I’m just finishing up the agenda for the first day of our 2022 Virtual Workshops – and I couldn’t wait to share! On Tuesday 11/15 we’ll have 6 hours together for an Introduction to CAD. I guess I’m well on my way to developing a “series” of these Fast Track to… sessions.

Whether you’re using AutoCAD or IntelliCAD, I think this is going to be a very helpful training session because it’s scheduled with plenty of time to dig into some of the necessities for beginners. And, although this is a lead-in to Introduction to Carlson Software next week, this is SIMPLY CAD STUFF and will be perfect for beginners!

Here’s a bullet list:

• Drawing Environment and Settings
• Basic Draw Commands
• Basic Edit Commands
• Layers, linetypes and lineweights
• Linetype Scales
• Blocks and External References
• Model and Paper Space
• Drawing Templates
• National CAD Standards

If you think this lesson plan would help you or co-workers out, there’s still time to register… only $199 for 6 days of training, and you can pick and choose which session(s) you’d like to attend!

What could be more exciting? Nevermind, no need to respond.

Anyhoo… If you are interested in learning more about the National CAD Standard (NCS) and how it might help streamline your projects, take an hour and attend this live presentation to get your questions answered!

Did you think the NCS is only for architects? Is it just for CAD? Or BIM? Wondering if it’s as scary as you’ve always imagined? Need a quick overview to see what’s in there?

Aside from default settings in the programs (hello CONT-MNR and CONT-MJR!), there have never really been CAD standards in the land surveying & civil engineering world but the National CAD Standard is a good option for those who want a quick-start. Carlson Software and Civil 3d both include NCS-based templates on installation and it’s easier than ever to implement.

Also, attend this webinar to learn more about what the Survey/Civil Task Team has already accomplished in making the NCS more applicable to those of us in the land development industries.

Here’s that link to REGISTER again

This is a badly needed webinar… I don’t think I’ve done one specifically on this topic before and, for the life of me, I don’t know why. For years I’ve been speaking to large groups at conferences and trade shows and it never ceases to amaze me how few people know the benefit of using LandXML files!

This will be a little different from my regularly scheduled webinars because it’s FREE to everyone, there is no purchase required and the material presented will apply to everyone regardless of the civil/survey/construction software you use. Whether you know it or not, you’ve probably got everything you need already in your current software – you just need to put it to use.

So, what prompted me to finally schedule it? These poor people still using Land Desktop or Eagle Point calling me in a panic because their hard drives have finally crashed and they can’t get the old software installed on newer Windows machines. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t fault anyone for hanging on to something that works but the ones who call me never realized they had the tools to protect themselves and salvage years of project data all along.

You can register here (no strings attached – promise!) or keep reading for the full announcement…

Please join me in this free webinar while I explain the benefits of, and how to use, LandXML-formatted files to share and archive project-related data files regardless of the manufacturer or version of software you and other team members use.

Although many people do not realize it, LandXML is a tool that’s most likely in your hands now and won’t require any additional purchase.

This webinar is a MUST SEE for anyone still using Land Desktop, Eagle Point or other program that has been retired because it is increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to install these programs on newer computers.

The information provided in this webinar will apply equally to users of Carlson Software, Land Desktop, Civil 3d, TerraModel, Eagle Point and practically any other software for surveyors, engineers or contractors (including machine control systems).
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This webinar will last approximately 1 hour and there will be time for questions at the end.

Click here to register for the webinar now

Updated: Next live webinar will be on Wednesday, April 10th

You can sign up here: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/859901974

Sooo…. This is pretty intriguing.

Anyone who has attended one of my CAD Standards Round Table classes has heard me say, “To have an effective CAD Standard, you must make it easier to do things the right way than it is to do it the wrong way.”

Well, I’m not finished with my research yet, but the CAD Standards Manager developed by CAD Masters may be just the application to make that happen. It can be installed on top of your AutoCAD-based programs to help organize your standardized layers, symbols, linetypes, dimension styles, etc. One of the best parts, to me, is that it supports multiple standards. If you have a client that requires you deliver your work product to their particular standard, this program can accommodate that too.

You can check out a pre-recorded webinar demonstrating their 2013 release here or download this flyer detailing the highlights of the program.

Or, better yet, sign up for their next live webinar here: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/621720174 See Above. It will be held on Tuesday, March 12, 2013 from 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM PDT (2:30-3:30 PM ET) See Above. Since this is a live presentation, you will have a chance to ask questions to see if the program will support your specific needs.

I have a simple request… If you sign up for the live webinar, please let them know you heard about it from That CAD Girl.

Our September newsletter has been posted… Read it here: September 2012 Newsletter

Do you think it’s just too Architecture-y? And not geared enough toward Survey and Civil?

If so, now’s your opportunity to have a say and help make it better. I am a member of the V6 Steering Committee which oversees development of the National CAD Standard and I am also chair of the Survey/Civil Task Team. The Task Team has been charged with recommending additions and revisions to the NCS that make it more palatable to surveyors and engineers.

We are currently looking for new members and accepting applications for the Project Committees and Task Teams and would love to have more of you involved.

Here is the announcement and details if you are interested in taking part:

NCS Users Wanted: Get Involved in Development of NCS Version 6

The committee responsible for overseeing the development of the latest version of the nation’s leading computer-aided design (CAD) standard is looking for users to get involved. The United States National CAD Standard (NCS) Version 6 Steering Committee is calling for owners of the NCS Version 5 to participate in development of the next edition by becoming involved in NCS Version 6 committees.

As current users of the NCS you and your colleagues are most familiar with the standard and can provide valuable input to make the next version even better. The people who use the NCS on a daily basis are the ones who are more likely to find the problems, troubleshoot areas for improvements and make suggestions about issues that need further development.

NCS Task Teams, the working groups behind the NCS, are formed to investigate, explore or address matters pertinent to the ongoing development of the NCS and play a key role in managing the ballot process while keeping the NCS current and responsive to industry needs.
Serving on one or more Task Team is an opportunity for users to focus on and participate in the review and update of specific NCS issues.

The new development cycle to produce NCS Version 6 will begin at the end of the year. NCS users who get involved will have the opportunity to participate in the review and approval of Version 6 or submit amendments to modify the standard.

The time to get involved is now. To volunteer for an NCS Version 6 Task Team, applicants must be an owner of the NCS Version 5 and be a member of the NCS Project Committee. So don’t wait. Become a member of the NCS Versions 6 Project Committee Today! Fill-out the online NCS Project Committee Application Form to help develop the next edition of the standard.

Once you become an NCS Project Committee member, you will receive an announcement in mid-October to volunteer on a Task Team related to your area of interest. Don’t miss the opportunity to shape the next edition of the NCS.

It’s that time of year again… Early registration for our end of year workshops in North Carolina.

This year we will have day-long events in Statesville and Asheville in November and then in  Raleigh and Wilmington in December. We have several new classes that have been developed in response to requests we received last year. Seats are limited and early registration discounts are available now.

In addition, we are also holding two Technology Days in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. These October events are 1/2 day sessions that will cover Carlson Software and data collection offerings.

And, for those in Wilmington NC on October 10^th – join us for a Free Technology Breakfast at the Cracker Barrel just off S College Road. The event is FREE but registration is required.

You can register or find out more about all of these events here.

Several years ago when I started my business, my first contract was as an outside CAD manager for a civil & land planning firm. In trying to document their pen weights, screening, etc. I found a utility available on Autodesk’s website that allowed me to export all the values in a CTB file to a .csv file that could be opened (and printed) with Excel.

Here is the old Autodesk Knowledge Base article – it still works for anyone using AutoCAD-based programs version 2007-2008.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find a more current version of this utility until recently. Govert’s Tools has a program called PlotStyleViewer. You can download it here.

In his words,

This inspired me to create a CTB/STB view/print application that works completely independent of AutoCAD and Autodesk tools! The program consists of just one executable file, there are no other exe’s or dll’s needed. It should work with CTB’s/STB’s from AutoCAD 2000 upto the latest version. The purpose of this tool is that you can view CTB’s, print them and save as text file that you can open in Excel etc.

It’s a handy little utility and doesn’t seem to be limited to a particular version. Hope you get as much use out of it as I do.

Anyone who has worked with AutoCAD for any length of time can usually create a standard dimension object. However, if you pay close attention to two items in the Object Properties dialog box, you can get very creative with the way simple dimensions are displayed.

For instance, in the image just below, you can see that there are two Object Properties items highlighted in yellow. One is the “Measurement” and the other is the “Text override”. The Measurement is the measured distance between the dimension definition points (DEFPOINTS) and is read-only. You can also see that the current value for Text override is “< >”. Whenever the less-than and greater-than signs are shown as the Text override value, the Measurement will be substituted for the symbols when displayed in the drawing.

To add just a little more detail to the dimension, you can add descriptive text before or after the “< >” in Text override as shown in the next example below. As long as you keep the “< >”, the correct measured distance will always be displayed as part of the dimension text:

And, making it fancier… In the example below, I have added a “P” between < > and “9 SPACES”. This is like pressing Enter to go to a second line and has the effect of stacking two lines of text above the dimension line:

And, finally, one more option. Rather than entering “P”, if you enter “X” as part of your Text override, you will stack the text partially above and partially below the dimension line.

The “P” and “X” modifiers can also be used in combination to create 3 or more lines of text and allowing you to control how many lines appear above and how many appear below the dimension line.

Last week I presented a webinar sponsored by Carlson Software on the topic “Updates and Overview of IntelliCAD 7”. Unfortunately we had some technical difficulties and didn’t get a complete recording to post to the Movies collection on Carlson’s website.

For those who are interested, we will be re-doing the webinar on Thursday, March 29th. By that time we expect to have additional updates and improvements to announce.

Keep an eye on this site to register for the next IntelliCAD webinar

You can register for these future webinars by clicking the link below:

• Tips and Tricks for Setting Points
• Debunking the “Carlson Isn’t Dynamic” Myth
• Carlson Annotation and Labeling