Assigning Plot Styles to Objects The Bottom Linecont.....1

The Bottom Line

Choosing between Color-Dependent and Named Plot Style Tables Plot styles let you control
the way lines are printed on paper. You can control lineweights, shading of filled areas,
corner treatment of thick lines, and more.
Master It Describe some of the differences between named plot styles and color-dependent
plot styles.
Solution Color-dependent plot styles use the color of objects to control lineweights and
other printed features. Named plot styles can be used to assign printed features to individual
objects.
Creating a Color Plot Style Table Both color and named plot styles are stored as files. You
can create custom plot styles and apply them to any drawing.
Master It In what dialog box do you select and edit plot styles?
Solution Go to the Plot dialog box or the Page Setup dialog box; then, select New from the
Plot Style Table drop-down list. You can also choose File  Plot Style Manager and, in
the Plot Styles window, double-click the Add-A-Plot Style Table Wizard.
Editing and Using Plot Style Tables Plot styles give you a lot of control over the appearance
of lines in your plotted output.
Master It Name some of the settings offered in the Plot Style Table Editor.
Solution Color, Screening, Lineweight, Line End Style, and Line Join Style are a few of the
available options.
Assigning Named Plot Styles Directly to Layers and Objects Named plots styles offer a bit
more control over the way lines are plotted. If you choose, you can assign named plot styles to
objects bypassing layer assignments.
Master It Describe a method for assigning a plot style to an object.
Solution You can assign a plot style to an object through the Plot Style setting in the Properties
palette. You can also use the Plot Style Control drop-down list in the Properties toolbar.

Assigning Plot Styles to Objects

Assigning Plot Styles to Objects
After you’ve set up AutoCAD to use named plot styles, you can begin to assign plot styles to objects
through the Properties palette. Here are the steps to assign plot styles to objects:
1. Back in the Plan-named.dwg file, click the Layout1 tab.
2. Choose File  Page Setup Manager; then, click the Modify button in the Page Setup Manager
dialog box.

WARNING If your plotter configuration is set up for a nonexistent printer, you’ll see a warning
message telling you that a driver for the plotter assigned to this drawing can’t be found. This often
occurs when you receive a file that has been set up to plot on a printer in another location. As the
warning message explains, AutoCAD will set your plot device to None. You must then make sure
your printer plotter is selected in the Printer/Plotter group of the Page Setup dialog box.
3. In the Page Setup dialog box, select Mynamedstyle1.stb from the drop-down list in the Plot
Style Table (Pen Assignments) group.
4. Make sure the Display Plot Styles check box is selected; then, click OK.
5. Click Close to close the Page Setup Manager dialog box.
You’ve assigned a named plot style table to Layout1. Note that you can assign different named
plot styles to different layouts.
Next, make sure the plot styles will be displayed in the drawing:
1. Choose Format  Lineweight, make sure that the Display Lineweight check box is selected,
and click OK.
2. Set up your view so you see a close-up of the lower-left corner unit.
3. Click the Model Or Paper Space button on the status bar so that the word Model shows in the
button. This enables you to select objects in the drawing while in a Layout tab.



4. Select the line representing the outer wall of the unit at lower left in the plan, as shown in
Figure 9.6; then, right-click, and choose Properties from the shortcut menu.



5. In the Properties palette, click the Plot Style option. The option turns into a drop-down list
with a downward-pointing arrow to the far right.



6. Click the downward-pointing arrow, and then select Other from the list to open the Select
Plot Style dialog box.


7. Select Style 1, and click OK. Style 1 now appears as the value for the Plot Style in the Properties
palette.
8. Close the Properties palette.
9. Choose View  Regen All. If you have the lineweight visibility turned on, you see the results in the
drawing editor. (Depending on how your display is set up, you may need to zoom in further.)
Another way to assign plot styles to individual objects is through the Plot Style Control dropdown
list found in the Properties toolbar.



This enables you to select a plot style in a manner similar to the Layer & Linetype drop-down
list. You can assign plot styles to individual objects by selecting the objects and then selecting a plot
style from the Plot Style Control drop-down list. If you’re using a color plot style table like the one
you created in earlier exercises, the Plot Style Control drop-down list is unavailable.

Assigning Plot Style Tables to Layers
You can also assign named plot style tables to layers. This has a similar effect to using the color plot
style tables. The main difference is that with named plot style tables, you assign the plot style tables
directly to the layer instead of assigning a plot style to the color of a layer. Here’s how to assign a
plot style table to a layer:
1. In the Layers toolbar, click the Layer Properties Manager button to open the Layer Properties
Manager dialog box.
2. Select the Wall layer.
3. Click the Normal label in the Plot Style column of the Wall layer listing. You may have to
scroll to the right to see the Plot Style column.


The Select Plot Style dialog box opens.



4. Select Style 1 from the Plot Styles list.
5. Click OK. You return to the Layer Properties Manager dialog box; this time, it shows the Plot
Style property for the Wall layer listed as Style 1.
6. Click OK to close the Layer Properties Manager dialog box; then, choose View  Regen All.
Your view of the plan changes to reflect the new plot style assignment to the Wall layer.

Converting a Drawing from Color Plot Styles to Named Plot Styles
If you need to convert a color plot style drawing to a named plot style drawing, you can use the Convertctb
and Convertpstyles commands. The conversion is a two-part process. In the first stage, which is
needed only the first time you perform the conversion, you convert a color plot style table file into a
named plot style table file. Then, you convert the drawing file.
Here are the steps for the first part of the process:
1. Start AutoCAD, and, at the Command prompt, enter Convertctb↵. This command lets you convert a
color plot style table file into a named plot style table file. A Select File dialog box opens to enable you
to select a color plot style table file; these files have the filename extension .ctb. For this example,
choose the Acad.ctb file.
2. Click Open to open the Create File dialog box, where you can provide a name for the converted file.
If you opened the Acad.ctb file in step 1, you may want to give the new file the name AcadConvert
so you know it’s a converted .ctb file. AutoCAD automatically adds the .stb filename extension.
3. After you click Save, AutoCAD creates a new named plot style table file, with the .stb filename
extension, from the .ctb file you selected in step 1.
The next part is to convert the drawing file:
1. Open the file you want to convert, and enter Convertpstyles↵ at the Command prompt. You’ll see
a warning message to make sure you’ve converted a .ctb file to a .stb file.
2. Click OK to open the Select File dialog box.
3. Select the converted .stb file you created using the Convertctb command. The current drawing is
converted to use a named plot style table.
In the process shown here, I’ve suggested converting the Acad.ctb file; but if you’ve saved some
custom settings in another .ctb file, you may want to convert your custom .ctb file instead.
To convert a drawing that uses a named plot style table to one that uses a color plot style table, open the
file in question, and use the Convertpstyles command. You’ll see a warning message telling you that all
the named plot styles will be removed from the drawing. Click OK to convert the drawing.

UNDERSTANDING PLOT STYLES count......1

Assigning Named Plot Styles Directly to Layers and Objects
So far, you’ve learned that you can control how AutoCAD translates drawing colors into plotter output.
You’ve been using a color plot style table, which assigns a plot style to each color in AutoCAD. You can
also assign plot styles directly to objects or layers. To do this, you need to employ a named plot style
table. As we said earlier, named plot style tables enable you to create plot styles that have names rather
than being assigned directly to colors in AutoCAD. You can then assign a plot style by name to objects
or layers in your drawing. In this section, you’ll learn how to set up AutoCAD with a named plot style
table to assign plot styles to objects; then, you’ll create a new plot style table.

Using Named Plot Style Tables
Out of the box, AutoCAD uses the color-dependent plot style table for all new drawings. You can
create a new drawing that uses named plot style tables in two ways. The simpler way is to use any of
the named plot style template files when you create a new drawing. You’ll see these templates under the
Use A Template option in the Create New Drawing dialog box or in the Select Template dialog box.


By offering both color and named plot style drawing templates, AutoCAD makes it easy to create
and select the type of plot style for your drawing regardless of the current default style.
If you prefer, you can set up AutoCAD to use a named plot style by default when you create a
drawing by using the Start From Scratch option in the Create New Drawing dialog box. To set up
the default plot style table for new drawings, follow these steps:
1. Choose Tools  Options to open the Options dialog box, and click the Plot And Publish tab.
This tab offers a variety of settings geared toward your plotter or printer.
2. In the lower-right corner of the dialog box, click the Plot Style Table Settings button.
3. In the Plot Style Table Settings dialog box, click the Use Named Plot Styles radio button.
Notice that the Default Plot Style For Layer 0 and Default Plot Style For Objects options
become available. Click OK.



4. Click OK to close the Options dialog box.
To create and try out a new named plot style, you can open an existing file from an earlier version
of AutoCAD. In the next few exercises, you’ll use the Plan-named.dwg file. This is a Release 14 file
that you’ll assign the type of plot style table that is currently the default as determined by the Use
Named Plot Styles option you set in the previous exercise. Follow these steps:
1. Open the Plan-named.dwg file.
2. Choose File  Plot Style Manager to open a window to the Plot Styles folder.
3. Double-click the Add-A-Plot Style Table Wizard icon to start the Plot Style Table Wizard.
4. Click Next to open the Begin screen, choose Start From Scratch, and then click Next to open
the Pick Plot Style Table screen.
5. Click the Named Plot Style Table radio button, and then click Next to open the File
Name screen.
6. Enter Mynamedstyle1 in the File Name input box, and click Next to open the Finish screen.
Here you can exit, or you can edit the new plot style table. This time, you’ll edit the table
from the wizard.
7. Click the Plot Style Table Editor button to open the Plot Style Table Editor dialog box.



Notice that you have only one style named. Unlike the color plot style tables, you aren’t assigning
a style to each AutoCAD color; you don’t need a style for each of the 255 colors. Instead, you
can create a limited set of styles, giving each style the characteristics you want to apply to objects
or layers. Continue by adding some plot styles:
1. Click the Add Style button to display a new Style 1 column. If you choose, you can give the
style a different name at this point by clicking in the Name box and typing a new name.



2. Click the Form View tab, and then select Style 1 from the Plot Styles list.
3. Click the Lineweight drop-down list, and select 0.5000 mm.
4. Click the Add Style button, and then click OK in the Add Plot Style dialog box.
5. Select Style 2 from the Plot Styles list; then, click the Lineweight drop-down list, and select
0.7000 mm.
6. Click Save & Close to return to the Add Plot Style Table dialog box.
7. Click Finish to exit the wizard, and then close the Plot Styles window.
You may have noticed that the Add-A-Plot Style Table Wizard works in a slightly different way
when you start it from the Plot Styles window. It adds an extra option (in step 5 of the exercise
before the preceding one) that lets you choose between a color plot style table and a named plot
style table.
You’ve just created a named plot style. Next, make Mynamedstyle1.stb the default plot style:
1. Open the Options dialog box, and click the Plot And Publish tab.
2. Click the Plot Style Table Settings button. Then, in the Default Plot Style Table drop-down
list, select Mynamedstyle1.stb, the table you just created.
3. Click OK to exit the Plot Style Table Settings dialog box, and then click OK again to exit the
Options dialog box.
Now, you’re ready to start assigning plot styles to the objects in your drawing.

UNDERSTANDING PLOT STYLES

CHAPTER 9 UNDERSTANDING PLOT STYLES

The File Information group gives you the basic information about the file location and name, as
well as the number of color styles included in the plot style table.
The Apply Global Scale Factor To Non-ISO Linetypes check box lets you specify whether ISO
linetype scale factors are applied to all linetypes. When this item is selected, the Scale Factor input
box becomes active, enabling you to enter a scale factor.
NOTE International Organization for Standardization (ISO) linetypes are special linetypes that
conform to ISO standards for technical drawings.
The Table View Tab
The Table View tab offers the same settings as the Form View tab, only in a different format. Each
plot style is shown as a column, with the properties of the plot style listed along the left side of the
tab. To change a property, click it in the column.


To apply the same setting to all plot styles at once, right-click a setting you want to use from a
single plot style, and choose Copy from the shortcut menu. Right-click the setting again, and then
choose Apply To All Styles from the shortcut menu.
Click the Edit Lineweights button to open the Edit Lineweights dialog box, which lets you adjust
the lineweight settings for the plot styles.

The Form View Tab
You’ve already seen and worked with the Form View tab, shown in Figure 9.1 earlier in this chapter.
This tab contains the same settings as the Table View tab but in a different format. Instead of displaying
each color as a column of properties, the properties are listed as options along the right side, and
the colors are listed in a list box.
To modify the properties of a color, you select the color from the list and then edit the values in
the Properties group on the right side of the dialog box. For example, to change the screening value
of the Color 3 style, you highlight Color 3 in the Plot Styles list, double-click the Screening input
box, and enter a new value.
You’ve already seen what the Screening, Color, Lineweight, and Line Join Style options do.
Here’s a description of the other style properties:
TIP The names of the properties in the Table View tab are slightly different from those in the
Form View tab. The Table View property names are enclosed in brackets in this listing.
Description This option enables you to enter a description for each color.
Dither [Enable Dithering] Dithering is a method that enables your plotter to simulate colors
beyond the basic 255 colors available in AutoCAD. Although this option is desirable when you
want to create a wider range of colors in your plots, it can also create distortions, including broken,
fine lines and false colors. For this reason, dithering is usually turned off. This option isn’t available
in all plotters.
[Convert To] Grayscale This option converts colors to grayscale.
[Use Assigned] Pen # This option lets you specify which pen number is assigned to each color
in your drawing. This option applies only to pen plotters.
Virtual Pen # Many ink-jet and laser plotters offer “virtual pens” to simulate the processes of
the old-style pen plotters. Frequently, such plotters offer as many as 255 virtual pens. Plotters
with virtual pens often let you assign AutoCAD colors to a virtual pen number. This is significant
if the virtual pens of your plotter can be assigned screening, width, end style, and join
styles. You can then use the virtual pen settings instead of using the settings in the Plot Style
Table Editor. This option is most beneficial for users who already have a library of drawings that
are set up for plotters with virtual-pen settings.
You can set up your ink-jet printer for virtual pens under the Vector Graphics listing of the
Device And Documents Setting tab of the Plotter Configuration Editor. See Appendix B for more
on setting up your printer or plotter configuration.
Linetype If you prefer, you can use this setting to control linetypes in AutoCAD based on the
color of the object. By default, this option is set to Use Object Linetype. I recommend that you
leave this option at its default.
Adaptive [Adjustment] This option controls how noncontinuous linetypes begin and end. It’s
on by default, which forces linetypes to begin and end in a line segment. With this option turned
off, the same linetype is drawn without regard for its ending. In some cases, this can produce a
line that appears incomplete.
Line End Style This option lets you specify the shape of the end of simple lines that have a
lineweight greater than zero.
Line Join Style This option lets you determine the shape of the corners of polylines.



Fill Style This option lets you set up a color to be drawn as a pattern when used in a solid filled
area. The patterns appear as follows:



Add Style Clicking this button lets you add more plot styles or colors. This option isn’t available
for color plot style tables.
Delete Style Clicking this button deletes the selected style. This option isn’t available for color
plot style tables.
Save As Clicking this button lets you save the current plot style table with a different filename.

Setting Up Line Corner Styles

Setting Up Line Corner Styles
You may notice that the corners of the wall lines appear to be rounded, as shown in Figure 9.4,
instead of crisp and sharp.


You can adjust the way AutoCAD draws these corners at plot time through the Plot Style
Table Editor:
1.
Open the
Mystyle.ctb
plot style table, as you did in the previous exercise.
2.
Click the Form View tab, and then click Color 3 in the Plot Styles list box.
CHAPTER 9
UNDERSTANDING PLOT STYLES
3.
Click the Line End Style drop-down list, and
select Square.


4.
Click Save & Close; then, click OK to close the Page Setup dialog box.
5.
Choose View 
Regen All to view your changes. Now the corners meet in a sharp angle, as
shown in Figure 9.5.

NOTE
The Line Join Style setting can have an adverse affect on AutoCAD fonts. If text appears
distorted, check to see whether it’s on a layer that uses a line join style other than the default Use
Object End Style setting.
The Square option in the Line End Style drop-down list extends the endpoints of contiguous
lines so that their corners meet in a clean corner instead of a notch. The Line Join Style drop-down
list offers a similar set of settings for polylines. For example, you can round polyline corners by
using the Round option in the Line Join Style drop-down list.

NOTE
The Line Join Style setting can have an adverse affect on AutoCAD fonts. If text appears
distorted, check to see whether it’s on a layer that uses a line join style other than the default UseObject End Style setting.
The Square option in the Line End Style drop-down list extends the endpoints of contiguous
lines so that their corners meet in a clean corner instead of a notch. The Line Join Style drop-downlist offers a similar set of settings for polylines. For example, you can round polyline corners byusing the Round option in the Line Join Style drop-down list.

Setting Up Screen Values for Solid Areas
The last option you’ll look at is how to change a color into a screened area. Frequently, you’ll want
to add a gray or colored background to an area of your drawing to emphasize that area graphically,as in a focus area in a map, or to designate functions in a floor plan. The settings you’re about to use
enable you to create shaded backgrounds:
1. Open the Page Setup Manager, and click Modify to open the Page Setup dialog box again.
Then, open the Plot Style Table Editor.
2. Select Color 3 from the Plot Styles list box.
3. In the Screening list box, click the number 100 to select it.


4. Type 50↵.
5. Click Save & Close. Click OK in the Page Setup dialog box, and click Close in the Page Setup
Manager dialog box.
6. Choose View  Regen All. The walls are a shade of gray instead of solid black.
In this exercise, you turned a wide black line into a gray one. The Screening option lets you tone
down the chosen color from a solid color to a color that has 50 percent of its full intensity.
You can use the Screening option in combination with color to obtain a variety of tones. If you
need to cover large areas with color, you can use the Solid hatch pattern to fill those areas and then
use the Screening option in the Plot Style Table Editor to make fine adjustments to the area’s color.
Controlling the Visibility of Overlapping Objects
You should also know about the Draworder command in conjunction with solid filled areas. This
command lets you control how objects hide or overlap when displayed or plotted. If your solid
hatches are hiding text or other graphics, you need to learn about Draworder. See Chapter 14 for
more information. Some output devices offer a Merge Control option that determines how overlapping
graphics are plotted. For more information, see Appendix B.

Other Options in the Plot Style Table Editor
You’ve seen a lot of the plot style options so far, but there are many others that you may want to use
in the future. This section describes those options that weren’t covered in the previous exercises.
TIP The options in the Plot Style Table Editor are the same regardless of whether you’re editing a
color plot style table or a named plot style table.
The General Tab
You didn’t really look at the General tab of the Plot Style Table Editor in the exercise presented earlier.
The General tab offers information regarding the plot style you’re currently editing. You can
enter a description of the style in the Description box. This can be useful if you plan to include the
plot style with a drawing you’re sending to someone else for plotting.

Making Changes to Multiple Plot Styles

Making Changes to Multiple Plot Styles
Chances are, you’ll want to plot your drawing in black and white for most of your work. You can
edit your color plot style table to plot one or all of your AutoCAD colors as black instead of the
AutoCAD colors.
You saw how you can open the Plot Style Table Editor from the Page Setup dialog box to edit
your color plot style table. In this exercise, you’ll try a different route:
1.
Choose File 
Plot Style Manager to open the Plot Styles window. This is a view to the
Plot
Styles
folder under the
C:\Documents and Settings\
Username
\Application Data\
Autodesk\AutoCAD 2008\R17.1 \enu\
folder.
2.
Locate the file
Mystyle.ctb
, and double-click it to open the Plot Style Table Editor
dialog box.
3.
Click the Form View tab.
4.
Click Color 3 in the Plot Styles list box.

5.
Click the Color drop-down list, and select Black.


6.
Click Save & Close; then, close the Plot Styles window.
7.
Choose View 
Regen All to view your drawing. The green objects appear black in the
Layout tab.
8.
Click the Model tab to view your drawing in Model Space. The objects are still their original
colors. This shows that you haven’t changed the colors of your objects or layers—you’ve
only changed the color of the plotted output.
Next, try changing all the output colors to black:
1.
Repeat steps 1 and 2 of the previous exercise to open the
Mystyle.ctb
file.
2.
Click the Form View tab; then, click Color 1 in the Plot Styles list box.
3.
Shift+click Color 9 in the Plot Styles list box to select all the plot styles from Color 1 to
Color 9.


4.
Click the Color drop-down list, and select Black.
5.
Click Save & Close, and close the Plot Styles window.
6.
Click the Layout1 tab, and then choose View 
Regen All. All the colors have changed
to black.
Now, when you plot your drawing, you’ll get a plot that is composed entirely of black lines.
These exercises have shown that the Plot Style Table Editor lets you set the color of your printed
output to be different from the colors you see in Model Space. In the exercises, you set the pen colors
to black, but if you look down the Color drop-down list, you’ll see that you can choose from any
number of colors. The Select Color option in the Color drop-down list lets you select colors from the
Select Color dialog box.


NOTE
To see the view shown here, make sure the True Color tab is selected and the HSL option is
selected in the Color Model drop-down list. LT users won’t see a Color Books tab.
In Chapter 5, you were introduced to the Select Color dialog box in the context of selecting colors
for layers. Here, you can use it to assign colors to plot styles. The same three tabs are available:
Index Color, True Color, and Color Books. (LT users won’t see the Color Books tab.) The Index
Color tab lets you select from the standard AutoCAD 255 index colors. The True Color tab lets you
choose virtually any color you want. The Color Books tab lets you use PANTONE colors.

Making Your Plot Styles Visible

Making Your Plot Styles Visible
You won’t see any changes in your drawing yet. You need to make one more change to your
drawing options:
1.
Choose Format 
Lineweight to open the Lineweight Settings dialog box. The Lineweight
Settings dialog box lets you control the appearances of lineweights in the drawing. If lineweights
aren’t showing up, this is the place to look to make them viewable. You can find out
more about the Lineweight Settings dialog box in Chapter 16.


TIP
You can also click the User Preferences tab in the Options dialog box and then click the Lineweight
Settings button to open the Lineweight Settings dialog box.
2.
Click the Display Lineweight check box to turn on this option.
3.
Just below the Display Lineweight option, click the Default drop-down list, and select 0.09
mm. This makes any unassigned or default lineweight a very fine line.
4.
Click Apply & Close. The layout displays the drawing with the lineweight assignments you
set up earlier (see Figure 9.3).



WARNING
If your view doesn’t reflect the Plot Style settings, make sure you have the Display
Plot Styles option selected in the Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments) group of the Page
Setup dialog box.

Editing and Using Plot Style Tables

Editing and Using Plot Style Tables
You now have your own plot style table. In this exercise, you’ll edit the plot style and see firsthand
how plot styles affect your drawing:
1.
In the Page Setup dialog box, the filename
Mystyle.ctb
should appear in the drop-down
list of the Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments) group. If it doesn’t, open the drop-down list to
select it.
2.
Click the Edit button to open the Plot Style Table Editor. The Edit button is the one just to
the right of the Plot Style Table drop-down list. Click the Form View tab, which is shown
at the top of Figure 9.1.
TIP
You can also open and edit existing plot style tables by choosing File 
Plot Style Manager to open
the Plot Styles dialog box. You can then double-click the plot style you want to edit. A third option is to
double-click the
Plot Style Table
file in
C:\Documents and Settings\
Username
\
Application Data\Autodesk\AutoCAD 2008\R17.1\enu\Plot Styles



The Plot Style Table Editor dialog box has three tabs that give you control over how each color
in AutoCAD is plotted. The Form View tab lets you select a color from a list box and then set the
properties of that color by using the options on the right side of the tab.
TIP
The Table View tab displays each color as a column of properties. Each column is called a plot
style. The property names are listed in a column to the far left. Although the layout is different,
both the Table View tab and the Form View tab offer the same functions.
Next, you’ll continue by changing the line width property of the Color 3 (green) plot style.
Remember that green is the color assigned to the Wall layer of your Plan drawing.
1.
Click Color 3 in the Plot Styles list box.
2.
Click the Lineweight drop-down list, and select 0.5000 mm.


3.
Click Save & Close to return to the Page Setup dialog box.
4.
Click the Display Plot Styles check box in the Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments) group.
Then, click OK to close the Page Setup dialog box, and click Close to close the Page Setup
Manager dialog box.



5.
Zoom in to the plan to enlarge the view of a unit bathroom and entrance, as shown in Figure 9.2.

Creating a Color Plot Style Table

Creating a Color Plot Style Table
You can have several plot style table files on hand to quickly apply plot styles to any given plot
or Layout tab. You can set up each plot style table to create a different look for your drawing.
These files are stored in the
Plot Styles
folder of the
C:\Documents and Settings\
Username
\
Application Data\Autodesk\AutoCAD 2008\R17.1\enu\
folder. Follow these steps to create a
new plot style table. You’ll use an existing file that was created in Release 14 an example to demonstrate
the plot style features:
TIP
If you change your mind about a selection you make while using a wizard, you can move forward
or backward by clicking the Next and Back buttons.
1.
Open the sample file called
Plan-color.dwg
; then, click the Layout1 tab.
2.
Right-click the Layout tab, and select Page Setup Manager. In the Page Setup Manager
dialog box, click Modify.
3.
The Page Setup dialog box is similar to the Plot dialog box. The main difference is that the
Page Setup dialog box doesn’t have the Apply To Layout button at the bottom.


4.
In the Plot Style Table (Pen Assignments) group at upper right, open the drop-down list and
select New to start the Add Color-Dependent Plot Style Table Wizard.



5.
Click the Start From Scratch radio button, and then click Next. The next screen of the wizard
asks for a filename.
6.
Enter
Mystyle
for the filename, and click Next. The next screen of the wizard lets you edit
your plot style and assign the plot style to your current, new, or old drawings. You’ll learn
about editing plot styles a bit later.
7.
Click Finish to return to the Page Setup dialog box.
With the Add Color-Dependent Plot Style Table Wizard, you can create a new plot style table
from scratch, or you can create one based on an AutoCAD R14 CFG, PCP, or PC2 file. You can also
access the Add Color-Dependent Plot Style Table Wizard by choosing File 
Plot Style Manager
and then double-clicking the Add-A-Plot Style Table Wizard icon.
The steps shown here are the same whether your drawing is set up for color plot styles or named
plot styles.

Understanding Plot Styles

Understanding Plot Styles
To gain full control over the appearance of your output, you’ll want to know about plot style tables.
By using
plot style tables
, you can control how colors are translated into plotted lineweights and how
area fills are converted into shades of gray or screened colors in your printer or plotter output. You
can also control other aspects of how the plotter draws each object in a drawing.
If you don’t use plot style tables, your plotter will produce output as close as possible to what
you see in the drawing editor, including colors. With plot style tables, you can force all the colors
to print as black, or you can also assign a fill pattern or a screen to a color. This can be useful for
charts and maps that require area fills of different gradations. You can create multiple plot style
tables to produce plots that fit the exact requirements of your project.
This chapter will show you firsthand how you can use plot style tables to enhance your plotter
output. You’ll look at how to adjust the lineweight of the walls in the
Plan
file and make color
changes to your plotter output. Topics in this chapter include:
◆
Choosing between Color-Dependent and Named Plot Style Tables
◆
Creating a Color Plot Style Table
◆
Editing and Using Plot Style Tables
◆
Assigning Named Plot Styles Directly to Layers and Objects

Knowing Your Plotter’s Origins

Knowing Your Plotter’s Origins
Another important consideration is the location of your plotter’s origin. For example, on some plotters,
the lower-left corner of the plot area is used as the origin. Other plotters use the center of the plot area
as the origin. When you plot a drawing that is too large to fit the sheet on a plotter that uses a corner for the origin, the image is pushed toward the top and to the right of the sheet (see Figure 8.5). When you
plot a drawing that is too large to fit on a plotter that uses the center of the paper as the origin, the image
is pushed outward in all directions from the center of the sheet.



In each situation, the origin determines a point of reference from which you can relate your
drawing in the computer to the physical output. After you understand this, you’re better equipped
to accurately place your electronic drawing on the physical medium.

Using Batch and Electronic Plots
The focus of this chapter so far has been printer or plotter hard-copy output. But a major part of your
work will involve the transmission of electronic versions of your documents. More than ever, architects
and engineers are using the Internet to exchange documents of all types, so AutoCAD offers several tools
to make the process easier.
I’ve mentioned that you can control some of your output settings thorough the Plot And Publish tab of
the Options dialog box. The Publish features includes items that enable you to “print” your drawings as
a file that can be e-mailed to clients and consultants or posted on an FTP site or website. The Publish features
let you create a single file that contains multiple pages so you can combine several drawing sheets
into one file.
The Publish feature also enables you to plot several drawings at once without having to load and print
each one individually. This can be helpful when you’ve finished a set of drawings and want to plot them
during a break or overnight. Chapter 27 gives you a detailed look at the Publish feature.

Understanding Your Plotter’s Limits

Understanding Your Plotter’s Limits
If you’re familiar with a word-processing or desktop-publishing program, you know that you can set
the margins of a page, thereby telling the program exactly how far from each edge of the paper you
want the text to appear. With AutoCAD, you don’t have that luxury. To accurately place a plot on
your paper, you must know the plotter’s hard clip limits. The hard clip limits are like built-in margins,
beyond which the plotter won’t plot. These limits vary from plotter to plotter (see Figure 8.4).






It’s crucial that you know your printer’s or plotter’s hard clip limits in order to place your drawings
accurately on the sheet. Take some time to study your plotter manual and find out exactly
what these limits are. Then, make a record of them and store it somewhere, in case you or someone
else needs to format a sheet in a special way.
Hard clip limits for printers often depend on the software that drives them. You may need to
consult your printer manual or use the trial-and-error method of plotting several samples to see
how they come out.
After you’ve established the limits of your plotter or printer, you’ll be better equipped to fit your
drawing in those limits. You can then establish some standard drawing limits based on your plotter’s
limits. You’ll also need to know the dimensions of those hard clip limits to define custom sheet
sizes. Although AutoCAD offers standard sheet sizes in the Paper Size button group of the Page
Setup and Plot dialog boxes, these sizes don’t take into account the hard clip limits.

Plot to File

Plot to File
You have the option to plot to a file that can be downloaded to your printer or plotter at a later date. The
Plot To File group lets you specify the default destination for the plot files.

Plot and Publish Log File
You can maintain a plot log file that records information about each plot you make. This can be helpful
when you must keep records of hard-copy output for billing purposes. The location of the plot and publishing
log file can be specified in the Files tab of the Options dialog box under the Plot And Publishing
Log File Location listing. The log file has a .csv filename extension.

Background Processing Options
AutoCAD performs background plots so that after you begin a plot you can immediately return to your
drawing work instead of waiting for the plot to be completed. The options in this group let you turn on this
feature either for standard plotting or for the Publish feature discussed in Chapter 27. You can also control
this option through the Backgroundplot system variable.

Plot Stamp Settings
This button opens the Plot Stamp dialog box, which you saw earlier in the “Plot Options” section of this
chapter. The Plot Stamp dialog box lets you determine what information is displayed in a plot stamp,
which is a label placed on the print of a drawing to provide information about the source file.

Plot Style Table Settings
When you click this button, the Plot Style Table Settings dialog box opens. This dialog box controls the
type of plot styles used in AutoCAD. In the case of named plot styles, you can also select a default plot
style for Layer 0 and a default plot style for objects. Note that the Use Color Dependent Plot Styles and
Use Named Plot Styles radio buttons don’t have an effect on the current drawing; they affect only new
drawings and pre–AutoCAD 2000 drawings being opened for the first time. The Default Plot Style Table
drop-down list lets you select a default plot style table for new and pre–AutoCAD 2000 drawings. These
settings are also controlled by the Pstylepolicy system variable.
The Add Or Edit Plot Style Tables button opens the Plot Styles dialog box. From there, you can doubleclick
an existing plot style table file or start the Add-A-Plot Style Table Wizard to create a new plot style.

Specify Plot Offset Relative To
Here you can determine whether the plot offset is set in relation to the printable area of your printer or
the edge of the paper. The printable area is determined by the printer margin.

Plotter and Printer Hardware Considerations

Plotter and Printer Hardware Considerations
Positioning an AutoCAD drawing on the printer output is something of an art. Before you face a
deadline with hundreds of plots to produce, you may want to create some test plots and carefully
refine your plotter settings so that you have AutoCAD set up properly for those rush jobs.
Part of the setup process is to understand how your particular printer or plotter works. Each device
has its own special characteristics, so a detailed description of printer hardware setup is beyond the
scope of this section. However, here are a few guidelines that will make the process easier.

Understanding the Plot and Publish Tab in the Options Dialog Box
I mentioned the Plot And Publish tab in the Options dialog box earlier in this chapter. This tab contains several
options related to plotting that can be useful. Here’s a summary of those options and their purposes.



Default Plot Settings For New Drawings
The settings in this group let you control the default plot settings for new drawings and for drawings
from earlier versions of AutoCAD that are opened for the first time in AutoCAD 2008. The Use As Default
Output Device radio button and drop-down list let you select the default plotter or printer to be used
with new drawings. When selected, the Use Last Successful Plot Settings radio button uses the last successful
plotter settings for subsequent plots. This is how earlier versions of AutoCAD worked. The Add
Or Configure Plotters button opens the Plotters window. This is the same as choosing Files  Plot Manager
from the AutoCAD menu bar. From the Plotters window, you can launch the Add-A-Plotter Wizard
to add new plotter configurations. You can also edit existing plotter configurations.

General Plot Options
These options control some of the general plotter parameters. The Keep The Layout Paper Size If Possible
radio button causes AutoCAD to attempt to plot to the paper size specified in the Plot dialog box,
regardless of the paper size in the plotter. If the specified size is larger than the capacity of the plotter,
a warning message is displayed. The Use The Plot Device Paper Size option causes AutoCAD to use the
paper size specified by the system printer or the PC3 plot configuration file currently in use. Both settings
are also controlled by the Paperupdate system variable.
The System Printer Spool Alert drop-down list offers control over printer-spooling alert messages. The
OLE Plot Quality drop-down list lets you control the quality of OLE objects embedded in or linked to a
drawing. This setting can also be controlled through the Olequality system variable.

When the Use OLE Application When Plotting OLE Objects check box is selected, AutoCAD launches any
application that is associated with an OLE object embedded or linked to the AutoCAD drawing that is
currently being plotted. This helps improve the plot quality of OLE objects. You can also set this option
through the Olestartup system variable.
The Hide System Printers option affects the Printer/Plotter group’s Name drop-down list in the Plot and
Page Setup dialog boxes. With this option turned on, you see only printers that have a .pc3 file associated
with them. These include printers that have been set up using the Add-A-Plotter Wizard discussed
earlier in this chapter.

Editing a Plotter Configuration

Editing a Plotter Configuration
In step 8 of the previous exercise, you exited the Add-a-Plotter Wizard without editing the newly
created plotter configuration. You can always go back and edit the configuration by opening the
Plotters window (choose File  Plotter Manager) and double-clicking the configuration you want
to edit. You can recognize a plotter configuration file by its .pc3 filename extension.
Many users use their Windows system printer or plotter for other applications besides AutoCAD,
and frequently the AutoCAD settings for that printer are different from the settings used for other applications.
You can set up AutoCAD to automatically use its own settings so you don’t have to reconfigure
your Windows system printer every time you switch applications. To do so, follow these steps:
1. Choose File  Page Setup Manager to open the Page Setup Manager dialog box.
2. Click the Modify button to open the Page Setup dialog box.
3. Select the printer that you want to configure in the Name drop-down list of the Printer/
Plotter group.
4. Click the Properties button just to the right of the drop-down list to open the Plotter Configuration
Editor dialog box. A list box displays all the properties of the printer or plotter. Not
all these properties are editable, however. Each time you click a property in the list box, the
lower half of the dialog box displays the options associated with that property.
5. Click the Custom Properties item in the list box. The lower half of the dialog box displays the
Custom Properties button.



6. Click the Custom Properties button. You’ll see the Windows system printer options. These
are the same options you see when you edit the properties of your printer by choosing
Start  Printers And Faxes or Start  Control Panel  Printers And Other Hardware.
7. Adjust these settings the way you want them when you plot from AutoCAD, and click OK.
8. Back in the Plotter Configuration Editor dialog box, click the Save As button. A standard file
dialog box appears.
9. Enter the name of the plot configuration you’ve set up, or accept the default name, which is
usually the name of the Windows printer or plotter, and click Save.
10. Click OK in the Plotter Configuration Editor dialog box; then, click OK in the Page Setup
dialog box.
The Plotter Configuration Editor offers a wide variety of options that are fairly technical in
nature. If you want to know more about the Plotter Configuration Editor, see Appendix B.

Plotting Image Files and Converting 3D to 2D
If your work involves producing manuals, reports, or similar documents, you may want to add the Raster File
Export option to your list of plotter configurations. The Raster File Export option lets you plot your drawings
to a wide range of raster file formats including CALS, JPEG, PCX, Targa, Tiff, and BMP. You can then import
your drawings into documents that accept bitmap images. Images can be up to 8,000 × 8,000 pixels (set
through the Plotter Configuration Editor) and can contain as many colors as the file format allows. If you need
several raster formats, you can use multiple instances of this or any plotter configuration.
To convert your 3D wireframe models into 2D line drawings, use the Flatshot tool described in Chapter 20.
You can then include your 2D line drawings with other 2D drawing for plotting and printing.

Plot Scale in the Layout Tab Viewports

Plot Scale in the Layout Tab Viewports
In the first part of this chapter, you plotted your drawing from the Model tab. You learned that to
get the plot to fit on your paper, you had to either use the Fit To Paper option in the Plot dialog box
or indicate a specific drawing scale, plot area, and drawing orientation.
The Layout tab works in a different way: It’s designed to enable you to plot your drawing at
a 1-to-1 scale. Instead of specifying the drawing scale in the Plot dialog box, as you did when you
plotted from the Model tab, you let the size of your view in the Layout tab viewport determine the
drawing scale. You can set the viewport view to an exact scale by making changes to the properties
of the viewport.
To set the scale of a viewport in a Layout tab, try the following exercise:
1. Press the Esc key to clear any selections. Then, select the viewport border, right-click, and
choose Properties from the shortcut menu. The Properties palette for the viewport appears.
2. Scroll down the Properties palette by using the scroll bar on the left side, and locate the Standard
Scale option under the Misc category. Click this option. The item to its right turns into
a list box.



3. Open the list box, and select 1⁄16´ = 1˝ (metric users should select 1:20). The view in the drawing
window changes to reflect the new scale for the viewport. Now most of the drawing fits
into the viewport, and it’s to scale.
TIP The scale of 1⁄16´ = 1´ is similar to the metric 1:200 scale, but because you used centimeters
instead of millimeters as the base unit for the metric version of the Plan file, you drop the second
0 in 200. The metric scale becomes 1:20.
4. Close the Properties palette.
5. Use the viewport grips to enlarge the viewport enough to display all of the drawing, as
shown in Figure 8.3. You need to move only a single corner grip. As you move a corner grip,
notice that the viewport maintains a rectangular shape.



6. Choose File  Plot, and, in the Plot dialog box, make sure the Scale option is set to 1:1 and
your system printer is selected in the Printer/Plotter group; then, click OK. Your drawing is
plotted as it appears in the Layout tab, and it’s plotted to scale.
7. After reviewing your plot, close the drawing without saving it.
In step 2, you saw that you can select a scale for a viewport by selecting it from the Properties
palette. If you look just below the Standard Scale option, you see the Custom Scale option. Both
options work like their counterpart, the Plot Scale group, in the Plot dialog box.
TIP Veteran AutoCAD users can still choose View  Zoom  Scale to control the scale of the viewport
view.
Layout tabs and viewports work in conjunction with your plotter settings to give you a better
idea of how your plots will look. There are numerous plotter settings that can dramatically change
the appearance of your Layout tab view and your plots. In the next section, you’ll learn how some
of the plotter settings can enhance the appearance of your drawings. You’ll also learn how Layout
tabs can display those settings, letting you see on your computer screen exactly what will appear
on your paper output.

WYSIWYG Plotting Using Layout Tabs

WYSIWYG Plotting Using Layout Tabs
You’ve probably noticed the tabs at the bottom of the drawing area labeled Model, Layout1, and
Layout2. So far, you’ve done all your work in the Model tab, also known as Model Space. The other
two tabs open views to your drawing that are specifically geared toward printing and plotting. The
Layout views enable you to control drawing scale, add title blocks, and set up different layer settings
from those in the Model tab. You can think of the Layout tabs as page-layout spaces that act
like a desktop-publishing program.
You can have as many Layout tabs as you like, each set up for a different type of output. You can,
for example, have two or three Layout tabs, each set up for a different scale drawing or with different
layer configurations for reflected ceiling plans, floor plans, or equipment plans. You can even
set up multiple views of your drawing at different scales in a single Layout tab. In addition, you can
draw and add text and dimensions in Layout tabs just as you would in Model Space.
TIP When you create a new file, you see two Layout tabs. If you open a pre–AutoCAD 2000 file,
you see only one Layout tab.
To get familiar with the Layout tabs, try the following exercise:
1. With the Plan file open, click the Layout1 tab at the bottom of the AutoCAD window. A
view of your drawing appears on a gray background, as shown in Figure 8.2. This is a view
of your drawing as it will appear when plotted on your current default printer or plotter.
The white area represents the printer or plotter paper.



2. Try zooming in and out using the Zoom Realtime tool. Notice that the entire image zooms
in and out, including the area representing the paper.
Layout tabs give you full control over the appearance of your drawing printouts. You can print
a Layout tab just as you did the view in the Model tab, by using the Plot option on the Layout1 tab’s
shortcut menu.
Let’s take a moment to look at the elements in the Layout1 tab. As mentioned previously, the
white background represents the paper on which your drawing will be printed. The dashed line
immediately inside the edge of the white area represents the limits of your printer’s margins.
Finally, the solid rectangle that surrounds your drawing is the outline of the Layout viewport. A
viewport is an AutoCAD object that works like a window into your drawing from the Layout tab.
Also notice the triangular symbol in the lower-left corner of the view: This is the UCS icon for the
Layout tab. It tells you that you’re currently in the Layout tab space. You’ll see the significance of
this icon in the following exercise:
1. Try selecting part of your drawing by clicking in the lobby area. Nothing is selected.
2. Click the viewport border, which is the solid rectangle surrounding the drawing, as shown
in Figure 8.2. This is the viewport into the Model tab. Notice that you can select it.
3. Right-click, and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. You can see from the Properties
palette that the viewport is just like any other AutoCAD object with layer, linetype, and
color assignments. You can even hide the viewport outline by turning off its layer.
4. Close the Properties palette.
5. With the viewport still selected, click the Erase tool in the Modify toolbar. The view of your
drawing disappears with the erasure of the viewport. Remember that the viewport is like a
window into the drawing you created in the Model tab. After the viewport is erased, the
drawing view goes with it.
6. Type U↵ or click the Undo button in the Standard toolbar to restore the viewport.
NOTE You can create new viewports using the Vports command (View  Viewports  New
Viewports). See “Creating New Paper Space Viewports” in Chapter 16 for more information.
7. Double-click anywhere within the viewport’s boundary. Notice that the UCS icon you’re used
to seeing appears in the lower-left corner of the viewport. The Layout UCS icon disappears.
8. Click the lobby of your drawing. You can now select parts of your drawing.
9. Try zooming and panning your view. Changes in your view take place only within the
boundary of the viewport.
10. Choose View  Zoom  All, or type Z↵A↵ to display the entire drawing in the viewport.
11. To return to Paper Space, double-click an area outside the viewport.
TIP You can also type PS↵ to return to Paper Space or MS↵ to access the space within the viewport.
Or, click the Paper/Model button in the status bar at the bottom of the AutoCAD window.
This exercise shows you the unique characteristics of the Layout tab. The objects in the viewport
are inaccessible until you double-click the interior of the viewport. You can then move about and
edit your drawing in the viewport, just as you would while in the Model tab.
The Layout tabs can contain as many viewports as you like, and each viewport can hold a different
view of your drawing. You can size and arrange each viewport any way you like, or you can
create multiple viewports, giving you the freedom to lay out your drawing as you would a page in
a desktop-publishing program. You can also draw in the Layout tab or import Xrefs and blocks for
title blocks and borders.

Plot Stamp On

Plot Stamp On
The Plot Stamp feature lets you place pertinent data on the drawing in a location you choose. This
data includes the drawing name, date and time, scale, and other data. When you click the Plot
Stamp On check box to turn on this option, an additional button appears.
Click this button to gain access to the Plot Stamp dialog box. This dialog box offers many controls
over the plot stamp. This is a fairly extensive tool, so rather than fill this chapter with a description
of all its features, see Appendix B for a complete rundown of the Plot Stamp options.



Save Changes to Layout
When this option is turned on, the changes you make to Plot dialog box settings are saved with the
current layout. You’ll learn more about layouts in the next section.
TIP The Plot dialog box has the usual OK, Cancel, and Help buttons at the bottom. You’ll also see
the Apply To Layout button. This button lets you save the plot settings you make without sending
your drawing to the printer or plotter for output. This option is convenient for those times when
you decide halfway through your plot setup not to plot your drawing.

Plot Options

Plot Options
The options in the Plot Options group offer a greater amount of control over your output and
require some detailed instruction. Here is a brief description of these options. You’ll learn more
about them in the next section.

Plot in Background
If you think your plot will take some time to complete, this option plots your drawing in the background
so that after you begin a plot you can immediately return to your drawing work. You can
also control this option through the Backgroundplot system variable.

Plot Object Lineweights
As mentioned earlier, AutoCAD lets you assign lineweights to objects either through their layer
assignment or by directly assigning a lineweight to the object. If you use this feature in your drawing,
this option lets you turn lineweights on or off in your output.

Plot with Plot Styles
Plot styles give you a high degree of control over your drawing output. You can control whether
your output is in color or black and white, and you can control whether filled areas are drawn in
a solid color or a pattern. You can even control the way lines are joined at corners. You’ll learn more
about these options and how they affect your work in the next section.

Plot Paperspace Last
When you’re using a Layout tab, otherwise known as Paper Space, this option determines whether
objects in Paper Space are drawn before or after objects in Model Space. You’ll learn more about
Model Space and Paper Space later in this chapter.

Hide Paperspace Objects
This option pertains to 3D models in AutoCAD. When you draw in 3D, you see your drawing as
a Wireframe view. In a Wireframe view, your drawing looks like it’s transparent even though it’s
made up of solid surfaces. Using hidden-line removal, you can view and plot your 3D drawings
so that solid surfaces are opaque. To view a 3D drawing in the editor with hidden lines removed,
use the Hide command. To plot a 3D drawing with hidden lines removed, use the Hidden option
from the Shade Plot drop-down list.

WARNING Hide Paperspace Objects doesn’t work for views in the Layout tab viewport described
in the next section. Instead, you need to set the viewport’s Shade Plot setting to Hidden. (Click the
viewport, right-click, and choose Shade Plot  Hidden from the shortcut menu.)

Plot Offset

Plot Offset
Sometimes, your first plot of a drawing shows the drawing positioned incorrectly on the paper.
You can fine-tune the location of the drawing on the paper by using the Plot Offset settings. To
adjust the position of your drawing on the paper, you enter the location of the view origin in relation
to the plotter origin in X and Y coordinates (see Figure 8.1).


For example, suppose you plot a drawing and then realize that it needs to be moved 1´ to the
right and 3´ up on the sheet. You can replot the drawing by making the following changes:
1. Double-click the X input box, type 1, and press the Tab key.
2. Double-click the Y input box, type 3, and press the Tab key.
Now, proceed with the rest of the plot configuration. With the preceding settings, the image is
shifted on the paper exactly 1´ to the right and 3´ up when the plot is done.
You can also tell AutoCAD the location from which the offset is to occur. The Plot And Publish
tab of the Options dialog box (choose Tools  Options from the menu bar) offers the Specify Plot
Offset Relative To button group. This group offers two radio buttons: Printable Area and Edge Of
Paper. You can select the option that makes the most sense for you.