The ELLIPSE command is the usual way to create an ellipse — or oval — but there’s a different way that may be more intuitive for you.

Here are the steps:
  1. Draw a rectangle.
  2. Select the rectangle.
  3. Start the PEDIT command (polyline edit).
  4. Choose the Spline option.


Now, select the oval. This is what you see:



Do you see how the handles are still on the corners of the rectangle? And if you open the Properties panel, you’ll see that AutoCAD still considers it a 2D polyline, not an ellipse.

Just to experiment, take the same rectangle and use the Fit option of the PEDIT command (instead of the Spline option). Whoa! You get a circle! But select it, and you’ll see that the handles are still on the corners of the rectangle and AutoCAD still thinks of it as a polyline, not as a circle.

Have you ever used these PEDIT options? In which situation?



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