Michael’s Corner

Michael's Corner is a monthly publication written by Michael E. Beall, Autodesk Authorized Author and peripatetic AutoCAD trainer. Michael travels all over the USA, bringing his fantastic experience and great understanding of AutoCAD to his clients. Michael's Corner brings together many of the tips, tricks and methods developed during these training sessions for the benefit of all users.

Michael's Corner provides something for every AutoCAD user. Every month, a number of articles cover a wide range of topics, suitable for users at all levels, including "The Basics" for those just starting out. Essentially, the aim of Michael's Corner is to help all AutoCAD users work smarter and faster.

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This month…

From the Vault

Originally published June 2008

AutoCAD 2009: Dealin' With It

For those of you that have seen AutoCAD 2009 - and "seeing it" is just about all it takes to form an opinion - just keep in mind, you didn't much care for Tilemode either and now that many of you are using palettes (that interface you turned off before I started covering it in training sessions and in Michael's Corner with total abandon), now you think palettes are the greatest thing since Autodesk introduced the variable to turn off Blipmode. Bottom line, sooner or later you're going to have to deal with it.

So where do you turn to learn about this new beast? Well, if you already have the product, here are a few ideas that are right there on your C:\ drive.

AutoCAD 2009 Preview Guide & AutoCAD 2009 HELP… No, Really.

I have written about the oft-overlooked power of the Help files in AutoCAD, so this is one of the places I may go when a new version comes out. In the opening Help window under "Need Help Fast?" there's a link to "Additional PDF Documents". The files themselves are found in the ..\Help folder of your installed AutoCAD 2009, but for those of you who have yet to get the product or would just like to read up on it before installing it, click the topic headings below to open the PDF. I have also included the AutoCAD 2009 Preview Guide for your reading enjoyment.

AutoCAD_2009_Preview_Guide.pdf - Autodesk's official AutoCAD 2009 Preview Guide is another great document I use to get a heads-up on the new features.

acad_new_icons.pdf - There are 32 pages of images of the A2009 toolbars along with an image and definition of each button. Nice to have. [..AutoCAD 2009\Help\newfeatures]

The additional files below are also well worth a look.

acad_cue_cards.pdf - Concise overview of new features including Tips, Features & Variables for each of the following: Menu Browser, Action Recorder, Enhanced Layer Properties Manger, Ribbon, Ribbon Customization, View Cube, Steering Wheels, ShowMotion, Tools in the Application Window, Quick View, Quick Properties, DWFx, Geographic Location, Export Layout to Model Space Drawing. [..AutoCAD 2009\Help\newfeatures]

acad_byw.pdf - Coverage on the extensive 3D and Modeling features extensively refined in AutoCAD 2007 and elaborated upon in A2009. [..\AutoCAD 2009\Help\buildyourworld]

AutoCAD 2009 Need-To-Know

When you finally install A2009 (not IF, but WHEN), you will encounter a rather - shall we say "aggressive" - collection of tool tips. This will mess with your head. In an effort to reduce the negative impact on your experience of the product, the following tip-related variables are provided for your reference.

DYNTOOLTIPS	0
GRIPTIPS	1
ROLLOVERTIPS	0
TOOLTIPMERGE	0
TOOLTIPS	1

For a reference on what each of these variables controls, click the scarlet "A" in the corner to open the Menu Browser (heaven forbid it should remain across the top as it has since dirt), then click ExpressToolsSystem Variable Editor. On the left side of the System Variables dialog box, navigate to the variable of interest to view the description of each value and the default setting. All tip-related variables are saved in the Registry (as opposed to the Drawing).

As I learn more about AutoCAD 2009 - for better or worse - I'll pass it along.

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