Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 4-8:
Saving a drawing as a template and applying options.
3. Navigate to the folder where you want to store the drawing template.
The AutoCAD 2012 default folder for drawing templates is buried deep in the
bowels of your Windows user profile. Save your templates there if you want them to
appear in AutoCAD's Select Template list. You can save your templates in another
folder, but if you want to use them later, you have to navigate to that folder every
time you want to use them. See the Technical Stuff paragraph that follows this pro-
cedure for additional suggestions.
4. Enter a name for the drawing template in the File Name text box and click Save.
A dialog box for the template description and units appears.
5. Specify the template's measurement units (English or Metric) in the drop-down
list.
Enter the key info now — you can't do it later unless you save the template to a dif-
ferent name. Don't bother filling in the Description field; AutoCAD doesn't display it
in the Select Template dialog box. Don't worry about the New Layer Notification
area shown in Figure 4-8 for now; I tell you all about drawing layers in Chapter 6.
6. Click OK to save the file.
The Template Options dialog box closes and the template is saved to your hard
drive.
7. To save your drawing as a regular drawing, click Save As on the Quick Access
Toolbar.
The Save Drawing As dialog box appears again.
8. From the Files of Type drop-down list, choose AutoCAD 2010 Drawing (*.dwg).
Choose the AutoCAD LT equivalent, if that's your version. AutoCAD 2012 uses the
AutoCAD 2010 DWG file format. Choose a previous DWG file format if you want to be
able to open your drawing in AutoCAD 2009 or earlier.
9. Navigate to the folder where you want to store the drawing.
