B A S I C S S t u d e n t We b S i t e

AutoCAD and Its Applications

Chapter 3

S U P P L E M E N TA L M AT E R I A L S

Dynamic Input Settings

Type

DSETTINGS DS SE

You can congure dynamic input to meet your personal, school, or company standards. Dynamic input settings appear on the Dynamic Input tab of the Drafting Settings dialog box. See Figure 3A-1. A quick way to access the Drafting Settings dialog box is to right-click on a status bar toggle button and select Settings.

DSETTINGS

Pointer Input
When you check Enable Pointer Input in the Dynamic Input tab of the Drafting Settings dialog box, you can enter tools into the pointer input eld next to the crosshairs, and pointer input is active. When Enable Pointer Input is unchecked and you type a tool name, the tool name appears only at the command line. Pick the Settings button in the Pointer Input area to display the Pointer Input Settings dialog box. See Figure 3A-2.

Figure 3A-1. Dynamic input settings are located on the Dynamic Input tab of the Drafting Settings dialog box.
Determines whether tools are entered into the pointer input field Determines whether dimension and angle values are displayed

Pointer Input Settings dialog box

Displays the

Displays the

Dimension Input Settings dialog box

Tooltip Appearance

Displays the dialog box

Determines whether prompts and tooltips appear next to the crosshairs

Copyright by Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Dynamic Input Settings, page 1

B A S I C S S t u d e n t We b S i t e

AutoCAD and Its Applications

Chapter 3

S U P P L E M E N TA L M AT E R I A L S

Figure 3A-2. The Pointer Input Settings dialog box controls the format and visibility of input fields.
Tooltip values are displayed as a distance and an angle Tooltip values are displayed as X and Y values

Tooltip values are displayed relative to the last point picked

Tooltip values do not appear until a value is typed X and Y coordinates are always displayed

Tooltip values are displayed as absolute coordinate values Tooltip values appear when a tool is in progress and prompt for a point to be selected

Use the Format area to specify default options for selecting a second or next point. Pick the Polar format radio button to set polar coordinate entry as the default method for selecting a second point. Pick the Cartesian format radio button to set either absolute or relative coordinate entry, depending on the radio button selected in the Format area, as the default method for selecting a second point. The effect of changing between the polar and Cartesian format is apparent only when dimensional input is inactive, either by typing the # symbol or by turning off dimensional input. Pick the Relative coordinates radio button to use relative coordinate entry automatically when dening a second point, eliminating the need to type the @ symbol. Pick the Absolute coordinates radio button to use absolute coordinates to dene the second point. The Visibility area of the Pointer Input Settings dialog box controls when the input elds appear next to the crosshairs. When you select As soon as I type coordinate data, input elds do not appear until you type a value. If you choose When a tool asks for a point, input elds appear when a tool is in progress and the tool prompts you to select a point. To display the X and Y coordinate input elds always, select Always - even when not in a tool.

Copyright by Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Dynamic Input Settings, page 2

B A S I C S S t u d e n t We b S i t e

AutoCAD and Its Applications

Chapter 3

S U P P L E M E N TA L M AT E R I A L S

Dimensional Input
When Enable Dimension Input where possible is checked in the Dynamic Input tab of the Drafting Settings dialog box, dimensional input is used to select a second point, and the distance and angle input elds display. Pick the Settings button in the Dimension Input area to open the Dimension Input Settings dialog box. See Figure 3A-3. Pick the Show only 1 dimension input eld at a time radio button to display the distance input eld rst, and then hide the distance input eld and show the angle input eld when you press [Tab]. Select the Show 2 dimension input elds at a time radio button to show the distance and angle input elds at the same time. Dimensional input is compatible with grip editing, described in Chapter 14. Choose the Show the following dimension input elds simultaneously to select any of the items to display when applicable for gripediting objects. The Resulting Dimension option displays the dynamic distance value while you move the crosshairs. The Length Change option displays the change in length. The Absolute Angle option displays the absolute angle. The Angle Change option displays the change in angle. The Arc Radius option displays the radius of an arc.
Figure 3A-3. You can specify different dimension values from the Dimension Input Settings dialog box.
Displays only the distance dimension value Displays the distance and angle values Allows you to select additional values to display

Copyright by Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Dynamic Input Settings, page 3

B A S I C S S t u d e n t We b S i t e

AutoCAD and Its Applications

Chapter 3

S U P P L E M E N TA L M AT E R I A L S

Dynamic Prompts
In the Dynamic Prompts area of the Dynamic Input tab of the Drafting Settings dialog box, the Show tool prompting and tool input near the crosshairs setting determines whether tool prompts and input elds appear next to the crosshairs. When you deselect the check box, you can press the down arrow key to show tool prompts and input elds. Pick the Drafting Tooltip Appearance button at the bottom of the Dynamic Input tab to display the Tooltip Appearance dialog box. See Figure 3A-4. The Colors button presents the Drawing Window Colors dialog box, allowing you to change the background color for drafting tooltips. The Context: list box displays the various applications for drafting tooltips. Pick the context, such as 2D model space, and then pick in the Color: box to display a drop-down list of available colors. In the Size area, you can type a value or drag the slider to change the overall size of the dynamic input elds. Change the Transparency setting to see through the dynamic input elds to the drawing area. Increasing the transparency value allows you to see through the dynamic input elds, but the elds become less visible. The two options in the Apply to: area determine the tooltips to which the settings apply. If Override OS settings for all drafting tooltips is selected, appearance options apply to all tooltips, overriding operating system settings. When you select Use settings only for Dynamic Input tooltips, appearance options apply only to dynamic input content.

Copyright by Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Dynamic Input Settings, page 4

B A S I C S S t u d e n t We b S i t e

AutoCAD and Its Applications

Chapter 3

S U P P L E M E N TA L M AT E R I A L S

Figure 3A-4. Use the Tooltip Appearance dialog box to set tooltip color, size, and transparency.

Changes the background color of tooltips Changes the overall size of dynamic input fields Changes the transparency of dynamic input fields Appearance options are applied to all tooltips Appearance options are applied only to tooltips controlled by dynamic input

Copyright by Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.

Dynamic Input Settings, page 5