Datasheet

Part I: AutoCAD 101

supported, it can also run in Windows XP Tablet 2005 Edition and make use

of the tablet functionality included in Windows Vista (again, except for the

Home Basic edition). Trying to do production drafting on a tablet isn’t a great

idea due to limitations in the graphics system, but I know it works, because

I’m running it that way myself!

Because of AutoCAD’s MS-DOS heritage and its emphasis on efficiency for

production drafters, it’s not the easiest program to master, but it has gotten

easier and more consistent over the past decade or so. AutoCAD is pretty

well integrated into the Windows environment now, but you still bump into

some vestiges of its MS-DOS legacy — especially the command line (that

text area lurking at the bottom of the AutoCAD screen — see Chapter 2 for

details). But even the command line — oops! command window — is kinder

and gentler in AutoCAD 2010. This book guides you around the bumps and

minimizes the bruises.

Why AutoCAD?

AutoCAD has been around a long time — since 1982, which I suspect, dear

readers, is longer than some of you! AutoCAD ushered in the transition from

really expensive mainframe and minicomputer CAD systems costing tens of

thousands of dollars to merely somewhat expensive microcomputer CAD pro-

grams costing a few thousand dollars.

AutoCAD is, first and foremost, a program for creating technical drawings:

drawings in which measurements and precision are important because these

kinds of drawings often get used to build something. The drawings you create

with AutoCAD must adhere to standards established long ago for hand-

drafted drawings. The up-front investment to use AutoCAD is certainly more

expensive than the investment needed to use pencil and paper, and the learn-

ing curve is much steeper, too. So why bother? The key reasons for using

AutoCAD rather than pencil and paper are

✓ Precision: Creating lines, circles, and other shapes of the exact dimen-

sions is easier with AutoCAD than with pencils.

✓ Modifiability: Drawings are much easier to modify on the computer

screen than on paper. CAD modifications are a lot cleaner, too.

✓ Efficiency: Creating many kinds of drawings is faster with a CAD

program — especially drawings that involve repetition, such as floor

plans in a multistory building. But that efficiency takes skill and practice.

If you’re an accomplished pencil-and-paper drafter, don’t expect CAD to

be faster at first!

Figure 1-1 shows several kinds of drawings in AutoCAD 2010.

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