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.