Raster file import, and plotting at 1/8 scale

Time to Complete this chapter: approximately .5 Hour

-Place varying scaled drawings in a single  viewport

-Set up dimension styles for scaled drawings

-Set up leaders for varying scaled drawings

​-Create sized text for the views

​-Plotting the multi-scaled page

Time to Complete this chapter: approximately  1 Hour

Chapter Ten - Plot Sheets

Chapter Eleven - Line Spacing and Shading

Chapter Six - Plotting

Chapter Three - Foundation Plan

AutoCAD in 20 Hours

Setting up all the pages for organizing

-Creating a workspace for the plan set

-Placing the views on the pages for plotting

​-Copy and edit the title blocks


Spacing of text and shading

-Settings for spacing text over objects

-Use the properties palate for adjustments

-Gradient tool for two color fill

-Selecting custom colors

-Set luminosity for printing

-Common gradient and hatch problems

Practice the basic drawing skills and learn more about layers and linetypes

Time to Complete this chapter: 1 Hour

From zero experience in design or drafting you  will complete the first story floor plan shown  here

Chapter Nine - Title Block

Chapter Four - Plot Plan

Chapter Two - Elevations

Time to Complete this chapter: 4 to 7 Hours

Book Tour

-Create multiple viewports

-Place views in multiple viewports

-Scales in multiple viewports

​-Text scales to create a consistent page

-Dimensions scales for consistency and

  accurate  measurements

-Leader settings with dimenesion scales

-Scrolling between viewports

This chapter is not necessary to complete course

it is for readers who want the experience of completing a set of plans. Time to Complete: Seven to Fifteen Hours

Learn more advanced skills and techniques for curved lines and arcs

Appendices

Chapter Eight - Plot the Plot Plan

About the Course Method

Creating a title block for plot pages

-Create the border

-Create the title block

-Add text to the title block

-Center text in defined spaces

​-Scale the title block

Time to Complete this chapter: 15 to 20 minutes

Time to Complete this chapter: 3 to 4 Hours

 Video time is 65 minutes (complete demo of text)

AutoCAD in 20 Hours is a programmed learning system, you learn by drawing a set of house plans. Simply follow the clearly defined steps and the drawing skills are acquired as the drawing progresses. You will learn all the skills that you need to draft and plot anything in 2d. The book is extensively illustrated. The videos demonstrate every step for Chapters One and Two as well as the more difficult parts of the other chapters. The twenty hour course is completed by Chapter 14. Chapter 15 is for those who wish to complete the plan set for practice.

Chapter Seven - Plotting the Detail Page

-Create the view titles

-Setup the layout in paperspace

-Create  the viewport

-Page setup manager settings

-Control printing layers

-Scaling the viewport

-Lock the viewport

-Plotter setup

-Setup for 36 x 24 paper, 8.5 x 11 paper (home/office)

-Create PDF files for email

Short chapter on plotting a range of scales on a single page

Time to Complete this chapter: .5 to 1 Hour

A brief chapter covering the basic of plotting

Chapter Sixteen - Annotative Text, Dimensions, Leaders, and Misc Stuff

Chapter One - Floor Plan

Contact: james@autocadin20hours.com

-Basic setup

-Basic commands including: Line, Rectangle, Circle,

 Offset, Trim, Extend, Fillet, Zoom options, UCS,  Rotate, Move, Copy, Mirror, Offset from, more

-Text style and placement 

-Dimension style and usage

-Layer setup

-Design center

-Everything to draw the floor plan

-Object snap settings and Ortho

Video time is 1.5  hours (complete demo of text) 

Chapter Twelve - Tables

-Placing the UCS

-Setting points to coordinates

​-Splines set with nodes

-Explode

​-Match properties

-Arcs and circle segments

-Set objects to precise coordinates

-Topo lines

​-Turn layers off and on for erasing objects

-Practice Offset, Trim,and Fillet

-Linetypes

-Gradient and color fills

-Leader settings and placement

-More Hatch and Scaling

​-Dashed line settings

Chapter Fourteen - Multiple Viewports

Chapter Five - Cross Section and Details

A Software Survival Guide

            It's a Software Jungle out there--You need a guide

Annotative features and general wrap-up info

All the views not covered in previous chapters are displayed with some notes to clarify drawing techniques

-More Basic drawing skills including: Polygon,  Nodes, Divide, More Trim and Extend

-Create a story pole

-Layer control

-Hatches 

-Splines set to a grid

-Properties Palate to control parameters

-Scaling of Objects

Chapter Thirteen - Scales

Discourse on scales and scaled drawings

-Description of scales in CAD drawing

-Scaling of text to create consistent drawings

-Scaling of dimensions and dimstyle settings

-Leaders with varying scales

-Ratios to determine the text size for plotting

-Metric scale

Time to Complete this chapter: 15 to 20 minutes

Time to Complete this chapter: 10 to 20 minutes

Use the offset, trim and mirror to duplicate objects, create arc chains, and learn more about scaling in model space

Time to Complete this chapter: 1 to 2 Hours

Time to Complete this chapter: 1 to 2 Hours

Chapter Fifteen - Complete Plans

-Import a raster file image (a map) and trace it

-Layer control for erasing

-Free form Splines

-Setting text an an angle

-Creating and organizing large block of text

-Plotting dashed lines

​-Paperspacelinetype scale (psltscale) settings

Time to Complete this chapter: .5 to 1 Hour

Build upon the skills from Chapter 1

to draw this elevation

-Complete each page

-Draw the second story floor plan

-Electrical plan

-Foundation details added

-Floor joist framing plans

-Ceiling framing plan

-Adjust line weights

-Roof framing plan

-Draw ogee gutter

-Add details

-Chimney attachment detail

-Bollard detail

-Draw a lag bolt

-Sheer plan and sheer details

-Plywood schedule

​-Notes page

Time to Complete this chapter:  variable

Table set up and editing

Time to Complete this chapter:  1 to 2 Hours

Time to Complete this chapter: 15 to 20 minutes

Plotting multiple viewports

on the same page

-Speed up drawing by using the copy and mirror  commands to duplicate objects

-Extensive practice with Offset, Extend, and Trim

-Scaling of details

-Alternate procedures for Trim and Extend

Detailed information for trouble shooting

and details of the commands and procedures 

-Insert table functions

-Cell styles and alignment

-Fonts styles ad sizing

-Inserting rows and columns

-Sub headers

-Match Properties for faster input

-Annotative Text, Dimensions and Leaders

-The Ribbon

-Custom plotter settings

-Customize the toolbars

-Blocks and Xrefs

-Clouding for revisions

-Wipeout, Measuring tool, misc. info

- Initial Page setup

-Arc, Spline, Stretch

-Settings for Cursor, Mouse

-Dashed line settings

-Dimension Style settings

-Docking toolbars

-Electrical symbols detailed

-Extend and Trim problems

-Fraction stacking

-Glitchs, System errors

-Hatch and Gradient issues

-Layer settings

​-Object snap settings and usage

-Polar Co-ordinates

-Selection windows

-Text issues, Viewports, Zoom, More 

This course addresses some of the most vexing problems that are encountered when someone is trying to learn software. Software is never really difficult to use, the problem is that the people who design it are not skilled in communication. They cannot explain how to use the software they design. So the instructions are often presented in language that is full of insider jargon. We can't speak the jargon so don't understand the explanation and we don't know the words required to ask for the answers to our problems. This combined with a few other main problems makes learning software unnecessarily difficult and frustrating. These include:


-Steps are often left out of the process. The person writing the instructions assumes that the user knows certain steps.


-Often the buttons we are instructed to click are hidden in a menu and the pathway is not revealed. We end up clicking on everything on the screen to find pathways that ultimately are not even there.


-Most software manuals are presented in encyclopedic form. They list the various procedures, commands, and functions in sections without context. And they try to cover the entire program even though only a portion is essential to most users. The essential information is buried in a sea of relatively unimportant information. We don't need to know how to do  everything in these systems, we just need to know enough to get the job done. 


This book is designed to eliminate these problems and create the fastest possible track to learning AutoCAD. The language is plain and detailed. Great dedication has been applied to leaving no steps behind. the book has been beta tested by persons with no experience in drafting or design. They learned AutoCAD in 20 hours on average ( 18.5 to 21.5).


The design project is custom to the learning procedure. It is not meant to be an award winning house design, it is designed to fit the programmed learning process of this manual. Likewise, the processes described are not always the optimal pathway, but they are the easiest to learn. More advance procedures are described as the work progresses. Every step is placed in the best order to flow from the previous steps and to facilitate the easy comprehension of the material.


Try the first chapter for free. You will learn a lot of the basics and then decide if this is the best method for you. No pain and a lot to gain. Click the Free Trial tab here: