Chapter 2: Opening a Drawing
In This Chapter
Using a template to start a new drawing Customizing a template Using the default settings to create a drawing Opening and switching between existing drawings Resaving a drawing with a new name
AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT offer a number of options for opening new and existing drawings. These options create a great deal of flexibility and save you time as well. You can create complex templates to avoid doing the same basic setup and drawing over and over.
Creating a New Drawing from a Template
A template is a special file that contains drawing settings and often objects (such as a titleblock and text). A template has a DWT filename extension. When you use a template as the basis for a new drawing, the drawing takes on all the settings and objects contained in the template. Use templates to avoid re-creating settings and redrawing objects for new drawings. AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT come with many templates that you can use as is or customize. You can also create your own templates.
To create a new drawing based on a template, choose Application Button⇒New to open the Select Template dialog box, which lists all the available templates, as shown in Figure 2.1. Select a template to see its preview, if any. Double-click a template to create a new drawing based on that template. Because AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT opens with Drawing1.dwg, the new drawing is named Drawing2.dwg. When you save and name your drawing, the original template file is unaffected. ...
