bdsmoot Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 Hello all. I've been using AutoCAD LT for about 4 months now, and I've had to learn a lot on my own. Sometimes little things in AutoCAD happen, and I have no idea why. One that stands out the most to me is an issue with the drawing coordinates (See attached pic). When it comes to units, I, along with others at my company, prefer using precision at 1/16". Thing is, this causes strange coordinates to occur on the drawing coordinates (numbers that end in "E+03" and the like). I have confirmed that, if I switch the precision to 0'-0", this issue goes away. Also, the more precise I go, the worse this problem becomes (as in, no matter where I move the cursor, 90% of the time, these numbers pop up). Is there anyway I can get rid of these odd numbers, and keep the drawing coordinates in the foot and inch format? Thanks for your time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuccaro Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 -2.5E+03 means -2.5 multiplied with 10 rised at the power 3, so it is -2500. Also 3.1E-02 can be translated as 0.031 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkent Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 To answer your question, other than setting units value higher, and or setting snap on and to a larger setting, no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdsmoot Posted April 24, 2009 Author Share Posted April 24, 2009 fuccaro: Thanks for letting me know what those numbers meant. rkent: That's unfortunate to hear... It still makes no sense to me on why this happens. I guess I'll have to either bear it or set my precision to 0'-0". Thanks for the reply. EDIT: I have found some more information that I think shows why I get those numbers. If you look at the picture I posted earlier, the drawing coordinates take up the entire space allocated for them. Because I use the precision setting at 1/16", that takes up more room to display. If the numbers get too big, AutoCAD compensates by showing the engineering equivalent of that number. So, I figure if I can move the OSnap icons over some, the drawing coordinates would have room to display properly. Thing is, I see no option on AutoCAD to customize the location of icons on the status bar. Does anyone here know if there is a way to move those icons over? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lithium Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 "Is there anyway I can get rid of these odd numbers, and keep the drawing coordinates in the foot and inch format?" Zoom in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdsmoot Posted April 27, 2009 Author Share Posted April 27, 2009 Unfortunately Lithium, zooming in does nothing in my case. Even if I zoom in as far as I can go, those numbers can still show up. As I stated in my previous edit, I need to move the OSnap icons over to give my drawing coordinates more room to display bigger numbers (by bigger numbers I mean long strings of numbers like 100'-10 13/16" and not 100000). I truly believe that is what is causing those numbers to appear. I do appreciate the input though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 While I have no solution Bdsmoot - I'm wondering why you worry about them? I never really look at those numbers, I know they sometimes are displayed with an E, but that's about it. What do you use the numbers for? If I need to get some coodinates out of the drawing I use List or ID. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdsmoot Posted April 27, 2009 Author Share Posted April 27, 2009 To tell the truth Tiger, I honestly don't use those coordinates for too many things. I mainly use them to simply keep a general track of where I am in my drawings. If I see those numbers with E's in them (engineering numbers?), they throw me off sometimes. Also, I'm a computer science graduate, so when I see things like this, they tend to bug me a bit more than it would for others. When I first started using AutoCAD LT, I tried to use those coordinates for too many things. Eventually, I learned to make use of some of AutoCAD's many functions (distance and dynamic inputs to name a few) to ensure accuracy in my drawings. Of course, I only know very few of the functions AutoCAD has, but am learning new things constantly. I know that AutoCAD is highly customizable, but if I can't even move those OSnap icons (or ANY of those icons) to where I want them, that will be disappointing. I would expect more from software that costs as much as AutoCAD does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lithium Posted April 28, 2009 Share Posted April 28, 2009 If the numbers get too big, AutoCAD compensates by showing the engineering equivalent of that number. I think you are mistaken with regard to that. I did some experimenting and I find that AutoCAD automatically moves the icons to the right as required. I believe the E numbers are a result of the accuracy of 'computer math', not the lack of space to display the decimal number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdsmoot Posted April 29, 2009 Author Share Posted April 29, 2009 Lithium, Yes, you're right about the icon movement. I experimented with that too and saw what you were talking about. I bet you're right about the E numbers too. I have to say though that the icon movement is what I consider bad programming. Yes, I know this is a very minor issue, but it tends to be the little things that catch my attention the most (and therefore bug me the most ). Not only does AutoCAD need to implement a way to set the icons on the status bar in the order you want, they need to keep a defined spacing for those coordinates. They also should find a way to keep engineering numbers out of architectural measurements. If I want engineering numbers, I'll set the units to that myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.