Autocad Layer Standards Software Store

CAD Layers: Why Do We Need Them? Stephen Spangler, USACE CAD/BIM Technology Center February 9, 2017 PDF Presentation. Implementation Tips for the NCS Version 6. Greg Jordan, Dewberry – June, 2016. Why the US National CAD Standard Matters to FM. Walter Black, AV Symbols - November, 2015. Efficient Design Drawings. Ed Lowe, Burgess.
The management of CAD standards is very important in AutoCAD® Architecture. “Why?” you ask. Standardizing drawing names optimizes file management, making it easy to use, store, and search. Figure 6: Layer translator. CAD Standards are essential to daily CAD life. Only a portion of possible standards have been discussed.
CAD layer standards. Most common: BS 1192. Checkers, software that analyze CAD data formats, are often employed before and after data translation. The checkers can check the organization and quality of the data against internal company standards and international or industry standards.
Wow, those are horrible. What I've found is that every company I've worked for has it's own standards or none at all. Since not everyone uses AutoCad, layer translation never seems to work right across differing companies anyway.

National Autocad Layer Standards
National Cad Standards
Autocad Layer Standards Software Store Free
Autocad Layer Standards Software Store Legit

City of Seattle CAD Manual - Inter-Departmental CAD Standard CAD Manual iii AutoCAD Plotter Configuration File. Software and has developed elementary standards for A/E. Blocks are inserted on “ ” layer with 0, 0, 0. AUTOCAD submissions shall be in.dwg format in. CAD and Design Detail Standards. Engineering Department Manual. Autocad Layer Standards Software Engineering A named object in a drawing matches the name of one in a standards file, but their properties are different. For example, in the drawing the WALL layer is yellow, but the standards file specifies red for the WALL layer.

A consistent SOP for organizing the layers in your CAD files can help keep your work organized. Here, several pros show how they routinely manage layers. January 14, 2008

Question
I would like to open the topic of layer standards for the woodworking trade. From reviewing the previous posts, I find some techs like a lot of layers and some a few (10). Has anyone's preferences changed with the later versions of AutoCAD (2006 and up)? Does anyone have a layer table for AutoCAD 2006 that they would like to share? Our design drawing comes down to us from architects with their own layer standards and we modify the rooms (mostly renovation) to what fits and works in the space. We then draw our kitchens and casework. I am trying to come up with a process for dealing with outside standards and also creating our own. We have just made the transition to AutoCAD from Cabinetvision for design, and drawing board and pencil for details.

Forum Responses
(CAD Forum)
From John Michael Hivatal, forum technical advisor:
I don’t think you will ever get everyone to agree on a layer format. If you ever had to deal with several different architects' drawings, you will fine they all are a little different. For a lot of AutoCAD operators, the full utilization and capabilities of using different layers escapes them, and others that understand the full concept develop their own layer scheme and plot style tables.

Layers and plotting go hand in hand. I draw millwork and use 10-12 layers and have my own .CTB file set up to print my layers out to where each different layer has a different line weight. When I draw in 3d, all bets are off and the sky’s the limit on the number of layers I use. I have also developed my own programs to help me with layers. See Quick Draw at jmhsofteare.com. I give my templates and .CTB file to my clients or anyone who wants it for free.

I have my own process for dealing with architect’s drawings. First thing is, if you don’t have express tools loaded, get them and install them. (Only works in AutoCAD’s full versions, not LT). There are a few layer tools that will make things like: layer isolate, layer un-isolate, layer off and layer on. When dealing with someone else’s drawing, I first insert my layers into their drawing and use layer isolate to isolate a particular layer, then change it to mine. Then when I’m finished, I purge the drawing of all their layers. There’s more to my process, but these are the basics. On a fairly complicated drawing it takes me about 10 minutes to fix their drawing depending on how they set up the drawing. If they use Xrefs or a lot of blocks, it might take longer.

From the original questioner:
We will typically get an architect's electronic drawings and then manipulate them from there to meet our needs. Is there a faster way to change their dimensions, notes, etc. aside from using dimension update and match properties? It seems to take forever doing it this way. We're using LT.

From John Michael Hivatal, forum technical advisor:
Unfortunately, LT is holding you back in this situation. The tools you need to make the process go quicker are in express tools and third party add-ons. LT does not support these tools as well as other things - that’s why it’s less expensive than the full blown version.

From contributor M:
Thanks. How do you do it in the full version? I have my licensed copy at home.

From John Michael Hivatal, forum technical advisor:
First of all, I don’t know the extent of your AutoCAD knowledge, so if I don’t explain something in full, you can more than likely get a good explanation from the AutoCAD help file. I encourage you to read the help file; it’s been a great help to me.

One problem that I have come across when using other people's drawings, especially architect’s drawings, is that they're not all created with the same type AutoCAD I use. Some architects use different types of AutoCAD or other programs that create entities that are not editable in regular AutoCAD. Theses are called proxy entities. In some cases you can download the live enablers from AutoCAD’s website for the entities that will enable you to perform some editing on theses entities, but you have to know what type of AutoCAD the original drawing was created in to get them. Also, if you go to the Tools menu and then options and go to the Systems tab, there is a check box to tell AutoCAD to check for live enablers - this works sometimes.

Sometimes when working with other people’s drawings, there will be invisible objects that will cause you problems and corrupt your drawing, so I have a procedure that I go through to help alleviate this potential problem, but first you have to be set up to deal with the procedure.

Step #1. Make sure you have “Express Tools” loaded, then make 4 custom buttons to quickly access the express tools utilities layiso, layuniso, layoff and layon. You will be using these buttons a lot. (If you don’t know how to make these buttons, read the help file).

Step #2. You should have a template that you use to start new drawings with. (If you don’t, you need to make one - this will be extremely useful in all facets of drawing.) Open the blank template like you're starting a new drawing and save a copy somewhere you can easily access it. I have mine in My Documents. Name the file “My Insert.dwg” (we will be using this later).

Now for the procedure... Note: this procedure is based on an architect's drawing that has multiple layers and the architect has put various objects on different layers. Some people draw in layer 0 and just change the color - this type of drawing is more time consuming to deal with, but the procedure is almost the same.

1. Open the architect's drawing and Save as “ _copy.dwg” (we do this in case something goes wrong and we need to start over).

2. Type “XREF” in the command window to see if there are any Xref’s attached. If there are, things just got more interesting. Now you have to determine if you want to insert the xref or if it has everything you need to close this drawing and open it up to work from. This is a decision that can only be made by you because every situation is a little different. But for this explanation, let’s say there are no xrefs.

3. Click on various objects to see if groups of objects have been turned to blocks. If so, explode them. If there are regular blocks of items like sinks or stoves, leave them alone - we’ll deal with them later.

4. Use your layon button to turn on every layer so you can see what you’re dealing with, just in case they had some thing turned off. Also cheek the layer drop down list for frozen layer and turn them on.

5. Use your layiso button to isolate stuff that is not important to your needs and then delete them. After deleting use the layon button to turn everything back on.

6. Change layers to layer 0 and use the purge command and purge all. This will get rid of all unnecessary layers, text styles, and dimension styles.

7. Type “insert” on the command line and use the browse button to navigate to the place where you saved the “insert drawing” we made in Step #2 above. Insert the drawing. Since there was nothing in the drawing this will only bring over the layers, text styles and dimension styles of the insert drawing and insert them into this drawing. Now we have access to our stuff.

8. Now using the layiso button start isolating objects on their layers, then window them, and using the layer drop down list, select your layer, then use layuniso to see what you have done.

9. If you want to use their dimensions and you're lucky enough that they're on their own layer, you can use layiso to isolate all dimensions then window all of them and change layers then window them again and select your dimension style from the dimension style drop down list. If they're on the same layer as something else, you will have to use the properties dialog box and “Quick Select” to select only dimensions, then in the properties box, change all selected dimensions to your layer. The same thing goes for text.

10. Now using the purge command, purge all.

11. Now open a new blank drawing for your real project and copy from the old drawing and paste into the new drawing and save it like you normally save your jobs. We do this to make sure we are not bringing anything over that might corrupt our drawing down the road.

All of this seems like a lot to do, but it goes fairly quick. Once you know the steps, it’s really just a few click of the button. I’m certain that there will be situations that will be different and require special steps, but this is just to get you going down the right path. If everything is on one layer and just the color has been changed, you will have to get good at using the “Quick Select” on the properties dialog box.

I hope this helps. And of course I have developed programs to help me in these steps.

From contributor P:
I'll post ours. I've delved and been intrigued by this for sometime and I've kept refining it for some time. This is what I have learned from other people and come up with on my own.

0; ACAD DEFAULT
A_CASE; CASEWORK
A_CENTER; CENTERLINES
A_DIMS; DIMENSIONS
A_DIMS-01; SMALL SCALE DIMS
A_DOORSWNG; CAB DOOR HINGE LINES
A_ELEV-BACK; DASHED LINES FOR FOREGROUND STUFF
A_ELEV-FORE; LIGHTER LINES FOR MLDG. DEFINITION ETC.
A_EQUIP; ALL EQUIPMENT, PLUMBING, APPLIANCES, OUTLETS ETC.
A_HATCH;
A_HIDDEN;
A_NOTES;
A_NPLT; NON-PLOTTING LAY-OUT LINES
A_SECT;
A_SYMB; ANNOT. SYMBOLS
A_TBLOCK; TITLEBLOCK STUFF
A_VPORT; VIEWPORT FOR PLOTTING OR NON-PLOTTING
A_WALL;
defpoints; ACAD DEFAULT

The A is so our dimensions will always come up first in line. Architects use a dash after the 'a' (a-wall) so ours will even precede theirs.

This is strictly for 2-d drafting shop drawings. I agree about the need for many more layers if you work in 3-d. We do not use AutoCAD for 3-d. Occasionally we use Sketchup to work out some detail. Typically we move from Acad to Cabinetvision.

From John Michael Hivatal, forum technical advisor:
My layers:

0
Defpoints
Detail-04
Dim
Dim-2
Dim-3
Draw-6
Draw-8
Draw-10
Draw-12
Draw-15
Draw-25
Hatch-3
Hatch-4
Hatch-5
Hidden-6
Text
Title
Title-1

Not to say this is the ultimate setup, but I have used it for years and know it by heart. I always convert any other layers to mine so I have control over how they print. I use a ctb file to plot with. The numbers at the end of the name gives an indication of the line weight - the larger the number, the heavier the line. All dimension layers print the same weight.

I draw most things in Draw-10, walls in Draw-15. When I want something to print darker I choose a higher number, and opposite for lighter objects. I also have a program that quickly changes layers and changes selected objects layers. When I type 10 and enter my layer changes to Draw-10 if objects are selected only the objects layers are changed - my current layer stays the same.

From contributor M:
Thank you so much for taking the time to do that! I will have to start practicing.

From contributor S:
I constantly use layer isolate. So, I use as many layers as I need. I try to keep the names simple: drawers, base, backs, shelves, splashes, holes, face frames, etc. That way, when I need to modify an object like drawers, I isolate and stretch only drawers, and all the drawers, in the whole drawing.
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AutoCAD
Stable release
Developer(s)	Autodesk
Initial release	December 1982; 36 years ago
Operating system	Windows, macOS, iOS, Android
Available in	English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Korean, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Czech, Polish and Hungarian
Type	Computer-aided design
License	Trialware
Website	autodesk.com/autocad

AutoCAD is a commercialcomputer-aided design (CAD) and drafting software application. Developed and marketed by Autodesk,^[1] AutoCAD was first released in December 1982 as a desktop app running on microcomputers with internal graphics controllers.^[2] Before AutoCAD was introduced, most commercial CAD programs ran on mainframe computers or minicomputers, with each CAD operator (user) working at a separate graphics terminal.^[3] Since 2010, AutoCAD was released as a mobile- and web app as well, marketed as AutoCAD 360.

AutoCAD is used in the industry, by architects, project managers, engineers, graphic designers, city planners and other professionals. It was supported by 750 training centers worldwide in 1994.^[1]

2Features
3Variants
4Ports

History[edit]

AutoCAD was derived from a program that began in 1977, and then released in 1979^[4] called Interact CAD,^[5]^[6]^[7] also referred to in early Autodesk documents as MicroCAD, which was written prior to Autodesk's (then Marinchip Software Partners) formation by Autodesk cofounder Michael Riddle.^[8]^[9]

The first version by Autodesk was demonstrated at the 1982 Comdex and released that December. AutoCAD supported CP/M-80 computers.^[10] As Autodesk's flagship product, by March 1986 AutoCAD had become the most ubiquitous CAD program worldwide.^[11] The 2020 release marked the 34th major release of AutoCAD for Windows. The 2019 release marked the ninth consecutive year of AutoCAD for Mac. The native file format of AutoCAD is .dwg. This and, to a lesser extent, its interchange file format DXF, have become de facto, if proprietary, standards for CAD data interoperability, particularly for 2D drawing exchange.^{[citation needed]} AutoCAD has included support for .dwf, a format developed and promoted by Autodesk, for publishing CAD data.

Features[edit]

Compatibility with other software[edit]

ESRI ArcMap 10 permits export as AutoCAD drawing files. Civil 3D permits export as AutoCAD objects and as LandXML. Third-party file converters exist for specific formats such as Bentley MX GENIO Extension, PISTE Extension (France), ISYBAU (Germany), OKSTRA and Microdrainage (UK);^[12] also, conversion of .pdf files is feasible, however, the accuracy of the results may be unpredictable or distorted. For example, jagged edges may appear. Several vendors provide online conversions for free such as Cometdocs.autoCAD commonly use in all purposes.

Language[edit]

Auto CAD and AutoCAD LT are available for English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Korean, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Czech, Polish and Hungarian, Albanian (also through additional language packs).^[13] The extent of localization varies from full translation of the product to documentation only. The AutoCAD command set is localized as a part of the software localization.

Extensions[edit]

AutoCAD supports a number of APIs for customization and automation. These include AutoLISP, Visual LISP, VBA, .NET and ObjectARX. ObjectARX is a C++ class library, which was also the base for:

products extending AutoCAD functionality to specific fields
creating products such as AutoCAD Architecture, AutoCAD Electrical, AutoCAD Civil 3D
third-party AutoCAD-based application

There are a large number of AutoCAD plugins (add-on applications) available on the application store Autodesk Exchange Apps.^[14]AutoCAD's DXF, drawing exchange format, allows importing and exporting drawing information.

Vertical integration[edit]

Autodesk has also developed a few vertical programs for discipline-specific enhancements such as:

AutoCAD Advance Steel
AutoCAD CIVIL 3D
AutoCAD Electrical
AutoCAD ecscad
AutoCAD Map 3D
AutoCAD Mech
AutoCAD MEP
AutoCAD Structural Detailing
AutoCAD Utility Design
AutoCAD P&ID
AutoCAD Plant 3D

Since AutoCAD 2019 several verticals are included with AutoCAD subscription as Industry-Specific Toolset.

For example, AutoCAD Architecture (formerly Architectural Desktop) permits architectural designers to draw 3D objects, such as walls, doors, and windows, with more intelligent data associated with them rather than simple objects, such as lines and circles. The data can be programmed to represent specific architectural products sold in the construction industry, or extracted into a data file for pricing, materials estimation, and other values related to the objects represented.

Additional tools generate standard 2D drawings, such as elevations and sections, from a 3D architectural model. Similarly, Civil Design, Civil Design 3D, and Civil Design Professional support mode and linking to third-party cloud-based storage such as Dropbox. Having evolved from Flash-based software, AutoCAD 360 uses HTML5 browser technology available in newer browsers including Firefox and Google Chrome.

AutoCAD WS began with a version for the iPhone and subsequently expanded to include versions for the iPod Touch, iPad, Android phones, and Android tablets.^[17] Autodesk released the iOS version in September 2010,^[18] following with the Android version on April 20, 2011.^[19] The program is available via download at no cost from the App Store (iOS), Google Play (Android) and Amazon Appstore (Android).

In its initial iOS version, AutoCAD WS supported drawing of lines, circles, and other shapes; creation of text and comment boxes; and management of color, layer, and measurements — in both landscape and portrait modes. Version 1.3, released August 17, 2011, added support for unit typing, layer visibility, area measurement and file management.^[16] The Android variant includes the iOS feature set along with such unique features as the ability to insert text or captions by voice command as well as manually.^[19] Both Android and iOS versions allow the user to save files on-line — or off-line in the absence of an Internet connection.^[19]

In 2011, Autodesk announced plans to migrate the majority of its software to 'the cloud', starting with the AutoCAD WS mobile application.^[20]

According to a 2013 interview with Ilai Rotbaein, an AutoCAD WS Product Manager for Autodesk, the name AutoCAD WS had no definitive meaning, and was interpreted variously as Autodesk Web Service, White Sheet or Work Space.^[21]

Student versions[edit]

AutoCAD is licensed, for free, to students, educators, and educational institutions, with a 36-month renewable license available. The student version of AutoCAD is functionally identical to the full commercial version, with one exception: DWG files created or edited by a student version have an internal bit-flag set (the 'educational flag'). When such a DWG file is printed by any version of AutoCAD (commercial or student) older than AutoCAD 2014 SP1 or AutoCAD 2019 and newer, the output includes a plot stamp/banner on all four sides. Objects created in the Student Version cannot be used for commercial use. Student Version objects 'infect' a commercial version DWG file if they are imported in versions older than AutoCAD 2015 or newer than AutoCAD 2018.^[22]

Ports[edit]

Windows[edit]

An architectural detail drafted in AutoCAD (Windows)

AutoCAD is a software package created for Windows and usually, any new AutoCAD version supports the current Windows version and some older ones. AutoCAD 2016 to 2020 support Windows 7 up to Windows 10.^[23]

Mac[edit]

Autodesk stopped supporting Apple's Macintosh computers in 1994. Over the next several years, no compatible versions for the Mac were released. In 2010 Autodesk announced that it would once again support Apple's Mac OS X software in the future.^[24] Most of the features found in the 2012 Windows version can be found in the 2012 Mac version. The main difference is the user interface and layout of the program. The interface is designed so that users who are already familiar with Apple's macOS software will find it similar to other Mac applications.^[18] Autodesk has also built in various features in order to take full advantage of Apple's Trackpad capabilities as well as the full-screen mode in Apple's OS X Lion.^[17]^[18] AutoCAD 2012 for Mac supports both the editing and saving of files in DWG formatting that will allow the file to be compatible with other platforms besides the OS X.^[17] AutoCAD 2019 for Mac requires Apple OS X v10.11 (El Capitan) or later.

AutoCAD LT 2013 was available through the Mac App Store for $899.99. The full-featured version of AutoCAD 2013 for Mac, however, wasn't available through the Mac App Store due to the price limit of $999 set by Apple. AutoCAD 2014 for Mac was available for purchase from Autodesk's Web site for $4,195 and AutoCAD LT 2014 for Mac for $1,200, or from an Autodesk Authorized Reseller.^[24] The latest version available for Mac is AutoCAD 2019 as of December 2018. As of 2019, no Autocad release is listed for purchase on the MacOS App Store.

National Autocad Layer Standards

References[edit]

National Cad Standards

^ ^a^b'Autodesk, Inc'. FundingUniverse. Lendio. 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
^'Chapter 8 : Autodesk and AutoCAD'(PDF). Cadhistory.net. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
^'Chapter 2 : A Brief Overview of the History of CAD'(PDF). Cadhistory.net. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
^Riddle, Michael. 'About'. Retrieved 24 January 2014. I’ve been building CAD products for over 29 years now, starting with Interact for the Marinchip 9900 released back in 1979, one of the first PC-based CAD programs available. Interact went on to become the architectural basis for the early versions of AutoCAD. I was one of the original 18 founders of that company.
^http://www.studiodaily.com/2012/01/the-fascinating-story-of-how-autodesk-came-to-be-part-1/
^http://www.michaelriddle.com/?page_id=2
^http://www.retrothing.com/2007/05/mike_riddles_pr.html
^Walker, John (1 May 1982). 'Information letter #5'. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
^Yare, Evan (17 Feb 2012). 'AutoCAD's Ancestor'. 3D CAD World. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
^One Company's CAD Success Story, InfoWorld, 3 December 1984, retrieved 19 July 2014
^'Part 2 CAD/CAM/CAE', 25 Year retrospective, Computer Graphics World, 2011, retrieved 29 March 2012
^'AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011 Drawing Compatibility'(PDF). AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011 User's Guide. Autodesk. April 2010. pp. 141–142. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
^'AutoCAD 2016 Language Packs | AutoCAD | Autodesk Knowledge Network'. knowledge.autodesk.com. Retrieved 2016-11-03.
^'AutoCAD Exchange Apps'. Autodesk. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
^'Questions and Answers'(PDF). Images.autodesk.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
^ ^a^bAutodesk. 'AutoCAD WS'. iTunes Preview. Apple. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
^ ^a^b^cOzler, Levent. 'AutoCAD for Mac and AutoCAD WS application for iPad and iPhone'. Dexigner. Dexigner. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
^ ^a^b^cOzler, Levent. 'AutoCAD for Mac 2012: Built for Mac OS X Lion'. Dexigner. Dexigner. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
^ ^a^b^cOzler, Levent. 'AutoCAD WS for Android'. Dexigner. Dexigner. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
^Thomson, Iain. 'Autodesk Shifts Design Apps to the Cloud'. The A Register. The A Register. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
^'AutoCAD WS: Moving Forward'. Augi Autodesk Users Group International, January 29th, 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
^'Overview of Plotting'. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
^'System requirements for AutoCAD 2016 | AutoCAD | Autodesk Knowledge Network'. Knowledge.autodesk.com. 2015-12-16. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
^ ^a^bClark, Don (16 August 2011). 'Autodesk Adopts Apple App Store for Mac Software'. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 30 September 2011.