Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 2.26
Accessing dimension settings
Each dimension style is a system family, and you can create types within
that family in the same way that text types are created. Dimension styles
have more parameters than text, however. Many of these parameters are
for controlling how the graphics of the dimension will display. One of the
key parameters in determining a dimension family type is the Dimension
String Type parameter. This defines how the dimension will behave when a
string of dimensions is placed. You have options for creating a continuous,
baseline, or ordinate dimension string. If you use all or some of these types,
you will need to create a separate dimension type for each one.
The Tick Mark parameter determines which arrowhead style is used. When
editing this parameter, a drop-down list indicates all the arrowhead styles
defined in the file. The line weight of the dimension can be controlled
independently from the line weight of the tick mark by setting the
parameters for each. The line weight for tick marks in dimensions should
match the line weight for leader arrowheads in your text types for
consistency. Because of their relatively small size, using a heavy line weight
maycauseyourarrowheads tolooklikeblobs,sochoosewisely. TheInterior
Tick Mark parameter is available only when you have set the dimension tick
mark to an arrow type. This determines the style of arrowhead to be used
when adjacent dimension lines are too close together to fit the default tick
marks.
Other parameters control the lengths of witness line components and gaps
and also the text used in the dimension style. Some of the settings for
text within a dimension style are the same as those in a text style, such as
font and text height. The Read Convention parameter allows you to set the
direction in which the text will be read for vertically oriented dimensions.
