Summary of Common CAD Issues

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This post was last edited by caress7032 on 2010-3-27 23:13. 1. CAD will not install. Issue: CAD 2006 will not install; a message appears stating that the installation of Auto CAD 2006-Simplified Chinese has been terminated. Please check “C:\DOCUME~1ADMIN～1\LOCALS~1\Temp\Auto CAD 2006 Setup.log” for more details. ” Correct answer: The error message is a problem with Microsoft .NET Framework! CAD2006 requires version 1.1 for support; check your Control Panel – Add or Remove Programs to see if Framework2.0 and the Framework2.0 language pack are already installed. If it is already installed, deleting it and reinstalling CAD will resolve the issue. Download address: http://www.onlinedown.net/soft/38669.htm II. CAD will not start. Phenomenon: The following issue occurs when trying to start Auto CAD: The program cannot locate the input point addLinKsG1Continuity@AcGeImpCompositeCurve3d@@QAEXN@Z is on the dynamic link library AcGe16.dll. Correct answer: It’s the same as in 3dmax! The issue can be resolved by copying the three files ac1st16.dll, acdb16.dll, and acge16.dll from the directory C:\Program Files\Common Files\Autodesk Shared to the directory C:\WINDOWS\system2 III. Solutions to Some Small CAD Problems
1. 【Solution when CTRL+N doesn’t work】 As is well known, CTRL+N is the command for creating a new object. But sometimes, a selection panel appears when using CTRL+N. In such cases, you just need to adjust the settings in the OP options. Procedure: OP (Options) ---- System ---- There is an option on the right side: “Show startup dialog box” (A) or “Do not show startup dialog box” (B). Choosing A will make the new-object creation command work, while B will prevent it from working.

2. 【Solution when the CTRL key doesn’t work】 Sometimes, commands related to the CTRL key, such as CTRL+C (copy), CTRL+V (paste), and CTRL+A (select all), stop working. In this case, you only need to adjust the settings in the OP options. Procedure: OP (Options) ---- User System Configuration ---- Check “WINDOWS Standard Accelerators” and select it. Once this option is selected, commands related to the CTRL key will work again; otherwise, they won’t.

3. 【Solution when filling doesn’t work】 Sometimes, filling operations fail to produce the desired result. Besides checking the system variables, you also need to check the OP options. Procedure: OP ---- Display ---- Check “Apply solid fill”.

4. 【Solution when adding objects to the selection set doesn’t work】 The correct setting for AD should allow multiple objects to be selected sequentially. But sometimes, this functionality fails, and only the last selected object can be chosen. This can be resolved by going to OP (Options) ---- Selection ---- Uncheck “Add to selection set with SHIFT key”. After unchecking this option, adding objects to the selection set will work again; otherwise, it won’t. ★Command: PICKADD Value: 0/1

5. 【Restoring CAD commands using three keys】 What if the system variables in CAD are accidentally changed, or if certain parameters are intentionally adjusted? In such cases, there’s no need to reinstall CAD or adjust each parameter individually. Procedure: OP Options ---- Configuration ---- Reset. This will restore everything to its original state. However, after resetting, some options may still need adjustment, such as the size of the crosshair.

5. 【What to do if the middle button of the mouse doesn’t work properly】 Normally, CAD’s scroll wheel is used for zooming in and out, as well as for panning. But sometimes, pressing the scroll wheel doesn’t trigger panning but instead brings up a menu, which is quite annoying. In this case, you just need to adjust the system variable mbuttonpan. Default value: 1 0. This value enables menu (.mnu) file-defined actions. When set to 1, panning is possible when the button or scroll wheel is held down.

6. 【Solution when the model and layout tabs are not visible in the command line】 OP ---- Options ---- Display ---- Check “Show layout and model tabs”.

7. 【CAD tips】 Are you still troubled by slow drawing speeds, or by not being able to reach the Enter key due to short fingers? Well, let’s forget about all that. As is known, there are two confirmation keys: Enter and Spacebar. But now, let’s use the right mouse button instead. OP Options ---- User System Configuration ---- Check “Use shortcut menu in drawing area”. Customize the right mouse button by clicking on it and checking all the options related to repeating the previous command. Try it out – does the right mouse button now function as a confirmation key? It’s recommended to develop the habit of using the right mouse button for confirmation. The Spacebar is a good alternative. Avoid using the Enter key for confirmation.

8. 【What to do if the circles in the drawing aren’t round】 People who draw frequently encounter this problem: the circles they draw don’t appear round. Of course, those who have studied sketching know that circles are actually composed of many curved lines. There’s no need to go into further detail here. One command can solve this problem: RE~.

9. 【Showing scroll bars in the graphics window】 Some people still use mice without scroll wheels. In such cases, scroll bars might be useful (if you’re not familiar with panning). OP ---- Display ---- Check “Show scroll bars in graphics window”.

10. 【Saving in a specific format】 OP ---- Open and Save ---- Save as 2000 format. Why save in 2000 format? Because CAD versions are only backward compatible. This way, files created in 2002, 2004, and 2006 can still be opened, making things easier to handle. Don’t tell me you’re still using R14 – I’d say you’re too outdated!

11. 【How to keep the line style the same during subsequent prints】 In other words, how to save a print list. OP Options ---- Print ---- Add print list. But first, you need to create your own print list. Don’t say you don’t know how to do it.

12. 【What to do if the path isn’t displayed fully in the title bar】 OP Options ---- Open and Save ---- Check “Display full path in title bar”.

13. 【Is OSNAP useful?】 Answer: It’s very useful. Especially when drawing mechanical drawings that require high precision, target capture is the best tool for accurate positioning. Autodesk also attaches great importance to this; with each version update, the performance of the target capture feature improves significantly. Never use the cursor line to select a point directly, as such a point cannot be very accurate. 14. 【Why are the drawn cross-hatching lines or dimension lines not continuous line styles】? Answer: The hatch lines and dimension annotations created in AutoCAD can all have line type properties. If the current line type is not a continuous line type, then the drawn profile lines and dimension lines will not be continuous lines. 15. 【How to reduce file size】? Answer: After the graphic is completed, use the PURGE command to remove unnecessary data, such as unused blocks, layers without entities, as well as unused line styles, fonts, and dimension styles. This can effectively reduce the file size. Generally, thorough cleaning requires PURGING two to three times. -Add a minus sign in front of purge to clean it more thoroughly. ★Additional note: Method 2: Use the WBLOCK command. 　　Use the WBLOCK command to create a new graphic file in block format for the graphics that need to be transferred, and use this newly created graphic file for transmission or archiving. So far, this is the most effective “weight loss” method the author has found. Here is a brief illustration:
Command: wblock
(Enter the file name and storage location in the pop-up dialog; since it’s very simple, the diagram of the dialog is omitted here.)
Defined name: (Press Enter directly.)
Specify a base point: (Choose any point.)
Select object: (Press Enter after making the selection.)
In this way, a new graphic file is created in the folder you specified. The author reduced the size of their own DWG files using two different methods and compared the results; the difference in the size of the files after reduction was less than 5K! (I just read someone else’s post; haha, I hadn’t tried it myself yet but rushed to share this information. Let’s give it a try together, yay!) 16. 【How to restore automatically saved drawings】? Answer: AutoCAD saves automatically saved drawings in AUTO.SV$ or AUTO?.SV$ files. Find these files, rename them to the corresponding drawing file names, and they can be opened in AutoCAD. Generally, this file is stored in WINDOWS’ temporary directory, such as C:\\WINDOWS\\TEMP. Additional note: By default, the location where *.sv$ files are stored is as follows: Win9x – these files are usually stored in WINDOWS’ temporary directory, such as C:\\WINDOWS\\TEMP ； winnt/2000/xp: Start menu -> Run, enter %temp%, (sometimes %tmp% works as well), then click OK. 17. 【Why can’t Chinese characters be displayed?】 Or the entered Chinese characters turned into question marks】? Answer: The reason may be: 1. The corresponding font does not use a Chinese character font, such as HZTXT.SHX, etc ； 2. There are no Chinese font files in the current system ； The shape file used should be copied to AutoCAD’s font directory (usually ...\\FONTS\\) ； 3. For certain symbols, such as Greek letters, the corresponding font file must also be used; otherwise, they will be displayed as ? Number. If you can’t figure out what the incorrect font is, or if your vision isn’t very good and you get impatient, then set the correct font and size again, type the text once more, and then use a small brush to apply the newly selected font to the areas where the incorrect font is present. Note: The system comes with some built-in fonts, but sometimes due to incorrect operations or other external factors, the Chinese character fonts may be lost, which can cause a lot of inconvenience. In such cases, you can simply download some fonts from another computer. 18. 【Why can’t I change the height of the typed text?】 Answer: When the height value of the font being used is not 0, the DTEXT command does not prompt for entering a height when writing text; as a result, the height of the text created in this way remains constant, including dimension labels created using that font. 19. 【Why can some graphics be displayed but not printed?】 Answer: This situation occurs if the graphics are drawn on layers automatically created by AutoCAD (DEFPOINTS, ASHADE, etc.). It should be avoided to work on these layers. 20. 【What to do if a DWG file is corrupted?】 Answer: Go to File—Drawing Utilities—Repair. Select the file you want to repair. This method works about 50% of the time; some people also use the “recover” function. If you have set up automatic saving, in certain situations—such as when there’s a power outage but your computer has an UPS—it’s advisable to manually back up the file before continuing work. Otherwise, if power runs out while automatic saving is in progress, the file won’t be able to be repaired because it was only saved partially before the system shut down. Be very careful; give it a try if you don’t believe me—I’ve encountered this situation before. 21. 【What to do if you want to modify a block?】 Answer: Many people think that blocks cannot be modified, so they break them apart, make the changes, and then recombine them into blocks. That’s not very efficient, haha~ The command for modifying blocks is REFEDIT; follow the instructions, and after making the changes, use the REFCLOSE command to save them. Your original version along with the modified one will both be saved. 22. 【A brief overview of two printing methods】 There are basically two ways to print: printing in model space and printing in layout space. What you described—printing each element separately—is printing in model space. This requires inserting frames around each graphic and scaling those frames according to the size of the graphic. For example, floor plans, ceiling plans, floor layouts, etc. This process is slow. If you use layout space for printing, you can print multiple elements at once without needing any additional plugins. 1. Switch to layout mode and set the page settings (paper size, margins, etc.). 2. Delete the original graphic. 3. Insert a 1:1 frame (make sure you have such a frame available). 4. Use the viewports to bring the original graphic into view. 5. Define the scale for the graphic using the commands Z followed by Space, then S followed by Space. At this point, use MS or PS commands to switch between inside and outside the frame. 6. Again, use Z followed by Space, S followed by Space. If the scale set is 1/180, then the scale of the graphic will also be 1/180. That’s how you print a single graphic. To make things clearer, let’s assume the graphic mentioned above is called X. We’ll apply these steps to all graphics. Pay close attention here. 1. Right-click on the layout and select Move or Copy. A dialog box will appear; check the “Copy” option and move it to the end. Of course, this depends on the order in which you want to print the graphics; you can decide it yourself. 2. Another copy of the graphic will be created. Now use the MS command to switch inside the frame, then use the P command to move to the second graphic you want to print, and adjust its scale. If all the graphics are the same size—meaning if X is a floor plan and another graphic is a ceiling plan—then no further adjustment is needed since their sizes are already the same. 3. Use the PS command to switch outside the frame. Press Z followed by Space, then E followed by Space to maximize the view. Check if the graphic fits properly; make adjustments if necessary. 4. The subsequent steps are the same: just copy more copies. Note: You need to draw all the graphics in model space so that batch printing is possible. This is my method; I’m not sure if it’s correct 23. 【What to do if there is no outer dashed frame when drawing rectangles or circles?】 This is also a common issue; I remembered it only after reading someone else’s post a few days ago. Answer: The problem can be solved by checking the system variable dragmode to ON. 24. 【What to do if an ellipse appears as a polyline after it has been drawn?】 Whether an ellipse generated by the ellipse command appears as a polyline or as a solid ellipse is determined by the system variable PELLIPSE; when this value is 1, the resulting ellipse is a PLINE. When it is 0, Entity 25 is displayed【What should I do to keep the mirrored text from rotating?】 When the mirrtext value is 0, the mirrored text remains unrotated; when it is 1, the text rotates. 26.【How do I type a square?】 This question seems simple, but apparently many people don’t know how to do it. Well, others have posted about this before, but you can’t see those posts. So I’ll explain it here. For the 1T text command, enter the number 35. 2. Type SHIFT+6 before the 2, then press the B/A keys – this method is used for subscripts. Type SHIFT+6 after the 2, then press the B/A keys – this method is used for superscripts (i.e., squares). 27:【Entering special symbols】 We know that symbols like “Ф” for diameter, “±” for the horizontal plane, and the degree symbol “°” can be entered using control codes %％C, %％P, and %％D. But how do we enter them in CAD? 1. Use the T text command to create a text box (don’t tell me you don’t know how to do that!). 2. Right-click in the dialog box and select “Symbols” – several options will appear. Choose the one you need depending on what you want to represent. Got it? Hehe 28: 【What to do if the font printed out is hollow?】 Ugh, it being hollow is really troublesome, but it seems like the problem isn’t that hard to solve. 1. Enter the TEXTFILL command in the command line; a value of 0 will result in a hollow font. If the value is 1, the font is solid. 29【Reason why certain objects from this layer can still be seen after it is turned off】 I will now explain why objects from a layer are still visible even after that layer has been turned off. For example, take “lines” – here are the steps: 1. Draw two sets of two lines each (a total of four lines). 2. The lines in the left set are in CAD’s default color (A), while those in the right set are in a custom color (B); any color can be used (it should be noted that a new layer needs to be created for this set of lines). 3. Use the W command to create blocks for each set of lines. Note that although they all become blocks, the lines in set A are blocks without a layer associated with them, whereas the lines in set B are blocks with layer definitions. 4. After defining the blocks, remember where they were saved so that they can be inserted later. 5. Insert each set of blocks into the drawing interface. 6. Create two new layers and place each set of lines on one of these new layers. 7. Freeze each set of blocks separately. 8. You will find that the lines in set A can be frozen, while those in set B cannot. I hope this explanation helps everyone understand. Since most of the blocks we use are taken from other sources, and most blocks are created using layers, it’s not possible to turn off the entire layer at once. Answer: Refer to Xu Youran’s post. The key issue lies in the blocks you’re using (which may belong to someone else); they were originally created on different layers. This is quite harmful in itself! 〕Therefore, when you perform actions such as ‘turn off’ or ‘freeze’ on a certain layer, it seems as though the command is ineffective in the graphic. The solution is to find the original file of this graphic element by yourself, open that image, arrange all elements on the same layer, and then rename the original graphic element file and save it. Reopen your graphic, insert the newly modified block at a blank area, and then use this new block to completely replace the original one. Only at this point can you use the ‘Purge’ command. This way, it can be solved once and for all. 　　If you cannot find the original file, here is another trick for you: copy one of the blocks in your image that you suspect is problematic, and place it in an empty area of the image. I assume you call it ‘New Style’, then change all the entities in this ‘New Style’ to a certain layer, next use this ‘New Style’ as a block with a different name, and then perform a global replacement using the ‘New Style’ block. This ensures that there are no old blocks in your diagram, and only then can you use the Purge command. The method I’m talking about may seem complicated, but in fact this is the only way to truly solve the problem. In this case, it was actually the original artist who acted presumptuously and inadvertently made a mistake by violating one of the rules in CAD drawing: when creating blocks, they should be created on just one layer (preferably layer 0); different colors can be used, but not different layers! In fact, many people haven’t noticed this issue; I’m telling you here in the hope of drawing attention to it.