Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
The Cheat Sheet at this topic's companion Web site (
www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/
autocad2012
) includes two tables that list the available drawing areas for a range of
sheet sizes and drawing scales. Those tables can help you decide on an appropriate pa-
per size and drawing scale; revert to the calculation method for situations that the
tables don't cover. If you don't keep a favorite old calculator on your physical desktop,
don't despair: AutoCAD 2012 has one lurking on the Ribbon. You'll find it on the Home
tab's Utilities panel (hint: It looks like a calculator). You speed demons can toggle Quick-
Calc off and on with the Ctrl+8 key combo!
When you select a sheet size and drawing scale, always leave some extra
room for the following two reasons:
Margin allowance:
Most plotters and printers can't print all the way to the edge of
the sheet — they require a small margin. For example, my trusty old Hewlett-Pack-
ard LaserJet 4050 has a printable area of about 8.0 x 10.7 inches on an 8.5 x 11-inch
ANSI A-size (letter-size) sheet. (You can find this information in the Plot dialog
box, as described in Chapter 16.) If you're a stickler for precision, you can use the
printable area instead of the physical sheet area in the calculations described
earlier in this section.
Annotations:
Most drawings require some annotations — text, dimensions, grid
bubbles, and so on — outside the objects you're drawing, plus a title block sur-
rounding the objects and annotations. If you don't leave some room for the an-
notations and title block, you'll end up having to cram things together too much
or change to a different sheet size. Either way, you'll be slowed down later in the
project, when you can least afford it.
Some industries deal with the sheet-is-too-small/drawing-scale-is-too-large
problem by breaking up drawings onto multiple plotted sheets. You might con-
sider doing the same.
Don't be afraid to start with
real
paper. Experienced drafters often make a
quick, throwaway pencil-and-paper sketch indicating the dimensions of the sheet
of paper they intend to plot on, a sketch of the title block, and a very rough,
