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

23.6 What Have We Learned?

Items covered in this lesson include:

• The Xref Manager

• Dependent Symbols

• Manipulating Xrefs – unloading, reloading, overlaying, and binding

• Editing Xrefs

• Commands:

  • Xref

  • XAttach

  • Xbind

  • XClip

  • Refedit

  • Refclose

  • Refset

  • Dwgprops

While only a fraction of the people to whom I've spoken about Xrefs actually use them, the number seems to be growing. Xrefs rank well behind blocks in popularity, but they can be almost as useful in their own way. Take some time to get comfortable with them in the exercises at the end of the lesson. Then talk it over with your employer and make an educated decision about how you'll proceed.

The objects of our next lesson – raster images and OLE – closely resemble Xrefs. There we'll discuss referencing other forms of graphics into our drawings. The procedures and dialog boxes resemble those of Xrefs, so the lesson should go fairly smoothly.

But first, let's try a few more Xrefs.