AutoCAD has many tools that you can access to automate your workflow and make your job easier, chances are you are already using many of them without realizing it. What we are going to cover today are ways to make these tools work more easily for you.
Tip number 1: use templates
In fact, you already are; every time you create a new AutoCAD document, it loads the default template. However, if you are going to be doing many variations on the same type of drawing and design work, you may want to make changes to all the things that are common between them and save that file as a template. Templates are a great way to save time setting unit types and drawing boundaries, setting your snap, grid, and other drawing settings, organizing your layer information before you begin, and presetting a lot of common information.
If you’re working for a company, you’re most likely using a company-provided template that provides this consistency across multiple cartoonists. You may end up using a customer-provided template, and you’ll be told which templates to use – templates ensure consistent output from multiple workers (which is why businesses are important to them) and can save you a lot of time. …but only if they are designed from the ground up.
To make a new template, first set all the parameters, in a normal drawing. Then go to File > Save As and save it as a template. It’s as easy as that, although you should make sure to save it to a folder that you can find later.
Tip #2: Object References
Object Snaps (OSNAPS) are the most frustrating tool in AutoCAD. Until you learn what they’re doing and wonder how you could have lived without them in the past. An object snap is an attachment that you can instruct to go to one of the attachment points of an existing object. These grip points are things like the center point of an object or the end point of a line segment. An OSNAP allows you to bind an object to one of those endpoints with absolute certainty for the provided endpoints.
It’s when you get to the “fuzzy” OSNAPs that things get a bit counter-intuitive. You can configure OSNAPs that are designed to be perpendicular to selected objects, click the nearest object, run on a tangent, and even some intersections.
Most OSNAPs kick in “run mode” – you type the command into the command buffer and they just work. While this is the fastest way to use a commonly repeated OSNAP, for people who don’t keep arcane commands in their minds, AutoCAD has also provided iconic OSNAPs. You can access them by opening the OSNAP dialog or by holding down Shift and right-clicking on an object to open a context menu. Still, if you use a lot of OSNAPs, you’ll eventually learn the three-letter codes to use at runtime just to save time. (It also has the advantage of turning off OSNAP once that command has been executed.
Tip 3: Learn the commands
While we mentioned it in the previous tip on using OSNAP, it’s always worth learning how to use command line prompts for AutoCAD. Typing three characters takes a fraction of a second, compared to a few seconds to use a mouse to find the icon, navigate through the menu system, click OK, and then repeat to disable the functionality you just used. Keyboard shortcuts are always quicker to learn, and more than any other tip, these will save you the most time.
