Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent any commitment on the part of
Pythagoras BVBA. Software described in this document, which has been developed by Pythagoras BVBA, may not be copied
by or for third parties without the prior written authorization of Pythagoras BVBA.
July 2010
Trademarks
No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system or translated into any
language in any form by any means without written permission of Pythagoras BVBA.
Table of Contents
INSTALLATION ...................................................................................... I
TUTORIAL ............................................................................................. 7
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 63
First example ............................................................................................................................... 63
Second example ......................................................................................................................... 65
Third example ............................................................................................................................. 66
Fourth example ........................................................................................................................... 67
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 81
TECHNIQUE ...................................................................................................................... 82
Pythagoras is the ideal Computer Aided Design tool for land surveyors, civil engineers, design
firms, utility companies and construction companies.
Microsoft Windows XP
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft Windows 7
First, Pythagoras must be installed on your computer. This is explained in this first volume: the
Installation Manual.
The second volume, the Tutorial, is made for all novices to Pythagoras. Its language and tone
is such that new computer users quickly will be on the move. But also connoisseurs of
computers and CAD programs will gain time by catching the rhythm of Pythagoras this way.
Detailed and complete information on all functions of Pythagoras can be found in the third
volume: the Reference Manual.
Finally the appendices to the Reference Manual provide information on advanced functions as
well as the file formats used by Pythagoras.
General Information
Installation Procedure
WARNING!
USB key:
We recommend that you first install the software, and then restart the
PC, before connecting the USB security key.
Caution:
The installation program will automatically detect an older version of Pythagoras and will
delete it. If you have installed Pythagoras 11, you can keep this version if you specify
another folder.
The next installation of Pythagoras 12 will first delete all older versions (also V11)!
At any time, if you try to start Pythagoras and you have trouble opening
Pythagoras, double click on the Configure icon and change one or all of the
three following parameters:
We advise you not to set the max. number of objects higher than
necessary. The higher the number, the more memory Pythagoras will
use.
The maximum size of the image cache is 128MB. It is obvious that the
size of the image cache should not be made larger then what is really
required. Consult the reference manual "Import of images" to make an
estimate of the size.
Automatic save:
Automatic backup
Starting Pythagoras
Pythagoras If you want to start Pythagoras the first time, turn to the Tutorial and follow
the guidelines of the "Getting Acquainted" chapter.
Note: If you have not read the preceding section on "Configuring the
Pythagoras Installation", do it anyway. It will save you a lot of
time if you run into starting problems.
This tutorial introduces you to Pythagoras, your new collaborator for your
drawing work. As you read through the tutorial and perform the exercises,
you will catch the rhythm of Pythagoras.
We suggest you make a quick start first with chapter 1. With the following
chapters you will learn gradually more about all basic Pythagoras functions
without the need to digest it all at once.
It will take a few hours, but meeting Pythagoras this way will prove, even for
the experienced computer user, worthwhile. At the end you have touched
every basic function and you are able to "feel" where to look for a particular
function you want to activate.
Before you can use it, Pythagoras must be installed on your computer of
course. This is explained in the Installation Manual.
Although you can always use the three dimensions, exercises on objects are
explained with a two dimensional coordinate system in mind. This option was
taken because it simplified the exercises.
If you like, do all exercises with three dimensions. Just enter a value for the
third coordinate also. A line with an elevation can be used as a reference to
define other objects, such as parallel or perpendicular lines.
This tutorial does not cover the more complex functions. We trust that once
you have read this manual and performed the exercises, your surveying
knowledge combined with the easy Pythagoras user interface and the
explanations in the Pythagoras Reference Manual will enable you to uncover
them yourself.
In Chapter 3 you will find very useful hints to create a new drawing. Among
other topics, it explains the use of layers to structure your drawing.
Tutorial 9
Chapter 4 explains you how to save your valuable work and how to make a
hard copy from it.
Chapter 9 will shown the link between Pythagoras and Google Earth
Each chapter is made so that you can work through it section by section, at
your own pace. Each exercise takes only a few minutes.
We are sure that Pythagoras will delight you and we hope that this tutorial
will help you to discover its power in the fastest way possible.
Thank you.
10 Tutorial
Chapter 1: Getting Acquainted
Starting Pythagoras
Menu bar
Control panel
Drawing area
Toolbar
Notes:
The easiest way to start Pythagoras and open an existing
drawing is to double-click on the drawing icon or name.
More than one drawing may be open at the same time (see
also "Configuring the Installation of Pythagoras" in the other
Pythagoras manual volumes). In the View menu the list of all
activated drawings can help you to jump from one drawing to
another.
Viewing a Drawing
Actual Size
Select Actual Size in the View menu. The drawing will be displayed in its actual
size.
Overview
Select Fit in Window in the View menu. The complete drawing becomes visible
in the drawing area.
1. Make the drawing fit in window again (see Overview section above).
2. Select Zoom In in the View menu. The mouse pointer becomes a
magnifying glass with a plus sign at the center.
3. Place the mouse pointer above and to the left of the point you want to
zoom in on.
4. Press and hold the mouse button while moving the mouse to the right
and downwards. A rectangle appears and grows or shrinks as you move
the mouse.
5. Make the rectangle surround the entire area you want to zoom in on,
then release the mouse button. The indicated area fills the drawing area
completely.
The zoom factor (top line of control panel) shows its corresponding
value.
6. Go back to the first step of this procedure and repeat it step by step until
the Zoom In field of the View menu becomes gray.
Notes:
You can cancel zooming in any time by pressing the Escape key on the
keyboard.
To define the "zoom in" area (in step 4. above), the rectangle can be
made to grow in any of four directions.
Zooming Out
1. Select Zoom Out in the View menu. The previous view from the "zoom in"
procedure re-appears.
2. Go back to step 1 of this procedure and repeat it until Zoom Out in the
View menu becomes gray. Now the drawing "Fits in the Window" again.
Notes:
As you zoom in, Pythagoras keeps track of the successive zoom factors.
Of course, at any point during your drawing work you can select any one
of the fields of the View menu to return to the view you like best. You can
even do this during the construction of objects (lines, arcs, circles, ...).
If your mouse has a Scroll-Wheel, you can use the wheel to zoom in or out.
That is as long as you did not set up the wheel to perform scrolling (refer to
Appendix C for the setup). Simply turn the Scroll-Wheel to zoom in our out.
While zooming in, the position of the cursor is important: it determines the
part of the drawing that will be placed in the center of the screen after
zooming in.
If you have not created new objects in the sample drawing, then this is all there
is to it.
If not, quitting results in a pop-up menu which leaves you the choice to save the
file or not.
In it, you must select one of 3 buttons:
Don't Save
Pythagoras terminates without saving &anything. Take this option if you
do not want to change the sample drawing.
Cancel
Pythagoras does not terminate -- you can continue your work.
OK
All modifications to the indicated drawing are saved to the indicated file
and Pythagoras terminates.
Note: If more than one drawing is open and if necessary, Pythagoras asks
you to save the modifications on each of these drawings.
The background color of the drawing area can be changed into black or
white. This setting can influence the visibility of certain symbols, lines texts
and hatches.
Using the short-key SHIFT + B allows you to change the background color.
The special window at the left side of your Pythagoras screen is the control
panel. It acts as your dashboard while you run Pythagoras. In it, you find
essential information and entering fields and also toolbox buttons for the
most important functions.
The top line of the control panel shows the scale of your drawing. By selecting
the menu “View-Actual size” you will see the real size of your drawing. You will
see the scale changing as you zoom in or zoom out (see also upper
paragraph about “Viewing your drawing”). The maximum zooming factor is
1000 times the actual scale.
Just below the scale, you will find the Unit of Measure menu button. This
determines the unit of measure that is currently being used. The values in
the control panel are expressed in the unit of measure that is shown here.
Below the Unit of Measure button, all information on the coordinate systems is
brought together under three buttons.
1. Move the mouse pointer to the menu button to the left of the Coordinate
System Display button. This is the Coordinate System Notation button.
2. Press and hold the mouse button. You can select now one of the four three
dimensional entering methods for the definition of a point: Cartesian --
indicated by NEZ or XYZ, polar -- indicated by HDZ, HVD or HVS (see
Notes below).
If you like, play around a bit with this menu and see how each change is
reflected on the 3 position indicators underneath while you move the mouse
around in the drawing area.
Notes:
The values displayed in the "Position Indicators" (see further) are the
coordinates of the mouse pointer with regard to the currently selected
coordinate system.
The first part of the name of a User Coordinate System is the identifier of
the origin point of the UCS. The second part, after the hyphen, is the
identifier of a point on the X-axis (or N-axis). A section of the "Defining
Objects" chapter explains how you can create user coordinate systems.
For more details on NEZ (North, East and elevation Z), XYZ (X, Y and
elevation Z), HDZ (Horizontal angle, horizontal Distance and elevation Z),
HVD (Horizontal and Vertical angle and horizontal Distance), HVS
(Horizontal and Vertical angle and Slope distance) and CDZ (cumulated
distance, distance and elevation) see the section on Coordinate Systems
in the Reference Manual.
Under Preferences in the Defaults menu, you can make your choice
between NEZ and XYZ and even change the angle units.
Now look at the 33 toolbox buttons at the bottom of the control panel.
Click on them alternately. See how they highlight when you select them.
With these buttons you may either select an existing object in a drawing or
define a new object.
These same functions and a few more are available using the Tools menu.
Select the Tools menu and choose every possibility. By most of the choices,
the corresponding icon lights up and the cursor will have its corresponding
appearance.
The chapter on Defining Objects and the Reference Manual give details on
all these objects.
Try this exercise to get acquainted with the toolbox buttons, the Tools menu
and the Cursor:
TIP:
An extensive description of each of these buttons can be found on our Web
site. Go to www.pythagoras.net and then to the ‘Downloads’-section. Select
‘Toolbox Quick Reference Guide’ and click on ‘Download’ for the language of
your choice.
While you were moving the mouse pointer around the drawing, you probably
noticed also all these changing numbers in the control panel.
The three equally sized fields under the Coordinate System Name button are
the position indicators. They continually display the current position of the
mouse pointer on the drawing relative to the origin of the active coordinate
system.
In the Cartesian notation the Position Indicators are (from top to bottom):
Notes:
The unit of measure can be changed using the Defaults/Preferences
menu.
You can indicate your preference on the XYZ or NEZ notation through
the Defaults/Preferences menu (see the "Creating a New Drawing"
chapter).
Note:
In the HDZ, HVD and HVS notation the Position Indicators reflect the
respective distance or angle position values.
The Position Indicators may also be used as fields for manually entering the
exact coordinates of a point. The "Defining Objects" chapter explains this
further.
If you want to get a feel for how the numbers in the Position Indicators react
to mouse movements, do the following exercise:
Distance Indicators
The Distance Indicators occupy the area of the Control Panel between the
Position Indicators and the Toolbox buttons.
1. Open the sample drawing you used before in the section "Viewing a
drawing".
2. Move the mouse pointer around the drawing area, approaching points and
lines.
Watch the Distance Indicators continuously change, appearing only when
you approach existing points and lines.
Field A
d) For a polygon:
The surface
The length of the outline
The oblique length of the outline
e) For a path:
the length
the slope length
the difference in elevation between the end points
the slope.
For lines and arcs, the length will be displayed when the mouse is near the
object. Use the TAB key to display the next available information about the
object.
Field B
The distance from the mouse pointer to the starting point of the approached
line.
Field C
The distance from the mouse pointer to the end point of the approached line.
Field D
a) L: value where value is the distance from the mouse pointer relative to
the starting point of a line being created (thus corresponding with its
developing length).
c) D: value where value is the distance from the mouse pointer relative to
the reference line or arc when a parallel line or arc is created.
Note: The first three indicators are visible while moving around in an existing
drawing; the last one comes up only when you create a new line, arc or
circle object (see the "Defining Objects" chapter).
To further illustrate the use of Position and Distance Indicators, repeat the
procedures from the section on "Viewing a drawing". This time, however, pay
special attention on the Position and the Distance Indicators.
Simple Objects
Defining points, lines, circles and arcs: that's what it is all about. Once you
have let Pythagoras help you do this, you never think of doing it any other
way again.
In this chapter, it is assumed that you are familiar with some of the basic
principles of Pythagoras. If not, read the "Getting Acquainted" chapter first.
NOTE: While you define objects, you can always abandon this action by
hitting the ESC key. You can also click on the Cancel button if it
appears in the Control Panel.
Notes:
If you make a mistake while you enter values, you can always return
to the field with the wrong value by hitting the Tab key several times and
then correcting the error.
You can also click on the Cancel button or hit the Esc key to abandon
entering.
In a new empty drawing the elevation value for Z equals 0 on start up.
You can do this exercise also with any other coordinate system
notation (XYZ, HDZ, ...).
If you press the Shift Lock (or Caps Lock) key before the coordinates
of a point are confirmed, Pythagoras will keep on prompting you to enter
the coordinates of a next point immediately after each confirmation. After
entering a few points you can abandon this situation with the Esc key.
Note: You can also press the SPACEBAR key to toggle between the "select
mode" and the previously selected mode.
At once, the position indicators stop changing -- they hold the coordinate
values (10,20,0) now and keep holding these values as long as the pointer
remains close enough to the point.
As long as the position indicators are stable, you can see underneath them,
at the left, the name of the point between 2 hyphens and – when available –
the object comment (if codes were used to identify points and lines while
collecting data in the field, the code will be shown here).
Because a line is defined by its starting and end point, you create a line by
simply defining the two points.
To create a line with starting point (10,20,0) and end point (-10, -20,0) in
XYZ:
You can check the line with the mouse in the same way as you checked the
coordinates of a point before.
The previous paragraphs explained what is meant by "an object coming into
the Sight". In this paragraph, the power of this statement gets clearer:
If you do not have two points somewhere on your drawing, define them first
as you did before.
If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the procedures in
previous sections.
Notes:
With the Tab key you can jump to the other distance field if
necessary.
With the Shift Lock (or Caps Lock) key down, you can quickly define
multiple points on the same line.
If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous
sections.
If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous
sections.
Notes:
With the Tab key you can jump to another field.
When you move the mouse near the point where the new line is
perpendicular to the existing line, a special Sight will appear on the
object.
If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous
sections.
Defining a line with given elevation difference (dZ) between the beginning
and the end of the line or with a given gradient (%)
With the undo function, most actions that have been done can be undone.
For now, we will discuss only how you can clear and eventually restore
selected objects.
To do the exercises of this section, you need a drawing with a few points and
lines in it.
To select an object, you need to place Pythagoras in its selecting mode and
then indicate the object.
1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel (alternatively you
can select "Select Object" in the Tools menu, or press the SPACEBAR).
2. Click on different points. See how each one, in turn, is shown in reverse
video.
3. Click on different lines. See how the lines are highlighted.
While you move the mouse, press one of the following keys on the keyboard:
Try this out with the points and lines on your drawing. Notice the difference
in the Distance Indicators – with and without pressing one of the keys – while
you move the pointer towards all types of objects.
Notes:
When you click on a line, only the line will be selected. If you want to
select the line and its end points, press the ALT or CTRL key on the
keyboard while you click on the line.
For the use of the CTRL-, ALT- and SHIFT key: consult the
introduction in Appendix B.
Notes:
You can hold down the Shift key while also pressing the P, L, T, O or
X key of the previous section.
You can deselect one of the selected objects when you click on the
selected object while you press the Shift key on the keyboard.
1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel while you hold down
the CTRL key.
2. Place the mouse pointer somewhere in the drawing to select the group of
objects you want to select.
3. Press and hold the mouse button while you „draw‟ a random zone.
A random shape appears.
4. Make the shape surround the entire group you want to select, then
release the mouse button. All objects, which are completely in this area,
will be selected.
Notes:
You can combine holding the Shift key with holding the P, L, T, O or X
key of the previous section.
You can deselect one of the selected objects when you click on the
selected object while you press the Shift key on the keyboard.
If you hold the CTRL key down when selecting, the objects that cross
the rectangle will also be selected.
If you want to select "All Points" or "All Lines" at once, this is possible too, for
example:
Clearing Objects
Once you have selected one or more objects, it is possible to delete them.
1. Select a line.
2. Select Clear in the Edit menu or press the Delete or Backspace key on
the keyboard.
The line is removed from the drawing.
Practice the same procedure with a point, "All Object Types" or "All Points"
or "All Lines".
If you have accidentally cleared an object, this object can be restored, but
only if this was one of your last actions.
The first field of the Edit menu lets you undo your last action. If this action
has been a "Clear" then this field becomes an "Undo Clear" field.
As an exercise, select some objects, clear them, and then click on Undo
Clear in the Edit menu to restore them.
In addition to the menu-items, the buttons and in the menu can be.
They are used to undo and redo.
Notes:
Even the last Undo action can be undone. If that is necessary, simply
select the second field of the Edit menu; it says "Redo..."
If the last action was the definition of a Point or Line for example then
the Undo field in the Edit menu becomes an "Undo Point" or an "Undo
Line" field respectively.
The number of undos or redos is 25.
Compound Objects
Up to this point we have only discussed simple objects: points and lines.
Compound objects differ from the simple objects in that they depend for their
creation on existing points and lines.
Once you have created an object, its relation to other objects is lost. This
means that parallel and perpendicular lines are simply lines and that all title,
object, measurement or annotation texts have become simply texts.
Like points and lines, compound objects can also be defined in a very
straightforward manner.
To do the exercises of this section, you need a drawing with a few points and
lines in it.
Notes:
- Notice that it is possible to cancel the definition of a parallel line during the
drawing procedure by clicking another toolbox button in the control panel
or ultimately by clicking the Cancel button or hitting the Escape key on the
keyboard.
- If, when indicating the reference object, you click on an arc or circle
instead of on a line, a tangential line to the arc or circle will be created.
Arcs
To create an arc with Pythagoras, you must first have a set of points, lines or
arcs on the drawing.
Note: When the arc has the wrong direction, first move the mouse close to the
starting point and then move the mouse in the correct direction.
The direction of the arc will change.
6. Define the end point of the tangential arc by clicking when another object
is in the sight or by clicking at an approximate position.
Notes:
When you move the mouse near a line, arc or circle, a Sight appears
on the object. When the new arc you are creating is nearly tangential to
the object in the Sight, a special Sight will appear on the object.
Click the mouse button. An arc tangential to the two objects will be
created.
The point where the arc is perpendicular to another line will be indicated
with a special Sight.
Notice that the starting point of a tangential arc may be:
The starting point and the endpoint of the arc can have different
elevations. The elevations of points placed on the circular curve will
correspond to the elevations of the projections of these points on the
chord of the circular curve.
Circles
Start with a drawing containing at least 3 points, a few lines and a few arcs.
Parallel Objects
Note: You can do this exercise with lines, circles, polygons and paths.
This tutorial does not cover all possible combinations when creating objects.
We strongly advise that you try the following exercises to get a better feel for
the way Pythagoras supports you in creating drawings.
Note: For none of these exercises you need to construct temporary objects.
They all can be done using one very simple operation.
Polygons
To create a polygon with Pythagoras, you must first have a set of points on
the drawing. The polygon is then created by identifying these points as its
vertices.
Note: You cannot click twice on the same point – an error beep will notify
you –, unless it is the starting point.
3. Finally, click on the starting point again. The polygon is closed and its
perimeter remains indicated by a bold line, which means that the
polygon is still selected.
4. Select the "Polygon Pattern" menu in the Format menu. Select one of
the patterns in this sub menu. The polygon is filled with the selected
pattern and the polygon remains selected.
5. Confirm the polygon by clicking on one of the buttons at the bottom of
the control panel.
6. Click on the Select Object button and reselect the polygon:
Move the pointer approximately to the center of the polygon (hold the
O-key on the keyboard while you search for the center). There, a Sight
with the shape of a square with the letter P in it pops up. Click on it.
The perimeter of the polygon re-appears.
7. Double click the Polygon Center, then select the INFO tab and you will
see a list of all the polygon vertices.
Notes:
If the polygon consists of more than 10 points, then you will see two
arrow buttons at the right hand side. Click on these buttons to scroll
up and down through the list.
To include an arc in a polygon, click on the arc after clicking the
starting point of the arc.
While creating the polygon, you can use the BACKSPACE key to
remove the last point or arc from the polygon.
Creating a polygon is a great deal more effective when the points are
connected by lines. Then there are 3 ways to create a polygon.
Object Text on the other hand is defined parallel to an existing line, arc or
circle object and thus rotates with the drawing. Even when the referenced
object is subsequently cleared, object text keeps its original direction in the
drawing.
1. Select the Text button in the Control Panel. The pointer changes its
shape.
1a. For Object Text, click on the desired reference object. The reference
object remains indicated by the icon and the pointer changes its
shape again.
Notes:
In the rectangle of the Edit Text pop up window the actual text can be
edited.
The Point size defines the height of the characters (it is expressed in
1/72t of an inch). If you click on this button a submenu with all
possible values becomes visible.
The Weight submenu lets you choose between Light, Medium, Bold
and Extra Bold characters.
With the Alignment submenu you can modify the horizontal (left, right
or centered) and vertical (top, middle or bottom) alignment of the text
You can always select the text (with the Select Object button active)
afterwards and then drag it to another position on the drawing or even
modify its format by double clicking on it.
Dimensions en Annotations
A dimension or annotation is really just a special type of text object. The only
difference with a "regular" text object is the way you create the text object.:
1. In the Tools menu, select "Dimension. The cursor will change into an "arrow
with an M" (for Measurement).
2. Move the cursor to an object -- a line or a polygon. You can verify whether you
have selected the right object by keeping an eye on the control panel. You can
also press and hold down a key (L for line, O for polygon) while moving the
mouse around.
3. Click the object. The length of a line, for example, will be shown parallel to the
line.
Annotations (also in the Tools Menu) are special dimensions. You can create
annotations in the exact same way. Please also refer to the Reference
manual.
All objects in a drawing are not necessarily defined with respect to the same
coordinate system. Therefore you can define User Coordinate Systems.
1. Select User Coordinate System in the Tools menu. The pointer turns into
an "Arrow with CS" when within the drawing area.
2. Move to an existing point, which must become the origin of the coordinate
system and click on it. Note the benefit of the Sight here.
3. Move to a second point. This point must be a point, which is situated on
the N-axis (in NEZ coordinates) of the desired user coordinate system.
Click on the second point. The Coordinate System Display button in the
control panel shows the new coordinate system and the Coordinate
System Name button underneath it indicates the two defining points.
4. Click on the Coordinate System Display button and hold down the mouse
button.
The user coordinate system axis lines are displayed in the drawing area.
5. Click on and hold the Coordinate System Name button in the control
panel. Drag the selection bar to "Local". The local coordinate system is
active again.
Note: You can return to the new defined user coordinate system the same
way.
Notes:
All positions indicated in the control panel are displayed with respect
to the active coordinate system.
When a User Coordinate System is active, it can be deleted, no
matter what objects have been defined with it. Simply select Delete
Coordinate System in the Edit menu and release the mouse button.
The Page Coordinate System is not a User Coordinate System. See
the "Getting Acquainted" chapter under section The Control Panel.
Curves
To create a curve, the points must already exist. If they don‟t, you‟ll need to
create them using the “point” tool.
2. Click all the points that need to be part of the curve. When
finishing the curve, click the first point again. An open curve will
remain open; a closed curve will be closed.
A point
A line
A text
A polygon
Notes:
"Text Content" in the Format menu causes an "Edit Text" window to pop
up. In this window all formatting items of the text, including the text
contents can be changed.
All objects have a default format. You can change this default format
with the Defaults or with the Defaults/Preferences menu (see the
"Creating a New Drawing" chapter).
Nevertheless, it remains good practice to think about the way your drawing
must be set up. Pythagoras does not change the truth that a good start is
half the work.
If for some reason, you are uncertain about the way to tackle a problem, do
not hesitate. Make a choice; optimizing it afterwards is a piece of cake.
In this chapter, you find some indications to help you make a good start for a
new drawing.
When you save a Pythagoras drawing the information about the active
printer or plotter is saved with it.
If you start with a wrong printer or plotter, you will be forced to adapt your
drawing before you print (see the "Saving and Printing or Plotting" chapter).
Your graphic environment has its own way to activate a printer or plotter. If
you do not know how to do it, consult its manual.
Here are some indications:
Selecting Preferences
Important notice:
You may use multiple units in a Pythagoras drawing, e.g. some dimensions
are entered in US survey feet and others in meters. In order to allow
Pythagoras to do correct conversions, you need to change the actual
settings in the Preferences dialog box.
For example: if the project data is available in US Feet, set the preferences
in Pythagoras to US Feet. If you need to add additional data in meter, switch
to meters and data can be added.
Pythagoras stores all data internally in meters and converts the input and
output data to the actual units. Data on the Pythagoras clipboard is always
converted to meters. So if one project has been entered in meters and
another project in feet, the copy-paste function will work correctly between
both drawings. The conversion is also applicable for import and export of
data (DXF, List of Coordinates, Data collector, etc.)
1. In the File menu, select “Printer”. A list of available printers will be shown.
Select the printer and click "Setup". In the window that pops up you can
make miscellaneous settings (dependent on your printer), such as page
size, portrait or landscape, etc. Pythagoras takes these parameters into
account.
2. Choose the desired printer or plotter parameters and click on the OK
button.
The Select Print Area window pops up. In this window you define the
Scale, rotation Angle and Position of the Local Coordinate System with
respect to the Page Coordinate System.
Note: The Page Coordinate System invariably has its origin in the bottom left
corner of the page; its X-axis corresponds with the bottom edge and its
Y-axis with the left edge of the page.
3. Type in the appropriate Scale value and hit the Tab key.
4. Type in the desired rotation Angle and hit the Tab key.
5. Type in the value for the horizontal translation "x" and hit the Tab key.
6. Type in the value for the vertical translation "y" and hit the Tab key.
7. Hit the Enter key or click on the Preview button. Now, you see a preview
of the drawing with the origin of the Local Coordinate System clearly
indicated with regard to the printed page.
8. If you are satisfied with all values, click on the Ok button. If not, keep on
hitting the Tab key to return to the desired field and change it.
While you are in "Select Print Area", you can drag the page over the drawing
by using the mouse. When you do this while you keep the CTRL-key down,
the page will move horizontally or vertically.
You can rotate the page relative to the drawing by moving the mouse to the
corner of the page. The shape of the cursor will change, and subsequently
you can rotate the page using the mouse.
You are ready to draw now, unless you want to change some more default
values (see next section).
Notes:
The Fit on Page and Center buttons in the Select Print Area window have
no meaning yet. The drawing is still empty and thus no objects can be
centered or made to fit on the page.
Anytime later, you can check the position of the Local Coordinate
System. Make your drawing "Fit in Window" with the View menu and hit
the Coordinate System Display button in the Control Panel. When you do
this, "Local" must be active on the Coordinate System Name button
Although you can always change every object until you are satisfied with the
result, it is a good idea to make up kind of a drawing plan before you define
all objects.
One layer could hold the basic overview drawing, a second one more detail
on some parts and the third, for example, most of the measurement
information. Still another one could hold information, which is prescribed by
legislation.
You can split up your drawing in up to 4096 layers. Later on, you can re-
combine these layers to have certain views on your drawing. You can also
print these combined views.
You can give each layer its own special name. This name is then used in the
toolbar and in all Pythagoras menus and pop up windows.
Select “Display Options” in the “View”-menu. Under the tab “Layers” at the
bottom you will see all the names of the existing layers and/of layer groups
displayed in a column. By (un)checking the checklist box you can make
layers visible or invisible.
In the Toolbar you activate a certain layer in order to "connect" new objects
to this layer.
Finally layer names are used when you want to print. Before you start you
have the chance to change the selection of the layers that need to be
printed.
Some other default parameters are worth checking before you start drawing.
Although the list hereafter contains items, which are not discussed in this
tutorial, they are given here in an attempt to be complete. In the Reference
Manual you find more information on them.
Check:
In the Control Panel: the kind of coordinate system you use NEZ (or
XYZ), HDZ, HVD or HVS.
In the Defaults menu: the Point, Line and Text attributes; the selected
ones have a check mark in the sub menus.
In the Defaults menu: "Preferences" in order to define the way you
identify points (Point Identifier), enter values (Decimal Sign and Places)
and annotate objects.
In the Defaults menu: "Preferences" – “Data collector” - “Tolerance
Station”for the Station Accuracy.
It is always good practice to save your valuable work first. You never know
what can go wrong -- certainly if you are going to print or plot for the first
time.
Depending on what you want to happen afterwards, you can choose several
ways to save your drawing:
If you want to continue to work with the same drawing, you must use the
"Save" or "Save As..." command in the File menu. You can also use the
-icon in the Toolbar.
If you want to save and abandon the active drawing and continue with
another one, you can choose the Close command in the File menu or
click on the Close button of the drawing window.
If you also want to leave Pythagoras choose the Quit command in the
File menu.
The Close and Quit commands give you the option to save all your work
before you abandon the drawing completely. If you choose to save your
changes to the drawing, Pythagoras goes on the same way as if you
selected the Save command first.
So, we discuss the Save commands here, leaving you to experiment with
Close and Quit.
If you have made your first new drawing, you probably noticed that this
drawing was named "Untitled 1" by default.
1. Select the Save or Save As... command in the File menu. Another
method is to click on the -icon. They both result in the same pop up
window now.
2. Enter the name that you wish your new drawing to have.
3. Hit the Enter key or click on the Save button.
Note: The other buttons in the pop up window let you choose or create
another WINDOWS directory to save your drawing in. Since this is a
standard procedure of your graphic environment, experiment with it now
if you like.
If you make some changes to an existing drawing, the Save and Save As...
commands in the File menu act differently.
If you open an existing drawing but do not make any changes, you cannot
select the Save command. The -icon will be dimmed, which means that
saving is unnecessary.
If you can select the Save command, selecting it saves the adapted drawing
immediately and let you continue your drawing work.
CAUTION !
As soon as you select the Save command, the original drawing no
longer exists.
The purpose of the Save As... command is to save your changed drawing
under another name or in another folder or directory, leaving the original
drawing intact.
Printing or Plotting
If you are not sure, or should you encounter problems, then first save your
drawing -- if you have not done so already -- and quit Pythagoras.
Once you are sure that your printer or plotter is ready to operate, then
proceed as in the following sections.
In this section, it is assumed that you have followed the indications above
and the guidelines of the "Creating a New Drawing" chapter.
1. Select Print in the File menu or click the -icon in the Toolbar.
The Print window pops up.
Note : The items that are selected in this window correspond to the
items selected in the menu View - Display View options. The idea
is that whatever you can see on the screen is whatever you
would like to have printed; so no changes are necessary. You
can, of course, indicate the number of copies you would like
printed, as well as some more specific print options.
It is possible that you want to print a drawing on a printer or plotter other than
the one for which the drawing was originally created.
Under these circumstances, chances are that you get an error message
since the drawing may be incompatible with the new printer or plotter.
CAUTION !
It is a good idea to make a backup copy of the drawing BEFORE
you adapt it.
NOTE !
Before you start adapting the drawing note the scale factor of the
original drawing -- you need it later.
For example assume that the original drawing has a scale factor of 1/1500.
It is assumed now that the drawing is loaded.
1. Select “Printer” in the “File” menu. If the drawing has been saved with settings
from another printer you will get a warning message.
2. Click the OK-button. A dialog box will pop up where you can select the printer.
Click "Setup" which will take you into a dialog box specific to the printer you
selected.
3. Verify the parameters shown. The parameters are probably already OK if your
printer or plotter was ready for use when you started Pythagoras.
Do not make unnecessary changes. Then click the OK-button.
The "Select Print area" window pops up (also refer to the chapter "Creating a
new drawing"). This window shows how the existing drawing will be printed on
the selected page format.
4. Select the Fit on Page button. The print area parameters are adapted so that
the drawing fits completely on the page; the scale factor probably has a rather
strange value; for example 1/2328.
5. Round off the Scale value (make the denominator somewhat bigger) -- to
1/2500 -- and hit the Enter key.
6. Select the Center button. The drawing with the new scale is centered on the
page.
7. Select the Ok button. You see the adapted drawing in its "Actual Size".
Scaling Text
1. Select Fit In Window in the View menu.You can see that the drawing actually
fits, but all the text on the drawing might look a bit out of proportion -- this is
normal, and can be adapted also.
2. Select in the Edit menu "Select" and in its submenu "All Text".
4. Note: This scale factor should be a value as near as possible to the ratio of the
denominators of the scales of the original drawing and the adapted drawing (the
last one you see in the top line of the Control Panel). In our example: 1500 /
2500 = 0.6, which gives 60 %. A Scale factor of 100% leaves all text
unchanged.
5. Enter the Scale factor -- 60 -- and hit the OK button. Pythagoras deletes all text
and rewrites the scaled text.
6. Click the mouse button on an empty spot in the drawing area to deselect all text.
The drawing is OK now.
7. Select the Print command in the File menu and continue as in the "Print a New
Drawing" section (above).
In an existing drawing you only show the layers that are relevant. In the
drawing DTM.pyt all layers can be showed. Examples of layers you do not
need to calculate a DTM: layers of buildings, plantation, ...
First draw a polygon to mark out the borders of the DTM. In our examples
there is one point on the left we do not want to consider when calculating the
DTM.
Select all points using CTRL + A and use the menu 'Calculations' -
„DTM‟ - 'Terrain Model…'.
Enter a name for the DTM that you are going to calculate.
Pythagoras can have up to 256 different DTMs in 1 drawing.
The green triangles that represent the DTM can be placed in the background
(made invisible) using the menu 'View' – 'Display View' – DTM (or CTRL + I)
and uncheck ' Show Triangulation'.
Contour lines
This window allows you to enter initial- and final elevation, contour interval,
colour, line width, line style and layer. It is even possible to create layers 'on
the fly', by simply entering their names in the corresponding field.
It‟s recommended to round up the initial level to the nearest integer. This in
order to obtain regular intervals on rounded elevations.
Select the polygon (hold down the O-key and move the cursor to the
centre of the path until you see a „P‟ and click) and click 'Volumes' in
the menu 'Calculations' – „DTM‟.
In the “Earth Moving” window that pops up, there are a number of
options for volume calculation:
OR
The cross-sections are placed parallel to the X-axis the active coordinate
system. If you would like to change the direction of the cross-sections, you
can simply create a new coordinate system.
Before calculating cross sections, a path needs to be created first. To create a path,
select the path tool, click the first point of the path an then every point of the path in
sequence. At the final point of the path, hold down the CTRL key while clicking the point.
This path can thus be a straight line, a line that zig-zags or a line that follows an arc.
Draw 2 lines: a red line 5m higher than the path in layer Electricity
and a blue line 2m under the path in layer Gas
Re-select the path (hold down the X-key and move the cursor to the
centre of the path until you see a squiggle line and click) and while
pressing SHIFT select the Gas line and Electricity line at the same
time.
Click on the green 'plus' sign. A blanc line is added to the list
The cross sections are showed in a new file. This file can be saved ('File' -
'Save')
You can also create a 3D View of the terrain, an example of which is shown
below. The camera looks at the terrain with a bird's-eye view. You need to
specify the placement of the camera, elevation and the direction of the
camera.
Enter the 'Number of grid lines' and the 'Z-Value exaggeration', click
OK
The 3D view will be calculated and showed in a new file. This file can be
saved.
Select the menu 'View' – 'Display View' (or hit CTRL + I).
Click the DTM tab, select 'Show Colorized Map' and enter the
attributes by clicking the button 'Attributes'
o You can either define the values manually or with help from the
'AutoFill' button.
When you want to create a walk path in a terrain, difference in height will
appear. How can you fit the walk path into the terrain:
select the left line of the walk path and create a path (with the path
tool)
Create also a path on the line on the right side of the walk path and
calculate the intercept slope (fixed slope – right)
Now to see what the terrain will look like after drawing a walk path, you need
to recalculate the DTM, not taking into account all elevation point that are no
longer relevant (points on the walk path and points on the slope intercepts).
Introduction
First example
In this first example, we will verify whether the objects of a road in a drawing
are indeed in the layer "Roads".
Click "New" and enter the name "Roads" as the new theme.
Click “Settings”. The “Thematic Map Editor” pops up.
Check "Color" above the tabs and select "Yellow". Click OK.
This will display all objects of the layer "Roads" in yellow.
Next to "Other values" click on the line symbol.
Check "Color" above the tabs and click the color-pallet symbol.
Enter 255 and click "OK".
Check "Color" in the tab "Lines" and click on the color-pallet symbol.
Enter 253 and click OK.
All objects that are not in the layer "Roads" will receive the color 255
(light grey). To highlight the lines as compared to the other objects,
we gave the lines the color 253 (darker grey).
Click OK 3 times.
All contour lines in a drawing with an elevation smaller than 0, will receive a
blue color, all others a red color. The 0-line will be a thick green line.
Open the Pythagoras drawing “DTM.Pyt”
Select the menu option File - Thematic Maps.
The “Thematic map manager” will pop up.
Click “New” and enter “Cut&Fill” for the name of the new theme.
Click “Settings”. The “Thematic Map Editor” pops up.
Select “*Curves” in the list under “Table” when
“System” has been checked on. “Field” window will
pop up.
Check "Style", “now contains a number of fields that
can apply to curves. Select “MinZ”.
Since the field "Elevation" is numeric, you can only
select numeric comparators under “Operator”. Select
the “<” sign.
Under “Representation”, click on the green “+” sign.
Enter the value “299.990”.
Under “Attributes”, click the line symbol.
The "RepresentationWidth” and “Color”, and enter
"Solid", “0.30 mm” and “Blue” respectively. Click
“OK”.
Click the “+” sign again and enter the value 300.001”.
Third example
The contour lines in the file "Contour lines" have an interval of 0.1m. In this
example, all contour lines in the drawing will receive a different color.
All polygons in the drawing that are linked to the table "Countries" and that
have an area larger than 500 000 km², will be shown in red. All countries
larger than 1 000 000 km² will be shown in blue. The countries that are
smaller than or equal to 500 000 km² will retain their color.
Note that it is not the area of the polygon, but rather, a value that the
polygon has in the database.
When you double click a polygon, you will notice that the original look (green
and 25%) is still in the polygon.
Click the tab "Data". This window allows you to enter or modify database
values. At the top of the list the area of the selected country is shown.
Creating a Table
We will create a table by using an example. The table contains the amount
of biodiesel produced and the number of diesel cars per country.
Under “New Table” Click "Attribute" and enter the name "Diesel".
Make sure the newly created table has been selected, and click
"Settings". The “Table structure” window pops up.
By selecting the "Object types" tab, you can specify to which object
types you would like to link data in this database : e.g. only points, or
only lines, or points and lines, or any object type.
Points are drawn. From these points we will generate a coordinate list by
using the “Table Viewer”.
Select the four red dotted points (1 to 4) by holding the SHIFT key and
selecting the points one by one.
Now press the “Drawing” button and the coordinate list will be
drawn in table form.
We will create a polygon list by using drawing “Polygon List”. This feature will
draw a list in a table in the drawing.
Select the two yellow polygons by holding SHIFT+O and selecting the
polygons one by one.
Remark:
Google Earth must be installed on your computer !
Export .KML
Remark:
The coordinate reference system you have to choose in this dialogue
depends on the system in which the drawing is made up.
The drawing is now set in the correct coordinate reference system and
ready to be exported as a .KML file.
Remark:
The coordinate reference system you have to choose in this dialogue
depends on the system in which the drawing is made up.
The drawing is now set in the correct coordinate reference system and
ready to be exported as a .KML file.
Introduction
To design a road, 3 parts need to be looked at: the horizontal design of the
road, the vertical design and the type of cross section you want to use.
Starting with the axis of the road, a vertical profile can be designed and the
chosen type of cross section will be applied.
Draw the axis of the road from point A to D (strait line). This axis can
contain (a combination of) a line, an arc or a path (no spline).
To create a path, select the path tool click the first point of the path
and then every point of the path in sequence. At the final point of the
path, hold down the CTRL key while clicking the point.
Calculate a DTM if necessary. In our example the DTM is already
calculated.
Select the axis of the road (or the path)
To activate the road design module click 'View' – 'Road Design'
Pythagoras has 3 special windows: the plan window, the profile window and
the cross section window, each with their own control panels. All windows
can be viewed simultaneously.
The positions and sizes of the different windows in road design are saved
when closing Pythagoras.
You can find a more detailed explanation about those windows in the Road
Design Reference.
The plan window displays the horizontal alignment of the road and the
existing terrain in plan view. In this window you design the horizontal
transitions and intersection points.
The control panel constantly displays the information about the horizontal
alignment at the position of the cursor in the plan window:
Click in the plan window to activate this window.
a) Add references
Points and lines indicated in the plan window can be shown in the profile
window. These reference objects (such as power lines, drainages, …) can
be taken into account when designing the profile. We will add the high
voltage wire as a reference object:
Click in the „Edit‟ menu‟ – „Add multiple references …‟
Select „All object types‟, in the tab page „System object‟ select the layer
„Electr.‟
Click „Add‟
The road should pass through points B and C minding the circles, therefore
intersection points need to be created.
When moving the cursor, 2 lines appear which will follow these movements.
These 2 lines will connect the previous and next intersection point.
Remark: de horizontal transition will start in the midpoint of the shortest leg.
See the Reference manual about Road Design for more details.
The profile window displays the centre line of the road and the existing
terrain in profile according to the station distance or chainage.
The vertical design of the road will be determined in the profile window.
The green line represents the existing terrain. The high voltage wire is
shown in red. Reference points on the left of the road are represented in
blue, reference object on the right in magenta. The as of the road is shown
in:
Intersection point can be added to the profile window so the road can be
adjusted to the existing terrain. First the height of points A and D need to be
changed:
Double click the first point (A) of the road in the profile window
The height (Z) or the inclination (%R) can be defined in the control
panel. Change Z into 6,10 and confirm.
Double click the last point (D) of the road.
Enter the height: Z = 23,00 and confirm.
Points A and D are on the right height to design the road.
2 lines appear which will follow these movements when moving the cursor.
These 2 lines will connect the previous and next intersection point.
Create cross-sections
Next you select all objects which belong to the typical section
In the menu "File", "Create", you select the item "Typical Section".
Remark: when you use patterns in the cross-section to indicate for example
cobbles, … before creating the cross-section, select the drawing
and click ‘Unpack’ in the menu ‘Edit’. Otherwise, patterns might not
be displayed properly.
Press the toolbox button „Add Cross Section Mark‟. The cursor changes
in a vertical line.
Click the mouse button at the location where you want to add a cross-
section.
Enter the distance (dS) = 250,00 and confirm. The cross-section will be
used from this point on until the end of the route or until a new cross-
section.
Choose the type of cross-section you want to use: Select „Example CS‟
Remark: If you only use one cross-section for the whole road, you
can change the default cross-section in the control panel. Click first
on the cross section window and select the new cross section from
the control panel.
The command „Cross Section Mark‟ in the menu „Tools‟ allows you to enter a
number of markers on your profile on a fixed distance.
These markers are displayed as a vertical line in blue in the profile window.
The markers are also displayed in the plan window.
The cross section window displays the cross section at the position of the
cursor in the profile window. This window has 2 modes: the edit mode (left)
and the film mode (right). In the edit mode, the roadbed and the cross
section can be changed and you can also define cut and fill topsoil. The film
mode is active when either the profile window or the plan window is active.
In the cross section window the reference object are indicated. The black dot
in our examples indicates the high voltage wire.
If you want to calculate volumes, you need to create a road bed (to cut
and/or fill topsoil). A red line will appear (roadbed) on the cross section,
going from the left slope to the right slope.
Press the „Add Road Bed‟ toolbox button in the control panel or use the
menu „Tools‟ – „Road Bed‟. In the control panel you can define the points of
the road body by adjusting X and Y:
Topsoil cut
Click the toolbox button „Topsoil Cut‟ in the control panel to indicate the
parts of topsoil that need to be excavated.
Click in the cross section window on those parts that need to be
excavated. These parts will be displayed in brown
Click the toolbox button „Topsoil Fill in the control panel to indicate the
parts of topsoil that need to be filled.
Click in the cross section window on those parts that need to be filled.
These parts will be displayed in green.
Start the calculation by clicking „Cut and Fill‟ in the menu „Calculations‟
The chainage (stations) is default from the beginning till the end of the
road.
Define the number of cross sections at 100. The more cross sections,
the more accurate the calculation will be. You can also define the Ds.
Click „Calculate‟ to start the cut and fill calculation.The result can be
saved into a text file.
Click „Cancel‟ to close this window.
To create a dressed up drawing of the profile in a new file, you can use the
command „Create Profile‟ in the menu „File‟:
„File‟ – „Create Profile‟
In dialog window change parameters:
o Range
o Reference height:
o X-Scale
o Z-Scale
o „Choose terrain models‟ under the tab “Annotation” allows to
show a terrain model you prefer.
The result will be displayed in a new file. This file can be saved.
A more detailed explanation of Make Profile and Make Cross Section can be
found in the Reference Guide of Road Design.
7. Convert to Drawing
All calculated data can be put in the plan view automatically. You can also
create stake out points automatically. All you have to do is check the
checkboxes of the appropriate elements you want to create.
Select „Convert to Drawing‟ in the menu „File‟
Following settings can be made:
o Line style
o Line width
o Color
o Layer
You can also set the precision of the calculation. There are two
possibilities:
o With a given number of steps.
o With a distance between the theoretical profiles
Selecting a different layer and style for the centre line, split points, reference
points and slope intercepts allows you to select and precise these objects
afterwards.
It is obvious that the higher the number of steps or the lower the distance
between the profiles, the more precise the result will be.
The result:
You can also create stake out points automatically after the calculated data
is converted to the drawing.
Define the format for which you want to create a stake out list
o „Defaults‟ – „Configure‟ – „Data Collector‟
o Choose a Brand and Model from the list.
Select all points in layers Slope Intercepts. („Edit‟ – „Find‟)
Renumber all selected points:
o „Format‟ – „Operations‟ – „Renumber points …‟
o Starting from: e.g. 1000
o Interval: 1
Define a code for the selected points:
o „Format‟ – „Operation‟ – „Change Comment‟
Comment: e.g. SI (slope intercept)
Export the data for the chosen data collector by clicking „File‟ – Export‟
„Stake Out List‟
This file can be sent to your total station.
Drawing Information
You can import data in a Pythagoras drawing from other drawings, from
Stations or lists. Pythagoras recognizes a few formats. Look for them in the
File menu under Import:
Coordinate list
DWG/DXF: Data Exchange Format (AutoDesk)
SHAPE
Table
SICAD_SQD (Windows Only)
Data collector
Image
List of images
You can export all object data from a Pythagoras drawing or a selected part
with the Export command in the File menu. You need to select the objects
before you can open this field. The format of the exported data can be
selected:
Object Information
If you need to store (or edit) some additional information about an object, it
can be done. Select an object first and then select Object Info in the View
menu.
It is also possible to link external files (e.g. a text file or another drawing) to
existing objects. This makes it possible to open the linked file directly in its
proper application from within Pythagoras.
Notes:
You can change the comment of a point when you request object
information of a point.
When you "double-click" the mouse button on an object, the Object
Information Dialog will be presented.
Default Selections
When you change default values and selections, they are saved with the
Pythagoras program. They remain valid for every new drawing session as
long as you do not change them again.
The items from the Defaults menu, which relate to the visual aspect of a
Point, Line or Text, have the same meaning as those in the Format menu.
Point Identifier
Decimal places
Decimal sign
Annotations : defines the representation of text objects used as Coordinates,
Line Lengths, Areas, Elevations, Point IDs and Comments
Tolerance Station
In the View menu the Display View let you choose what you see in the
drawing area.
When you print, the same options are suggested before printing actually
starts. This way -- if you do not change the print menu -- you print what you
see on the screen.
You can also specify the sheets that you would like printed. The different
print-sheets can be defined by using the menu option File - Select Sheet -
Sheet Manager.
The copy and paste operations (in the Edit menu) allow you to copy a
drawing or a part of it to another drawing.
Example:
1. Create a new drawing (File - New)
2. Draw two points P1 andP2 at a distance of 50 meters.
3. Define a user coordinate system P1-P2.
coordinates P1 = 0, 0, 0
coordinates P2 = 50, 0, 0
8. Switch to the first drawing and copy the rectangle with the Copy
command to the clipboard.
9. Switch to the second drawing and add the rectangle with the Paste
command
The system knows where to place the rectangle because the coordinates
remain the same in both drawings.
Calculations
Pythagoras not only helps you draw objects, but also helps you carry out
more complex calculations.
Intersections (select the lines, arcs and circles before you can select
this command)
Open and Closed Traverse
Intersection
Resection
Transformation
“Print sheet management” allows you to create multiple print sheets per
drawing. Each print sheet can be linked to a different printer, each with its
own setup. Page objects (objects on page coordinates) and print area
(defined in page coordinates) are linked to a print sheet. When selecting a
different print sheet, the corresponding page objects will thus be shown.
When deleting a print sheet, all page objects (objects in page coordinates)
for this print sheet will also be deleted.
Using the menu option File - Select sheet, you can switch easily between
different print sheets.
You can make new print-sheets using the menu option File - Select Sheet -
Sheet Manager. In the Sheet Manager window that pops up, click the "New"
button. A new print sheet will be created with the name "Sheet_1". Since the
name is active, you can change the name that makes more sense to you.
Note the properties for each print sheet. Below, the meaning of each column
is explained.
The „Printer‟-column shows the printer that has been configured for that
particular print sheet. The selected print sheet will thus be printed on this
printer (upon selecting File - Print).
When available, the 'Paper'-column shows the page size. The orientation
(Portrait or Landscape) is shown in the column „Orientation‟.
The function „Floating‟ allows you to print random areas of a drawing. You
can best compare this function with a kind of print-screen function. You can
thus print a specific part of a drawing by simply zooming in on a particular
area and then giving the print command (File - Print). The print command of
a 'floating' print sheet will first pop up a "print screen" window. This allows
you to specify the exact scale of the printout and also allows you to more
accurately specify what exactly needs to be printed out by re-positioning the
page over the drawing.
The column 'Active' indicates the print sheet that is active. The page objects
(the objects in page coordinates) specific to this print sheet will be shown
(unless the print sheet is "floating" -> Then the page disappears from the
screen).
Giving the Print command (File - Print) will thus print the active print sheet.
The column „Default View‟ indicates which „View‟ is active. This way, 2
identical sheets can look different, or vice versa, the same theme (thematic
maps) can be visible in 2 different sheets.