Blocks

Partially hiding blocks..

IntelliCAD provides the XCLIP tool which can also be used to partially hide a portion of a block

Proceed as follows for the same.

1. Type XCLIP at the command bar and press enter.

2. Select the block to be hidden.

3. Select the appropriate clipping boundary.

4. Specify the clipping boundary around the portion that needs to be seen.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support  

 Restoring original entities of a block..

In IntelliCAD when you create a block, the entities ( selected for the block) are removed from the display, as they are now a part of the block.

In order to restore the original entities while retaining the new block, type UNDELETE or OOPS at the command bar and press enter.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Command Line

One can use any word or symbol that would indicate him/her that IntelliCAD is ready for a command. By default, IntelliCAD displays a colon unlike ACAD which displays "COMMAND" with a colon in front of it. You might prefer something else say like Enter or Ready instead.

To change what appears in the command bar, type CMDLNTEXT and enter a new word or a symbol.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Dimension Styles

Awaiting Tips !

Drawing Functions

2D Tip: Trimming an Ellipse in IntelliCAD

You cannot directly trim an ellipse. But you can trim ellipses created as polylines.
Just turn the PELLIPSE system variable "ON", and the ellipses you create will be polylines. You can now trim them.

 This tip was contributed by. CADopia Support

Creating freehand sketches as polylines

A freehand sketch consists of many straight line segments, created either as individual line entities or as a polyline. Before you begin creating a freehand sketch, you must set the length, or increment, of each segment. The smaller the segments, the more accurate your sketch, but segments that are too small can greatly increase the file size.

SKPOLY system variable, when set to "On", will generate the free hand sketches as polylines. This was a bug in the earlier version i.e. ICAD 2000 but has been rectified in the new version ICAD 2001.

 This tip was contributed by. CADopia Support.

Routine for moving objects to the front replacement for draworder

(defun C:FL ()
(princ "\nSelect Objects to Float ...")
(setq sset (ssget))
(if sset
(progn
(command "_.COPY" sset "" "0,0,0" "@")
(command "_.ERASE" sset "")
)
)
(princ)
)

This routine is superior to AutoCAD's draworder command, cause it ALWAYS
works, no matter what the entity type is!

 This tip was contributed by. K. Anderson of UC Davis.

Fast Zoom

Just use standard IntelliCAD ZOOM.
Type Z [ENTER]
Pick Your Window (lower left + upper right)

....and there it its.

 This tip was contributed by. JLi

Follow Option:

When one is drawing lines, arcs and polylines, he can use the "Follow" option to continue drawing from the last point and in the same direction.

This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Toggle Ortho

One of the option is the pressing the function key F8. When you press F8 the Ortho toggles between the ON/OFF mode.

Also, another trick when you need Ortho instead of hitting the "F8" key to toggle it on and off, is to push and hold your "SHIFT" key, when you draw a line etc. This will put you in Ortho mode temporarily. Once you release the "SHIFT" key you will be out of the Ortho mode.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Suppor

Environment

Customizing Angular measurements......

IntelliCAD allows you to set the way angles are measured.

It also allows you to change the base angle (reference from where angle measurement starts)

Follow these steps to change the settings.

1. Type "UN" at the command bar and press enter to get the UNITS dialog box.

2. Under "change settings for" select ANGULAR UNITS.

3. Set the angle direction as required(clockwise/anti-clock wise) by clicking on the appropriate radio button.

4. The default base angle is zero (as on a standard graph paper), you may change this to the required value under "angle base". Finally click on the OK tab.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support 

Crosshair settings in IntelliCAD...

IntelliCAD allows you to customize the crosshair settings as required. The following options can be set.

Firstly to change the settings, type PR at the command bar and press ENTER to get the OPTIONS dialog box. In it, click on the CROSSHAIR tab to get the crosshair settings.

1. Changing the AXIS color: Click on the color tab corrresponding to each axis to set the preferred color.

2. Cursor size: The cursor size can be specified as a percentage value. For the crosshair to fill the screen, specify a value of 100.

3. Continuous display of crosshair: To keep the crosshair active even when no command is invoked, check the option " Pointer defaults to crosshair ".

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support 

Restoring default settings....

IntelliCAD allows you to customize menus, toolbars, shortcuts and aliases.

If you need to revert back to the original settings or if you want to undo the changes that you have done to the above items, do the following.

 1. Go to TOOLS > Customize

 2. Click on the MENUS tab and then click on the Reset tab at the bottom of the dialog box, to restore the default settings.

 3. Follow step 2 for each of the other areas (toolbars e.t.c).

 4. When done click on the CLOSE tab.

This operation is also suggested if you notice any commands or menus functioning differently than usual.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

VIEWRES

This controls the precision and speed of drawing circles and arcs on the screen.

When you use fast zooms, the ZOOM, PAN, and VIEW Restore commands are performed quickly because the viewport is simply redrawn, rather than regenerated. When you do not use fast zooms, the ZOOM, PAN, and VIEW Restore commands regenerate the viewport.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Viewing length and included angle of arcs

In IntelliCAD the LENGTHEN command may be used to get the current length and included angle of an arc.

Proceed as follows.

1. Type LENGTHEN at the command bar and press ENTER.

2. At the next prompt select the arc whose length and included angle needs to be displayed.

3. Note, the measured values are displayed at the command bar.

4. Press the ESC key to exit the command.

 In general this command can be used with circles and lines as well, to get the circumference and length respectively.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Filing

The purge command cleans the drawing file of unused drawing elements. You can use Purge to remove blocks, layers, linetypes, text styles, or dimension styles that you have defined but are not using in the drawing.

Purging can significantly reduce the drawing file size. This may be of great advantage.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Hatch Patterns

Awaiting Tips !

Layers

Setting Layer by Entity

This is a very useful option provided by IntelliCAD.

This feature allows you to set the layer of the entity you select, as the current layer.

Follow the procedure below for the same....

1. Choose SETTINGS (menu) > Set layer by entity or type "setlayer" at the command bar.

2. At the next prompt, select the entity whose layer you wish to set as current.

This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Line Types

Awaiting Tips !

This tip was contributed by

Menu System

Inquiry Toolbar

You can find distances, areas and exact locations in the drawing using tools on the Inquiry Toolbar.

Go to View > Toolbars > Select Inquiry and click "OK"
or
Go to Tools > Inquiry ..

Some of the tools are as follows:

Distance - Measures the distance and angle between a first point and a second point

Area - Calculates the area of entities or defined areas.

ID - Displays the UCS coordinates of a specified point.

List - Display information about selected entities. The information varies, depending on the type of entities you select.

Timer - Displays the current date and time and the creation and update dates and times of the current drawing. You can turn the elapsed timer on or off.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

IntelliCAD Explorer

One of the key features of IntelliCAD is the IntelliCAD Explorer.

Open two drawings. One a complex one containing many layer definitions, blocks, layers, etc. and a second drawing that is a blank, new drawing.

From the IntelliCAD Explorer, you can cut, copy, paste layer definitions, views, linetypes, UCSs, and blocks between the drawings, saving precious time.

You may also preview the blocks in the drawing graphically.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Centre Mouse Wheel Configuration

MWHEELUP :-

Stores a menu macro defining what command the program will activate when you roll the mouse wheel up.

MWHEELDN :-
Stores a menu macro defining what command the program will activate when you roll the mouse wheel down.

If your mouse has a centre wheel you can specify what it does. by default it zooms in and zooms out. When the scrollbars are turned on, it also pans up and pans down.

To change the action of the centre wheel, type the system variables, MWHEELUP and MWHEELDN, press Enter and then type in the new command.

Note: Please ensure that you have installed the mouse driver. After you have done so, in the button assignments set the 2nd button to "Middle" button.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Prompt Box Location

To change where prompt boxes appear on the screen, move one to a different location. Future prompt boxes will display in the new position.

You can also turn prompt boxes off. From the Tools menu, choose options, click the Display tab, and then clear the Display Prompt boxes check box.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

More Zoom Tips

Dynamic Zooming: Ctrl+Shift+Left click and drag.
Dynamic Panning: Ctrl+Shift+Right click and drag.
Dynamic Rotation: Ctrl+CapsLock+Right click and drag.
Dynamic Real-time Sphere: Ctrl+CapsLock+Left click and drag.
For continuous motion go to Tools-> Options-> Move to the Display tab. Tick the "Enable continuous Inertial motion in Real-time" check box.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Controlling Scroll Bars

Scrolling lets you move around in the drawing horizontally and vertically. Panning lets you move the drawing in any direction.

To turn scroll bars on or off
Do one of the following:

Choose View > Scroll Bars.
Type scrollbar, press Enter, and then select On, Off, or Toggle.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Status bar

You can change the current layer, color, linetype and the other options by just double-clicking the item in the status bar at the bottom of the window.

Some other options include the control over Snap, Grid, Ortho, Enap setting, Tilemode etc..

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Modify Functions

Using the Break Command

When using the "Break" command to break a circle, imagine an arc will replace the circle, drawn counter clock-wise from the second break point to the first break point.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Edit Stacked Fractions

IntelliCAD allows you to edit stacked fractions as follows.

1. Say, you want to modify the dimension text 2 1/2 to 3 1/2.

2. Select the dimension to be modified (2 1/2), right click and select PROPERTIES to get the properties dialog box.

3. In it, enter the new value for the dimension text as shown below under the section "dimension text". Be careful to use the same format as seen below.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Multiple Entity Editiing 

This feature allows you to select multiple entities and edit them at a time as follows.

1. Select the entities you want to change using a crossing window. 

2. Right click and select "PROPERTIES" from the shortcut menu.

3. Following this you get the Properties dialog box in which you may make the changes as required.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Multiple Document Interface

ntelliCAD supports the Multiple document interface feature allowing you to open and work on more than one drawing at a time without using more memory.

This offers the following advantages.. 

1. You can view two or more drawings side by side.

2. You can copy and move entities from one file to another.

3. When more than one drawing is open, the IntelliCAD Explorer proves helpful to copy elements like layers, linetypes, and text styles from one drawing to another.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Changing properties of an entity

To change the properties of an entity say it's layer, linetype, thickness etc. just double click it. On double clicking the "Entity Properties" dialog box is brought up where a user can assign the changes and then apply it by clicking the "OK" button.

Also, you can do the same thing by clicking on a entity to select it and then right clicking on it. Following this a pop-menu menu is brought up where one should select the "Properties" option.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Text Mirrors when an area is Mirrored

Type Mirrtext at the command line press [Enter],  then Type o (Zero) and press [Enter] to turn off text Mirroring

 This tip was contributed by Alan James Wooldridge of cadalot.co.uk.

How Do I Break an Entity at the same point?

You may use the BREAK command, to break an entity into two separate entities as follows.

    1. At the prompt for the first break point, specify the point at which you want the entity to be broken.

    2. At the prompt for the second break point, type @ at the command bar.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Printing

Create a .pcp file.
Printer configuration files store the printer information you create for specific drawings, which eliminates the need to completely reconfigure your print settings each time you print a drawing. IntelliCAD supports the plot configuration (PCP) file format used by Autodesk AutoCAD.This feature makes it possible to use existing PCP files saved in AutoCAD, as well as to save your IntelliCAD print configuration settings to PCP format.

Follow the procedure given below to open or save a PCP file.

1. Choose File > Print.

2. Type print and then press Enter.
From the Print dialog box, click the Advanced tab.

3. Under Configuration File, click Open to read in a saved PCP file, or click Save to save the current print configuration settings to a new PCP file.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Print to File

- From the Windows Start menu, choose Settings > Printers.
- The Printers window lists all the printers that are set up for your computer.
Select the printer whose print driver you want to use.
- This selection is important, because even though you will not be printing to this printer, you will be using its print driver. The print driver determines things like fonts and available page sizes, so choose one that is appropriate for what you are printing.
Do one of the following:
- Choose File > Properties.
- Right-click the printer and choose Properties.
- Double-click the printer name and choose Printer > Properties.
- Click the Details tab.
- From the Print To The Following Port list, select FILE and choose OK.
The next time you print to this printer you will be prompted for a file name.
Specify the file name and the location.
- The active drawing prints the file you specify using the selected print driver.

Most of the time a .plt and a .prn are just extensions given to the hpgl data that would normally be sent to a pen plotter. Just writing a(hpgl) plot to a file with that extension should be enough.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Saving Print and Display time.........

Using Quick Text.....

This is a useful feature for saving considerable amount of display and print time.

When Quick Text is enabled, text entities are replaced by rectangular boxes representing the boundary of the text.

While taking a test plot it is always advisable to enable quick text to speed up the printing process.

Steps for enabling quick text.

1. Click on SETTINGS (menu) > Drawing Settings.

2. Click the display tab.

3. Under "Change settings for" select display.

4. Check the box "Enable quick text.

5. Finally click on the OK tab

Note:

When you turn 'quick text" on or off, always regenerate the drawing to apply the new changes.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Scripts

Using Scripts:

You can record command bar entries and mouse coordinate selections in a script file, which one can play back later. Doing this is handy for avoiding repetitive work. Scripts are saved in files with the extension .scr.

From the Tools menu choose Record Script. When you have finished, choose Stop Recording.

When you run the script, the program carries out the recorded commands in succession.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Toolbars

Several toolbars include flyout toolbars with related commands and options.

Flyout toolbars are indicated by small, black triangle in the lower right corner of the tool.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Removing Tools from your Toolbars

There may be some Tools on your Toolbars that are rarely used. IntelliCAD allows you to empty your toolbar of such tools........

You can remove from your toolbars tools that you rarely use. Press the shift key and move the tool that you want to remove, away from the toolbar.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Loading a linetype using a toolbar.....

IntelliCAD allows you to customize ferquently used commands.

Let us explore an example below, that allows you to load and set a particular linetype as current, using a toolbar.

To customize a tool go to TOOLS > Customize and click on the Toolbars tab.

In it click on custom tools to select a tool (icon) to customize by dragging it on screen.

To activate this tool to perform the desired function you need to specify three fields.

1. Tool tip: gives an idea of the command (specify as required).

2. Help String: contents typed here appear in the status bar (specify as required).

3. Command: Specify the command line. Say, you want to load the "center" line as well as set it as current. The command line would contain the following.

^C^C^C_linetype;load;center;icad.lin;set;center;;

4. Finally click on the CLOSE tab.

You may create more such tools for different linetypes, adding them to the above created tool. Follow the same procedure for all the linetypes.

  This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Function Keys

In the IntelliCAD the Function keys such as F1, F2....etc. are assigned the following functions:
F1 - This key displays HELP.
F2 - This key displays the history of the most recent commands and prompts issued since

         you started the current session.
F3 - This key switches the COMMAND BAR on or off.
F4 - This key controls tablet configuration for tool selection and calibration for digitizer input.
F5 - This key toggles the ISOMETRIC PLANE between left, right, and top.
F6 - This key switches COORDS on or off.
F7 - This key switches GRIDMODE on or off.
F8 - This key switches ORTHOMODE on or off.
F9 - This key switches SNAPMODE on or off.
F10 - This key switches the STATUS BAR on or off.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

ICAD.lsp

Any Lisp function placed in the ICAD.lsp is automatically loaded each time you start ICAD 2001.

This file does not exist by default. If you do not have an ICAD.lsp file, create one in NOTEPAD and type in it the functions you want to load automatically each time you start ICAD 2001. Save it as ICAD.lsp in the folder where the ICAD.exe application file resides which is C:\Program Files\CADopia\IntelliCAD 2001.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Toolbar Customization for outside commands..

Many a times the user wants to use his own customized commands which he /she may have created using Lisp from the Toolbar. You can customized ICAD to work in this manner.

Please follow the instructions given below

1) Firstly, automatically load the Lisp routine each time you run ICAD. Write a load function in your ICAD.lsp file.

e.g. (Load "Path\ABC.lsp")
where ABC.lsp is your Lisp routine

2) In your Lisp routine....remove the option for command reference...
e.g.
Instead of
(defun C:XYZ()
_____
);defun

write function statements like .....
(defun XYZ()
________
);defun

3) Go to Tools > Customize > Toolbars and click on the "Customize Tools" in the Categories List box. By default ICAD gives you the option of 7 different buttons. Click on of the buttons and drag it on to your desktop.
Following this you can add your own "Tooltip" and "Helpstring" for your new button.

(Note: - A tooltip will be displayed in a yellow rectangle when you take your mouse pointer over your button. While the Helpstring is displayed in the Statusbar when you take your mouse pointer over your button.)

In the third box entitled "Command" add the following code
^C^C^C(XYZ)
where XYZ is the function which you have created inside the Lisp routine.

In this manner you can access your own commands from these customized toolbars.

Try it out!

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Toolbar Customization

You can remove from your toolbars tools that you rarely use. Press the SHIFT key and drag the tool away from the toolbar.
For more toolbar customization options or to replace tools you have removed, go to TOOLS > CUSTOMIZE > Toolbars.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Word

Awaiting Tips !

X-Refs

Visretain

Turns on and off the visibility of layers in external reference files.

To turn this variable on or off, type VISRETAIN in the command bar, and then type 1 to turn on visibility of layers in external reference files or 0 to turn it off.

You can also choose Tools > IntelliCAD Explorer and from the Elements list, select Layers for the drawing you want to modify.

Then choose View > Xref Layer Visibility.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Other Stuff

Experience level

You can control which menus and tools are available by setting the experience level. During installation, the default setting is for the Intermediate experience level. You can choose from the following experience levels:

Beginner: Menus and toolbars display only basic commands.

Intermediate: Menus and toolbars display most two-dimensional entity creation and modification commands.

Advanced: Menus and toolbars display all available commands.

To set the experience level
Do one of the following:
Choose Tools > Options.
Click the General tab.
Under Experience level, select Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced.
When you have finished, click OK.

 This tip was contributed by CADopia Support

Mucky Balls

If your cursor no longer moves smoothly across the screen (e.g., as you move the mouse, the cursor hangs briefly and then shoots across the screen), then you probably need to clean your mouse's innards. Fortunately, the procedure isn't as disgusting as it sounds.

Many books tell you to clean the mouse ball, but the problem usually results from dirty mouse ball rollers. Here's how to clean them:-

1. Turn the mouse over and remove the little cover that keeps the ball from falling out
2.  
   Remove the mouse ball. If it does happen to be dirty, clean it.
3.  
   Look inside the hole where the mouse ball lives. You should see three little rollers, and they'll probably be caked with crud. Use a dull, non-abrasive object (e.g., the end of a small screwdriver or you finger nail if you can bear it.) to clean all of the crud off.
4.  
   Replace the mouse ball and cover.
5.  
   Whack the eraser dust, potato chip crumbs, and anything else off of your mouse pad (so that you don't have to perform this same procedure two days later).

If the cursor still doesn't move smoothly, then you might have an obsolete or corrupted mouse driver, a defective mouse, or an IRQ conflict. In this case call IT support.

 This tip was contributed by Element K Journals Inside AutoCAD

Graphics

Awaiting Tips !

 This tip was contributed by

Viewports

 Awaiting Tips !

 This tip was contributed by