Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Paper Size
You can select a paper size from the Paper Size pop-up menu. These sizes are derived from the
sizes available from your currently selected system printer. You'll find out how to select a differ-
ent printer later in this chapter.
AutoCAD offers sheet sizes in both Imperial and metric measurements in the Paper Size
pop-up menu.
Drawing Orientation
When you used the Preview button in the first exercise in this chapter, you saw your drawing as
it would be placed on the paper. In that example, it was placed in a
landscape orientation
, which
places the image on the paper so that the width of the paper is greater than its height. You can
rotate the image on the paper 90° into a
portrait orientation
by clicking the Portrait button. There
is one more option, Plot Upside Down, which will be covered in the section “The Advanced
Printing Options” later in this chapter. It lets you change the orientation further by turning the
landscape or portrait orientation upside down. These three settings let you print the image in
any one of four orientations on the sheet.
In AutoCAD, the preview displays the paper in the orientation it's in when it leaves the
printer. For most small-format printers, if you're printing in the portrait orientation, the image
appears in the same orientation you see when you're editing the drawing. If you're using the
landscape orientation, the preview image is turned sideways. For large-format plotters, the pre-
view may be oriented in the opposite direction. The graphic in the Orientation group displays a
graphic on a sheet showing the orientation of your drawing on the paper output.
Plot Area
The What To Print pop-up menu lets you specify which part of your drawing you want to print.
You may notice some similarities between these settings and the Zoom command options. The
Print pop-up options are described next. Most of these options are used only in a model view.
Typically, when printing from a layout view, you'll use the Layout option. You will learn about
this in the Setting Print Scale in the Layout viewports section later this chapter.
