Heidi Hewett's Blog

Autodesk University... Just around the corner!

Autodesk University 2007 is just around the corner (November 27-30) but it isn't too late to register! With hundreds of classes taught by the world’s top instructors, Autodesk insiders, and industry experts, this is the Autodesk learning event of the year! If you've never been to AU, it's hard to imagine what the AU experience is all about. If you have been to AU, chances are you're doing everything possible to make your way back!

I'll be at Autodesk University helping out at the Autodesk exhibit and teaching the following AutoCAD Sheet Set and Annotation Scaling courses:

Session Title:  Sheets Happen! Exploring the AutoCAD® Sheet Set Functionality, Part I
Session Type:  90-Minute Class
Level:  Advanced
Abstract:  Whether you design manufactured parts, maps, or buildings, Sheets happen! The Sheet Set functionality in AutoCAD enables you to efficiently create, manage, and share your entire set of Sheets from one convenient location. At first glance, the powerful functionality offered by the Sheet Set Manager may seem overwhelming, but you can learn and implement these tools a little at a time, immediately increasing productivity when opening, organizing, creating, archiving, sharing, and plotting drawing Sheets.

Session Title:  Sheets Happen! Exploring the AutoCAD® Sheet Set Functionality, Part II
Session Type:  90-Minute Class
Level:  Advanced
Abstract:  With an understanding of the most basic Sheet Set functionality (Sheets Happen! Part 1), you can build on your knowledge, implementing Sheet Sets for maximum efficiency. The most powerful Sheet Set functionality is available through the integration of Fields, which enable you to automate the Sheet data that is stored in your drawings. You can create your own Fields in the form of custom Sheet Set properties and then reference those, and other Fields, in your callouts, view labels, and title blocks.

Session Title:  Annotating with Intelligence in AutoCAD®!
Session Type:  90-Minute Class
Level:  Intermediate
Abstract:  Annotations are a crucial part of almost any drawing and creating them can consume a considerable amount of your workday. New and improved functionality in AutoCAD enables you to annotate your drawings with greater flexibility and efficiency than ever before.

For a complete list of all the courses as well as information about the many other activities at Autodesk University, visit www.autodesk.com/au.

See you in Las Vegas!

Autumn in the Rockies....

I just had to share these pictures out my front window yesterday. Another beautiful Colorado day... and the crab apples are so tasty!

Good Question: Xref attachment in sheet sets

Today’s good question comes from Matias, who asked about importing detail drawings into a sheet using the sheet set’s model views tab. As he pointed out, everything looks fine when you drag the view onto a sheet, but when you select the model tab, all the xrefs are on top of each other.

This is, believe it or not, the proper behavior for the sheet set manager. When you drag a view from the Model Views tab, AutoCAD automatically attaches the associated drawing as an xref using the insertion point of 0,0. It looks fine in the layout viewports because AutoCAD controls the layer visibility on a per-viewport basis. However, if you select Model tab, the default layers for all the xref files are turned on and it might look like a big mess. It can seem a little crazy given our traditional way of working in Model space. However, the process of using sheet sets is meant for us to edit only the sheet geometry in the sheet drawings, and edit the model information in the xref files. If you can get in the habit of selecting and opening the xref file through the layout viewport, the overlapping geometry in model space shouldn't bother you… if you don’t select the Model tab, you’ll never see it!

Thanks to Matias for the good question… and PLEASE, don’t let the answer deter you from using sheet sets. Those of us that have made the leap, can’t live with out them!