Lynn Allen's Blog

More AutoCAD 2006 tips and a Movie Review...

I mentioned before that I am a scary movie fiend.   I don't care for the gory, slasher type - but I definitely love a good fright!  I was ecstatic when I heard Ring Two was coming out - especially when I heard it was being directed by the original Ring director (which was a popular Japanese flick).  So this weekend I dragged some poor innocent to see it...here's what I thought.

The Ring Two:  B-

I must admit my expectation level was already low due the critics comments which helped it get a B- rather than a C+ (lets face it - life is all about expectation levels).  A few scenes didn't quite add up which I always find irritating (tell me why you would take your son to your office rather than the hospital when he has a temperature of 93 degrees and you realize he's suffering from hyperthermia?).  And the story line was choppy at best - but it definitely got a few good scares out of me so I consider it a success in the fright department.  If you want your date to hold on tight - this movie should do it! (Incidentally - do yourself a favor and rent the first one before seeing the second - it helps to know the original storyline - besides it is MUCH better).

Okay - here is your AutoCAD 2006 tip:

Have you ever found yourself with too many layer filters?  Typically the result of Xrefing in someone elses drawing file - this can not only slow you down tremendously but it can be downright annoying.  AutoCAD 2006 has a really cool new system variable called LAYERFILTERALERT another one of those top secret setvars that you only learn about if someone cares enough to divulge it to you.  There are 4 settings to LAYERFILTERALERT - my favorite setting is 3.  LAYERFILTERALERT leaps into action should you encounter 100 or more named layer filters, or if the number of filters outnumbers the number of layers.

0 - Turns it off completely
1 - Deletes all layer filters when you enter the Layer Manager - this option is too violent for me!
2 - Alerts you that you have too many filters and asks you if you'd like to delete them all
3 - Alerts you that you have too many filters but provides you with a nice friendly dialog box that makes it easy for you to select the filters you wish to delete...definitely my favorite!

Autodesk Vision Tour in Philly

The Vision Tour for architects in Philadelphia was fantastic.  Hosted by Synergis, and held at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaelogy and Anthropology,  we enjoyed fantastic presentations while nestled among some great Egyptian relics...(almost a little creepy).   My favorite line of the evening was when I was told I could start when the Sphinx went dark!  I've never heard that before!

First up is a picture of Phil Bernstein, Autodesk's VP of the Building Solutions Division...he is looking very serious here (notice the cool Sphinx in the background).  Phil did a great presentation on Building Information Modeling and how it can help turn your visions into reality.

And here is a pic of the audience of architects...my friend Rick Webber is looking studious there to the right (in the blue).

Our guest speaker was Stephen Kieran of KieranTimberlake Associates and author of the book Refabricating Architecture.  All attendees received a copy of his book (and Stephen was kind enough to autograph them). 

And last but not least...after the event was over we enjoyed a great cocktail hour among the Egyptian exhibits...amazing (do I look like I am having fun?).

Synergis did a fabulous job arranging this event (thank you!). 

Drawing Recovery and AutoCAD 2006

Well now I am in Chilly Philly...if I wanted rain I could have stayed home!  But I had a chance to have dinner with an old friend of mine which makes enduring the rain all worthwhile.  Some of the architecture in Philadelphia is amazing (did you know that the building they used in Ghostbusters is in Philly?  The one with the dogs on top?).  Today I will be emceeing the Vision Tour event at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology.  Stephen Kieran of KieranTimberlake will be our guest speaker - stay tuned for pics!

My computer battery died on the plane yesterday while I was working on AutoCAD 2006 and today when I finally found power I was reminded of another nice feature in the program - the new Drawing Recover feature. 

Whether we like it or not - we all know what it's like to have AutoCAD crash on us!  Sometimes it is AutoCADs fault, sometimes it's Windows fault and sometimes it's the computer's fault (but it is NEVER our fault!).  : )

AutoCAD 2006 has a great drawing recovery feature that will make our lives much easier should this unfortunate event occur.  No longer do we need to search through the rubble for the .sv$ file, rename it to a drawing file, yadda yadda.  AutoCAD does this work for us by finding all the possible files we might want to revive relating to the doomed drawing.

The above bitmap was what I encountered today as I entered AutoCAD.  There is also a DRAWINGRECOVERY command that activates the Drawing Recovery Manager at any time...not sure why you would feel the need to visit this feature unless you were in distress...or psychic perhaps?

You can preview each of the files AutoCAD offers up to you as a possible solution.  And the best part - should you choose the automatic save file (.SV$), AutoCAD will now automatically rename the file to a DWG for you!  That's nice!

AutoCAD 2006 - Hatching ( in more detail)

As I sit here at my computer I know I need to go work out (especially after a wine-filled weekend in Napa with my family)...but it's raining outside...yet again(but then this IS California) and it's nice and cozy in my house!  So let's say we just procrastinate on the gym and take a look at the new hatching features in more detail!

Have you ever wished you could recreate the boundary of an existing hatch?  Perhaps you're working on a drawing where someone thought it wise to remove the boundary for some reason...and you need it back!  The new HATCHEDIT command has a recreate boundary option that is fantastic!

  You'll also see that you can add or remove boundaries to/from your existing hatches.  These new options should save you many steps (no need to erase the original hatch and start again - now you can truly edit it to get the results you want!)

Have you ever tried to hatch a boundary that wasn't completely visible on the screen? Forget it!  You would have to exit the BHATCH command, zoom out and try again (possibly after entering an expletive)...well those days are gone because now you can hatch a boundary even if it isn't completely within your current display (hoorah!).

When you create several hatches within the same BHATCH command, they are all tied together.  You erase one, they all erase.  AutoCAD 2006 now allows you to create separate hatches within the same BHATCH command.

And my favorite new change - you can specify the origin of your crosshatching.  No more finagling around with snap, or origin - now it's just a simple click.  You can manually select the origin, or you can ask AutoCAD to find one of the four corners of the boundary for you.  You can also have it centered.

 

Even though in most cases you can use the LIST command to find the area of a hatch pattern, now you can find the area of multiple hatches.  Simply select the hatches and enter the Properties command.  here you'll find a "cumulative area" option.

Well it's still raining...but it's off to the gym for me anyway!  (besides...it's getting close to swimsuit season...)  Will the rain ever stop???

AutoCAD 2006 tour in Portugal

Well here are the promised photos of my first AutoCAD 2006 presentations in Portugal.  After six presentations in two days I was worn out - but the audiences were fantastic in their reception of AutoCAD 2006!  Below is a pic of the first presentation.

Do you think they are able to understand my California Accent?

Doing my best to dazzle them!  Below is a fabulous luncheon I had with the Autodesk partners.  It was held in a hotel that used to be a palace (did I say "fabulous"?)

And below find a picture of the two people that made it all happen:  The absolutely adorable Marta (left) and the fantastic Jorge Horta who took me out to amazing places for dinner and was a great tour-guide.

Can't wait to go back!

AutoCAD 2006 - A Few Added Extras!

After spending nearly 30 hours trying to get home from Lisbon (all over one little missed connection) I am happy to be back home (finally!).  Portugal is fantastic - but there's no place like home...(pics to come this weekend of Portugal..)

So...I know you are really after more info on AutoCAD 2006...so without further ado!

SCALELISTEDIT

Now you can easily customize the drop down list containing the various scalefactors you can assign to VPORTS or for use during plotting or pagesetup.  You can add, remove or reorder the list.

RECTANG

Two new options have been added to the RECTANG command.
Area:  You specifiy the length of one side and the total area - AutoCAD will figure the rest out for you.
Rotate:  Now you can rotate your rectangle while you are creating it (without having to enter a separate command).

XREF notification

AutoCAD 2004 added a nice notification feature alerting you when someone modified an attached Xref.  You would then go into the XREF manager and reload it.
Well a few steps have been removed for you in AutoCAD 2006 - now you simply click on the notification bubble to reload it!

Makes complete sense (and saves some time!)...

So there you have the next part of the ongoing AutoCAD 2006 mini-series!  Have a fantastic weekend!

AutoCAD 2006 - A Couple of User Interface Features

Thank you all for asking about Portugal - it went great!  I am EXHAUSTED from all the travel and presentations (they sure do work you hard here...)  but the response for AutoCAD 2006 has been amazing - so I'm having a great time.  Will post pictures later in the week...(so stay tuned...)

On to more AutoCAD 2006 features...(just a couple - I'm really really tired)

Have you ever accidentally moved a toolbar while drawing?  Well now you can lock up your toolbars and pallettes to make sure that doesn't happen again.  Simply select the new lock symbol in the lower right corner of the drawing editor (on the status bar).  Lock it up - and it won't move!  (until you unlock it again).

Do you use a different setup for Paperspace then you do for Modelspace?  For example, do you find yourself using a different set of toolbars (such as text and dimension) while in paperspace?  With AutoCAD 2006 you can save your current workspace for future reference.  Your workspace remembers the toolbar locations, palette locations, command prompt, and menu info.  The new Workspace toolbar makes it easy to bounce back and forth from one saved workspace to another!

okay that's it...I must go off to sleep!

AutoCAD 2006 - Temporary Overrides Save You Time!

I just recently discovered this timesaver of a feature in AutoCAD 2006.  If you've ever wished you could just temporarily switch a setting for use in a command, you'll like the new Temporary Overrides.

Now you can override a particular setting with a specific combination of keys.  For example, holding the Shift key down toggles Orthomode on and off (very handy!).

Shift+A – toggle object snap mode
Shift+E – turns on endpoint osnap only
Shift+M – turns on midpoint osnap only
Shift+C – turns on center osnap only
Shift+Q – toggles Object Tracking
Shift+X – toggles Polar Mode

These are just a few examples, there are plenty more, and you can easily change them or add more in the new CUI (see Monday's blog).

Calculations are at your fingertips with AutoCAD 2006

Well today is the big day for me - my first AutoCAD 2006 presentation!  It should be interesting to see how everyone reacts to the new features...your great emails about what you've seen so far have been very helpful (keep them coming please!).

A handy calculator built right into AutoCAD 2006

Let's face it, our work on AutoCAD can be filled with calculations - so it makes perfect sense to include one with the program.

For you power users who remember the Geometric Calculator command (‘CAL),  you'll see some definite similarities.  The new QUICKCALC palette (Ctrl+8) can:

*   Perform a full range of calculations
*   Convert from one system of units to another
*   Use the Scientific panel for more advanced function
*   Pass values back and forth to a Command or the Properties Palette
*   Set Variables for use across AutoCAD drawings and sessions

I think you'll find this new tool comes in very handy!  Just think of the possibilities - use AutoCAD to balance your checkbook?  well maybe not...

: )

Customizing is a Piece of Cake in AutoCAD 2006!

By the time you read this I will be on my way to Portugal...but I will still try to be dutiful in my web postings (as long as I can find Internet access somewhere).

So here is another awesome new feature in AutoCAD 2006...

Customizing just got much easier!
The new CUI dialog box makes customizing doable for anyone with the new friendly interface.

Essentially - what we had for Toolbars in the Customize command - we now have for pull-down menus, shortcut menus (wouldn't you just LOVE to get your hands on the shortcut menus?), mouse buttons, etc - but with more capability.  We also don't have to worry about all those pesky menu types anymore (MNU,MNX,MNC - yikes!).  Now we just have one filetype to worry about - .CUI (and it's XML based).  No worries about bringing in your old menu files, the Transfer tab on the CUI dialog will bring them in for you and convert them.  The really good news here is that as you continue to upgrade, your menu files will be a piece of cake to migrate forward (and that's always been such a hassle in the past!).