ʹͲͳ Keep moving forward with the new features in Autodesk® AutoCAD® 2017 software. Create stunning designs and improve collaboration with innovative productivity tools. Manage all of your software updates with ease using the Autodesk® desktop app. With just two clicks, you can share your drawing views with collaborators by publishing them to the cloud.
Table of contents Simplified ...................................................................................................................................................... 3 License Manager ....................................................................................................................................... 3 User interface............................................................................................................................................
Simplified License Manager AutoCAD 2017 introduces a new License Manager, making it easier to change between license types and save your work when a network license loses connection with the License Manager. You no longer choose your license type and enter a serial number during the install process. Instead, you select it when you first launch AutoCAD. You choose between a serial number (stand-alone) and a network license.
If you are using a network license and you lose your connection to the license server, a message is displayed indicating that the connection was lost. In the message, you can choose to have AutoCAD save your drawings and then shut down, or while time is still available, you can go back to AutoCAD to manually save your work. The timer to automatically shut down AutoCAD doesn’t start until you dismiss the message.
Insert – Access the Insert dialog box from the Insert panel of the Insert ribbon tab. When you click Insert, the Gallery view displays the available blocks by default. To display the Insert dialog box, you can click More Options or set GALLERYVIEW to 0 (off). The Insert dialog box is enlarged and reorganized to display a larger preview image and more characters in the Name field. You can resize the Insert dialog box to display larger preview images. The Name field now supports AutoComplete.
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Page Setup Manager – Access the Page Setup Manager by right-clicking a layout tab. You can increase the height of the Page Setup Manager in addition to the width to display more page setups at one time. Object Grouping – Access the Object Grouping dialog box from the Group panel of the Home ribbon tab.
The height of the Object Grouping dialog box is increased. It now displays 17 groups at one time, compared to 11 groups in previous releases.
Layer States Manager – Access the Layer States Manager from the Layers panel of the Home ribbon tab. You can increase the size of the Layer States Manager to display more layer state information at one time.
Edit Attributes – Access the Edit Attributes dialog box with the ATTEDIT command. The height of the Edit Attributes dialog box is increased. It now displays 15 attributes at one time, compared to 8 attributes in previous releases.
Enhanced Attribute Editor – Access the Enhanced Attribute Editor from the Block panel of the Insert ribbon tab. You can increase the size of the Enhanced Attribute Editor to increase the widths of the panels and fields, and the list of attributes visible at one time.
Move or Copy – Access the Move or Copy dialog box by right-clicking a layout tab. Resize the Move or Copy dialog box to display longer names and more layouts in the layout list.
Drawing Properties – Access Drawing Properties from the Drawing Utilities list in the Application menu.
You can resize the Drawing Properties dialog box to display wider fields, more comment text, and more properties at a time. Column sizing is now remembered on the Custom tab. Security Options – Access Security Options from the System tab of the Options dialog box. The display of Trusted Paths is updated. AutoCAD now trusts any files and folders under Program Files, which is under the operating system’s UAC protection.
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Load/Unload Applications – Access the Load/Unload Applications dialog box from the Applications panel of the Manage ribbon tab. You can resize the Load/Unload Applications dialog box to enable you to see more information and files without scrolling. Resizing occurs equally between the folder browser window and the Loaded Applications/History list windows.
Open VBA Project – Access the Open VBA Project dialog box from the Load Project tool on the Manage ribbon tab. If you have not already done so, you must first install Microsoft® Visual Basic® for Applications (VBA) software. It is not installed by default. For more information, visit http://www.autodesk.com/vba-download. You can resize the Open VBA Project dialog box to display additional information.
Drawing Units – The Drawing Units dialog box is updated to include US Survey Feet in the list of insertion units.
ToolTip enhancements A new control on the Display tab of the Options dialog box enables you to specify the number of seconds to delay the display of rollover tooltips when passing the cursor over a UI element. You can take advantage of tooltips when you really need them without the distraction of displaying them when you don’t. Delete key A message displays if you try to delete selected objects using the Delete key when the PICKFIRST system variable is set to zero.
You can avoid displaying the message in the future by selecting the option to always perform your current choice. Doing so adds the Delete key message to the Hidden Message Settings, which you can access from the System tab of the Options dialog box. Hatch layer The HPLAYER system variable has been expanded to enable you to specify a non-existing layer and set it as default for new hatches and fills.
Associative centerlines and center marks AutoCAD 2017 offers powerful new tools for creating and editing centerlines and center marks. You can access the Center Mark and Centerline tools from the Annotate ribbon tab. The Centerline tool creates centerline geometry of a specified linetype in association with selected lines and polylines. The Center Mark tool creates an associative center mark at the center of a selected circle, arc, or polygonal arc.
CENTERLTSCALE – Sets the linetype scale used by centerlines and center marks. CENTERCROSSSIZE – Determines the size of the central cross for center marks. CENTERCROSSGAP – Determines the extension line gap between the central cross and the extension lines of center marks. You can modify centerlines and center marks with their grips. A multifunctional grip menu offers additional controls. You can use the Properties palette to view and edit centerline and center mark properties.
Personalized Smooth migration The new Migrate Custom Settings tool offers a modern and informative interface for migrating your custom settings and files from a previous release to AutoCAD 2017. It detects and clearly identifies customized settings, enabling you to choose which ones you wish to migrate. The summary report created from the migration is redesigned to offer more information in an easier-toread format.
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Autodesk desktop app One of the first changes you may notice when installing AutoCAD 2017 is the new Autodesk desktop app window, which is automatically displayed after the install is complete. An Autodesk desktop app shortcut is also installed on the window’s desktop and taskbar for easy access later. Autodesk desktop app does not require sign-in. However, it provides the most value when you’re signed in. If you do not yet have an Autodesk account, you can create one.
Autodesk desktop app is a companion application that delivers security patches and updates for all 2015, 2016, and 2017 versions of Microsoft® Windows®-based Autodesk® products. It also delivers relevant learning content. Autodesk desktop app replaces Autodesk Application Manager (AAM) and like AAM, Autodesk desktop app supplements (and in some products replaces) in-product notifications of updates.
Connected Importing PDF files PDF files are a common way of publishing and sharing design data for review and markup. AutoCAD currently supports creating PDF files as a publishing output for AutoCAD drawings. PDF files can be attached to drawings, which can be used as a reference when collaborating on projects. In AutoCAD 2017, you can import the geometry, TrueType text, and raster images from a specified page in a PDF file, or from all or part of an attached PDF underlay.
After a PDF file type is selected, the Import PDF dialog is displayed and enables you to: • • • • • Choose which page from the selected PDF file to import Specify the scale, rotation, and insertion point of the imported geometry Control what type of data is imported from the PDF (Geometry, Solid fills, Text, and Raster objects) Control how layers are assigned to imported objects Set different post-processing options for imported geometry Raster images are extracted as .
The Options button at the bottom of the Import PDF dialog box opens the Files tab in the Options dialog box. Here you can specify the file location for image files that are extracted from the PDF and attached to the drawing. Paths can be absolute or relative to the location of PDF file being imported. The PDF file format doesn’t recognize SHX text. When drawings with SHX fonts are plotted to PDF, the PDF stores that data as geometry (not text), so the SHX text is imported as geometry.
PDFIMPORT/-PDFIMPORT command The new PDFIMPORT command (–PDFIMPORT for command line access) offers an alternate way for you to import PDF geometry into the current drawing. The initial options provide a choice either to select an attached PDF underlay, or to specify a PDF file. If you choose the File option, the Import PDF dialog box is displayed, just as when you use the IMPORT command.
A360 The A360 ribbon tab is updated to support new functionality and remove obsolete and less frequently used tools. The AutoCAD Online ribbon panel and the two tools that were in it have been removed from the A360 ribbon. The AutoCAD® 360 web tool is no longer needed because you can edit online drawings via AutoCAD 360 by opening A360 Drive. The Design Feed is no longer displayed by default and the tool is removed from the A360 ribbon. However, you can still access it with the DESIGNFEEDOPEN command.
If you choose the option to display in your browser now, AutoCAD uploads the drawing file (and its references) to an OSS storage location on the cloud for processing and launches your browser. You can see the status in the A360 viewer as the file is being prepared for viewing. The processing time will vary depending on the size and complexity of the drawing, internet speed, and backlogged queues for processing. When processing is complete, the design views are displayed in the viewer in your browser.
From the viewer, you can navigate the design, measure, display object properties, turn layers on and off, and so on. If you are satisfied with the design view, you can share a link to the design view with other users by emailing, messaging, or posting it somewhere the recipient has access. Users who receive and click on the link will be able to see the design view in their browser for up to 30 days without any logon requirements.
3D printing AutoCAD 2017 offers two methods for sending your 3D models to a 3D printer. You can choose the option to Send to 3D Print Service, which launches the 3DPRINTSERVICE command (formerly 3DPRINT). Or, you can choose the Print Studio option, which now launches the 3DPRINT command. Both of these tools are available on the Output ribbon tab when the 3D Modeling workspace is active, as well as from the Application menu.
After clicking OK, you are prompted to save the output file to STL format that you can then send to a 3D Print Service, or you are taken to Print Studio—depending on which method you originally chose. Print Studio is a separate application that ships with AutoCAD 2017 but is not installed by default. If Print Studio was not previously installed, you are offered the opportunity to install it.
Coordination model object snap Coordination model functionality has been enhanced in AutoCAD 2017 to enable you to snap to precise locations on an attached coordination model using the standard 2D endpoint and center object snaps. Attach an Autodesk® Navisworks® coordination model from the Attach tool on the Insert ribbon tab and then access endpoint and center object snaps using typical methods.
In previous releases of AutoCAD, lines with DOT linetypes could be difficult to see even with lineweights applied. AutoCAD 2017 supports the lineweight display of DOT linetypes, as shown. In addition, linetypes with dash and dot combinations display round dots, unlike previous releases that represented dots with very short dashes. This also results in a more accurate display of selection highlighting.
2D performance Performance for 2D graphics is improved in AutoCAD 2017 by taking advantage of the graphics processing unit (GPU) that is present in many modern display adapters. This has been done in two ways. First, linetypes that include only dashes and dots are now generated by the GPU, rather than relying on the CPU to create the individual parts. Second, graphics are now cached (retained) in GPU memory, which can make pan and zoom operations significantly faster.
