Setting User Preferences

The User Preferences tab controls various features within AutoCAD. These features include the behavior of your pointing device when you right-click, how AutoCAD responds to input of coordinate data, and how AutoCAD sorts objects during certain functions, as well as other features. Also a control for the new Associative Dimensioning feature of AutoCAD 2002 is found here.

The User Preferences tab is organized into six areas, as shown in Figure 3.12. The six areas are as follows:

• Windows Standard Behavior. This area controls whether Windows behavior is applied when working in AutoCAD.

• AutoCAD DesignCenter. This area allows you to control settings that relate to the new AutoCAD DesignCenter (ADC).

• Hyperlink. You control settings that relate to the display properties of hyperlinks.

• Priority for Coordinate Data Entry. This area controls how AutoCAD responds to coordinate data input.

• Object Sorting Methods. This area provides options that determine the sort order of objects during specified AutoCAD functions.

• Associative Dimensioning. This controls if new dimensions that are created are Associative Dimensions (linked to their objects) or legacy type dimensions.

Windows Standard Behavior

The Windows Standard Behavior area allows you to control such features as whether AutoCAD accelerator keys adhere to Windows standards, and how your pointing device functions when right-clicking. There are three features you can control in this area, described as follows:

• Windows standard accelerator keys. This option controls whether AutoCAD follows Windows standards in interpreting keyboard accelerators (for example, Ctrl+C equals COPYCLIP). If this option is cleared, AutoCAD interprets keyboard accelerators by using AutoCAD standards rather than Windows standards (for example, Ctrl+C equals Cancel, and Ctrl+V toggles among the viewports).

• Shortcut menus in drawing area. This option controls various things such as whether your pointing device displays a shortcut menu or responds as though you’ve pressed Enter when you right-click in the drawing area.

• Right-Click Customization. This button displays the Right-Click Customization dialog box shown in Figure 3.13. This dialog box allows you to control how the right-click feature functions under certain conditions. You can determine whether the right-click repeats the last command, acts the same as though you’d pressed Enter, or displays the shortcut menu. You can also specify the behavior when you right-click under different circumstances, such as when no objects are selected, when one or more objects are selected, or when a command is in progress.

  Figure 3.13. The Right-Click Customization dialog box controls how your pointing device behaves when you right-click.

  

AutoCAD DesignCenter

The AutoCAD DesignCenter area allows you to control how blocks are scaled when inserted in the current drawing. To scale blocks properly when they are inserted from another drawing, there are two units to consider. The first is the units used in the source drawing, and the second is the units used in the target (current) drawing. There are two features that allow you to control how AutoCAD deals with the units of the source drawing and the target drawing when no units are specified. They are described as follows:

• Source Content Units. Sets which units to automatically use for an object being inserted from another drawing into the current drawing when no insert units are specified with the INSUNITS system variable.

• Target Drawing Units. Sets which units to automatically use in the current drawing when no insert units are specified with the INSUNITS system variable.

The available unit settings for both options include Unspecified-Unitless, Inches, Feet, Miles, Millimeters, Centimeters, Meters, Kilometers, Microinches, Mils, Yards, Angstroms, Nanometers, Microns, Decimeters, Decameters, Hectometers, Gigameters, Astronomical Units, Light Years, and Parsecs. If Unspecified-Unitless is selected, the object is not scaled when inserted. AutoCAD DesignCenter (ADC) is discussed in detail in Chapter 12, “Applications for AutoCAD DesignCenter.”

Hyperlink

The Hyperlink area allows you to control two options that deal with how your cursor reacts when it moves over a hyperlink in a drawing, and is described as follows:

• Display Hyperlink Cursor and Shortcut Menu. This option controls the display of the hyperlink cursor and shortcut menu. Select this option to have the hyperlink cursor appear whenever the pointing device moves over a hyperlink, and to make the shortcut menu available. The hyperlink shortcut menu provides additional options when you right-click over a hyperlink in a drawing. If this option is cleared, the hyperlink cursor never displays, and the shortcut menu is not available.

• Display Hyperlink Tooltip. This option controls the display of the Hyperlink tooltip. Select this option to have a hyperlink tooltip display when the pointing device moves over an object that contains a hyperlink.

Hyperlinks are discussed in Chapter 25, “Publishing on the Web.”

Priority for Coordinate Data Entry

The Priority for Coordinate Data Entry area allows you to set one of three options that control whether running object snaps take precedence over coordinates entered from the keyboard, described as follows:

• Running Object Snap. Select this option to have running object snaps override keyboard-entered coordinates at all times.

• Keyboard Entry. Select this option to have keyboard-entered coordinates override running object snaps at all times.

• Keyboard Entry Except Scripts. Select this option to have keyboard-entered coordinates override running object snaps at all times, except when running scripts.

Running object snaps are discussed in Chapter 6, “Accuracy in Creating Drawings with AutoCAD 2002.”

Object Sorting Methods

When you create an object, AutoCAD adds it to the current drawing’s database. As subsequent objects are created, they are added to the end of the database, in the order in which they are created. Therefore, objects are stored in the drawing’s database in the order in which they are created.

When AutoCAD sorts through a drawing’s database, it can do so by sorting in the order in which the objects are created, or by random selection of objects. The advantage of this sorting order is that you have predictability as to how an object is drawn or selected. For example, when plotting objects in the order in which they are created, you know objects created first will lie under objects created last. The disadvantage of this sorting order is it usually takes AutoCAD longer to sort through objects in the order in which they are created than to sort randomly.

The Object Sorting Methods area allows you to control how AutoCAD sorts through objects in certain situations. By toggling off or on options, you control the order in which AutoCAD deals with an object. If an option is selected (toggled on), AutoCAD sorts objects in the order of those created first to those created last. If an option is cleared (toggled off), AutoCAD sorts objects randomly. There are six options you can set to control object sort methods, described as follows:

• Object Selection. If this option is selected, the order in which AutoCAD selects objects is affected. For example, if two overlapping objects are chosen during object selection, AutoCAD recognizes the newest object as the selected object.

• Object Snap. If this option is selected, the order in which AutoCAD selects an object to snap to is affected. For example, if two overlapping objects are chosen when using object snap, AutoCAD recognizes the newest object as the object to snap to.

• Redraws. If this option is selected, when you use either the REDRAW or REDRAWALL command, AutoCAD redraws objects onscreen in the order in which they were created.

• Regens. If this option is selected, when you use either the REGEN or REGENALL command, AutoCAD regenerates objects onscreen in the order in which they were created.

• Plotting. If this option is selected, when you plot a drawing, AutoCAD plots objects in the order in which they were created.

• PostScript Output. If this option is selected, AutoCAD exports objects in the order in which they were created.

To demonstrate the effect of the options in the Object Sorting Methods area, review the two rectangles shown in Figure 3.14. The dashed rectangle on the right was drawn first, and the solid rectangle on the left was drawn second. When a regen is executed, with the Regens option in the Object Sorting Methods area toggled off, AutoCAD randomly selects objects. In this particular case, AutoCAD draws the solid rectangle on the left first, then draws the dashed rectangle on top of the solid rectangle. However, with the Regens option in the Object Sorting Methods area toggled on, AutoCAD is forced to sort objects in the order in which they were created. Consequently, AutoCAD draws the dashed rectangle first, and then draws the solid rectangle on top of the dashed rectangle, as shown in Figure 3.15.

Associative Dimensioning

A new feature of AutoCAD 2002 is Associative Dimensioning. Now you can link a dimension object to the entities you are trying to dimension, such as a box. The method to control if these new intelligent dimensions are made when you place dimensions is toggled here or through the system variable DIMASSOC.

The new Associative Dimensioning is discussed further in Chapter 18, “Advanced Dimensioning.”

Lineweight Settings

The User Preferences tab also includes a Lineweight Settings button. This button displays the Lineweight Settings dialog box, which sets lineweight options, such as display properties and defaults, and also sets the current lineweight. You learn how to use lineweights in Chapter 5, “Using Linetypes and Lineweights Effectively.”