Chapter 13 Creating Text 361

You can use a different custom dictionary. For example, it can be useful to use the same dictionary in your drawing as you use in your word processor. Here’s how to use the Microsoft Word dictionary:

1.Find Word’s custom dictionary. If necessary, choose Start Find and use the Windows Find dialog box to find the file. It is called custom.dic. You can open this file with Notepad and edit it directly.

2.As explained in the previous Tip, find the location of sample.cus. Use Windows Explorer to copy the file to that folder. You can hold down Ctrl as you drag it from one folder to another or use the right mouse button to click the file, choose Copy, and then paste it in its new location.

3.Click custom.dic to highlight it. Click it again and change its file name extension to .cus. Press Enter. Windows asks you whether you are sure you want to do this. Click Yes.

4.Click Change Dictionaries in the Check Spelling dialog box to open the Change Dictionaries dialog box. In the Custom Dictionary text box, type the name of the dictionary file, or choose Browse, find the file, and click Open.

5.Click Apply & Close to return to the Check Spelling dialog box. Then click Cancel to return to your drawing.

Summary

In this chapter, you learned how to create, edit, and manage text. You read about:

Using DTEXT and TEXT to create single-line text

Editing single-line text

Scaling and justifying text without moving it

Creating text styles to control the formatting of your text

Utilizing MTEXT for creating and editing paragraph text, including using the In-Place Text Editor

Importing text

Creating tables to clearly display data

Using fields to automate the insertion of text

Managing text for the fastest display

Finding and replacing text and checking spelling in your drawing

In the next chapter, you read about how to create dimensions.

364 Part II Drawing in Two Dimensions

Extension line

Line object

Figure 14-1: The parts of a dimension.

The parts of a dimension are:

Extension lines: These extend from the dimensioned object to the dimension line and arrowheads. A small gap usually separates the dimensioned object and the start of the extension lines. Extension lines visually clarify the extents of the object being dimensioned.

Note In terms of dimensions, the word extension (or extend) is used in two other ways besides referring to extension lines. First, the extension line itself usually extends from the object being dimensioned past the dimension line. You can specify the amount of this extension. Second, in architectural dimensions, the dimension line extends past the extension lines. You can specify this extension as well.

Dimension text: This tells you the actual measurement of the dimensioned object. You can format this text in decimals, fractions, scientific units, and so on.

Dimension line: This extends between the extension lines.

Arrowheads: These mark the intersection of the dimension line and the extension lines. They can take several forms, such as tick marks, open arrows, or dots.

Dimensions have two interesting properties that you need to understand before you can successfully work with them:

Dimensions are blocks. I have mentioned blocks earlier in this book, and they are fully covered in Chapter 18. Blocks are groups of objects that you can manipulate as one object. As a result, if you pick a dimension, all parts of the dimension are selected.

Dimensions are associative. This means that an association connects the dimension and the object it dimensions. If you change the size of the object, the dimension automatically adjusts appropriately.

All parts of a dimension can be formatted individually. You generally format a dimension by creating a dimension style, which is a named set of formats for dimensions — just as a text style is a named set of formats for text. (Dimension styles are the topic of the next chapter.)