One of the most powerful (and least talked about) AutoCAD / Civil 3D features is the Geometric Calculator. This calculator (introduced in 1993) was originally designed to be accessed from the command line which made it a bit challenging to find. Once discovered however, the calculator provides a powerful means of solving simple (or complex) calculations transparently within running commands.
In addition to numeric values, the Geometric Calculator will also accept object snaps as part of an expression making it easy to locate points in space without the need to create “sketch” geometry. In today’s installment we'll unlock the secrets of this calculator and use it to solve both numeric and geometric equations!
If you’re interested, I’ve created a quick video below that walks through everything...
There’s never enough time in a typical Civil 3D training course to explore EVERY available tool. Most courses focus on “need to know” functionality to get you up and running using the application. The remaining features, tools and shortcuts are then discovered over years using Civil 3D in production.
To fast track some of this on-the-job learning, we’re hosting a bi-weekly webinar series called “30 min. Workouts”. Each workout is designed to demonstrate time saving features and functionality not shown during traditional classroom training. The live (no PowerPoint allowed) sessions occur every other Thursday.
Our next Workout - “Solving Problems using the Geometric Calculator” is scheduled for July 16th at 12:30pm central time!
Would you like to attend? Seating is limited, and you must register in advance: -Register Here-
The session will focus on one of the most powerful (least talked about) features of the Civil 3D / AutoCAD platform; the geometric calculator.
All who register will receive a link to view (or download) the session recording. Attendees having questions about the material can also request a 1:1 follow-up call.
In today’s installment, we explore several more common commands and look at ways to get more out of them.
These include a discussion about using Layer Freeze vs. OFF.
We also explore several aspects of the Layer Dialog box including controlling column display, filters and exporting a layer list.
From there we focus on several ways we can capture (and more importantly use) the text contained within the Command Line.
We wrap up by looking at ways to make the StatusBar more useful as well as leveraging coordinates to quickly position ourselves on a coordinate system.
As a Bonus, at the end, I provide a quick tip on how the Trim command works differently OTB in 2021.
This week represented the fifth installment of our bi-weekly “30 min. Workout” webinar series. The goal of these sessions is to demonstrate lesser known Civil 3D / AutoCAD / Map3D workflows. Our hope is that each “workout” will be a valuable resource for users to explore concepts falling outside the scope of traditional training courses.
This week’s session featured a multitude of Civil 3D / AutoCAD tips and tricks. In true “lightning round” fashion, more than thirty helpful features, system variables and keyboard shortcuts were demonstrated covering a wide array of topics. If you are interested, I’ve added a link to the session recording below…
Likewise, if you are interested in downloading the script files used in this session, they can be found here! - https://a360.co/2YMqNnP
Today we start exploring some underutilized features of commands most users rely on every day. The challenge that we are trying to overcome is the fact that, because the commands are very familiar to us, we tend to rely on only a small amount of what is possible.
That begins changing now!
During today’s 30 min workout, we will focus on the following...
Undo – Building a time machine SAVE – Typing it does something different XCLIP – Improve performance (INDEXCTL) Wildcards – Lots more than just * MSLIDE / VSLIDE – Quick view
I even threw in some “Simple LISP” at the end when I showed how to create a custom command you can start using immediately.
If you think about it, virtually every selected object in a Civil 3D model displays grips of one form or another. The more we know about how grips work, the more proficient we can be when modifying every aspect of a design. In today’s installment we’ll take a closer look at the concept of “grips”.
Grips have been a part of the AutoCAD platform since the early days. In their purest form, grips provide a quick way to modify geometry (and civil objects) “in-canvas”. In the 30 min. presentation, we’ll explore the many modification modes (and sub options) made possible using grips. We’ll also learn how to leverage multi-functional grips to access object specific tools right from the cursor. Finally, we’ll learn how to use grips in conjunction with the Dynamic Input mode to query (and edit) geometry and Civil objects using a “heads up” display.
If you’re interested, the video below will help you get started…
In 30 years, I have never worked on a civil project that did not require some interaction with GIS data. Whether it is referencing GIS data to get started, using GIS data to help make better design decisions or exporting as-built information to GIS at the end of a project, GIS is an essential part of civil projects.
Having said this, our ability to engage with GIS data hasn’t always been as easy as it should be. In some cases making a connection to the data could be challenging. In others, the GIS data required conversion to CAD geometry. In others, the performance may not have been what we expected. Or worse yet, what we thought was a “live link” was more dead than alive. 😊
At the end of the day, we all found ways to get our jobs done but always thought there really should be a better way.
The recent partnership between Autodesk and Esri is that better way!
New tools are being developed to create more seamless integrations between the worlds of BIM & GIS. One of these tools is the Autodesk Connector for ArcGIS. Using this tool, we can link solutions like InfraWorks and Civil 3D directly to ArcGIS online. Once linked, we can push and pull GIS data back and forth in ways that were never before possible.
Much has been accomplished as a result of the Autodesk & Esri partnership over the past couple of years. I am super excited to see how much more will be accomplished moving forward into the future.
The more information a Civil 3D model contains, the more value it provides at all stages of a project lifecycle. Typically, Civil 3D data may be thought of as the attribution associated with civil objects, or maybe user defined properties or property set data. Fortunately, Civil 3D can manage more than just attribution! Each entity in a Civil 3D model can reference virtually unlimited files and documentation. In today’s installment we’ll explore a concept called Reference Documents.
The Reference Documents feature can be found on the “Extended Data Tab” of the Properties Palette. Simply clicking the property allows you to link external files to most any selected object. Just imagine how valuable your Civil 3D models could be if they gave you direct access to the supporting documentation for every object in a design.
If you’re interested, I’ve created a quick video to help get you started...
When you think about it, practically every command requires some user input in the form of an Object Snap. Move from the END of this, Rotate around the INTERSECTION of this....
The problem is that typically, a handful of Object snaps become our "Go-tos". As a result, we attack most drafting and design challenges with only a subset of what is actually possible.
In today’s installment, we explore how to do more with Object snaps. This includes reviewing several very powerful (and underutilized) Object snaps, locating Object snaps in space, performing mathematical operations on Object snaps to compute other Object snaps, saving running Object snaps and more.
In fact, during this 30 min session, we’ll explore greater than 30 ways you can get even more out of Object snaps.
If you’ve ever taken a formal training course to learn an application like Civil 3D, you know there’s never enough time to explore EVERYTHING the application can do. (Not to mention all the features and tools included with Map 3D and AutoCAD.) Typical courses cover the “need to know” functionality to get you up and running using the application. The remaining features, tools, and shortcuts are then learned over the course of years using Civil 3D in production.
To help fast track some of the on-the-job learning, we’ve started a new bi-weekly webinar series called “30 min. Workout”. Each session is designed to demonstrate features and functionality not typically shown during traditional classroom training. This week we launched the series by exploring the many ways the AutoCAD platform allows us to select objects. When you think about it, most commands require object selection. The more selection methods you know, the more efficient you can be using virtually every command!
If you are interested, I’ve included a link to a recording of the session…
