AutoCAD is amongst the most widely used CAD systems in the world, with thousands of users on a regular basis. AutoCAD talents are in demand in a variety of sectors today, including architecture, engineering, and product design.
However, understanding this programme without doing an AutoCAD course may be really difficult—especially if you're a complete novice. There is a great deal that you need to learn about AutoCAD—commands, customization, and even the entire user experience.
Keeping this in mind we have put up a comprehensive blog here for newcomers to AutoCAD who haven’t done AutoCAD online course. You will get everything you need to understand the basics of AutoCAD. Let’s jump right in.
What Exactly is AutoCAD?
AutoCAD is amongst the most widely used CAD systems worldwide. It was published as Autodesk's flagship product in 1982.
It has gone through 31 iterations since its inception. Indeed, it has remained unquestionably one of Autodesk's most popular products.
AutoCAD is used to produce two-dimensional and three-dimensional drawings. It enables designers to develop their concepts, render them as drawings, and simulate them.
Simply said, the possibilities are virtually limitless using AutoCAD. AutoCAD is used by thousands of people worldwide in a variety of disciplines like:
- Architecture
- Engineering
- Animation
As a result, it's unsurprising that many people strive to become AutoCAD experts today. After all, developing AutoCAD abilities can open doors to a variety of vocations.
What are the advantages of AutoCAD?
The CAD interface distinguishes it as the finest technical design software for beginners to study in the early stages of a career in design. Here are some of the main benefits:
- It is capable of producing extremely precise designs.
- Drawings may be made in two dimensions or three dimensions.
- Additional computer programs can be used in conjunction with the design software.
- As an architectural planning tool, AutoCAD enables architects to design, plan, execute, and assess the structural integrity of a structure at the design stage.
- AutoCAD as a drafting tool assists engineers in designing, analysing, and resolving design difficulties, resulting in correct designs.
- It can be used in the field of 3D printing. A 3D print provides a number of advantages for designers, and this programme enables them to make use of them. The designs may be exported in a variety of popular file formats.
- AutoCAD is used in the fashion sector because it contains the capabilities essential for designing jewellery, toys, and other delicate things.
- AutoCAD as an industrial design tool. It contributes to cost savings in production by eliminating the time and effort necessary for the manual design.
Basics of AutoCAD
1. Commands 101
Newcomers to AutoCAD should learn about AutoCAD commands. You may initiate a process by typing a command or a command shortcut in the command line. This might assist you in expediting the entire writing process.
Rather than spending ten minutes navigating through AutoCAD icons with your computer mouse, you can simply type a quick command and hit enter.
Naturally, these instructions occasionally invoke AutoCAD questions, such as prompting you to give a point. Once you've mastered these instructions, you'll be able to make drawings in a fraction of the time it previously took.
There are hundreds of AutoCAD commands, which may appear intimidating at first. Certain commands support hotkey shortcuts, whereas others do not.
However, you need not be concerned about becoming disoriented—all it's part of the learning process. We'll begin with one-key shortcuts in AutoCAD. As the name implies, these shortcuts require just the usage of a single key. Take a closer look at Autodesk's infographic below:
2. Is It Better to Ribbon or is it Not to Ribbon?
Once you've mastered AutoCAD commands, you may find yourself relying less on the ribbon.
Many individuals agree with this statement, preferring a large amount of room for sketching. If this is the case, you may disable the ribbon and palettes by hitting CTRL+0—repeat the command to restore the default settings. Alternatively, you may use the CLEANSCREENON and CLEANSCREENOFF commands.
If you truly enjoy working with the ribbon, you may construct your own customised panel. You may then quickly access your most commonly used commands by populating this panel with them.
3. Customization
Customization is a critical component of AutoCAD that will elevate you from novice to expert.
While system administrators and CAD managers are frequently responsible for customization, senior drafters and skilled users are increasingly modifying AutoCAD themselves.
AutoLISP and VBA are two popular and adaptable technologies that enable users to customise their user interfaces in ways that are not possible with standard user interface modification choices. They enable users to:
- Enforce industry norms for sketching and CAD, and automate monotonous activities.
- Customize the workspace by changing the toolsets, ribbon tabs and panels, and palettes.
- Modify graphical objects, configure system variables, and interface with third-party software, among other things.
4. Command Aliases
After becoming acquainted with commands, you may like to create shortcuts for your favourite commands. These custom shortcuts are referred to as command aliases, and they are quite simple to construct.
Select 'Customize' from the pull-down menu, followed by 'Edit Program Parameters' (acad.PGP). Notepad may be used to open this file. Now all that remains is to modify the command aliases.
For instance, many AutoCAD users modify the COPY alias from CO to C—which necessitates the creation of a new alias for CIRCLE. You cannot have two aliases that are identical. Bear in mind that you'll need to establish some type of framework; else, things can become a little confusing. Once you've made your modifications, you must restart AutoCAD for them to take effect.
5. Drawing Templates
When you begin a new drawing in AutoCAD, a new template is created. Typically, AutoCAD comes with its own drawing template that it assigns to you automatically unless you develop your own. A template may have a number of parameters, for example:
- Drawing restrictions
- Layer structure
- Linetypes
Having these standards established prior to beginning can assist you in working efficiently and fast. Many businesses choose to use a drawing template to ensure that the staff adhere to the same standards when drafting AutoCAD designs.
To design your own templates, simply open a new drawing as normal. Once you have, start defining settings that you imagine you’d need in a typical drawing. After that save your drawing as a template.
Simply click 'Save As' or CTRL+SHIFT+S to accomplish this. Alternately, you may change the file type from DWG to DWT (AutoCAD Drawing Template). You will then be prompted to enter a description in a dialogue box—be sure to include sufficient data for future reference. After that, you may utilise the template to begin a new drawing.
6. Apps
Did you know that exchange apps allow you to customise AutoCAD? These apps are AutoCAD-approved add-ons. There are hundreds to select from, ranging from productivity tools to content creation tools.
They were developed by third-party developers for certain disciplines, so you're certain to discover something that piques your interest. Certain apps are free, while others are not. You shouldn't have any difficulty installing or downloading these apps.
Conclusion
Prior to this software, all engineers designed products using drafters and sheets. A designer spent an inordinate amount of time creating a product.
And if the completed product did not meet the customer's need or if the manufacturers discover any mistakes in the product after production, they needed to redesign it entirely, which was a time-consuming procedure.
This program is helped in resolving the aforementioned issues. We can store product design adjustments in this program; we can also update previously saved designs, which minimizes the time required to develop a product.
Additionally, it minimised human labour. No wonder AutoCAD is in such high demand today. The average salary of an AutoCAD user is Rs. 297669. This figure is set to increase in the coming years.
Anyone starting their career as an AutoCAD expert will have a bright future as the demand for AutoCAD experts will rise in the coming years.