Understanding the Layout View


Aside from the command prompt, you've probably noticed that AutoCAD behaves like most other Windows programs. But one element in AutoCAD's window is a little different from other Windows graphics programs. Specifically, at the bottom of the AutoCAD window, you'll see a set of tabs labeled Model, Layout1, and Layout2.

image from book

If you have followed the exercises in this chapter or if you've just opened a new drawing, the Model tab is currently selected. This tells you that the drawing area you are currently viewing is the model space of AutoCAD. Model space is the display you'll use to do most of your drawing. It's like your main workspace.

The layout tabs are like page previews with the added advantage of allowing you to draw within them. The layout tabs also give you control over the printed scale of your drawing.

Another way to look at the layout tabs is to think of them as a drawing mock-up area. Using a layout tab, you can set up multiple views of the drawing you create in model space. You can also add a title to your drawing and include borders or other graphic design features.

Try the following exercise to see firsthand how the layout tabs work:

  1. Click the Layout1 tab at the bottom of the drawing area.

    image from book

    The drawing area changes to show your drawing, plus some additional display elements, as shown in Figure 1.11. The Layout tab shows you how your drawing will look when it is printed.

  2. Move the cursor over the rectangle that immediately surrounds the rectangle and circle drawing that you created earlier in the chapter.

    image from book
    TURNING ON THE TABS

    If you don't see the tabs, don't worry. AutoCAD can be set up to hide the tabs but they can be easily restored to view. To turn them on, locate the Model tool in the Status bar at the bottom of the AutoCAD Window.

    image from book

    Right-click the Model or Layout1 tool located at the bottom of the AutoCAD window, and then select Display Layout and Model Tabs. The tabs will appear just below the drawing area. To hide the tabs, right-click on any tab and select Hide Layout and Model Tabs. If you want to leave the tabs off, you can still switch from model space to a layout by clicking on the model or layout1 tools. If you have multiple layouts, you can use tool just to the right of the Layout1 tool to select a layout.

    image from book

  3. Click the highlighted rectangle, and then press the Delete key. Your drawing disappears.

  4. Click the Model tab to return to model space. You'll see that the objects you drew are still there.

  5. Click the Undo tool in the Standard toolbar twice to return to the Layout1 tab and undo your deletion of the outer rectangle. The view of the rectangle and circle returns.

  6. Click the Model tab to return to the original drawing area.

    image from book

image from book
Figure 1.11: Your drawing as it appears in one of the layout tabs

image from book
ACCURATE PANNING

Realtime Pan is a great tool for quickly getting around in a drawing, but sometimes you need to pan in an exact distance and direction. A version of the Pan command lets you do just that.

Choose View è Pan è Point, and you'll see the following prompt:

 Specify base point or displacement: 

This is the prompt you'll see for the Move or Copy commands, though in this case you're not affecting the objects in your drawing. When you select a point at this prompt, you'll see a rubber-banding line in conjunction with the next prompt:

 Specify second point: 

The rubber-banding line indicates the direction and distance of your pan. As with any other command that displays a rubber-banding line, you can select points to indicate distance and direction, or you can enter coordinates. This allows you to specify exact distances and directions to pan your view.

image from book

In step 3, your entire drawing disappeared when you deleted the outer rectangle. This is because that rectangle is really a viewport into the drawing you created in the Model tab. When you are on a layout tab, a viewport acts like a window into your drawing. By default, AutoCAD creates a single viewport to show your drawing, but you can have multiple viewports of various sizes, each displaying different parts of your drawing. When you deleted that viewport, you essentially closed your view into your drawing in the Model tab, so your rectangle and circle disappeared from view. They didn't really go anywhere. It's just that your view of them was deleted.

You might have also noticed that a layout tab displays a white area over a gray background. This white area represents the area of the paper onto which your drawing will be printed.

The white area also shows a dashed line close to its edge. This dashed line represents the printable area of your paper. The current default printer connected to your computer determines both the paper area and the dashed line.

If you have a printer that accepts paper of different sizes, you can select a different sheet size, and the new sheet size will be reflected in the white area shown in the layout tab. You'll learn how to control sheet sizes in Chapter 12.

As you might guess, you use the layout tabs to lay out your drawing for printing. You can print from the Model tab if you like, but you have much more control over your printer output from a layout tab.




Introducing AutoCAD 2008
Introducing AutoCAD 2008
ISBN: 0470121505
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2007
Pages: 147
Authors: George Omura

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