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The Tutorials section provides over 100 original tutorials for AutoCAD, 3ds Max and other design applications such as Photoshop and Bryce. Michael’s Corner is a monthly article that brings you the best up-to-date AutoCAD tips and tricks. The Forums are a lively bulletin board where AutoCAD users can ask questions and get answers. The Download area provides free AutoCAD blocks, free AutoLISP routines and free digital images.

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Michael’s Corner - June/July 2014

Summer Simplicity

So, how are you getting on with AutoCAD 2015? Found the Layout tab on the Ribbon yet? Autodesk thought it would be fun to make it context sensitive so it doesn't show up most of the time—oh how we laughed when we eventually found it! See this month's bonus feature "Lost & Found" for full details.

Elsewhere in this month's Corner, Michael covers the new Lasso selection feature in AutoCAD 2015 and it's another of those that you might not find if you didn't know about it.

The main feature this month covers the Sweep command and demonstrates how to use a polyline as a path. In other articles, Michael introduces the concept of "Buriables"—check it out to see what he's on about and there's further insight into the Insert object snap.

We hope you're having fun with AutoCAD 2015 and are liking the new Dark theme. Hands up who switched straight back to the Light theme? Oh, you don't know how—Options and then the Display tab. Happy CADing!

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Tip of the Day

Command line in a window (F2)

The command line can be very useful, especially for beginners because AutoCAD often gives useful prompts which helps when learning how to use some of the more complicated commands. The command line is also used by AutoCAD to report information back to the user, but sometimes that information may run to several lines of text, and disappear from view. A good example of this is the Distance command (you can run this from the keyboard by typing DIST). The problem is that by default, the command line is only two lines high and so if you use the Distance command, you don't even see the distance reported to the command line.

One way round this problem is to increase the depth of the command line to show more lines but this takes up valuable drawing area. A better solution is to display the command window using the F2 key on the keyboard.

As you can see above, the command window also allows you to scroll back through the command line so that you can review your recent drawing history.

Today's tip is by David Watson

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