#General Tips #0 #Vdraft.hlp #5069 The tip of the day contains useful tips for getting the most out of Vdraft. It will be displayed each time you start up Vdraft unless you uncheck "Show Tips at Startup". You can browse through the tips by choosing "Next Tip" and "Previous Tip". You can learn more by choosing "More Info...". Vdraft works directly with AutoCAD drawing (DWG) and DXF files. All your valuable information is maintained. No translation required. You can select one or more drawings from a file folder and drag them into Vdraft. Vdraft will automatically open all the drawings so you can work on your entire project. #2452 Since Vdraft supports the AutoCAD command set, you can type in the same commands you are already used to. You can be up and running with Vdraft in no time! While you are working with any command, you can click the right mouse button for options relevant to what you are working on. #3 When you select objects, their properties (layer, color, linetype, etc.) are instantly displayed on the toolbars. Changing their properties is as easy as choosing the new setting from the same toolbars. #2007 If you or your clients need to work with different versions of AutoCAD, you can use the Save as Release option on the File menu to convert back to earlier versions of AutoCAD. #22 While you draw or manipulate objects, "cursor tips", which show lengths and angles, are displayed near the mouse. To set these values, click the right mouse button and choose Options. Or press shift-1 to change the first value or shift-2 to change the second value. #5006 At any point while you are drawing you can turn on and off object snaps, grid snaps, and angle snaps. As you move the mouse, the crosshairs are moved to the proper snap point so you can see what you'll get even before you pick. This includes being able to preview object snap points. You can get help on specific details of a dialog box by using "screen tips". Choose the ? on the title bar of the dialog then click on the button or text entry region you would like information on. #6 Several of the new drawing templates and sample drawings use the concept of paperspace. The drawing is drawn at a scale of 1:1 in modelspace. The border is drawn in paperspace. One way to switch between these is to use the Drawing Space options on the View menu. #5009 You can get a complete listing of all the commands you have performed on a drawing by choosing the Undo/Redo List from the Edit menu. Vdraft works with the wheel mouse. Rotating the wheel pans the current drawing up and down. If you hold down the shift key, rotating the wheel will pan left and right. Holding down the Ctrl key and rotating the wheel will zoom in and out. #3 To find out what a toolbar button does, move the mouse over the button (without clicking) and pause for a second or two. A description of what the button does will appear next to the mouse. A more complete description can be found on the status bar at the bottom of the window. #5002 You can load a drawing and its external references (Xrefs) at the same time so you can edit your whole project at once. Each time you save the changes to an Xref, it is automatically reloaded into the master drawing. #6005 To enable you to easily try different settings, you can keep dialog boxes open by picking on its pushpin in the lower left corner. When the pushpin is "in", you can make changes, pick Apply, and the dialog will stick around. You can even have several dialogs open at the same time. #5055 You can find out which font files and Xrefs a drawing uses by choosing Drawing Dependencies from the Settings menu. #6008 If you have the property dialog displayed for an object, you can make sure the dialog reflects its current state by pushing the refresh button (the arrow on the lower right corner of the dialog). #2055 You can cut and paste information between drawings in Vdraft or even between Vdraft and AutoCAD by using the clipboard options on the Edit menu. If you hold down the Ctrl key while pressing the right mouse button, options for changing the view will be displayed. #3 If you grab a toolbar by the region outside the buttons, you can drag it to a different location. If you press the right mouse button over a toolbar, you can turn individual buttons on or off. More information on the current action in Vdraft can often be found on the status bar at the bottom of the window. #2210 If you select a text object in the drawing, then start drawing new text (by choosing Text from the Draw menu), Vdraft will automatically match the font, style, and size of the selected text and use it for the new text, dropping you to the next line. #2059 You can cut and paste text between Vdraft and your favorite word processor. When you paste text into Vdraft, it uses the current text style and size and allows you to place the text. When you select text or blocks with attributes, you can use Text to Clipboard from the Edit menu then paste it into your word processor. #5007 The Coordinates command on the Settings menu allows you to anchor the coordinates of a point you pick. By checking the proper coordinate in the dialog, it will remain fixed. Choose OK or Apply to use the values. This is equivalent to point filters in AutoCAD. #2353 The Net Hyperlinks option from the Settings menu attaches hyperlink information to an object. When you convert the drawing to SVF from the File menu, the hyperlink information is also output. The SVF Plug-in for Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer will then use this for powerful Internet applications. You can use the DWG/DXF Plug-in for Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer to display AutoCAD drawings and DXF files locally or across the Internet. You can then have Vdraft edit the drawing or copy it into another drawing. For increased speed in running Vdraft you can use "flicks". A flick is a shortcut for choosing an option from the right-click popup menu. If you press and hold the right mouse button, then move the mouse in the direction of the option you want to choose, you can quickly select a command without even displaying the popup!