2012

■ Run external programs and utilities from within AutoCAD. You can, for
example, copy a disk or delete a file from within AutoCAD by adding the
appropriate external command to the program parameters (PGP) file,
acad.pgp.
■ Define command aliases. You can define simple abbreviations, or aliases,
for frequently used commands from within AutoCAD by adding the
command to the PGP file acad.pgp. For example, you might want to start
the BLOCK command by entering b.
■ Create custom linetypes, hatch patterns, shapes, and text fonts. You can
create linetypes, hatch patterns, shapes, and text fonts that conform to
your company standards and working methods.
■ Customize the user interface. The CUIx file controls many aspects of the
user interface, including the behavior of your pointing device buttons and
the functionality and appearance of pull-down, tablet, and image tile
menus, toolbars, and accelerator keys. You can edit or create a CUIx file
to add commands or combine commands and assign them to a menu,
toolbar, or other location.
■ Customize the status line. You can use the DIESEL string expression
language and the MODEMACRO system variable to provide additional
information at the status line, such as the date and time, system variable
settings, or retrievable information using AutoLISP
®
.
■ Automate repetitive tasks by writing scripts. A script is an ASCII text file
containing commands that are processed like a batch file when you run
the script. For example, if a set of drawings needs to be plotted a certain
way, you can write a script that opens each drawing, hides and displays
various layers, and issues PLOT commands.
You can use scripts with slides to create automated presentations like those
used at trade shows. A slide is a “snapshot” of the drawing area that cannot
be edited. Slides can also be used in image tile menus and dialog boxes.
■ Record action macros. Action macros are files that contain a series of
commands and command options that allow you to perform repetitive
tasks. Action macros are created using the Action recorder and are similar
in concept to script files. Unlike some of the other methods of customizing
AutoCAD, you do not need to learn a special syntax or programming
language to record action macros.
In addition to the methods described in the Customization Guide, there are
application programming interfaces (APIs) available for customizing AutoCAD.
2 | Chapter 1 Basic Customization