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Michael’s Corner

Michael BeallMichael'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.

This month…

October - One-derful!!!

It's a God-thing.

I had no idea that 14 years ago I would be given the opportunity to make an impact on the professional lives of so many. Only God knew what was ahead, and hopefully, the contributions I have made through Michael's Corner have equipped many of you to be more productive and a bit more savvy using AutoCAD. And apart from all the AutoCAD bashing that is going on, I'm sure it has a long life ahead.

So, in an effort to keep the AutoCAD fires burning, here's what I have for my final installment…

…A reminder on how to customize your hot keys
…Three Power Tools — one for Zoom, one for editing, and one for Layers
…Two Odd Spots — one for Layers and one for Hatching
…Buried text treasure
…And how to Search 14 years of the Archives

As for what's ahead for me, I will continue to present a variety of AutoCAD sessions — Fundamentals, Intermediate, Customizing, Updates, and 2D & 3D. I will also keep training CAP Designer, 20-20 Worksheet, Visual Impression (those three from 20-20 Technologies, Inc.), and some Revit Fundamentals. Next year I'm looking forward to being very involved in training CET (from Configura, Inc.) when Herman Miller joins the growing number of manufacturers embracing this software that is being touted as the ‘Future of Space Planning’. Personally, I'm looking forward to spending a bit more time with Donna, my lovely bride of 30 years. When this posts, we'll probably be within days of going on our 30th Anniversary vacation to the Tanque Verde Ranch in Tucson; Ee-Hah! We had such a good time when we went for our 20th, we figured we'd do it again!

Ah, and I'm hoping to have The AutoCAD Workbench, Final Edition out before snow flies.

And with that, Mike drop! …so to speak.

The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26

This month's articles

Change F1 to ESC
Smoother Zoom
Stretch with Extension
Lock Layers with a Crossing Window
Layer Columns & Hatch Background Color
Text Frame on Mtext

From the Vault

Originally published August 2007

A2008 Dashboard Custom Panel

The DashboardAlthough the Dashboard was introduced in A2007, you couldn't customize it, so last month (see July 2007) I covered how to add panels to the AutoCAD 2008 dashboard. I also promised that I would cover how to make custom panels this month. To that end, here's a quick lesson in creating a custom panel for the AutoCAD 2008 Dashboard. Once you have that panel, you can populate it with any command you want.

Instructions to Add a Custom Panel to the A2008 Dashboard

  1. Open the Dashboard (ToolsPalettesDashboard). If there are no panels on the Dashboard, right click on the Properties icon at the bottom of the Dashboard title bar, then roll over to Control Panels and click a panel, just to get one going.
New Panel
  1. Now that you have a panel on the dashboard, right-click in an empty area for the shortcut menu, then click Customize Commands to open the Customize User Interface (CUI).
  2. Expand the Partial CUI node, then expand the CUSTOM node to display the customizable elements.
  3. Right-click on the Dashboard Panels node, then click New Panel. Enter a name for the panel, then press Enter.
  4. To populate your new panel, from the Commands list at the bottom of the CUI, drag the desired command up and release it next to your new panel. As you add buttons to the panel, in the upper right quadrant of the CUI you will see a Panel Preview.
  5. Click OK to save your customization and now you have your own panel on the Dashboard!

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