Shortcuts Guide

One Key Shortcuts

Toggles and Screen Management
Hot Keys AZ
Printable Keyboard Stickers

~
`

Toggle Isoplane

Toggle Dynamic UCS

Toggle grid mode

Toggle ortho mode

Toggle snap mode

Toggle polar mode

F3

F4

F5

F6

F7

F8

F9

F10

+
=
{
[

&

QSAVE

WBLOCK

ERASE

REDRAW

MTEXT

INSERT

OFFSET

PAN

Caps Lock
Shift

ARC

STRETCH

DIMSTYLE

FILLET

GROUP

HATCH

JOIN

ZOOM

EXPLODE

CIRCLE

VIEW

BLOCK

Start

MOVE

<
,

Alt

>
.

QSAVE / Saves the current drawing.

CIRCLE / Creates a circle.

A
 RC / Creates an arc.

ZOOM

/ Increases or decreases the
magnification of the view in the
current viewport.

REDRAW / Refreshes the display

in the current viewport.

FILLET / Rounds and fillets the edges

of objects.

VIEW / Saves and restores named

views, camera views, layout views,
and preset views.


STRETCH
/ Stretches objects crossed
by a selection window or polygon.

?
/

MTEXT / Creates a multiline text object.

E
 XPLODE / Breaks a compound
object into its component objects.

GROUP / Creates and manages saved

sets of objects called groups.

E
 RASE / Removes objects from a drawing.

 IMSTYLE / Creates and

D
modifies dimension styles.

BLOCK / Creates a block definition

from selected objects.

PrtScn
SysRq

ScrLK

Pause
Break

Home

End

|
\

Insert

Page
Up

Enter

Delete

Page
Down

Backspace
}
]

Shift

Alt

W WBLOCK

/ Writes objects or
a block to a new drawing file.

:
;

L
LINE

F11 F12

Toggle dynamic
input mode

Toggle 3DOsnap

F2

Toggle object
snap tracking

Toggle object
snap mode

F1
!

Tab

Ctrl

Toggle text screen

Esc

Display Help

ONE KEY SHORTCUTS [SEE PRINTABLE KEYBOARD STICKERS ON PAGE 11]

Ctrl
H H
 ATCH / Fills an enclosed area or selected
objects with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or
gradient fill.
J

JOIN / Joins similar objects to form

a single, unbroken object.

M MOVE / Moves objects a specified

distance in a specified direction.
I

INSERT / Inserts a block or drawing

into the current drawing.

O OFFSET / Creates concentric circles,

parallel lines, and parallel curves.
L

LINE / Creates straight line segments.

PAN / Adds a parameter with grips

to a dynamic block definition.

TOGGLES AND SCREEN MANAGEMENT

Toggle General Features

Manage Screen

Manage Drawings

Ctrl+d

Toggle coordinate display

Ctrl+0 (zero)

Clean Screen

Ctrl+n

New Drawing

Ctrl+g

Toggle Grid

Ctrl+1

Property Palette

Ctrl+s

Save drawing

Ctrl+e

Cycle isometric planes

Ctrl+2

Design Center Palette

Ctrl+o

Open drawing

Ctrl+f

Toggle running object snaps

Ctrl+3

Tool Palette

Ctrl+p

Plot dialog box

Ctrl+h

Toggle Pick Style

Ctrl+4

Sheet Set Palette

Ctrl+Tab

Switch to next

Ctrl+Shift+h

Toggle Hide pallets

Ctrl+6

DBConnect Manager

Ctrl+Shift+Tab

Switch to previous drawing

Ctrl+i

Toggle Coords

Ctrl+7

Markup Set Manager Palette

Ctrl+Page Up

Ctrl+Shift+i

Toggle Infer Constraints

Ctrl+8

Quick Calc

Switch to previous tab

in current drawing

Ctrl+9

Command Line

Toggle Drawing Modes

F1

Display Help

Manage Workflow

F2

Toggle text screen

Ctrl+c

Copy object

F3

Toggle object snap mode

Ctrl+x

Cut object

F4

Toggle 3DOsnap

Ctrl+v

Paste object

F5

Toggle Isoplane

Ctrl+Shift+c

Copy to clipboard with base point

F6

Toggle Dynamic UCS

Ctrl+Shift+v

Paste data as block

F7

Toggle grid mode

Ctrl+z

Undo last action

F8

Toggle ortho mode

Ctrl+y

Redo last action

F9

Toggle snap mode

F10

Toggle polar mode

Ctrl+[ Cancel current command

(or ctrl+\)

F11

Toggle object snap tracking

F12

Toggle dynamic input mode

ESC

Ctrl+Page Down  Switch to next tab

in current drawing
Ctrl+q

Exit

Ctrl+a

Select all objects

Cancel current command

HOT KEYS AZ

A ARC / Creates an arc.

B BLOCK / Creates a block definition

from selected objects.

C CIRCLE / Creates a circle.

AA AREA / Calculates the area and perimeter

of objects or of defined areas.

BC BCLOSE / Closes the Block Editor.

ADC ADCENTER / Manages and inserts content

such as blocks, xrefs, and hatch patterns.

BE BEDIT / Opens the block definition

in the Block Editor.

AL ALIGN / Aligns objects with other objects

in 2D and 3D.

BH HATCH / Fills an enclosed area or

selected objects with a hatch pattern,
solid fill, or gradient fill.

AP APPLOAD / Load Application.

AR ARRAY / Creates multiple copies of
objects in a pattern.

BO BOUNDARY / Creates a region or

a polyline from an enclosed area.

CAM CAMERA / Sets a camera and target

location to create and save a 3D
perspective view of objects.
CBAR CONSTRAINTBAR / A toolbar-like UI
element that displays the available
geometric constraints on an object.
CH PROPERTIES / Controls properties
of existing objects.
CHA CHAMFER / Bevels the edges of objects.

ARR ACTRECORD / Starts the Action Recorder.

BR BREAK / Breaks the selected object

between two points.

CHK CHECKSTANDARDS / Checks the current

drawing for standards violations.

ARM ACTUSERMESSAGE / Inserts a user

message into an action macro.

BS BSAVE / Saves the current block

definition.

CLI COMMANDLINE / Displays the Command

Line window.

ARU ACTUSERINPUT / Pauses for user input

in an action macro.

BVS BVSTATE / Creates, sets, or deletes

a visibility state in a dynamic block.

COL COLOR / Sets the color for new objects.

ARS ACTSTOP / Stops the Action Recorder

and provides the option of saving the
recorded actions to an action macro file.
ATI ATTIPEDIT / Changes the textual content
of an attribute within a block.
ATT ATTDEF / Redefines a block and updates
associated attributes.

CO COPY / Copies objects a specified

distance in a specified direction.
CT CTABLESTYLE / Sets the name
of the current table style.
CUBE NAVVCUBE / Controls the visibility and
display properties of the ViewCube tool.
CYL CYLINDER / Creates a 3D solid cylinder.

ATE ATTEDIT / Changes attribute

information in a block.

HOT KEYS AZ

D
D DIMSTYLE / Creates and modifies
dimension styles.

DI DIST / Measures the distance and

angle between two points.

DAN DIMANGULAR / Creates an angular

dimension.

DIV DIVIDE / Creates evenly spaced point

objects or blocks along the length
or perimeter of an object.

DAR DIMARC / Creates an arc length

dimension.
DBA DIMBASELINE / Creates a linear, angular,
or ordinate dimension from the baseline
of the previous or selected dimension.

DJL DIMJOGLINE / Adds or removes a jog line

on a linear or aligned dimension.
DJO DIMJOGGED / Creates jogged dimensions
for circles and arcs.

DBC DBCONNECT / Provides an interface

to external database tables.

DL DATALINK / The Data Link dialog box

is displayed.

DCE DIMCENTER / Creates the center mark

or the centerlines of circles and arcs.

DLU DATALINKUPDATE / Updates data to or

from an established external data link.

DCO DIMCONTINUE / Creates a dimension

that starts from an extension line of
a previously created dimension.

DO DONUT / Creates a filled circle or

a wide ring.

DCON DIMCONSTRAINT / Applies dimensional

constraints to selected objects or points
on objects.
DDA DIMDISASSOCIATE / Removes
associativity from selected dimensions.
DDI DIMDIAMETER / Creates a diameter
dimension for a circle or an arc.
DED DIMEDIT / Edits dimension text and
extension lines.

DRM DRAWINGRECOVERY / Displays a list of

drawing files that can be recovered after
a program or system failure.
DS DSETTINGS / Sets grid and snap,
polar and object snap tracking,
object snap modes, Dynamic Input,
and Quick Properties.
DT TEXT / Creates a single-line text object.
DV DVIEW / Defines parallel projection
or perspective views by using a camera
and target.
DX DATAEXTRACTION / Extracts
drawing data and merges data from
an external source to a data extraction
table or external file.

DOR DIMORDINATE / Creates ordinate

dimensions.
DOV DIMOVERRIDE / Controls overrides of system variables used in selected dimensions.
DR DRAWORDER / Changes the draw
order of images and other objects.
DRA DIMRADIUS / Creates a radius dimension
for a circle or an arc.
DRE DIMREASSOCIATE / Associates or
re-associates selected dimensions
to objects or points on objects.

HOT KEYS AZ

EF

GH

IK

E ERASE / Removes objects from a drawing.

G GROUP / Creates and manages saved

sets of objects called groups.

I INSERT / Inserts a block or drawing

into the current drawing.

GCON GEOCONSTRAINT / Applies or persists

geometric relationships between objects
or points on objects.

IAD IMAGEADJUST / Controls the image

display of the brightness, contrast,
and fade values of images.

GD GRADIENT / Fills an enclosed area or

selected objects with a gradient fill.

IAT IMAGEATTACH / Inserts a reference

to an image file.

GEO GEOGRAPHICLOCATION / Specifies

the geographic location information
for a drawing file.

ICL IMAGECLIP / Crops the display of a

selected image to a specified boundary.

ED DDEDIT / Edits single-line text, dimension

text, attribute definitions, and feature
control frames.
EL ELLIPSE / Creates an ellipse
or an elliptical arc.
EPDF EXPORTPDF / Exports drawing to PDF.
ER EXTERNALREFERENCES / Opens
the External References palette.
EX EXTEND / Extends objects to meet
the edges of other objects.
EXIT QUIT / Exits the program.
EXP EXPORT / Saves the objects in a
drawing to a different file format.
EXT EXTRUDE / Extends the dimensions of
a 2D object or 3D face into 3D space.
F FILLET / Rounds and fillets the edges
of objects.
FI FILTER / Creates a list of requirements
that an object must meet to be included
in a selection set.
FS FSMODE / Creates a selection set of all
objects that touch the selected object.
FSHOT FLATSHOT / Creates a 2D representation
of all 3D objects based on the current view.

H HATCH / Fills an enclosed area or selected

objects with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or
gradient fill.
HE HATCHEDIT / Modifies an existing
hatch or fill.
HI HIDE / Regenerates a 3D wireframe model
with hidden lines suppressed.

ID ID / Displays the UCS coordinate values

of a specified location.
IM IMAGE / Displays the External
References palette.
IMP IMPORT / Imports files of different
formats into the current drawing.
IN INTERSECT / Creates a 3D solid, surface,
or 2D region from overlapping solids,
surfaces, or regions.
INF INTERFERE / Creates a temporary 3D solid
from the interferences between two sets
of selected 3D solids.
IO INSERTOBJ / Inserts a linked or
embedded object.
J JOIN / Joins similar objects to form
a single, unbroken object.
JOG DIMJOGGED / Creates jogged
dimensions for circles and arcs.

HOT KEYS AZ

LM
L LINE / Creates straight line segments.
LA LAYER / Manages layers and
layer properties.
LAS LAYERSTATE / Saves, restores,
and manages named layer states.
LE QLEADER / Creates a leader and
leader annotation.
LEN LENGTHEN / Changes the length of
objects and the included angle of arcs.
LESS MESHSMOOTHLESS / Decreases the
level of smoothness for mesh objects
by one level.
LI LIST / Displays property data for
selected objects.
LO LAYOUT / Creates and modifies
drawing layout tabs.
LT LINETYPE / Loads, sets, and
modifies linetypes.
LTS LTSCALE / Changes the scale factor of
linetypes for all objects in a drawing.
LW LWEIGHT / Sets the current lineweight,
lineweight display options, and
lineweight units.
M MOVE / Moves objects a specified
distance in a specified direction.
MA MATCHPROP / Applies the properties
of a selected object to other objects.
MAT MATERIALS / Shows or hides the
Materials window.
ME MEASURE / Creates point objects or
blocks at measured intervals along the
length or perimeter of an object.

NO
MEA MEASUREGEOM / Measures the
distance, radius, angle, area, and volume
of selected objects or sequence of points.

NORTH GEOGRAPHICLOCATION / Specifies

the geographic location information
for a drawing file.

MI MIRROR / Creates a mirrored

copy of selected objects.

NSHOT NEWSHOT / Creates a named view

with motion that is played back when
viewed with ShowMotion.

ML MLINE / Creates multiple parallel lines.

MLA MLEADERALIGN / Aligns and spaces
selected multileader objects.
MLC MLEADERCOLLECT / Organizes selected
multileaders that contain blocks into
rows or columns, and displays the result
with a single leader.
MLD MLEADER / Creates a multileader object.
MLE MLEADEREDIT / Adds leader lines to,
or removes leader lines from,
a multileader object.

NVIEW NEWVIEW / Creates a named view

with no motion.
O OFFSET / Creates concentric circles,
parallel lines, and parallel curves.
OP OPTIONS / Customizes the
program settings.
ORBIT 3DORBIT / Rotates the view in
3D space, but constrained to
horizontal and vertical orbit only.
OS OSNAP / Sets running object snap modes.

MLS MLEADERSTYLE / Creates and

modifies multileader styles.
MO PROPERTIES / Controls properties
of existing objects.
MORE MESHSMOOTHMORE / Increases the
level of smoothness for mesh objects
by one level.
MS MSPACE / Switches from paper space
to a model space viewport.
MSM MARKUP / Opens the Markup
Set Manager.
MT MTEXT / Creates a multiline text object.
MV MVIEW / Creates and controls
layout viewports.

HOT KEYS AZ

P   P
 AN / Adds a parameter with grips
to a dynamic block definition.

POL POLYGON / Creates an equilateral

closed polyline.

QC QUICKCALC / Opens the

QuickCalc calculator.

PA   P
 ASTESPEC / Pastes objects from the
Clipboard into the current drawing
and controls the format of the data.

PON SHOWPALETTES / Restores

the display of hidden palettes.

QCUI QUICKCUI / Displays the Customize User

Interface Editor in a collapsed state.

PR PROPERTIES / Displays Properties palette.

QP QUICKPROPERTIES / Displays open

drawings and layouts in a drawing
in preview images.

PAR   P
 ARAMETERS / Controls the
associative parameters used
in the drawing.
PARAM   B
 PARAMETER / Adds a parameter
with grips to a dynamic block
definition.
PATCH   S URFPATCH / Creates a new surface
by fitting a cap over a surface edge
that forms a closed loop.
PC   P
 OINTCLOUD / Provides options to
create and attach point cloud files.
PCATTACH P
 OINTCLOUDATTACH / Inserts
an indexed point cloud file into
the current drawing.
PCINDEX

POINTCLOUDINDEX / Creates an
indexed point cloud (PCG or ISD) file
from a scan file.

PRE PREVIEW / Displays the drawing

as it will be plotted.
PRINT PLOT / Plots a drawing to a plotter,
printer, or file.
PS PSPACE / Switches from a model
space viewport to paper space.

QSAVE QSAVE / Saves the current drawing.

QVD QVDRAWING / Displays open
drawings and layouts in a drawing
using preview images.

PSOLID POLYSOLID / Creates a 3D

wall-like polysolid.

QVDC QVDRAWINGCLOSE / Closes preview

images of open drawings and layouts
in a drawing.

PTW PUBLISHTOWEB / Creates HTML pages

that include images of selected drawings.

QVL QVLAYOUT / Displays preview images

of model space and layouts in a drawing.

PU PURGE / Removes unused items,

such as block definitions and layers,
from the drawing.

QVLC QVLAYOUTCLOSE / Closes preview

images of model space and layouts
in the current drawing.

PYR PYRAMID / Creates a 3D solid pyramid.

PE   P
 EDIT / Edits polylines and
3D polygon meshes.
PL   P
 LINE / Creates a 2D polyline.
PO   P
 OINT / Creates a point object.
POFF   H
 IDEPALETTES / Hides currently
displayed palettes (including the
command line).

HOT KEYS AZ

R REDRAW / Refreshes the display

in the current viewport.

S  STRETCH / Stretches objects crossed

by a selection window or polygon.

SPLIT MESHSPLIT / Splits a mesh face

into two faces.

RA REDRAWALL / Refreshes the display

in all viewports.

SC  SCALE / Enlarges or reduces selected

objects, keeping the proportions of
the object the same after scaling.

SPE SPLINEDIT / Edits a spline or

spline-fit polyline.

RC RENDERCROP / Renders a specified

rectangular area, called a crop window,
within a viewport.
RE REGEN / Regenerates the entire drawing
from the current viewport.
REA REGENALL / Regenerates the drawing
and refreshes all viewports.
REC RECTANG / Creates a rectangular polyline.
REG REGION / Converts an object that
encloses an area into a region object.
REN RENAME / Changes the names assigned
to items such as layers and dimension
styles.
REV REVOLVE / Creates a 3D solid or surface
by sweeping a 2D object around an axis.
RO ROTATE / Rotates objects around
a base point.
RP RENDERPRESETS / Specifies render
presets, reusable rendering parameters,
for rendering an image.
RPR RPREF / Displays or hides the
Advanced Render Settings palette for
access to advanced rendering settings.
RR RENDER / Creates a photorealistic
or realistically shaded image of
a 3D solid or surface model.
RW RENDERWIN / Displays the
Render window without starting
a rendering operation.

SCR  SCRIPT / Executes a sequence

of commands from a script file.
SEC  SECTION / Uses the intersection of
a plane and solids, surfaces, or mesh
to create a region.
SET  SETVAR / Lists or changes the
values of system variables.

SSM SHEETSET / Opens the Sheet Set Manager.

ST STYLE / Creates, modifies,
or specifies text styles.
STA STANDARDS / Manages the association
of standards files with drawings.
SU SUBTRACT / Combines selected 3D solids,
surfaces, or 2D regions by subtraction.

SHA  SHADEMODE / Starts the

VSCURRENT command.
SL  SLICE / Creates new 3D solids and surfaces by slicing, or dividing, existing objects.
SN  SNAP / Restricts cursor movement
to specified intervals.
SO  SOLID / Creates solid-filled triangles
and quadrilaterals.
SP  SPELL / Checks spelling in a drawing.
SPE  SPLINEDIT / Edits a spline or spline-fit
polyline.
SPL  SPLINE / Creates a smooth curve that
passes through or near specified points.
SPLANE  SECTIONPLANE / Creates a section
object that acts as a cutting plane
through 3D objects.
SPLAY  SEQUENCEPLAY / Plays named views
in one category.

HOT KEYS AZ

UW

XZ

T MTEXT / Creates a multiline text object.

UC

TA TABLET / Calibrates, configures, and turns

on and off an attached digitizing tablet.

UCSMAN / Manages defined

user coordinate systems.

X EXPLODE / Breaks a compound object

into its component objects.

UN

UNITS / Controls coordinate and

angle display formats and precision.

XA XATTACH / Inserts a DWG file

as an external reference (xref).

TB TABLE / Creates an empty table object.

TEDIT TEXTEDIT / Edits a dimensional constraint,
dimension, or text object.
TH THICKNESS / Sets the default 3D
thickness property when creating
2D geometric objects.
TI TILEMODE / Controls whether
paper space can be accessed.
TO TOOLBAR / Displays, hides,
and customizes toolbars.

UNHIDE /
UNISOLATEOBJECTS / Displays
UNISOLATE objects previously hidden with the
ISOLATEOBJECTS or HIDEOBJECTS
command.
UNI

UNION / Unions two solid

or two region objects.

VIEW / Saves and restores named

views, camera views, layout views,
and preset views.

XB XBIND / Binds one or more definitions

of named objects in an xref to the
current drawing.
XC XCLIP / Crops the display of a selected
external reference or block reference
to a specified boundary.
XL XLINE / Creates a line of infinite length.
XR XREF / Starts the
EXTERNALREFERENCES command.

VGO

VIEWGO / Restores a named view.

VP

DDVPOINT / Sets the 3D

viewing direction.

Z ZOOM / Increases or decreases

the magnification of the view
in the current viewport.

VPLAY

VIEWPLAY / Plays the animation

associated to a named view.

ZEBRA ANALYSISZEBRA / Projects stripes onto

a 3D model to analyze surface continuity.

TP TOOLPALETTES / Opens the

Tool Palettes window.

VS

VSCURRENT / Sets the visual

style in the current viewport.

ZIP ETRANSMIT / Creates a Self-Extracting

or Zipped Transmittal Package.

TR TRIM / Trims objects to meet the

edges of other objects.

VSM

VISUALSTYLES / Creates and

modifies visual styles and applies
a visual style to a viewport.

WBLOCK / Writes objects or

a block to a new drawing file.

WE

WEDGE / Creates a 3D solid wedge.

WHEEL

NAVSWHEEL / Displays a wheel

that contains a collection of
view navigation tools.

TOL TOLERANCE / Creates geometric

tolerances contained in a feature
control frame.
TOR TORUS / Creates a donut-shaped 3D solid.

TS TABLESTYLE / Creates, modifies,

or specifies table styles.

10

PAN
ARC
STRETCH
DIMSTYLE

F12

Dynamic
Input

F11

Object Snap
Tracking

Polar

F10

OFFSET

F9

F8

INSERT

MOVE

Snap

FILLET

BLOCK

Ortho

DIMSTYLE

F12

Dynamic
Input

VIEW

MTEXT

STRETCH

F11

Object Snap
Tracking

ARC

REDRAW

PAN

Polar

F10

ERASE

Grid

F9

F7

F8

WBLOCK

F6

Dynamic
UCS

MOVE

Snap

FILLET

CIRCLE

BLOCK

Ortho

DIMSTYLE

F12

Dynamic
Input

VIEW

QSAVE

EXPLODE

STRETCH

MOVE

PRINTABLE KEYBOARD STICKERS [4 COMPLETE SETS]

FOR USE WITH: [Link]

OFFSET

ARC

F11

Object Snap
Tracking

F5

Isoplane

INSERT

Grid

PAN

Polar

BLOCK

F4

3DOsnap

F7

F10

Screen

F3

Object
Snap

ZOOM

F6

Dynamic
UCS

F9

VIEW

F2
Text

LINE

CIRCLE

F8

F1

Help

JOIN

MTEXT

EXPLODE

MOVE

CIRCLE

HATCH

REDRAW

OFFSET

BLOCK

Snap

FILLET

VIEW

Ortho

DIMSTYLE

F12

Dynamic
Input

GROUP

ERASE

F5

Isoplane

INSERT

Grid

STRETCH

F11

Object Snap
Tracking

EXPLODE

WBLOCK

F4

3DOsnap

F7

Polar

QSAVE

Screen

F3

Object
Snap

ZOOM

F6

Dynamic
UCS

ARC

F10

ZOOM

F2
Text

LINE

CIRCLE

Snap

F1

Help

JOIN

MTEXT

EXPLODE

PAN

F9

LINE

HATCH

REDRAW

F5

Isoplane

OFFSET

F8

Ortho

GROUP

ERASE

F4

3DOsnap

ZOOM

INSERT

Grid

JOIN

WBLOCK

F3

Object
Snap

LINE

MTEXT

F7

F2

Text
Screen

JOIN

REDRAW

F6

Dynamic
UCS

HATCH

QSAVE

HATCH

ERASE

F5

Isoplane

F1

Help

WBLOCK

F4

3DOsnap

GROUP

GROUP

Screen

F3

Object
Snap

QSAVE

F2
Text

FILLET

F1

Help

AutoCAD Basics
AutoCAD Interface
Draw Commands
Line command tutorial
Polygon command tutorial
Rectangle command tutorial
Circle command tutorial
Ellipse command tutorial
Edit Commands
Erase command tutorial
Copy command tutorial
Mirror command tutorial
Offset command turorial
Extend command turorial
Array command tutorial
Move command tutorial
Rotate command tutorial
Scale command tutorial
Trim command tutorial
Chamfer command tutorial
Fillet command tutorial
Coordinate Entry
X,Y,Z, coordinate entry system
Angular measurement
Absolute Coordinate entry
Relative coordinate entry
Polar coordinate entry
Osnap
Endpoint
Intersection
Nearest
Midpoint
Tangent
Center
Free Osnap
Qnew/Open/Save/Exit
Qnew
Open
Save
Exit
Layers
Create new layer
Assign layer color
Assign layer linetype
Dimensioning
Using dimensions
Text In A Drawing
Dtext
DDedit
Zoom Commands
Zoom realtime
Zoom window
Zoom previous
Zoom all
Pan realtime
Plot Command
Ortho
Esc Key
How Commands Work
Typical Drawing Setup
Ortho command
Snap command
Units command
Limits command
Zoom all
Set Layers
Ltscale command
Text Style command
LWT command
Undo/Redo
Putting It All Together
Keyboard Functions

2
2-4

4-7

7-8

10

11

12-13
13
13-14

14
14
14
14
14-16

16
16
17

[Link]
C AD _003

AutoCAD Command Shortcuts

IN THIS GUIDE
This guide lists AutoCAD shortcuts in groups according to the command sequence. For example, all text relevant
shortcuts are grouped together.

Quick Link
BLOCKS 5 COMMON COMMANDS 5 CONTROL KEYS 5 COORDINATE ENTRY 5
DIMENSIONING 5 DRAWING OBJECTS 5 EXTERNAL REFERENCE 5 FORMATTING 5
FUNCTION KEYS 5 INQUIRY 5 LAYERS 5 MODIFYING OBJECTS 5 OBJECT SELECTION 5
OBJECT SNAP 5 TEXT 5 3D 5 UCS 5 VIEWPORTS 5
Notes:
1. Generally a shortcut prefixed with - will suppress the associated dialogue from appearing.
2. Some of the following shortcuts only work with AutoCAD 2006.
3. Not all of the shortcuts listed work with AutoCAD LT.

BLOCKS
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

ATT

ATTDEF

Opens attribute definition dialogue box

ATTEDIT

ATTEDIT

Edit attribute values for a specific block

BLOCK

Opens block dialogue box in order to make a block

BATTMAN

BATTMAN

Opens block attribute manager

BATTORDER

BATTORDER

Displays attribute order dialogue box

BC

BCLOSE

Closes the block editor

BCOUNT

BCOUNT

Counts the blocks in a drawing

BE

BEDIT

Opens the edit block definition dialogue box

EATTEXT

EATTEXT

Enhanced attribute extraction wizard to count blocks

GATTE

GATTE

Global attribute edit of multiple blocks

INSERT

Opens insert dialogue to insert a block

-I

INSERT

Insert a block by name

MINSERT

MINSERT

Insert block in rectangular array

REFEDIT

REFEDIT

Edit a block reference in place

REN

RENAME

Opens rename dialogue box to rename blocks, layers, etc

WBLOCK

Write a block - for use in other drawings

XLIST

XLIST

Lists type/block name/layer name/color/linetype of a

nested object in a block or an xref

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TIPS
1.
2.
3.

Create a new block on layer 0 so that the block will use the layer and properties of the current
layer it is inserted on. Text can be set to colour white.
Set ATTDIA to 1 to use dialog box with block attributes or 0 to use command line.
AutoCAD 2006 allows you to change the insertion point on the fly. INSERT and select
BASEPOINT. This allows you to pick anywhere in the drawing (and anywhere in the block you
are inserting) as your new insertion point (basepoint).

COMMON COMMANDS
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

ARC

Draw an arc

AL

ALIGN

Align an object with another

AP

APPLOAD

Opens application load dialogue box

AR

ARRAY

Opens array dialogue box

AUDIT

AUDIT

Audit drawing for errors

AV

DSVIEWER

Opens ariel view of drawing

BLOCK

Opens block dialogue box

CIRCLE

Draw a circle

CO

COPY

Copy an object

CHA

CHAMFER

Chamfer between 2 non-parallel lines

COL

COLOR

Opens select color dialogue box

CUI

Opens customise user interface dialogue

DIMSTYLE

Opens dimstyle manager

DC

ADCENTER

Opens designcenter

DI

DIST

Check a distance

DIV

DIVIDE

Inserts point node a set division

DO

DONUT

Draw a solid donut shape

DV

DVIEW

Perspective view

ERASE

Erase a selection

EX

EXTEND

Extend a selection

FILLET

Draw an arc between 2 intersecting lines

FI

FILTER

Opens filter dialogue box

FLATTEN

FLATTEN

Converts 3D to 2D

GROUP

Launches the group dialogue box

HATCH

Opens hatch and gradient dialogue box

INSERT

Insert a block

IM

IMAGE

Launches image manager

JOIN

Joins 2 objects to form single object

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JPGOUT

JPGOUT

Creates a JPEG file of current drawing

LINE

Draw a line

LA

LAYER

Opens layer manager

LE

QLEADER

Draw a leader line (may need to adjust settings)

LEAD

LEADER

Leader line with annotation

LI or LS

LIST

Display information about objects in a text window

LO

-LAYOUT

Creates a new layout tab

LTS

LTScale

Change the linetype scale

MOVE

Move a selection

MA

MATCHPROPERTIES

Match properties of an object

ME

MEASURE

Inserts point node at input distance

OFFSET

Offset a selection

OP

OPTIONS

Launches options dialogue box

PAN

Pan in drawing

PE

POLYEDIT

Edit a polyline

PL

PLINE

Draw a polyline

PLOT

PLOT

Opens plot/print dialogue box

PO

POINT

Point marker or node - DDPTYPE to change pointstyle

PR

PROPERTIES

Opens properties dialogue box

PRE

PREVIEW

Preview a plot

PU

PURGE

Opens purge dialogue box to remove unused elements

RE

REGEN

Regenerate the display

REC

RECTANG

Draw a rectangle

REN

RENAME

Opens rename dialogue box to rename blocks, layers, etc

RO

ROTATE

Rotate a selection

SP

SPELL

Spell check a selection - ALL to check entire drawing

MTEXT

Insert multiline text

TB

TABLE

Opens insert a table dialogue box

TP

TOOLPALETTES

Displays toolpalette

TR

TRIM

Trim a selection

UNDO

Undo last command

UN

UNITS

Opens units dialogue box

VIEW

Opens view dialogue box

WBLOCK

Write a block

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WHOHAS

WHOHAS

Displays who has a drawing open

EXPLODE

Explode a selection

XR

XREF

Opens x-reference manager

ZOOM

Zoom in display - A=All, E=EXTENTS, W=WINDOW

CONTROL KEYS
CTRL+0

CLEANSCREEN

Turns user interface elements on/off

CTRL+1

PROPERTIES

Turns properties on/off

CTRL+2

ADCENTER

Turns design center on/off

CTRL+3

TOOLPALETTES

Turns tool palettes window on/off

CTRL+8

QUICKCALC

Launches calculator window

CTRL+A
CTRL+C

Select all
COPYCLIP

Copies objects to clipboard

CTRL+H

Turns a group on or off

CTRL+J

Repeats last command

CTRL+N

NEW

Opens create new drawing dialogue box

CTRL+O

OPEN

Opens the select file dialogue box

CTRL+P

PLOT

Opens the plot dialogue box

CTRL+R

CVPORT

Switches between viewports

CTRL+S

QSAVE

Opens the save drawing as dialogue box

CTRL+SHIFT+
S

Save as

CTRL+V

PASTECLIP

Pastes data from clipboard to drawing

CTRL+X

CUTCLIP

Removes select object from drawing to clipboard

CTRL+Y

REDO

Performs the operation cancelled by UNDO

CTRL+Z

UNDO

Undoes the last operation

CTRL+TAB

Switches between open drawings

CTRL+PAGE
UP

Switch up between layout tabs

CTRL+PAGE
DOWN

Switch down between layout tabs

ARROW
UP/Down

Recall last command

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COORDINATE ENTRY
#X,Y

Location measured by distance from 0,0 in current UCS

@X,Y

Location measured by distance from last point

#distance<angle

Location measured by distance and angle from 0,0 in current UCS

@distance<angl
e

Location measured by distance and angle from last point

.x or.y or .xy etc

Location by extracting and combining coordinate values from 2 or 3 points

distance

Location direct from current position in direction of movement

<angle

An angle override from current point

DIMENSIONING
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

CTRL+8

QUICKCALC

Displays the calculator

DIMSTYLE

Opens dimension style manager dialogue box

DAL

DIMALIGNED

Aligned linear dimension line

DAN

DIMANGULAR

Angular dimension line

DAR

DIMARC

Arc length dimension

DBA

DIMBASELINE

Ordinate dimension from baseline of previous dimension

DCO

DIMCONTINUE

Ordinate dimension from 2nd extension line of previous

dimension

DDI

DIMDIAMETER

Diameter dimension for circles and arcs

DED

DIMEDIT

Edit dimension text on dimension objects

DI

DIST

Check a distance

DIMCENTER

DIMCENTER

Creates center mark

DLI

DIMLINEAR

Linear dimension

DOR

DIMORDINATE

Ordinate point dimension

DOV

DIMOVERRIDE

Override dimension style

DRA

DIMRADIUS

Radial dimension for circles and arcs

ID

ID

Display the co-ordinate values of a point

UN

UNITS

Opens drawing units dialogue box

DRAW ING OBJECTS

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

ARC

Draw an arc with 3 points

BLOCK

Opens block dialogue box in order to make a block

BO

BOUNDARY

Draw a boundary

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CIRCLE

Draw a circle

DO

DONUT

Draw a solid donut shape

DT

TEXT

Single line text

DIV

DIVIDE

Inserts point node a set division

EL

ELLIPSE

Draw an ellipse

FILLET

Draw an arc between 2 intersecting lines

GROUP

Opens object grouping dialogue

HATCH

Opens hatch and gradient dialogue box

LINE

Draw a line

LE

QLEADER

Draw a leader line (may need to adjust settings)

LEAD

LEADER

Leader line with annotation

ML

MLINE

Draw multilines

OFFSET

Offset an object by distance

PL

PLINE

Draw a polyline - a complex line

PO

POINT

Point marker or node - DDPTYPE to change pointstyle

POL

POLYGON

Draw a regular polygon 3 to 1024 sides

RAY

RAY

Construction line in one direction

REC

RECTANG

Draw a rectangle

REG

REGION

Region - for shading for example

REVCLOUD

REVCLOUD

Revision cloud - note can select a polyline

SPL

SPLINE

Spline or smooth curve along points

MTEXT

Multi-line text

WIPEOUT

WIPEOUT

Masks part of drawing for clarity

XL

XLINE

Construction line of infinite length

TIP
1. Use PO to create node point - if you do not see anything try changing the node properties
DDPTYPE.
2. Alternatively set PDMODE to 3 to display an X at id point set PDMODE to 0 to clear.

EXTERNAL REFERENCE - XREF

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

REFEDIT

REFEDIT

Edit an external reference in place

XA

XATTACH

Opens select reference file dialogue for attaching Xref

XB

XBIND

Opens Xbind dialogue - allows import only of symbols etc

XC

XCLIP

Create a border in an xref to hide outside area

XOPEN

XOPEN

Opens a selected xref in a new window

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XR

XREF

Opens Xref manager dialogue box

TIP
1. Using RELATIVE PATH to find the Xref file relative to the existing location can be a benefit if files
are moved between locations or sent to others.
2. OVERLAID should be used in place of ATTACH if 2 drawings share a common Xref, eg a
mechanical drawing could be overlaid an electrical drawing to prevent the building outline appearing
twice.
NOTES
1. If a drawing has an Xref, the status bar will show the Manage Xref icon.

FORMATTING
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

AP

APPLOAD

Opens application load dialogue box

BE

BEDIT

Opens the edit block definition dialogue box

BH

BHATCH

Opens hatch and gradient dialogue box

CUI

Opens customise user interface dialogue

DIMSTYLE

Opens dimension style manager dialogue box

DC

ADCENTER

Opens designcenter

DDPTYPE

DDPTYPE

Opens point style dialogue box

LA

LAYER

Opens layer manager

LT

DDLTYPE

Opens line type manager

LTS

LTSCALE

Change the linetype scale

LW

LWEIGHT

Opens line weight settings dialogue box

MA

MATCHPROPERTIES

Match properties of an object

OP

OPTIONS

Launches options dialogue box

OS

DDOSNAP

Opens drafting settings object snap dialogue

PR

DDCHPROP

Opens properties dialogue box

SSM

SHEETSET

Opens sheet set manager palette

ST

DDSTYLE

Opens text style dialogue box

TP

TOOLPALETTES

Displays toolpalette

TS

TABLESTYLE

Opens table style dialogue box

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FUNCTION KEYS
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

F1

HELP

Opens Autocad help

F2

TEXTSCR
GRAPHSCR

Switches between text screen and graphic area

F3

OSNAP

Switches osnap on/off

F5 or CTRL+E

ISOPLANE

Cycles through isoplanes

F6 or CTRL+D

COORDS

Turns coordinate display on/off

F7 or CTRL+G

GRID

Turns grid on/off

F8 or CTRL+L

ORTHO

Turns ortho on/off

F9 or CTRL+B

SNAP

Turns snap on/off

F10 or CTRL+U

POLAR

Turns polar on/off

F11 or
CTRL+W

OSNAP TRACK

Turns object snap tracking on/off

F12

DYNMODE

Turns dynamic input on/off

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

AA

AREA

Calculate the area

DI

DIST

Calculate a distance and angle

DDPTYPE

DDPTYPE

Opens point style dialogue box

ID

ID

Display the co-ordinate values of a point

LI or LS

LIST

Display information about objects in a text window

MASSPROP

MASSPROP

Calculate the region/mass properties of a solid

PR

PROPERTIES

Opens properties dialogue box

WHOHAS

WHOHAS

Displays who has a drawing open

XLIST

XLIST

Lists type/block name/layer name/color/linetype of a

nested object in a block or an xref

INQUIRY

TIP
1. If you wish to identify a known location use ID and enter co-ordinates on command line to mark
that location with a node point - if you do not see anything try changing the node properties
DDPTYPE.
2. Alternatively set PDMODE to 3 to display an X at id point set PDMODE to 0 to clear.

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LAYERS
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

LA

LAYER

Opens layer manager

LAYCUR

LAYERCURRENT

Change objects to current layer

LAYDEL

LAYERDELETE

Delete a layer by selecting object

LAYFRZ

LAYERFREEZE

Freeze a layer by selecting object

LAYISO

LAYERISOLATE

Isolates a layer by selecting object

LAYLCK

LAYERLOCK

Lock a layer by selecting object

LAYMCH

LAYERMATCH

Match properties of a layer

LAYMRG

LAYERMERGE

Moves objects from first layer to second and deletes first

LAYOFF

LAYEROFF

Switches a layer off

LAYON

LAYERON

Switches all layers on except frozen layers

LAYERP

LAYERPREVIOUS

Restores previous layer state

LAYTHW

LAYTHW

Thaws all layers

LAYWALK

LAYERWALK

Walk through layers

LMAN

LMAN

Access Layer manager to save and restore layer states

TIP
Layer States - Create a layer state in Layer Manager (LA then Alt+S) to quickly switch between
different layer property settings.

MODIFYING OBJECTS
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

AL

ALIGN

Align an object with another

AR

ARRAY

Make multiple copies of an object

BR

BREAK

Break a line by defining 2 points

CO or CP

COPY

Copy object

COPYTOLAYE
R

COPYTOLAYER

Copy object from one layer to another

CHA

CHAMFER

Chamfer between 2 non-parallel lines

ERASE

Erase selection

EX

EXTEND

Extend a line to meet another

FILLET

Draw an arc between 2 intersecting lines

GROUP

Opens object grouping dialogue - use to copy or move

LEN

LENGTHEN

Lengthen or shorten a line

MOVE

Move an object

MI

MIRROR

Mirror an object

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MOCORO

MOVE/COPY/ROTAT
E

Copy move and rotate an object with one command

OFFSET

Offset an object by distance

RO

ROTATE

Rotate an object

STRETCH

Stretch an object

SC

SCALE

Scale an object

TR

TRIM

Trim objects

EXPLODE

Explode single entity to component parts

TIP
1.
2.

When a grip point is selected cycle through command options using keyboard spacebar sequence STRETCH, MOVE, ROTATE, SCALE, MIRROR.
Switch between Group and Ungroup using CTRL+H, yes H!!

OBJECT SELECTION (use with editing commands)

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

ADD

Adds each successive object, switches from remove

ALL

ALL

All objects on thawed layers

CP

CPOLYGON

Objects touching or enclosed by selection polygon

CROSSING

Objects touched or enclosed by window - Move right to

left

FENCE

Objects touch by single selection fence

GROUP

Opens object grouping dialogue - use with copy/move/etc

LAST

Most recently created visible object

PREVIOUS

Most recent selection set

REMOVE

Objects to remove from selection set

SNAPANG

SNAPANGLE

Change the snap angle from default 0

WINDOW

Objects enclosed by window - Move left to right

WP

WPOLYGON

Objects within a window polygon

TIP
1.
2.
3.

Use SHIFT+LEFT MOUSE BUTTON to deselect an object.

When a grip point is selected cycle through command options using keyboard spacebar sequence STRETCH, MOVE, ROTATE, SCALE, MIRROR.
Object Cycling - hold down the Control key while picking, AutoCAD will cycle through all the
objects that fall under the pickbox as you continue to pick. When the correct object is
highlighted, simply hit Enter. You don't need to continue to hold down the Control key after
the first pick.

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OBJECT SNAP - OSNAP

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

F3

OSNAP

Switches osnap on/off

F9 or CTRL+B

SNAP

Turns snap on/off

F11 or
CTRL+W

OSNAP TRACK

Turns object snap tracking on/off

APP

APPARENT INT

Apparent intersection of 2 objects

CEN

CENof

Snap to centre point

DS

DDOSNAP

Opens drafting settings/object snap dialogue

END

ENDPOINT

Snap to end of line etc

EXT

EXTENSION

Extends lines beyond endpoint

FRO

FROM

Snap to an offset distance from an object snap

INS

INSERTION

Snap to insertion point of text or block

INT

INTERSECTION

Snap to intersection of lines, circles, arcs

MID

MIDPOINT

Snap to midpoint of line etc

MTP

Snap midpoint between two points

NEA

NEAREST

Snap near to an object

NOD

NODE

Snap to point node

NON

NONE

Turns off object snap modes

PAR

PARALLEL

Continues a line parallel to existing

PER

PERPENDICULAR

Snap to perpendicular of line etc

QUA

QUADRANT

Snap to quadrant of circle, arc, ellipse

TAN

TANGENT

Snap to tangent of circle, arc, ellipse

TK

TRACK

Locate points without drawing lines

TT

TT

Temporary tracking point

TIP
1.
2.

Use TAB to cycle through Osnap points.

SHIFT+RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to reveal Osnap options

TEXT
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

%%C

Diameter dimensioning symbol

%%D

Degrees symbol

%%O

OVERSCORE

Toggles overscore mode on/off

%%P

Plus/minus symbol

%%U

UNDERSCORE

Toggles underscore on/off

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DT

DTEXT

Single line dynamic text - Justify/Align to fit within text

line

ED

DDEDIT

Edit text

FIND

FIND

Opens find and replace dialogue box

JUSTIFYTEXT

JUSTIFYTEXT

Change the justification point without moving text

MIRRTEXT

MIRRTEXT

Mirrtext 0 to turn off

SCALETEXT

SCALETEXT

Scales text without moving the text insertion point

SPELL

SPELLCHECK

Performs spellcheck - ALL checks all text in drawing

ST

STYLE

Opens text style dialogue box

T or MT

MTEXT

Multiline/paragraph text

TCIRCLE

TCIRCLE

Places circle, slot, or rectangle around each selected text

object

TEXT

DTEXT

Single line dynamic text

TEXTFIT

TEXTFIT

Stretches/shrinks text by selecting new start and/or end

points

TORIENT

TORIENT

Rotates text, mtext, and attribute definition objects

TXT2MTXT

TXT2MTXT

Converts DTEXT to MTEXT

WIPEOUT

WIPEOUT

Masks part of drawing for clarity

TIPS
1.

To fit or align text in a defined area use DTEXT and select JUSTIFY/ALIGN or FIT - very
useful if text is enclosed by a rectangle/ circle/etc.

NOTES
1.
Text entered in paperspace is 1:1, e.g. 5mm high text will print 5mm high.

THREE DIMENSIONAL - 3D
SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

3D

3D

Command line 3D solid options

BOX

BOX

Draw a cube

CYLINDER

CYLINDER

Draw a cylinder

DDUCS

DDUCS

Opens ucs dialogue

DDUCSP

DDUCSP

Opens ucs dialogue at orthographic tab

EXT

EXTRUDE

Extrude a face

IN

INTERSECT

Intersect an object

REV

REVOLVE

Revolves an object about an axis

RR

RENDER

Open render dialogue box

SE

SECTION

Section

SL

SLICE

Slice a solid

SU

SUBTRACT

Subtract selection from solid

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TOR

TORUS

Draw torus shape

UC

DDUCS

Displays UCS manager dialogue box

UCS

UCS

UCS command line options

UNI

UNION

Union solids

VPORTS

VPORTS

Opens viewport dialogue box

WE

WEDGE

Draw a wedge

SHORTCUT

COMMAND

COMMENT

OB

OBJECT

Align UCS with an object, first select UCS

UC

DDUCS

Display UCS manager dialogue box

UCS

UCS

Universal co-ordinate system options

UCSICON

UCSICON

Change the UCS icon appearance

WORLD

Return to the WCS

COMMAND

COMMENT

UCS

VIEW PORTS
SHORTCUT
CTRL+R

Cycle through viewports

CTRL+PAGE
UP

Switch up between layout tabs

CTRL+PAGE
DOWN

Switch down between layout tabs

DV

DVIEW

Perspective view.

MS

MSPACE

Switch to modelspace in a viewport

MV

MVIEW

Make a viewport in paperspace

PS

PSPACE

Switch to paperspace from viewport

VPORTS

VPORTS

Opens viewports dialogue box

-VPORTS

-VPORTS

Create a viewport using command line

TIP
1.

To prevent a viewport from editing right mouse click on the viewport and select DISPLAY
LOCKED/YES

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Introduction to AutoCAD Commands

Command

Menu

Result

Line / L

Draw > Line

Draw a straight
line segment
from one point to
the next

Circle

Circle / C

Draw > Circle >

Center, Radius

Draws a circle
based on a
center point and
radius.

Erase

Erase / E

Modify > Erase

Erases an object.

Print

Print / Plot
Cntl+P

Line

Keystroke

Icon

File > Print

Enables the
Print/Plot
Configuration
Dialog Box

Edit > Undo

Undoes the last

command.

U
Undo

(Don't use 'Undo' for

now)

RECTANGLE /

Draw >
Rectangle

Rectangle

REC

Draw >
Multi Lines

MLINE / ML

No Icon
Multiline

Draws a
rectangle after
you enter one
corner and then
the second.
Draw parallel
lines based on
the parameters
you define.
Trims objects to
a selected
cutting edge.

Trim

TRIM / TR

Modify > Trim

Extend

EXTEND / EX

Extends objects
Modify > Extend to a selected
boundary edge.

Offset

OFFSET / O

Modify > Offset

Offsets an object
(parallel) by a set
distance.

Object
Snaps

OSNAP / OS /
F3

Tools > Object

Snap Settings

Brings up the
OSNAP dialog
box.

CLICK

ICON

SETTING

ICON

SETTING

Endpoint

Perpendicular

Midpoint

Tangent

Center

Nearest

Node

Apparent
Intersection

Quadrant

Parallel

Intersection

None

Extension

Osnap Setting

Insertion Point

Temporary
Tracking Point
Snap From

RIGHT
TO LEFT

CROSSING
SELECTION

GREEN
(with a
dotted
outline)

LEFT TO
RIGHT

WINDOW
SELCTION

BLUE

SECLECTS ANY OBJECT THAT

EITHER CROSSES THE
BOUNDARY OR IS INSIDE IT
SELECTS ON OBJECTS THAT ARE
COMPLETELY WITHIN THE BOX

Command

Keystroke

Move

Copy

Icon

Menu

Result

Move / M

Modify > Move

Moves an object
or objects

Copy / CP

Modify > Copy

Copies object(s)
once or multiple
times

Stretch / S

Stretches an
object after you
Modify > Stretch
have selected a
portion of it

Mirror

Mirror / MI

Modify > Mirror

Creates a mirror
image of an
object or
selection set

Rotate

Rotate / RO

Rotates objects
Modify > Rotate to a certain angle

Fillet

Fillet / F

Modify > Fillet

Chamfer / CHA

Modify >
Chamfer

Stretch

Chamfer

Array

Array / AR

Layer

Layer / LA

Text

Text

Dimension

Dim

Scale

Scale / SC

Modify > Array

Format > Layer

No Icon Draw > Single

Line Text
Many

Creates a round
corner between
two lines
Creates an
angled corner
between two
lines
Creates a
repeating pattern
of the selected
objects
Starts the Layer
and Linetype
property dialog
box
Creates a single
line of text

Dimension >
(pick one)

Dimensions
previously drawn
objects

Modify > Scale

Proportionately
resizes (or
scales) objects

COMMAND
OPTION

ICON

DESCRIPTION

Zoom All

This option causes AutoCAD to display the whole drawing as far

as its drawing limits or drawing extents (whichever is the greater
of the two).

Zoom
Center

This option requires two things: a point that is to be the center of

the new display and a value to be its new height in drawing
units. The existing height is the default for the new height to
allow for panning across the drawing. If the new height value is
followed by "X" (eg. 2x), then it is taken as a magnification factor
relative to the current height. If followed by "XP", then it is taken
as a scale factor relative to paper space and can be used for
scaling the contents of paper space viewports.

Zoom
Dynamic

This is a very useful ZOOM option once it is understood. It

permits very quick movement around the drawing. Once
selected, this option redraws the graphics area of the screen
and displays two rectangles. The larger box shows the extents
of the current drawing. The smaller box shows the current view
with an "X" in the middle. This moves with the mouse. This view
box should be positioned so that its lower left corner is at the
lower left corner of the view required. By pressing the left button
on the mouse, the "X" is replaced by an "> " pointing to the right
side of the view box. This allows you to change the
magnification. As the mouse is moved, the view box shrinks and
expands so that the size of the required view can be set. The
left mouse button toggles between PAN "X" and ZOOM "> "
mode so that fine adjustments can be achieved. When the view
required has been selected, press <ENTER> or right click to
cause AutoCAD to display it.

Zoom
Extents

This option will display all the graphics that are contained in the
drawing (referred to as the drawing extents) with the largest
image possible.

Zoom
Previous

This option restores the displayed view prior to the current one.
For the purpose of this option, up to 10 views are saved so that
the last ten views can be recalled. This option includes every
time you use the scroll bar, which is one reason to avoid the
scroll bars for panning a lot in your drawing.

Zoom
Scale

This is a 'hidden' default option. You do not have to type "S" to

choose this option. It simply requires the entry of a number that
represents a magnification factor. Note that the factor is applied
to the entire drawing (as defined by the drawing's limits).
Numbers less than 1 will reduce the displayed size of the
drawing, while numbers greater than 1 will enlarge it. If "X" is
inserted after the number (eg. 0.8x) then the factor is applied to
the current view. If "XP" is inserted after the scale factor, then
the view is scaled relative to paper space. This is useful for
zooming a view within a paper space viewport to a specific
scale, for example, "1/48XP" will produce a view of model space
at a scale of " = 1' relative to paper space.

COMMAND
OPTION

ICON

DESCRIPTION
This option (also a 'hidden' default) prompts the user to pick two
corners of a box on the existing view in order to enlarge that
area to fill the display.

Zoom
Window

Zoom Realtime provides interactive zooming capability.

Pressing <ENTER> (after entering zoom) on the command line
automatically places you in Realtime mode. Hold the left mouse
button down at the midpoint of the drawing and move the cursor
vertically to the top (positive direction) of the window to zoom in
up to 100% (2x magnification). Hold the left mouse button down
at the midpoint of the drawing and move the cursor vertically to
the bottom (negative direction) of the window to zoom out
to100% (.5x magnification). You cannot zoom out beyond the
extents of the current view.

Zoom
Realtime

When you release the pick button, zooming stops. You can
release the pick button, move the cursor to another location in
the drawing, and then press the pick button again and continue
zooming from that location. To exit Realtime Zoom mode, press
<ENTER> or (ESC).
Aerial View is a zooming tool that displays a view of the drawing
in a separate window so that you can quickly move to that area.
If you keep the Aerial View window open as you work, you can
zoom and pan without choosing a menu option or entering a
command. You can change the view by creating a new view box
Aerial View
in the Aerial View window. To zoom in to the drawing, make the
command:
None
view box smaller by left clicking a rectangle. To zoom out of the
DSVIEWER
drawing, make the view box larger. As you zoom in or out of the
drawing, a real-time view of the current zoom location is
displayed in the graphics area. The screenshot shows how the
view box looks. Right click in the box and you can move the box
to where you want to zoom to.

Zoom
Object

This option asks you to select an object or objects, then press

<ENTER> and the screen will zoom to those objects only. This
is great for when you want to work on object.

Zoom In

Clicking this icon will zoom in to the drawing by about 50%. This
option is only available as an icon and cannot be invoked by the
command line.

Zoom Out

Similar to 'Zoom In' - this icon will zoom out of your drawing and
allow you to see about 50% more of your drawing space.

Mouse
Scroll

If you have a scrolling wheel on your mouse, you can use it to

zoom in and out of your drawing. Scroll towards you to zoom out
and away from you to zoom in. You have the option to change
the amount of zoom per wheel click with the Zoomfactor system
variable. Keep in mind that you will zoom in and out using your
mouse location as a 'centre point'.

COMMAND
OPTION

PAN

Command

ICON

DESCRIPTION
Panning allows you to quickly move around the drawing area at
the same magnification you currently have set. Type in PAN (or
P) <ENTER> and a hand will appear on the screen. Left click
and hold to move around your drawing.

Keystroke

Icon

Menu

Result
Covers an area with a
predefined pattern

Boundary
Hatch

Bhatch / H

Draw > Hatch

Hatch Edit

HatchEdit /
HE

Modify > Object > Edits an existing

Hatch...
Hatch