To change the Visual Style do the following.
1. Left click on the word “2D Wireframe” in the top left-hand corner of the main drawing area.
2. Select Conceptual from the list.
You may wish to experiment with different Visual Styles such as Realistic style.
Note: You will notice that when you switch to Conceptual style, the main drawing area will revert back to a black color. You will need to open the Options dialog box and change the color for 3D parallel projection, similar to what you did for the 2D Model space.
You will also notice that in the main drawing area it displays Grid Lines.
If you prefer not to display the Grid Lines do the following.
1. Left click on the Grid Display button on the Status Bar at the bottom of the drawing area. Blue is ON and Grey is OFF. You can also use the Function key F7 on your keyboard to toggle the Grid Display on or off.
The Status Bar is located at the bottom of the drawing area and contains commonly used drawing tools. You can turn each tool off individually by clicking on the required button or by using the corresponding Function key on your keyboard such as F8 to turn on or off Ortho Mode (Ortho is short for Orthographic). A brief description of the Status Bar tools used throughout this Workbook is given below.
Ortho Mode (You may also use the F8 key to toggle Ortho Mode ON or OFF.)
Ortho Mode restricts the movement of the cursor to Horizontal or Vertical. When Ortho Mode is ON the cursor moves only in the horizontal or vertical directions. When Ortho Mode is OFF the cursor moves freely in any direction.
Object Snap (You may also use the F3 key to toggle 2D Object Snap ON or OFF.)
When the 2D Object Snap is ON the cursor will “snap” to preset locations on 2D objects. You will learn more about Object Snaps in Lesson 4.
AutoCAD versions 2015 or later.
AutoCAD versions 2014 or earlier.
If you have AutoCAD versions 2014 or earlier you can change the Status Bar tool buttons from icons to text labels. This option is not available for AutoCAD versions 2015 or later.
To change the Status Bar tool buttons to text labels.
1. Right click on any Status Bar tool button and then uncheck “Use Icons” in the list.
The Status Bar tool buttons will now show as text labels.
To revert back to icons instead of text labels, right click on any Status Bar tool button and click on “Use Icons” in the list.
Keyboard Function keys and what they are used for.
F1 - Opens the Help window.
F2 - Displays an Extended Command History list.
F3 - Turns the 2D Object Snaps on or off.
F4 - Turns the 3D Object Snaps on or off.
F5 - Toggles Isoplanes between Top, Right or Left.
F6 - Turns the Dynamic UCS on or off.
F7 - Turns the Grid on or off.
F8 - Turns Orthographic Mode on or off.
F9 - Turns Snap Mode on or off.
F10 - Turns Polar Tracking on or off.
F11 - Turns Object Snap Tracking on or off.
F12 - Turns Dynamic Input on or off.
Using a wheel mouse is by far the easiest and most efficient method of navigating your way around AutoCAD and for creating 3D solid models. The standard wheel mouse has left and right buttons and a central wheel that also doubles as a button. The default functions for the buttons and wheel are as follows.
Zooming and Panning with the Wheel.
Zoom
Rotate your Wheel forward to Zoom in.
Rotate your Wheel backward to Zoom out.
Pan
Press the Wheel and drag the mouse to move the drawing around the screen.
In addition to Zooming and Panning with the Wheel, you can also view the entire drawing by double clicking the Wheel. This is called Zoom Extents.
Application and Workspace Descriptions
A Workspace controls the display of Ribbons, Tabs, Menus, Toolbars and Palettes. There are 3 Workspaces to choose from: 2D Drafting & Annotation, 3D Basics and 3D Modeling. Throughout this Workbook you will be using the 2D Drafting & Annotation and 3D Modeling Workspaces.
The default Workspace is 2D Drafting & Annotation. A brief description of the Workspace elements are shown below. You will learn how to change Workspaces in Lesson
