AutoCAD ACU flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Drawing template file (DWT)

A template stores default layers, linetypes, text and dimension styles, layouts, and title blocks; the NEW command starts a drawing from one of these files.

AUDIT command

Scans the current drawing's database for structural errors and repairs any it finds; run it when a drawing behaves unpredictably or fails to open cleanly.

RECOVER command

Opens a damaged DWG file while attempting to repair it during the load, unlike OPEN, which loads the file as-is without any repair attempt.

PURGE command

Deletes unreferenced named objects such as unused layers, blocks, linetypes, and text styles; it cannot remove any object that is still referenced in the drawing.

WBLOCK command

Writes selected objects or an entire drawing to a separate DWG file, so the exported content exists as model space objects in the new file.

SAVETIME system variable

Sets the interval in minutes between automatic saves; autosaved files use the .sv$ extension and are distinct from the .bak backup made on a normal save.

UNITS command

Controls the display format and precision of coordinates and angles plus the insertion scale for blocks; it changes how values are shown, not the existing geometry.

Polyline (PLINE)

A single object built from connected line or arc segments that can carry a uniform or tapered width and is selected and edited as one unit.

OFFSET command

Creates a parallel copy of a line, polyline, circle, arc, ellipse, or spline at a specified distance or through a point you pick.

STRETCH command

Uses a crossing window: vertices inside the window move, objects partially crossed are stretched, and objects fully enclosed by the window are simply moved.

FILLET with radius zero

Trims or extends two selected objects until they meet at a sharp corner instead of joining them with a tangent arc of the set radius.

MIRROR and MIRRTEXT

MIRROR reflects objects across a two-point axis; MIRRTEXT set to 1 mirrors text so it reads backwards, and set to 0 keeps text readable.

Array types

The ARRAY command creates rectangular arrays in rows and columns, polar arrays around a center point, and path arrays distributed along a line, polyline, or spline.

Grip editing

Clicking an object with no command active displays grips; hovering over a grip opens multi-function options, and pressing Ctrl cycles through the available modes.

Layer 0

The default layer present in every drawing; it cannot be deleted or renamed, and objects drawn on layer 0 inside a block adopt the properties of the insertion layer.

Frozen versus off layers

Off layers are hidden but still regenerate; frozen layers are not regenerated and are excluded from plotting and from the ZOOM Extents calculation.

Locked layer behavior

Objects on a locked layer stay visible and can be snapped to, but they cannot be edited or deleted; new objects can still be drawn on that locked layer.

LTSCALE system variable

A global factor that scales the dash pattern length of every non-continuous linetype in the drawing; CELTSCALE instead scales only objects created afterwards.

MATCHPROP command

Copies properties such as layer, color, linetype, linetype scale, lineweight, and plot style from a source object to one or more destination objects.

BYLAYER property setting

An object whose color, linetype, or lineweight is BYLAYER displays the value defined by its layer, so editing the layer updates every object set that way.

Viewport scale lock

Locking a layout viewport fixes its scale so zooming inside the viewport cannot change it; the scale is set in the Properties palette or scale list first.

CANNOSCALE system variable

Sets the current annotation scale, which governs the displayed size of annotative objects such as text, dimensions, multileaders, and hatches in the drawing.

Associative dimensions

Dimensions linked to the geometry they measure update automatically when that geometry is stretched or edited; DIMASSOC set to 2 enables this behavior.

DIMSCALE dimension variable

Applies an overall scale factor to dimension text, arrowheads, and offsets in a dimension style; set it to 0 when the style is annotative.

Model space versus paper space

Model space holds geometry at full size, while a paper space layout holds the title block and viewports that display model space at a chosen scale.

Annotative object

An object with the annotative property enabled automatically resizes to match the annotation scale of model space or of the viewport in which it appears.

Hatch island detection

Controls how enclosed areas inside a hatch boundary are filled: Normal alternates fill on nested islands, Outer fills only the outermost, Ignore fills through all islands.

HPASSOC system variable

Determines whether newly created hatches are associative; an associative hatch updates its fill when its boundary object is moved, stretched, or otherwise edited.

CTB plot style table

A color-dependent plot style table that maps each AutoCAD color index to plotted properties such as lineweight, screening, and linetype for output.

STB plot style table

A named plot style table in which plot properties are assigned by style name to layers or objects instead of being tied to the object's color.

Plot area options

Choices defining what gets plotted: Layout for the whole sheet, Extents for all objects, Display for the current view, Limits, a saved View, or a picked Window.

PUBLISH command

Outputs multiple drawings or layouts together into a single PDF, DWF, or DWFx file in one batch operation rather than plotting sheets individually.