Copyright: Copyright 1995 TommySoftware®


TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4

Questions and Answers

This document lists some frequently asked questions about TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4 and their answers.

When I copy some objects to the Clipboard in TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4, an area of about 5 millimeters around the objects remains blank. Why?

When copying to the clipboard (or when printing), the application uses the output parameters that can be edited using the command Configure>Settings>Output. One of those settings determines whether the output area in calculated based on the objects' surrounding frame or based on the current page size. By default, the setting "Object Frame" is active, with an additional blank frame of 5 millimeters. To remove this blank frame, set the value of "Offset" to 0 millimeters.
As you will see, the output settings can influence all output results (printer, plotter, clipboard and bitmap) in several ways.

How can I prepare TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4 for using either Imperial or Metric units?

The English release of TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4 should by default use Imperial units. Here is a description of how to setup TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4 for the use of Imperial or Metric units:
Create a new drawing. Select the command Configure>Coordinate Systems>Edit, select the coordinate system "Drawing & Dimensioning" and press the "Units" button. In the appearing dialog, select either "Inch" (for Imperial) or "Millimeter" (for Metric) in the "Length:" list. This sets the unit used for all scale-dependent lengths like coordinates, lengths, dimensions, etc. You may also select either "Inch" (for Imperial) or "Millimeter" (for Metric) in the "Line:" list. This sets the unit used for scale-independent measures like line widths, font sizes, etc. End this dialog by pressing "OK".
Now, press the "Numbers" button. In the appearing dialog, select an appropriate number display form in the "Length Display:" list. For Imperial units, this could by "Yard Foot Inch (Floating Point)", resulting in outputs like 1yd 2' 3.5" , or "Yard Foot Inch (Fraction)", resulting in outputs like 1yd 2' 3 1/2" . For Metric units, select "Standard (Floating Point)". End both dialogs by pressing "OK", then select the command Configure>Save Elements as Default to save these settings permanently.

Note: These settings are drawing-dependent, i.e. if you want to change the unit settings in an existing drawing, you have to load that drawing and perform the steps described above. Instead of selecting Configure>Save Elements as Default, simply save the modified drawing.

How does one create a drawing at an Imperial scale of, for example, 1/8"=1' or 1/4"= 1' ? I can figure out how to change from metric to Imperial coordinates, but can only find reduction factors geared to units of 10.

You can easily enter such a scale by using the "Current Scale" edit fields at the command Configure>Coordinate Systems>Edit, button "View". In these fields, you can enter values that are combined with units, so you may e.g. enter (1/8)in in the first field and 1ft in the second field. This will result in the correct scale of 1=96.

When I export a drawing that has been created using CAD/DRAW 4 to the DXF file format (by means of the DXF export filter), all fillings get lost. How can I avoid that?

In the DXF file format, standard objects like circles or polygons cannot be filled. Due to this limitation, all CAD/DRAW 4 objects are converted to outlined objects.
If you want to export filled objects to other application, use the Clipboard or the WMF file format. Alternatively, you can also create a PostScript® file by using a PostScript printer driver and redirecting its output to a file.

North America, Inc.	Germany

130 Barrow Street	Selchower Straße 32

New York, NY 10014	D-12049 Berlin

U. S. A.	Germany

Phone (212) 807 9720	Phone +49 30 621 5931

Fax (212) 807 8149	Fax +49 30 621 4064

CompuServe 100020,3647	CompuServe 100142,3665

Internet "tommy@tommysoftware.com"

TommySoftware® CAD/DRAW 4 - Edition 4.00e - Copyright 1995 TommySoftware®