Hello
I'm an ex pen-and-ink draftsman from the seventies, mainly cadastral and architectural.
I've been asked by a friend to draw up some parts - need to be sent off for tooling. In the past he has always supplied a drawing and the tool mob have done the CAD. This time they've asked for it in CAD. I was told draftsight was a good application.
So that's where I am.
I need to get a start to this drawing soon to show him the general idea of what can be done ... time later to read 'the instructions' ... and I'm sure I will pick up as I go along.
I can get a lot of what's there ... but my basic problem is this.
I tried another CAD where I could 'draw' a line of a set length. I understand it's all about X and Y axis, but I haven't worked with that aspect.
I can't find a command line or whatever where I can specify the length.
Or is there an area where I can view the length as the line continues and then click off?
Sorry, this is really a very basic question - but an answer will let me get a start.
Thank you for any help that may be forthcoming. I promise to learn more before I ask again!

First thing that helped me a lot when I started learning the basics of AutoCad (Draftsight is kind of a clone of AutoCad) Is to follow the instruction from the command line at the bottom of the screen. If you don't see it then you can right click on one of the toolbars and select command line then you should have it.

You need to understand "Orthographic" and "Polar" orientation when you draft. You should take some time to read about it in the help file, it will be worth it. Other very useful command is "Offset" and "Trim" also there are command for shapes such as circle, rectangle and polygon.

There is also the "Zoom" and "Pan" functions to navigate the drawing and don't forget to save a lot.

That should at least get you started.

Come back if you need more help.

Patrick

Specifically:

Click on the Line icon.
On your drawing, place the cursor at the starting position of the line and leftclick.
Move the cursor to start the line in the direction to be drawn.
From the keyboard, enter the length of the line and hit Enter.

Hope that helps.

Sandy

Thank you Patrick and Sandy

I've got across (mostly) understanding the orthographic and polar and trim and pan etc. Have played around with a couple of other free apps, e.g. SolidEdge2D, and done a few 'exercises' combinining shapes and angles etc. On SolidEdge 2D you mark the startpoint - key in the length and angle ... click ... there it is. Or you draw the line and see the line length increasing/decreasing amd the angle ditto. Or you can click the end of the line and move it to extend or decrease. You see the dimensions changing as you do. But there's a couple of aspects of 2D that I don't care for.

DraftSight looks pretty good except for this. On DS - I draw the line ... but no indication of it's progressing length. Until I Dimension it. And when I try Change Length I thought it should just click/slide. No go.

I have found the Command Window - Command Line. It doesn't have instructions as such. It has the history, then in this instance Options: Segments or Specify start point ... that makes sense. Then ... next point/segment etc. That's just click/enter - that works similarly to just drawing the line without using the Command Line. But for a specific length - have tried entering one ... no good.

Unless I should be entering the 'from' and 'to' co-ordinates. That might take just a little more understanding to get to first base and I will have to knuckle down and do the reading. I'm a bit of a "have a go and see if it works - read the instructions if it doesn't" kind of gal.

Amd saving a lot is second nature. I used a little architectural program a couple of years ago - nothing fancy but it worked - and it happily crashed every dozen mouse moves. I learned to beat that little so and so. Plus I used to be a typesetter in the olden days when the only memory you had was a floppy disc drive. Which I bought after NOT having one for six months or so because if you lost it ... you lost it.

I want to show him that it can be done ... he's worried that it's just all too hard. He has a small business making vermin and ember flashings for sheds and steel roofs ... not a big budget ... and he's very untrusting of the whole computer thing. If I can get over this hurdle (very basic I know but understanding this will make the rest so much easier) then I can learn while I'm doing.

I can't access the pdfs and such from home here as I have snail speed internet ... I can do that when I get to the 'work' computer (this is an unpaid job - doing for love you might say). I want to have a basic drawing to show off when I get there.

I keep sneaking in and hoping the answer will be there before me ... no luck so far! So a couple more hints would be really appreciated!

Regards from Kerri, in Grafton NSW Australia

Hello again

I've just found AutoCAD Tutor on the net ... I'll probably find the answer in there. If not I'll come back cap in hand.

Kerri

Lots of info available at ...

http://www.3ds.com/products/draftsight/resource-ce...
http://www.3ds.com/fileadmin/PRODUCTS/DRAFT_SIGHT/...

... and loads of tutorials on YouTube.

Thank you CorBlimeyLimey
I will have a look at your links ... but wanted to tell Patrick and Sandy that I have found it!
Found AutoCAD tutorial and there it is ... "Direct Distance Entry".
Perzackly what I wanted!
Kerri

If I'm not mistaken you can draw a line by clicking the starting location of the line and then you can type the next point relative to your start point by using the @ sign such as @2.125,4.5,0. Or obviously you can type the coordinates from the origin of the drawing.

Hope it helps.

Patrick