Do you often find yourself struggling to print only a specific area of your AutoCAD drawing? Setting the print area in AutoCAD can be a handy skill to have, especially when you want to avoid wasting paper and ink. In this tutorial, we will walk you through the steps to set the print area in AutoCAD, ensuring that your prints are precise and efficient.
Step 1: Selecting the Desired Area
To begin, open your AutoCAD drawing and zoom in or out to view the entire drawing. Take some time to locate and identify the specific area you want to print.
Once you have identified it, use the ‘Window’ or ‘Crossing’ selection method to select all the objects within that area. You can activate either of these selection methods by typing ‘W’ or ‘C’ respectively and pressing Enter.
Pro Tip:
If you’re having difficulty selecting objects accurately, you can temporarily turn off certain layers or use the ‘Isolate Objects’ tool by typing ‘ISOLATEOBJECTS’ in the command line. This tool allows you to focus on a specific set of objects without being distracted by others.
Step 2: Creating a Named View
After selecting the desired area, it’s a good idea to save it as a named view. This will allow you to quickly return to this specific view whenever needed.
- To create a named view, type ‘VIEW’ in the command line and press Enter.
- In the ‘View Manager’ dialog box that appears, click on the ‘New’ button.
- Give your new view an appropriate name that reflects the selected area (e.g., “Print Area”).
- Click ‘OK’ to save the named view.
Step 3: Adjusting the Print Area
With the desired area selected and a named view created, it’s time to adjust the print area settings.
- First, type ‘PAGESETUP’ in the command line and press Enter. This will open the ‘Page Setup Manager’ dialog box.
- In the ‘Page Setup Manager’ dialog box, select the desired page setup from the list (e., ‘Layout 1’).
- Click on the ‘Modify’ button to edit the selected page setup.
- In the ‘Page Setup’ dialog box that appears, navigate to the ‘Plot Area’ section.
- Select the ‘Window’ option under ‘Plot type.’
- Click on the ‘Window..’ button next to it.
Pro Tip:
If you want to include any additional objects or exclude certain elements from your print, you can use various options in this dialog box. For example, you can select specific layers or adjust plotting settings such as plot scale and plot style. Feel free to explore these options based on your requirements.
Step 4: Applying Changes and Printing
After adjusting the print area settings, click on ‘OK’ in each open dialog box to apply your changes and return to your drawing.
You are now ready to print only the selected area of your AutoCAD drawing!
To print, use either of these methods:
- Type ‘PLOT’ in the command line and press Enter. This will open up the plot dialog box where you can set printer options and preview before printing.
- Alternatively, you can use the quick print shortcut by typing ‘PRINT’ in the command line and pressing Enter. This will directly send the print command to your default printer without any additional settings.
Congratulations! You have successfully set the print area in AutoCAD and are now able to print precise portions of your drawings without any hassle.
Remember, mastering this skill will not only save you time and resources but also make your prints more organized and professional. Happy printing!