Can all active properties be set by clicking on an object?

Chek out the "Match Properties" feature.

Conny

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That seems to be for changing the properties of an existing object, not changing your active settings, unless I missed something.

Says Huw?

Hmm, yes, that's right, thats the AutoCAD way, first create with wrong properties than paint propertis from an object with correct properties...

Conny

"Bruce W...1" skrev i meddelandet news: snipped-for-privacy@noDirectEmail.com...

You're talking about setting properties BEFORE you draw the object.

Type PROPERTIES This will bring up your properties dialogue box. Set all the properties the way you want them (linetype scale, colour, layer, linetype, thickness etc.) Now draw your objects as normal.

Everyone but architects. ;)

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"Weight, style and colour should all be bylayer anyway..."

I disagree entirely. The logic of your layers has traditionaly been mandated by Autodesk in this fashion. But the rest of the software world has been free to have different line weights on each layer, like every other vector based program in existence.

Autocad recognizing different line weights on each layer has been in a long time coming. How long did it take, 20 years? I'm really glad to see this. Autocad has finally matured to the point where it gains some respect from me. Geez, it took Autodesk ten years to implement external reference files. All this stuff was in Microstation since day one.

I'm glad, I'd say excited but that would be an overstatement, that Autocad is finally up to snuff for the most part.

So is there a command that lets me change my active draw settings to match an existing object? Or might we need to wait until the next release for this?

It seems to me that the primary reason for grouping objects onto layers is not lineweight, it is visibility. Since the exigencies of plotting lineweights and controlling visibility will not always map 1:1, I see no reason to make unnecessarily restrictive rules in this regard. Most of the time I draw BYLAYER, but if it suits the purposes of legibility of plots and ease of use for the file, I respect no taboo about using other colors or linetypes, and would encourage others to liberate themselves of any such notion. In fact I would go one further, I would advise CAD users to investigate and use BYBLOCK color and linetypes in their standard blocks for maximum graphic flexibility. There's no reason why CAD plots have to look dull and flat just because someone thinks that everything has to be BYLAYER.

No, there isn't one built in. It would take about 5 lines of lisp code, with a little knowledge, though.

The rest of your post here shows your ignorance of Acad's capabilities. Acad had these settings since 2.6, at aleast, if I'm not mistaken. XRefing has been arounds since R9 or 10, maybe before that (that's over ten years ago).

I was teasing you and actually agree with you. In our work, non-bylayer settings are not often necessary and should be avoided when possible. For things like contours, there simply is no reason to use anything but bylayer for linetype, color, etc.

I guess it would be more appropriate for me to say something like "bylayer should always be used for object settings unless it is necessary to deviate". I've never liked that statement because it leaves too much wiggle room for the lazy cad operator.

Couldn't agree more about BYBLOCK. Seems to be an often misunderstood and/or ignored concept.

Too bad. The group's been a little dull lately, and I thought we could fight about this just to liven things up....

Shouldn't be too long............hehehehe.

FWIW, I DO hate agreeing with architects. ;)