Expert: Bill DeShawn - 3/11/2010

Question
Hello

Firs, general information:
- AutoCAD 2010
- i draw in metric, one unit in model space represents one centimeter.
- most often drawings are plotted at 1:100 and 1:50 scales

A used to work in 2007, plot everything from modelspace, and now upgraded to 2010. I decided it is finally time to learn to plot from paperspace, layouts, use annotative scales and everything that goes with it. I don’t quite know how to ask what i want so i’m creating a new drawing, writing down steps and asking questions while i go. I hope this isn’t too much :-))

Scales, Annoscales, units... Totally confused me :-(

If i want my drawing to be plotted in 1:100, and annotative blocks to be scaled properly, and dashed lines to be equally spaced in model space and viewports, and paper space, and annotative text and dimstyles to be displayed properly; i must do - what??

1)
I start by creating my title block, for testing purposes A4 paper 21cm × 29.7cm. And it is annotative.

2)
Define scale with SCALELISTEDIT. If i want it at 1:100 i must do this:
One paper unit, in this case centimeter, is created by drawing 100 units (centimeters) in drawing. So i create new scale “C1:100” with settings:
Paper units: 1 = Drawing units: 100
Right?
Same goes for 1:50
Paper units: 1 = Drawing units: 50

3)
Draw couple of rectangles 500×500 and 250×250.

4)
Insert furniture block. That block is also created in centimeters.

5)
Create annotative text style, and create “Test text”, “paper height: 0.2. So when plotted it is 0.2 cm (2mm) high.

6)
Create annotative block with text in it! Circle with attribute in the middle of it. Insert it.

7)
Create annotative dimstyle, and dimension something.

8)
Create object with dashed linetype (key moment! :-)  )

And now my model is finished. Time to start with layout!

1)
Insert titleblock A4, inserted on paperspace it is sized 1:1 so its dimensions are just like i created it 21×29.7cm

2)
Create viewport for scale 1:100. Set standard scale to “C1:100”

3)
Create viewport for scale 1:50. Set standard scale to “C1:50”

4)
On paper space create text stating scales. Paper height 0.5

5)
On paper space create dashed line (another key moment)

6)
Establish that dashed lines spacing isn’t drawn correctly. Search the internet find that PSLTSCALE should be 1. Check PSLTSCALE and see that it is indeed set to 1. Scratch behind right ear with left hand...

7)
Try to see what happens when PSLTSCALE is set to 0. Dashed lines in viewports are now as they should be, but the one on paperspace should be like those in viewports, but it is not.

8)
Google some more

9)
Come to conclusion that AutoCAD works on paperspace in millimeters! Since in plot dialog box scale states: 1mm = XY units.
And if i try to plot to force my A4 block to A4 paper scale must be 1:0.1
So AutoCAD must be in millimeters!

10)
Get totally confused. Save current drawing as ExpertQuestion-01, and then save it as ExpertQuestion-02.

11)
Go back to model and redefine blocks and dimstyles, so that everything i’ve created in centimeters is now in millimeters, i.e. scale everything by factor 10!

12)
Realize than now there is something wrong with scales since everything is huge.

13)
Oh man....

14)
My stuff is in centimeters, but annotative blocks, dimensions and text are in millimeters... And when i plot it must look like they are in centimeters in scale 1:100 i.e. 1:50. So now my scale should be... Ahm... 1:10?... Let’s see... Yes! It is 1:10!
Paper units: 1 = Drawing units: 10
Paper units: 1 = Drawing units: 5
Define new scales as “C1:10” and “C1:5”

15)
Again, layout!
Erase everything, insert newly scaled A4, it’s dimensions are now in millimeters, 210×297.

16)
Create viewport for 1:100, set standard scale to C1:10
Create viewport for 1:50, set standard scale to C1:5

17)
Draw dashed line on paperspace and see that, again, spacing doesn’t mach...

18)
Tray setting PSLTSCALE to 1, and see that now dashed line in viewports is equal to that one on paperspace, but they are all “to big” and look nothing like in model space.

19)
Feel sad, angry, very disappointed in intellectual capabilities and start writing a really long letter to an expert pleading for help.

What i actually want? Dashed lines in model space, paper space and viewports to be the same when plotted. Confusion about scales set to order.
Am i right, AutoCAD “works” in millimeters when paperspace and annotative stuff is in question...

ExpertQuestion-01.dwg and ExpertQuestion-02.dwg can be downloaded here
http://www.box.net/shared/x6fnkumyqp

Thanks in advance!

Answer
Emi.
Annotative blocks and text is a complicated process to explain, but once understood is simple.  Rather than get into it here: I suggest that you go to an AutoCAD tutorial site like this one:
http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/AutoCAD_tips_automate_annotation_2008.html
to check out the notes on the subject.

Now for your linetypes displaying properly, that could be another problem.  My guess is that you may need to set your PSLTSCALE to a setting that suits you better.  In my case, I prefer to leave it at 0 (off), for all my plotting needs.  Whenever you change PSLTSCALE, you need to do a REGEN right away to see the results.  REGENMODE and REGENAUTO don't seem to work with this setting, so you need to run REGEN manually.  

Back to Annotative objects.  Although for some, this is a good thing, in my discipline, and the drawing that we typically do, there are only a very few projects that we could have benefitted from this.  However, if I started doing it in our projects, nobody else would know what in the world I've done.  I would be the ONLY person that could do anything with those drawings until there were more people that understood annotative properties.  There's nothing wrong with learning, but putting this stuff into practice can get messy especially when you have a big crew of designers and drafters that you're working with.

Keep in touch
Bill DeShawn
http://my.sterling.net/~bdeshawn



Keep in touch
Bill DeShawn
http://my.sterling.net/~bdeshawn