3D AutoCAD 2004/2005: One Step at a Time

Overview

Following this lesson, you will:

• Know how to reference one drawing from another

  • Know how to use the Xref Manager

  • Know how to attach, detach, and overlay a reference drawing

  • Know how to clip a reference to see just what you want to see

  • Understand reference drawings' dependent symbols

  • Know how to load, unload, and reload a reference

  • Know how to edit a referenced drawing from within the primary drawing

• Know how to open a referenced drawing from within the primary drawing

• Know how to permanently bind a referenced drawing to the primary drawing

Think way back to our discussion of layers in Lesson 6. I explained layers by referring to the presentation method Encyclopedia Britannica used to detail the human body (plastic overlays with the different systems of the body). This is also the idea behind externally referenced drawings – Xrefs.

There is, however, quite a difference between layers and Xrefs. We use layers, as you know, to control the display of, and differentiate between, objects in a drawing (much as we used linetypes and widths on the drawing board). On the other hand, we use Xrefs to save drawing time and computer memory by sharing information (much as Britannica shared the outline of the human body among the various system overlays).