and rotation, or as normal text.

Draw True Silhouettes for Solids and Surfaces: Controls whether mesh drawn on a 3D solid object is hidden and whether silhouette curves of 3D solids are displayed as wireframes.

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600 Organizing Your Space

Reference Edit fading intensity

The options for AutoCAD’s Reference Edit fading intensity (see Figure 2-14) can be found in the Options dialog box under the Display tab. The Reference Editing Fading Intensity setting allows you to specify the percentage that the geometry that is not being edited with the REFEDIT command is faded into the background. The default fade value is 50, but the value can range from 0 to 90.

Figure 2-14:

The Reference Edit Fading Intensity section in the Options dialog box.

Organizing Your Space

AutoCAD uses a feature called Workspaces to allow you to control the layout of user interface elements. Workspaces control user interface elements such as toolbars, pull-down menus, and dockable windows, among some other user interface items. Workspaces are saved with a user-specified name in a customization (CUI) file. A majority of Workspace customization is handled through the Customize User Interface (CUI) editor, but it can also be managed through the user interface from the Window pull-down menu and the Workspaces toolbar. For more information on how to use the CUI editor, see the section, “Using the Customize User Interface editor,” later in this chapter.

Using the Workspaces toolbar

The Workspaces toolbar (see Figure 2-15) offers some level of control over Workspaces but not the full control that the Customize User Interface (CUI) editor does.

Figure 2-15:

The Workspaces toolbar.

My Workspace

Workspace Settings

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From the Workspaces toolbar, you can do the following:

Set a Workspace Current: From the drop-down list, you can select one of the defined Workspaces and set it current.

Save a Workspace: From the drop-down list, you can select the Save Current As option to store as a Workspace the current display settings for toolbars and dockable windows. The Save Workspace dialog box (see Figure 2-16) is displayed, allowing you to save the changes to an existing Workspace or create a new one.

Figure 2-16:

The Save Workspace dialog box.

Workspace Settings: The button to the right of the Workspaces dropdown list on the Workspaces toolbar displays the Workspace Settings dialog box (see Figure 2-17). The Workspace Settings dialog box allows you to specify which Workspace is set current when the My Workspace button is clicked on the Workspaces toolbar. The dialog box also allows you to change the order of how the Workspaces appear in the dropdown list of the Workspaces toolbar and controls whether changes to the current Workspace are saved automatically before switching Workspaces.

Figure 2-17:

The Workspace Settings dialog box.

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My Workspace: Sets the Workspace specified in the Workspace Settings dialog box as current.