2011

Text fonts (files containing shape definitions for each character) require specific
numbers corresponding to the value of each character in the ASCII code; other
shapes can be assigned any numbers.
defbytes The number of data bytes (specbytes) required to describe the shape,
including the terminating 0. The limit is 2,000 bytes per shape.
shapename The shape name. Shape names must be uppercase to be
recognized. Names with lowercase characters are ignored and are usually used
to label font shape definitions.
specbyte A shape specification byte. Each specification byte is a code that
defines either a vector length and direction or one of a number of special
codes. A specification byte can be expressed in the shape definition file as
either a decimal or hexadecimal value. This section uses both decimal and
hexadecimal specification byte values for its examples (as do many of the
shape definition files). If the first character of a specification byte is a 0 (zero),
the two characters that follow are interpreted as hexadecimal values.
Quick Reference
Commands
LOAD
Makes shapes available for use by the SHAPE command.
SHAPE
Inserts a shape from a shape file that has been loaded using LOAD.
Vector Length and Direction Code
A simple shape specification byte contains vector length and direction encoded
into one specification byte.
A simple shape specification byte contains vector length and direction encoded
into one specification byte (one specbyte field). Each vector length and
direction code is a string of three characters. The first character must be a 0,
which indicates to AutoCAD for Mac that the next two characters are
interpreted as hexadecimal values. The second character specifies the length
of the vector in units. Valid hexadecimal values range from 1 (one unit long)
through F (15 units long). The third character specifies the direction of the
vector. The following figure illustrates the direction codes.
108 | Chapter 8 Shapes and Shape Fonts