Running with Ribbons

Whether you’re running AutoCAD 2011 in Windows 7, Vista, or XP, most of
AutoCAD’s default screen (refer to Figure 2-1) is pretty different from traditional
Windows fare. Yes, you have title bars and a status bar, but the rest of
the interface might look foreign. A hierarchy of title bars
Like most Windows programs, AutoCAD has a title bar at the top of its application
window that reminds you which program you’re in (not that you’d
ever mistake the AutoCAD 2011 window for, say, FreeCell — or even AutoCAD
2008!).
At the right side of the program title bar is the standard set of three
Windows control buttons: Minimize, Maximize/Restore, and Close.
 Each non-maximized drawing window within the AutoCAD program
window has its own title bar, as shown in Figure 2-2. You can use the
control buttons on a drawing window’s title bar to minimize, maximize/
restore, or close that drawing instead of the entire AutoCAD program.

As in other Windows programs, if you maximize a drawing’s window, it expands
to fill the entire drawing area. In AutoCAD 2011’s 2D Drafting & Annotation workspace,
a maximized drawing window’s control buttons have migrated south,
from the menu bar (which isn’t there anymore) to the upper-right corner of the
drawing area itself. To un-maximize (restore) the drawing so that you can see
any other drawings that you have open, click the lower Restore button.
The program title and drawing name are centered in the title bar instead of
being off to the left, beside a program icon. The AutoCAD title bar also has a
couple of devices added to it:
InfoCenter: Forced out of its old home in the menu bar to a new location
at the right side of the program title bar, this is Information Central for
AutoCAD. Type a keyword and click the binoculars for more information,
or click the satellite dish to connect to the Communication Center
and check for updates.
You can save InfoCenter topics to a Favorites list (click the star), and
you can access or sign up for the AutoCAD Subscription Center (alas,
not included in the price of admission). Access to the online help is via
the question-mark button at the end of the InfoCenter panel.


Quick Access toolbar: This permanent toolbar (the only one common to
all workspaces) contains frequently used commands in an easily accessible
location. You can add and remove tool buttons by clicking the
down arrow at the right end of the Quick Access toolbar and selecting or
deselecting the ones you want to add or remove, respectively.
If you’re floundering around looking for the commands you used to be
able to find, a life preserver is hiding in the drop-down menu at the right
end of the Quick Access toolbar. Click Show Menu Bar, and the old familiar
classic menu appears above the Ribbon.

• Making choices from the Application Menu

The Application Menu is accessible from all workspaces. AutoCAD 2011’s
Application Menu follows Microsoft’s Fluent User Interface (or FUI — honest!)
guidelines in placing file management commands here, and all drawing and
editing commands on the Ribbon. The Application Menu is divided into ten
categories, as follows:
 New: Create a new drawing from a list of templates or create a new sheet
set (not in AutoCAD LT, and in any case, I don’t cover sheet sets in this
book).
Open: Open an existing drawing or sheet set for editing, or import data
from a MicroStation DGN file into a new AutoCAD drawing.
Save: Save the current drawing in the current location; if the current
drawing hasn’t been saved, you’re prompted for a filename and a location.
Save As: Save the current drawing to a new filename and/or location and
make the newly named or located file the current drawing. Also save the
drawing as a template (DWT) or standards (DWS) file, or export a paper
space layout to a new drawing.
Export: Save the current drawing to a variety of Design Web Format
(DWF) files, a PDF, a DGN, or other file format. I discuss most of these
formats in Chapters 18 and 20.
AutoCAD 2011 exports to FBX format (that’s one I don’t discuss in this
book). FBX is specifically designed to export lights and materials — even
animation data (and haven’t we come a long way from lines and circles!)
from AutoCAD drawings to more specialized 3D programs like Autodesk
Maya or Max. In short . . . if you need this format, you already know about it.
 Print: Print a single drawing or batch plot multiple drawings, create or
modify named page setups, and manage plotters and plot styles (I cover
most of these operations in Chapter 16).
Publish: Send a 3D model to an outside 3D printing service or create an
archived sheet set. (AutoCAD LT doesn’t support 3D or sheet sets.)

Send: E-mail the current drawing file or create a Zip file containing the
current drawing and any associated files needed to display the drawing
completely (most often, those associated files are external references,
which I introduce in Chapter 18).
Drawing Utilities: Set file properties or drawing units; purge unused
blocks, layers, and styles from the current drawing; and audit or recover
damaged drawings.
Close: Close the current drawing or close all drawings. If any drawings have
been changed, you’re prompted to save before AutoCAD closes the file.