AutoCAD® 2012 and AutoCAD LT® 2012 Essentials: Autodesk® Official Training Guide

AutoCAD® 2012 and AutoCAD LT® 2012 Essentials: Autodesk® Official Training Guide

Released June 2011
Publisher(s): Sybex
ISBN: 9781118016794

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Book description

Learn the Essentials on Autodesk's powerhouse architectural software

The new Essentials series from Sybex helps you quickly learn and use Autodesk software. This beautiful, task-based, full-color Autodesk Official Training Guide thoroughly covers the fundamentals of AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. Readers learn how to draw in 2D, shape complex curves, manage objects with layers, organize with blocks and groups, add dimensions and annotation, work with layouts, plot and print, model in 3D, create realistic renderings, and much more.

This four-color Essentials book features real-world tutorials, downloadable before-and-after exercise files, and additional suggested exercises. This book is recommended as a Certification Preparation study guide resource for the AutoCAD Associate and Professional exams.

  • Covers AutoCAD 2012 and AutoCAD LT 2012 fundamentals, so you become quickly productive with the software

  • Prepares you for the AutoCAD 2012 Associate and Professional certification exam

  • Uses straightforward explanations and real-world, hands-on exercises and tutorials to teach the software's core features and functions

  • Helps you develop the skills you'll need throughout a production pipeline, whether you're a beginner or a more experienced user brushing up on the basics

If you want to learn AutoCAD essentials, AutoCAD 2012 and AutoCAD LT 2012 Essentials is the place to start.

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Dear Reader,
  5. Dedication
  6. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  7. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  8. CONTENTS AT A GLANCE
  9. CONTENTS
  10. INTRODUCTION
    1. Who Should Read This Book
    2. AutoCAD 2012 or AutoCAD LT 2012 System Requirements
    3. What Is Covered in This Book
    4. The Essentials Series
  11. CHAPTER 1: Getting Started
    1. Exploring the AutoCAD 2012 for Windows User Interface
    2. Setting Drawing Units
  12. CHAPTER 2: Basic Drawing Skills
    1. Navigating 2D Drawings
    2. Drawing Lines and Rectangles
    3. Canceling, Erasing, and Undoing
    4. Using Coordinate Systems
    5. Drawing Circles, Arcs, and Polygons
    6. Filleting and Chamfering Lines
  13. CHAPTER 3: Using Drawing Aids
    1. Grid and Snap
    2. Ortho and Polar Tracking
    3. PolarSnap
    4. Running Object Snaps
    5. From Snap
    6. Object Snap Tracking
  14. CHAPTER 4: Editing Entities
    1. Creating Selection Sets
    2. Move and Copy
    3. Rotate and Scale
    4. Arrays
    5. Trim and Extend
    6. Lengthen and Stretch
    7. Offset and Mirror
    8. Grip Editing
  15. CHAPTER 5: Shaping Curves
    1. Drawing and Editing Curved Polylines
    2. Drawing Ellipses
    3. Drawing and Editing Splines
    4. Blending Between Objects with Splines
  16. CHAPTER 6: Controlling Object Visibility and Appearance
    1. Changing Object Properties
    2. Setting the Current Layer
    3. Altering Objects' Layer Assignments
    4. Controlling Layer Visibility
    5. Applying Linetype
    6. Assigning Properties by Object or by Layer
    7. Managing Layer Properties
  17. CHAPTER 7: Organizing Objects
    1. Defining Blocks
    2. Inserting Blocks
    3. Editing Blocks
    4. Redefining Blocks
    5. Working with Groups
  18. CHAPTER 8: Hatching and Gradients
    1. Specifying Hatch Areas
    2. Associating Hatches with Boundaries
    3. Hatching with Patterns
    4. Hatching with Gradients
  19. CHAPTER 9: Working with Blocks and Xrefs
    1. Working with Global Blocks
    2. Searching for Content Across Multiple Drawings
    3. Storing Content on Tool Palettes
    4. Referencing External Drawings and Images
  20. CHAPTER 10: Creating and Editing Text
    1. Creating Text Styles
    2. Writing Lines of Text
    3. Writing and Formatting Paragraphs of Text Using MTEXT
    4. Editing Text
    5. Working with Columns
  21. CHAPTER 11: Dimensioning
    1. Styling Dimensions
    2. Adding Dimensions
    3. Editing Dimensions
  22. CHAPTER 12: Keeping In Control with Constraints
    1. Working with Geometric Constraints
    2. Applying Dimensional Constraints and Creating User Parameters
    3. Constraining Objects Simultaneously with Geometry and Dimensions
    4. Making Parametric Changes to Constrained Objects
  23. CHAPTER 13: Working with Layouts and Annotative Objects
    1. Creating Annotative Styles and Objects
    2. Creating Layouts
    3. Adjusting Floating Viewports
    4. Overriding Layer Properties in Layout Viewports
    5. Drawing on Layouts
  24. CHAPTER 14: Printing and Plotting
    1. Configuring Output Devices
    2. Creating Plot Style Tables
    3. Using Plot Style Tables
    4. Plotting in Modelspace
    5. Plotting Layouts in Paperspace
    6. Exporting to an Electronic Format
  25. CHAPTER 15: Storing, Presenting, and Extracting Data
    1. Defining Attributes and Blocks
    2. Inserting Attributed Blocks
    3. Editing Table Styles and Creating Tables
    4. Using Fields in Table Cells
    5. Editing Table Data
  26. CHAPTER 16: Navigating 3D Models
    1. Using Visual Styles
    2. Working with Tiled Viewports
    3. Navigating with the ViewCube
    4. Orbiting in 3D
    5. Using Cameras
    6. Navigating with SteeringWheels
    7. Saving Views
  27. CHAPTER 17: Modeling in 3D
    1. Creating Surface Models
    2. Editing Surface Models
    3. Creating Solid Models
    4. Editing Solid Models
    5. Smoothing Meshes
  28. CHAPTER 18: Presenting Your Design
    1. Assigning Materials
    2. Placing and Adjusting Lights
    3. Creating Renderings
  29. APPENDIX: AutoCAD Certification
  30. INDEX

Product information

  • Title: AutoCAD® 2012 and AutoCAD LT® 2012 Essentials: Autodesk® Official Training Guide
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: June 2011
  • Publisher(s): Sybex
  • ISBN: 9781118016794