Category : Printer + Display Graphics
Archive : DANCAD4.ZIP
Filename : DANCAD3D.DOC
Output of file : DANCAD3D.DOC contained in archive : DANCAD4.ZIP
[ D A N C A D 3 D V E R S I O N 2 . 5 ]
D A N C A D 3 D . C O M v 2 . 5 (tm)
DANCAD3D: A VECTOR GRAPHIC ANIMATION TOOL
Useful For
CAD: 3D Computer Aided Drafting and technical drawing.
CAE: 3D and 4D Computer Aided Engineering and testing.
CAM: Computer Aided Manufacturing when used with DANCAM.
Brief Program Documentation for Shareware Distribution Disks.
COPYRIGHT (c) 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
by
DANIEL H. HUDGINS
DANCAD3D, 466 DIAMOND STREET, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114, U.S.A.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This documentation file may not be edited, altered, changed, or
translated without express written permission from its author.
Read the disclaimer in this documentation before using the program.
This version of DANCAD3D is dedicated to the thousands of DANCAD3D
users around the world and especially to those few that supported its
development with financial support, spiritual support, and
constructive criticism. And additionally to the shareware dealers
that agreed to sell v1.1 and gave me the opportunity to develop
DANCAD3D into a useful program.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-1]
[ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ]
Disclaimer............................................5
Trade Mark notice.....................................6
Hardware requirements.................................8
Video boards and modes................................9
Computer system memory...............................10
Printing and Plotting drawings.......................10
Dot matrix printers..................................11
LaserJet type printers...............................11
HPGL and other pen plotters..........................12
PostScript printers..................................12
Mouse and Trackball..................................13
Harddisk speed.......................................14
RAM disks and extra memory...........................14
CONFIG.SYS: files and buffers........................14
Distribution scheme..................................15
Description of program...............................17
Computer Aided Manufacturing.........................17
Location of main program features....................18
How dancad is used...................................19
Example calculation of scale values..................19
How drawings are stored..............................21
How drawings are saved...............................21
How to load a drawing you saved......................21
How to avoid loss through mistakes...................22
Disk file types......................................23
3D-Quick drawing filetype............................23
Elements drawing filetype............................24
2D-Real drawing filetype.............................25
Perspective projections..............................25
Pixel drawing display screen filetype................26
ASCII drawing data files.............................27
Using ASCII files with DANCAM and DANPLOT............27
Other filetypes DANCAD3D uses........................28
Macro command files..................................28
Vector font files....................................28
Alias symbol files...................................29
DANCAD3D status files................................29
DANCAD3D's configuration file........................29
Drawing editor basics................................30
Drawing editor views.................................31
Drawing editor root menu.............................31
Drawing cursor.......................................32
Drawing line segments................................32
Drawing editor scale.................................33
Drawing cursor movement..............................33
Elastic line segment.................................34
Begin element command................................34
Values displayed on drawing editor screen............35
Absolute or relative measurement.....................35
Measuring angles and distances.......................35
Drawing curves.......................................36
Drawing circles......................................36
[DANCAD3D.DOC-2]
[ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ]
Making parts of circles..............................37
Other round shapes...................................38
Editing lines........................................38
Editing elements.....................................38
WYSIWYG and screen redraw speed......................39
Screen update list...................................39
Grids for drawing....................................39
Aids to drawing of shapes............................40
Polygon command......................................40
Rectangle command....................................40
Cube command.........................................40
Lettering............................................40
Automatic dimensioning...............................41
Blocks of text.......................................41
Drawing aids that work from drawn elements...........42
The Fit-Curve command................................42
The Thicken command..................................43
The Lathe command....................................44
The Window command...................................46
The Hole command.....................................47
Commands that change line segments...................48
Line style and attributes............................49
Inserting line segments into elements................49
Deleting line segments from drawings.................50
Pulling the end points of line segments..............50
Line segment numbers.................................51
commands that change elements........................51
The Elements sub-menu................................51
Interactive editing: The on-screen sub-menu..........53
Interactive Offset: The Drag command.................53
Important things to know about the drawing editor....55
Text editor basics...................................57
Uses of the write command text editor................58
Editing macro files..................................58
Editing ASCII data files.............................58
Editing text for the Block text command..............59
Other uses of the write command......................60
Macro basics.........................................61
Using the automatic macro feature....................63
Using the output macro to prototype macro code.......66
Frequently asked questions...........................70
Run-Time errors......................................70
Running macros from DOS..............................70
Information about DANCAD3D...........................70
Dot matrix printer drivers...........................71
Why did the program crash?...........................71
Loading DANCAD3D drawings into other programs........72
PostScript files.....................................72
HPGL files...........................................72
DXF files............................................72
Data filetypes.......................................73
Pixel files..........................................73
3D data files........................................73
[DANCAD3D.DOC-3]
[ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ]
2D data files........................................73
Sets of Elements filetype............................74
ASCII data filetype..................................74
Making HPGL files....................................74
Making DXF files.....................................74
Making PostScript files..............................74
Hidden line removal..................................74
Getting the cube command to work.....................74
Drawing curves.......................................75
Ease of use..........................................75
Product pricing......................................75
Printer ports........................................75
Installing plotters..................................76
Spooling PostScript files............................76
Connecting the LaserWriter...........................77
LaserWriter setup....................................77
Running demo files...................................78
How to draw something................................78
Cursor and mouse keys................................78
Erasing lines in drawings............................79
Zooming in on a drawing..............................79
Zooming out to see whole drawing.....................79
Preview command......................................79
Viewing in 3D perspective............................79
Printing a drawing...................................80
Plotting a drawing...................................80
Printing PostScript files............................80
Saving drawings before you quit......................81
Reloading a set of elements..........................81
Loading older DANCAD3D version drawing files.........81
New features in v2.5.................................81
CGA snow on the screen...............................83
VGA video boards.....................................83
How to get more information..........................83
Tips on using DANCAD3D...............................84
General tips on running DANCAD3D.....................85
Serial ports.........................................85
General tips on using the drawing editor.............86
Pen plotters.........................................90
Closing comment for shareware documentation..........90
[DANCAD3D.DOC-4]
[ D I S C L A I M E R ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
You use DANCAD3D only at your own risk. DANCAD3D is distributed
as shareware so you can test the program to see if it does what you
want it to before you buy the whole outfit. DANCAD3D is sold "as is",
you should read the disclaimer below before using DANCAD3D or any of
the other programs written by Daniel H. Hudgins.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Read and accept the terms of the disclaimer.
2. Read the rest of this documentation file.
3. Use the program at your own risk.
4. Trade Marked names mentioned in the text belong to their owners.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
The following legal notices must be read, understood and agreed to
before using any of Daniel H. Hudgins programs or products.
DISCLAIMER
DANCAD3D including all associated programs (i.e. DANCAD87,
DANMOVIE, DANGRAPH, DANCAM, DANPLOT, and all the other programs),
disks, and documentation is distributed as is, with no guarantee that
it will work correctly in any or all situations. The documentation
files or the printed manual or manuals may contain errors and
omissions. The use of the programs DANCAM and DANPLOT pose a physical
hazard to the user. The use of DANCAM and DANPLOT can cause serious
physical injury or death. In no event will Daniel H. Hudgins be
liable for any damages, including lost profits, lost savings or other
incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use or
inability to use these programs and or files, even if the Author has
been advised of the possibility of such damages, or for any claim by
any other party. The program can and will crash resulting in loss of
data when operated, Daniel H. Hudgins shall not be held liable or
responsible for any such loss. Should the program prove defective,
you (the user) assume the entire cost of all necessary repair,
servicing, or correction. All offers are subject to change or
withdrawal without notice or notification of any kind. The use of the
program constitutes total agreement and acceptance of this disclaimer.
If you reside in a local that has laws that require Daniel H. Hudgins
to bear liability of any kind you are disallowed use of this or any
other program written by Daniel H. Hudgins. If you cannot accept the
program "as is" and "where is" and you bought it from Daniel H.
Hudgins then return it within 30 days in unaltered, undamaged, and
[DANCAD3D.DOC-5]
[ D I S C L A I M E R ]
unused condition for a refund (less shipping and handling.)
The use of DANCAM and DANPLOT carry additional risks to the user
and his computer. Daniel H. Hudgins will not be liable or responsible
for any injury, loss, or death that might result from using DANCAD3D
with DANCAM or DANPLOT. Automated power driven equipment is
dangerous. You should not use DANCAM or DANPLOT if you cannot accept
the possibility of damage to your computer, loss of health, loss of
body parts, or death, and the need to protect anyone exposed to
equipment used with DANCAM and DANPLOT. The extent of the need for
any protective measures such as safety shields and training of workers
must be determined by the user and is not Daniel H. Hudgins
responsibility. The user of DANCAM and DANPLOT accepts full
responsibility, including financial, legal, and moral responsibility,
for any problems or losses that might arise from using the programs.
DANCAM and DANPLOT must not be used by persons that are ignorant of
the dangers involved with use of the programs and the associated
hardware. The stepper motors can start unexpectedly because of a
number of causes including bugs in the software or failure of the
electrical connections. The operator should be prepared for, and
expect that the automated machinery will start unexpectedly. The
operator should also expect that stepper motors will louse holding
torque (causing the motor shafts to turn freely under the force of
gravity or springs) when the motor power is lost or the electrical
connections fail to operate properly.
Dangers involved in the use of DANCAD3D, DANCAM, and DANPLOT
include but are not limited to: damage to your computer and related
hardware, damage to your body and mind or the body and mind of others
(damage to your body can include fatal injury), fire or burns caused
by stepper motors and other equipment getting hot, electrocution
caused by touching or getting near stepper motor driver circuits and
wiring, or electrocution or electric shock from any electrical
hardware used with DANCAD3D, DANCAM, and DANPLOT. You may not use
DANCAD3D, DANCAM, or DANPLOT if you do not accept all risk for any
loss, damage, or injury that you may incur as a result of using the
programs DANCAD3D, DANCAM, and DANPLOT.
If you find a bug in the program let me know about it so that it
can be fixed. This version of DANCAD3D has be tested and should (but
may not) work on most fully IBM compatible personal computers that
have hardware that meets the minimum requirements. If some part of
the program does not work on your computer, the only way I can look
into helping you is if you write and ask for help. Please enclose a
self addressed stamped envelope if you live in the United States, or a
first class postal voucher (from your post office) if you live outside
the United States to pay for the reply postage.
TRADE MARK NOTICE
A number of Trade Marks are mentioned in this documentation and in
the programs and files on the accompanying disks. They belong to
[DANCAD3D.DOC-6]
[ D I S C L A I M E R ]
there respective companies and have no connection to DANCAD3D. They
are only mentioned to help you identify the differences between
equipment supplied for use with personal computers and how that
affects your use of DANCAD3D. Among the Trade Marks mentioned are:
IBM, CGA, EGA, MDA, 5152, ProPrinter, PC, PC-XT, PC-AT, PC-DOS are
trademarks and or registered trademarks of International Business
Machines Corporation.
MX-80, LX-80, HI-80, Epson are trademarks and or registered
trademarks of EPSON Corporation.
Hercules are trademarks and or registered trademarks of Hercules
Computer Technology, Inc.
MicroSoft, MS-DOS are trademarks and or registered trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation.
FastTRAP, KeyMAP are trademarks and or registered trademarks of
MicroSpeed Incorporated.
Turbo Pascal are trademarks and or registered trademarks of
Borland International.
PostScript are trademarks and or registered trademarks of Adobe
Systems Incorporated.
Linotronic 300 are trademarks and or registered trademarks of
Linotype Incorporated.
LaserWriter Plus are trademarks and or registered trademarks of
Apple Computer Incorporated.
HP-GL, HP7470A, LaserJet, LaserJet II are trademarks and or
registered trademarks of Hewiett-Packard Company.
DANCAD3D, DANCAD87, DANMOVIE, DANGRAPH, DANCAM, DANPLOT, are
trademarks and or registered trademarks of Daniel H. Hudgins.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-7]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D runs on IBM XT, AT, or PS/2 compatible computers.
DANCAD3D requires at least 512KB of system memory. DANCAD3D requires
a harddisk to be used.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Check that you have more than 480KB system memory free. Use the
DOS external command CHKDSK to check the amount of free DOS main
memory. Do not confuse the free RAM memory with the free bytes on
your harddisk!
2. Check that your mouse driver is installed.
3. Check that you have put the DOS MODE command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT
file to set up your serial ports (if needed.)
4. Install DANCAD3D on your harddisk with the file INSTALL.BAT.
5. Set your video board to CGA, EGA, or Hercules video mode.
6. Run DANCAD3D and pick the current video mode you have set.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
The choice of computer hardware to use with DANCAD3D makes a
significant impact on the ease and efficiency with which you will be
able to use the program.
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS FOR DANCAD3D v2.5
COMPUTER......100% IBM XT, AT, or PS/2 compatible.
DOS...........v2.1 required, v3.21 or higher recommended.
MEMORY........512KB to 640KB, 640KB strongly recommended.
640KB is required by some of the macros that come with
the manuals and video tape.
VIDEO.........CGA video graphics 640 by 200 pixels.
EGA video graphics 640 by 350 pixels in 16 colors.
MGC or Hercules graphics 720 by 348 pixels.
DISKS.........A HARDDISK is required to use the program.
Floppy disk required to install the program.
PRINTER.......EPSON compatible with MX-80, LX-80, FX-286, or LQ-1500
Wide carriage dot matrix printers with EPSON type codes
IBM compatible with 5125, GRAPHICS PRINTER, PRO-PRINTER
[DANCAD3D.DOC-8]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
STAR compatible with SG15X or SG10X
PostScript compatible laser printer
Linotronic 300 photo imagesetter
HPGL code compatible laser printer
Many types of plotter.
HP-PCL code ink jet and laser printer
LaserJet II compatible laser printers
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT FOR DANCAD3D v2.5
MOUSE.........Version 2.5 uses mouse of most menus and command
prompts, I recommend that you buy a 3 button mouse if
you do not currently have a mouse now. I use the 3
button FastTrap 3D trackball with the track wheel being
supported for the z axis in DANCAD3D.
CPU...........I strongly recommend that DANCAD3D be used on computers
that have a clock speed of 10MHz or faster. You should
also use an 80286 or faster micro processor. DANCAD3D
will run on the 8088, but some of the commands will take
a long time to act. Replacement mother boards are
available for XT compatibles that give them the speed of
an AT for less than $250.
PRINTER.......If you are going to buy a new printer I would recommend
that you get a laser printer. v2.5x supports the
LaserJet II type as well as PostScript type laser
printers. PostScript or HPGL compatible printers are
generally faster than HP-PCL code printers.
HARDDISK......I recommend that you use a voice coil harddisk with an
access time of 28ms or less. Slow stepper motor
harddisks make the program work very sluggishly. You
should also use a harddisk optimizing program like
FastTrax (tm) to de-fragment the files on your harddisk
at least once a week in order to have DANCAD3D run well
and quickly.
VIDEO BOARDS AND MODES
DANCAD3D works on the currently most available video modes used in
XT, AT compatible computers. Many VGA video boards support one or
more of these video modes. The modes available to pick from are
listed in the video board menu that comes up when you run the program
for the first time (or when you select the [V]ideo menu from the title
screen pop-up menu.)
VIDEO TYPE TEXT DRAWING SCREEN PERSPECTIVE SCREEN
C = CGA COLOR COLOR 640x200x2 640x200x2 or 320x200x4
B = CGA B&W MONOCHROME 640x200x2 640x200x2 or 320x200x4
[DANCAD3D.DOC-9]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
E = EGA COLOR COLOR 640x350x2 640x350x2 or 640x350x16
M = EGA MULTISYNC MONOCHROME 640x350x2 640x350x2 or 640x350x16
H = HERCULES MONOCHROME 720x348x2 720x348x2
If you have an multimode video board you should set the video
board's video mode to the mode you wish to use before you run
DANCAD3D. To change the video mode DANCAD3D will be working on select
[V]ideo (by pressing [V]) from the small menu that comes up over the
title screen when you run the program and press [Return] the first
time. Keep in mind that Pixel type files cannot be exchanged between
video modes, so you should decide on one video mode and stick with
that mode.
The ATI Wonder (tm) brand video board can output a composite video
in any of the video modes DANCAD3D uses. Most CGA compatible video
boards can put out a composite video signal (through an RCA jack.) A
composite video signal can be recorded on a VCR. Such a video board
will let you video tape animations made with DANCAD3D or DANMOVIE.
COMPUTER SYSTEM MEMORY
You can check the amount of free system memory your computer
system has with the DOS CHKDSK command. Do not confuse the amount of
bytes free on your harddisk with the amount of DOS system memory free!
The DOS command CHKDSK is external and comes on the floppy disks that
accompany your Microsoft DOS software manual.
EXAMPLE: C>C:\DOS\CHKDSK
If you have a 1MB 80286 computer and it reads less then 655360
bytes total you should check the manual about how to install the
computer for 640K of system memory. You will probably have to take
the cover off and set the memory jumper to the 640K position, then run
setup and tell it you have 640K of system memory and 0K of expanded
memory (or the amount of expanded memory less that on the mother
board.)
Terminate and stay resident (TSR) computer programs use up some of
your computers free memory. DOS also uses up some of the system
memory. Since the amount of memory free determines how many line
segments you can draw with in DANCAD3D's workspace you should not use
any TSR programs that are not absolutely needed. NEVER use that
little program that puts a clock in the corner of the computer screen
while running DANCAD3D.
PRINTING AND PLOTTING DRAWINGS
DANCAD3D prints drawings on most standard printers currently
manufactured. DANCAD3D prints on Dot matrix printers, LaserJet II
compatible ink jet and laser printers, and also PostScript (tm)
compatible laser printers and imagesetters such as the Linotronic 300.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-10]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
DANCAD3D can plot in any size and many colors on pen plotters. In
order to use a printer you need to install the appropriate driver file
with the main menu [C]hange command. Additionally you may need to
change the port name that is in the installed driver to the port your
device is connected to (the [I]nstall command for each type of driver
is found in the DOT, JET, or PLOT sub-menu of the hardcopy sub-menu.)
DOT MATRIX PRINTERS
DANCAD3D will print at high quality on most currently manufactured
dot matrix printers. DANCAD3D's print out on dot matrix printers is
more that 30 times as sharp as a screen dump, and compares with the
printout obtained from laser printers if you photocopy the printout at
50% reduction. DANCAD3D will work with 8 or 9 pin and many 24 pin
printers that have a 240 dot per inch mode. It will work with line
feeds of 1/216 or 1/180 inch and also with 1/144 or 1/72. Provision
has been made to print on 120 dot per inch printers as well. A
maximum of 1920 dot columns is supported (3840 maximum in the wide
carriage mode.) The drivers for the major brands of printers are
supplied on the program disks (*.PRN.) You can also install some non-
standard types of printers with a built in utility ([H] [D] [I] from
the main menu.) Some printers are very slow when printing at this high
resolution. Also the speed of your computer can affect the speed of
print out. A page that takes 2 hours to print on a 4.77 MHz 8088
computer and slow printer can print in about 15 minutes on a 25 MHz
80386 computer and fast printer (DANCAD3D can automatically print
several drawings overnight by running a macro command file.)
There are several dot matrix drivers supplied for use with this
version of DANCAD3D. The printed manual has instructions on how to
edit the drivers. Most dot matrix printers currently manufactured
will work with these drivers:
DRIVER FILENAME DOT MATRIX PRINTER TYPE
PROPRINT.PRN 9 pin printers with 1/216" line feed (FX, LX, IBM.)
LQ_1500.PRN 24 pin printers with 1/180" line feed (LQ, NEC-P6.)
STARG15X.PRN Older star SG15X and SG10X with 1/144" line feed.
MX_80.PRN Older Epson type, with only 120 dpi print mode (MX.)
FX286E13.PRN Wide carriage with 1/216 inch line feed (FX, LX, IBM.)
LQ_1500W.PRN Wide carriage with 1/180 inch line feed (LQ, NEC.)
HP-PCL OR LASERJET II TYPE PRINTER
DANCAD3D's JET sub-menu of the HARDCOPY menu from the main menu
will let you print drawings on printers compatible with the LASERJET
[DANCAD3D.DOC-11]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
or LASERJET II at 150 dots per inch (d.p.i.), or 300 d.p.i. Multiple
copies of each drawing can be produced rapidly once the data has been
down loaded to the printer. The HP-PCL drivers are named *.JET. Note
that the HP-PCL code printers require 1.5MB of printer memory to print
full pages at 300 dpi. When you pick a LaserJet driver you should
stick with it since the Jet page files only work with the driver used
to make them. There are several HP-PCL drivers supplied for different
resolutions and page sizes, the file names of the drivers follow this
form:
DRIVER FILENAME HP-PCL OR LASERJET TYPE OF PRINTER
HPLJPLUS.JET 8 by 11 inch, at 150 dpi driver for LaserJet Plus.
150D8X11.JET 8 by 11", 150 dpi for LaserJet II compatibles.
300D8X11.JET 8 by 11", 300 dpi for LaserJet II compatibles.
300D8X14.JET 8 by 14", 300 dpi for LaserJet II compatibles.
HPGL LASER OR PEN PLOTTERS
DANCAD3D v2.5 supports most plotters. It can drive up to 127
plotter pens. You can drive any port or send the plotter data to a
disk file for spooling later while you draw some more drawings. Most
plotters use a ASCII text type of data format so the DOS spooler PRINT
should work if your plotter will accept a form feed, i.e. ASCII 12.
The plotter drivers are named *.PLT. There are many plotter drivers
supplied, a few of the most commonly used are:
DRIVER FILENAME PLOTTER TYPE OR FILETYPE
HPGL.PLT Makes HP-GL type plotter codes.
HI_80.PLT Makes Epson type plotter codes.
DXF.PLT Makes DXF type drawing files.
POSTSCRIPT PRINTERS
If you have a laser printer that supports Adobe's PostScript (tm)
Adobe Systems Inc. you can plot out on it with good quality. Your
local desk top publishing center may have a Linotronic 300 typesetter
by Linotype. You can install DANCAD3D's laser printer PostScript
plotter driver to output to a file rather than a port and take that
file on disk down to your local desk top publishing center to print it
out. If their Linotronic 300 (tm) or LaserWriter Plus (tm) are on the
COM1 port of their PC, all you have to do is put the disk with your
PostScript plotted file on it into their A: drive and enter COPY
A:*.OUT COM1 (where you entered PAGE1.OUT, or PAGE2.OUT, ... when you
changed the plotter port name) at the DOS prompt and presto fabulous
[DANCAD3D.DOC-12]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
quality for pennies a page! Press [H] [P] [I] from DANCAD3D's main
menu and change the port to a filename like A:PS.OUT of the PostScript
laser printer driver ADOBE_PS.LZR so that all you have to do is put a
BLANK formatted disk into drive A: and hit the spacebar to make your
PostScript files when you have pressed [H] [L] from the main menu.
The PostScript drivers are named *.LZR.
DRIVER FILENAME TYPE OF POSTSCRIPT DEVICE TO USE DRIVER WITH
ADOBE_PS.LZR Any standard PostScript printer or use to make file.
LINOTYPE.LZR Drive the Linotronic 300 photo imagesetter.
MOUSE OR TRACKBALL
DANCAD3D v2.5 supports the MicroSoft (tm) MicroSoft Corp.
compatible mice and the FastTRAP (tm) MicroSpeed Inc. 3D trackball.
Be sure to run the driver that came with your device before running
DANCAD3D. You may also need to run the DOS MODE command to setup the
serial port for the mouse driver. Read the book that came with the
mouse. You can move the drawing cursor, mark, draw lines, and redraw
the screen by moving the device and pressing its buttons. Note that
some older versions of the mouse drivers supplied with the mice have
bugs that will crash your programs, therefore you should contact the
company you bought the device from to obtain their latest driver
software. If the program crashes when you enter the main menu, then
try editing your AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files to not install the
mouse driver and see if you can draw that way. Let me know what type
of mouse you are using and when you bought it if you are having a
problem. The mouse controls the menu selection bar found in most of
the menus in DANCAD3D. By pressing the left mouse button you can
select the command the menu bar is over. Within the drawing editor you
can move the drawing cursor, mark, draw lines, and select menu
commands by moving the mouse device and pressing its buttons.
As a general rule when using the mouse with DANCAD3D the left
mouse button activates a command like the [Return] key and the right
button erases the filename or number prompt like the [Escape] key. At
prompts that ask you to answer [Y]es or [N]o the left mouse button
answers [Y]es and the right mouse button answers [N]o.
In the drawing editor ([D]raw from the main menu) the mouse is
normally used to move the cross shaped drawing cursor, but can also be
used to select the commands from the menus by pressing and releasing
the mouse's center button. If your mouse only has two buttons you can
press the [Spacebar] on the keyboard to toggle the mouse between
moving the drawing cursor and moving the menu selection bar. When
drawing the mouse's right button marks the starting point for a line
segment, and the mouses left button draws the line segment from the
marked point to the drawing cursors current position.
In the text editor ([W]rite from the main menu) the mouse's center
[DANCAD3D.DOC-13]
[ H A R D W A R E R E Q U I R E M E N T S ]
or left button makes a menu of commands pop-up on the screen. If you
do not have a mouse press the [F1] key (or press the [Ctrl] and [^]
keys at the same time) to pop-up the menu. Commands are selected from
the pop-up menu with the left mouse button or [Return] key (or the
command's first letter) as usual.
HARDDISK SPEED
Because DANCAD3D makes very heavy use of the harddisk I recommend
that you use a HARDDISK OPTIMIZING PROGRAM, such as FastTrax (tm), to
reshuffle the fragmented files so they are accessed faster. DANCAD3D
runs faster in the root directory of your harddisk. Some harddisk
optimizing programs let you locate a particular program close to the
FAT. Doing this with DANCAD3D will also help speed it up. I optimize
my harddisk four times a week. You should also use the DOS BACKUP
command at least once a day to keep your data safe (use the add only
files that have changed option.) You can also backup all the files
from your harddisk and then reformat it and restore the files, this
will speed up the file access until the files become fragmented again.
Voice coil harddisks are faster and generally more dependable that
stepper motor type harddisks. You should try to get a harddisk that
has an access time of less than 28 ms.
RAM DISKS
If you are one of the fortunate people that have a 2MB or larger
RAM disk above the DOS 640KB you can copy all the DANCAD3D files into
the RAM disk to get the program to work much faster. Alternately or
additionally putting the pixel frame files to be loaded with the
[A]nimate command, of the [F]iles sub-menu of the main menu, into a
RAM disk will make the pixel files load much smoother and faster.
CONFIG.SYS: FILES AND BUFFERS
In your DOS CONFIG.SYS file you should have two commands that tell
DOS how much memory it can take for its own use. When running
DANCAD3D these should be set to: FILES=20 (for nested macros), and
BUFFERS=20 (to reduce drive head movement.) If you need more memory
you can set fewer buffers, BUFFERS=2. Using fewer buffers will make
more system memory available for DANCAD3D's use.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-14]
[ D I S T R I B U T I O N S C H E M E ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D is a shareware program. You can give copies DANCAD3D to
your friends, or co-workers. If you want to sell DANCAD3D's shareware
disks you should write for permission (so I know what version you will
be selling in case you have an out of date version, and for other
legal reasons.) The Author of DANCAD3D has some things that can help
you get the most out of your use of the program if you want to
purchase the full and current DANCAD3D outfit. The non-shareware
disks and other items in the registered user outfit are for the use of
the registered user and may not be copied or sold.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Evaluate the shareware disks. If you have a good set of current
disks the program should work if you have the required hardware.
2. Share DANCAD3D with people you know that might have use for it.
Try giving a copy to your local secondary school shop teacher, any
engineering students you may know, and any PC users groups in your
area.
3. If anyone has a problem running DANCAD3D have them contact me with
a bug report.
4. If you think you would like to know more about DANCAD3D use the
order form that can be selected from the opening screen pop-up
menu. You can request a current price list from DANCAD3D by
writing, but be sure that you send a stamped self addressed legal
size envelope, or at least some stamps or postal vouchers to cover
the return postage.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D is distributed as a user supported program. That means
that shareware dealers can write to me an ask permission to sell the
five shareware disks with DANCAD3D.COM and it's overlays on them.
Shareware dealers normally sell disks: at swap meets, at computer
shows, and through the mail for $0.75 to $6.00 per disk. I do not get
any part of the money the shareware dealers charge for DANCAD3D. You
can also give (share) copies of the shareware disks to anyone you know
that might be interested.
Another term for shareware is User Supported Software. User
Supported means that the people that buy and use the shareware disks
of a program eventually send some money to the author in support of
his efforts and to see that the program continues to improve.
I have now been operating DANCAD3D as a company for four years.
So far the contributions from users have not been sufficient to
[DANCAD3D.DOC-15]
[ D I S T R I B U T I O N S C H E M E ]
balance the expenses associated with operations.
In order to make DANCAD3D a solvent operation, the pricing on the
version 2.5 user outfit has been set at a more realistic point than I
have charged in the past. For the type of person that actually does
register his use by purchasing outfit this price point has not
presented any difficulty.
From my experiences with users over the years, and the thousands
of letters I have answered, the features of the user outfit have
evolved. The v2.5 DANCAD3D user outfit contains the depth of
explanation that users have asked for to make efficient use of
DANCAD3D in their work.
If you would like to have some questions answered before ordering
the complete registered user outfit for DANCAD3D you can write to me.
When you write I ask that you PLEASE send some first class postage
stamps if you live in the U.S., or some first class postal vouchers if
you live in a foreign land. The cost of postage in answering peoples
questions is my biggest business expense. Because of the difficulty I
am now having keeping up with answering all the letters I get each
week is is easier for me to make collect phone calls if you have
several questions. I can call you collect in the evening (or day) if
you want me to, but be sure to tell me that you want me to call you
collect and give me the phone number and times and days you want me to
try to call you.
This documentation file should get you started drawing with
DANCAD3D. The automatic output macro feature accessed from the main
menu (by pressing [O]) and the demo files on the shareware disks will
allow you to test the macro command interpreter. The shareware
distribution scheme is beneficial to the user since he can test the
program on his hardware before spending the retail price for the
outfit. If for some reason you cannot get DANCAD3D to work on your
system please write and tell me as much as you can about your computer
hardware, where you got the disks, and any error messages you saw.
When possible include a print screen of the error messages you see
(press [Shift] and [PrtSc] to print the screen on your printer.) Most
problems users have come form not properly installing DANCAD3D on
their harddisks or having defective copies of the program.
I always enjoy seeing what users are doing with DANCAD3D. Please
send examples of your drawings, files, or macros. If you would like
to share you work with other users say so in your letter. Seeing what
you are doing helps me to know what new commands are needed and how
improve the explanations in the manuals.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-16]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D is a program that lets you make high quality line
drawings. DANCAD3D lets you make 2D line drawings like using a pencil
and ruler, or you can make 3D wire frame drawings by drawing lines
that go in any direction in the drawing workspace. DANCAD3D
approximates circles and other curves by joining short line segments
whose end points fall on the desired curve.
DANCAD3D organizes the lines used to make up drawings into groups
called elements. The drawing editor in DANCAD3D lets you add or
delete any line or element at any time during the making of a drawing.
Elements from one drawing can be saved to the harddisk and used
individually or in groups in other drawings.
DANCAD3D can run it self automatically from a type of scripting
file called a macro command file. DANCAD3D can also create macro
command files automatically by incorporating macro commands into an
automatic output macro file that correspond to the menu commands you
activate while using the program. Use of the automatic output macro
feature gives you excellent protection against making mistakes while
drawing since the mistake can be edited out of the output macro with
the text editor and the drawing regenerated to the point before the
mistake happened in the macro command processor.
DANCAD3D has a built in facility for animating drawings so you can
see the object rotate to get a better idea of the three-dimensional
shape. By using DANCAD3D's macro language individual elements in the
drawing can be rotated and moved to simulate the operation of a
dynamic mechanical system.
When used with DANCAM or DANPLOT, DANCAD3D can manufacture parts
directly from drawings of cutting tool paths made with DANCAD3D.
DANCAD3D, DANCAM and DANPLOT make up one of the least expensive, and
yet very versatile, CAD, CAE, CAM systems available!
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Use INSTALL.BAT to install DANCAD3D on your harddisk.
2. Read this DANCAD3D.DOC file.
3. Run DANCAD3D and select the video board type.
4. Select [D]raw from the main menu to draw and edit drawings.
5. Select [W]rite from the main menu to write or edit macro programs.
6. Select [O]utput from the main menu to output macro programs.
7. Select [R]un from the main menu to run macro programs.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-17]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
8. Select [C]hange from the main menu to install device drivers.
9. Select [H]ardcopy from the main menu to print out drawings.
10. Select [F]iles from the main menu to load or save drawings.
11. Go on to use and learn about more of the program features.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D is divided into four major sections. The four parts of
DANCAD3D are accessed from its main menu by pressing the first letter
of the command name or by clicking the left mouse button when the menu
bar is over the desired command. The four main sections of DANCAD3D
are described below with the principle sub-functions listed.
LOCATION OF MAIN PROGRAM FEATURES
1. The manual entry menus accessed from the main menu.
A. The Change command to set up DANCAD3D for use.
B. The Files sub-menu to save and load drawings.
C. The Preview command to adjust perspective values.
D. The Hardcopy sub-menu to print out drawings.
E. The Automatic Output macro feature (press [O] to activate.)
2. The drawing editor for drawing and editing line segments.
A. The line drawing sub-menu to draw line segments.
B. The lines sub-menu to edit drawn lines.
C. The Elements sub-menu to edit elements made of lines.
D. The Calligraphy sub-menu to add lettering and dimensions.
E. The 3D shapes sub-menu to draw polygons and curves.
F. The Measurement command to measure distance and angles.
3. The text editor for writing and editing macro files.
A. The pop-up menu (click left mouse button or press [F1].)
4. The macro interpreter for running macro programs.
A. The macro trace feature.
DANCAD3D holds drawing line segments in a three-dimensional space
called the "Workspace". The workspace can hold lines of dimensions up
to +/- 1E18 units (one followed by eighteen zeros.) The smallest line
segments supported are +/- 1E-18 units. DANCAD3D uses a scaling
factor to adjust the size of the line segments you draw in order to
make them fit on the printed page. You can change the scaling factor
with the main menu Preview or Change commands to make drawings larger
or smaller than life size. DANCAD3D's default scale of 240 draws one
unit of distance in the drawing editor as one inch on the print out.
Changing the scale to 120 would of course make one unit in the drawing
editor equal one half inch on the print out. Any ratio of scales to
[DANCAD3D.DOC-18]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
units can be worked out allowing DANCAD3D, DANCAM, and DANPLOT to work
in metric or any other system of decimal units.
HOW DANCAD3D IS USED
Using DANCAD3D starts by drawing some elements with the drawing
editor. You may want the automatic output macro turned on to let you
edit the macro file script of what you were drawing. After you have
built a set of elements you would write macro script files to
manipulate the elements and make an animated movie of how the elements
will interact in the device you are engineering. Once you have
debugged the design of the device you are working on you would make up
blue-prints of the various parts to be manufactured, or draw tool
paths directly with DANCAD3D and save the tool paths in ASCII file
type for use with DANCAM or DANPLOT. If you are using DANCAM or
DANPLOT you would probably save the ASCII tool path file to a floppy
disk and use the computer in your shop to run DANCAM or DANPLOT to
read the ASCII tool path files and cut out the parts. After testing
the parts in operation you might need to use DANCAD3D to edit the tool
path ASCII files and manufacture a second prototype before making a
production run or parts with DANCAM or DANPLOT (measuring and testing
a prototype is the most practical and reliable method of compensating
for tool post flexing and other sources of error in the finished part
produced on any given machine in the machine's current state of
precision (if the piece is a "one of" you can draw the tool path to
make the part slightly over size and make the final cut by hand, or
draw a separate tool path file for the final cut).)
If you project concentrates on the production of drawings as the
final product rather than parts, you would just use the drawing editor
and the Hardcopy sub-menu from DANCAD3D's main menu.
If your project involved only the production of an animated movie
you would use the drawing editor and the text editor to make elements
and write macros. The SIGNAL macro command can activate a cine film
recorder automatically from within DANCAD3D automatically.
EXAMPLE CALCULATION OF SCALE VALUES
Note: In order to have the automatic dimensioning letter numbers
correctly you may need to draw the drawing with a scale
different than the scale that the drawing will be printed with.
In effect you draw to have the numbers read to the units you
want, and you print to give the numbers some absolute and real
ratio to the absolute and real physical dimension of the units
name. If you want one inch on the drawing to equal one foot in
reality you are really asking that the drawing be printed at
1/12 real size, but you would probably want one inch to read
1.000 in the automatic dimensioning (even though the one inch
dimensioned would only be 0.0833333 (1/12) inches long on the
print out.) So when you make the drawing you draw so the numbers
[DANCAD3D.DOC-19]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
on the top of the drawing screen look correct (in the units you
wish to use) and then you figure the correct scale that will
print the drawing the size you want it to be.
At a scale of 1 DANCAD3D will print 1 / 240 inch per unit drawn.
For 1 unit drawn to equal 1 inch on print out use scale of 240.
That comes from: 240 * (1 / 240) = 240 / 240 = 1, or 1:1 ratio.
1 inch on printout to 1 foot actual distance = 12 to 1 ratio
(1/12" on printout to 1 unit drawn) = 240 / 12
= scale of 20.
1 inch actual distance to 1 foot on printout = 1 to 12 ratio
= 240 * 12
= scale of 2880
1 unit = 1 mm = 240 / 25.4 (mm per inch) = scale of 9.448818898
1 mm on print out to 1 m of actual distance = 1000 to 1 ratio
= 9.448818898 / 1000
= scale of 0.009448818
1 mm of actual distance to 1 cm on print out = 1 to 10 ratio
= 9.448818898 * 10
= scale of 94.8818898
As you see in the above examples DANCAD3D used 240 units to the
inch as its reference value (although DANCAD3D used 240 units per inch
internally as a reference value, the accuracy of DANCAD3D drawings can
be millions of times more accurate than this reference value.) All
scaling factors are then worked out in ratio to one drawing editor
unit of cursor movement to 1/240 of an inch on the final print out.
That is if you print the drawing with the scale set to one the drawing
cursor would have had to move 240 units for the line to print one inch
long. If you change the scale for printing to 240 then the drawing
cursor would only have to move one unit to produce a line one inch on
the print out. Any other system of measurement can be used if you
find the correct ratio between 1/240 (0.0041666) of an inch and the
absolute size of the units you want to use (from Angstroms to light
years.)
Always keep in mind when setting the scale that larger numbers
make the drawing look larger, and smaller scales make the drawing look
smaller.
Inside the drawing editor you can freely adjust the scale value to
zoom in or out without having any effect on the length of the lines
that were drawn. The value of the scale entered with the main menu
Change command is important since the scale value entered with the
main menu Change command affects the thickness of line segments in the
print out and WYSIWYG display of the drawing editor.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-20]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
The use of the Magnify command alters the relationship between the
units drawn and the printing scale. For instance if you magnify an
element by 2 on all the axis you would need to divide the printing
scale by 2 to have the element print at the same size (magnify and
scale are reciprocal.)
HOW DRAWINGS ARE STORED
DANCAD3D holds drawings as a series of line segments. A maximum
of 10920 line segments can be held in DANCAD3D's drawing workspace at
one time. Drawings that require more than the maximum number of line
segments are possible by superimposing several workspaces of line
segments onto a single screen or print out. The amount of system
memory free on your computer limits the maximum size of the drawing
workspace.
Line segments drawn into the workspace are assigned an element
number that the line segments belong to (the line segments also have a
number but for the most part only the element number matters.) It is
possible to have all the line segments of a whole drawing in only one
element, but it is much better to break up drawings into several
elements so that individual elements can be rotated, moved around
(offset or translated), and magnified (for fit.) Elements are begun
with the drawing command [B]egin new (element.)
HOW DRAWINGS ARE SAVED
DANCAD3D offers to save the drawing elements currently in the
drawing workspace when you quit to DOS (NEVER turn your computer off
or [Ctrl] & [Alt] & [Del] until you have quit from DANCAD3D's main
menu and returned to the DOS prompt.) If you let DANCAD3D save the
elements in the workspace for you the elements will be reloaded the
next time you run DANCAD3D.
Having the program save the drawing you are working on is just
fine until you have finished the drawing and want to work on another
drawing. When you are finished working on a drawing you should press
[F]iles [S]ave [E]lements from the main menu and save the drawing
elements. Then select [I]nitialize from the main menu to clear the
workspace so you can start a new drawing.
Drawings can be saved as a single element rather than saving all
the elements as individually. The 3D-Quick file format allows all the
elements to be joined into one mass if you enter element number 0 as
the element you wish to save (the element 0 trick also works on most
of the other commands such as rotate and magnify if you want to act on
all the elements in the workspace rather than just one.) See the
section below about file types.
HOW TO LOAD A DRAWING YOU SAVED
[DANCAD3D.DOC-21]
[ D E S C R I P T I O N O F P R O G R A M ]
If you want to load a drawing you saved as in the above section,
first save what is now in the workspace as in the above section. Once
you have saved what is in the workspace (if it is anything that needs
to be saved) you can select [I]nitialize from the main menu to clear
the workspace. Next select [F]iles [L]oad [E]lements from the main
menu and carry on as you wish with the loaded drawing's elements.
HOW TO AVOID LOSS THROUGH MISTAKES
In the drawing editor root menu there is a [B]ack-up command that
will save all the elements in the workspace. You should [B]ack-up
your drawing every 30 minutes, or before each command you are unsure
of to protect what you have drawn so far.
The automatic output macro also protects your drawing from
mistakes by recording all the commands you enter through the menus.
If you make a mistake simply edit the output macro in the text editor
([W]rite from the main menu) to remove the last line or lines of text
at the bottom of the file. Always remember to save the edited output
macro back to the disk before you exit the text editor. Initialize
the workspace (or otherwise restore the workspace to the state it was
in when the output macro was started) and run the output macro with
the macro interpreter ([R]un from the main menu.) You can then
continue to append new and hopefully correct commands to the output
macro and finish your drawing as if the catastrophic mistake never
happened!
[DANCAD3D.DOC-22]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D uses several different types of data file for storing
drawing information. In the course of using DANCAD3D you will
probably need to use most of these filetypes to accomplish desired
results. Be sure you know the filetype of each file you have saved to
your harddisk so each file can be loaded properly later.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Use the standard file extensions (i.e. .3DE, .3D, .2D, .ASC, .FON
,.MAC) whenever possible. When you need to use numbered file
extensions in place of the standard file extensions store the
numbered files in a descriptively named sub-directory e.g. 3DE\,
3D\, 2D\, ASCII\, FONTS\, MACROS\, and so on.
2. Use the Elements file-type to save drawings in progress.
3. Use the ASCII file-type to save drawings for use with DANCAD87,
DANCAM, DANPLOT, and DC2AS.
4. Use the 3D-Quick file-type to save individual elements.
5. Use the 2D-Real file-type to save perspective projections of 3D
elements in the workspace. Notice that 2D files are normally all
normalized to print at a scale of 1, see the text below.
6. Use the Automatic Output Macro to act as a back-up and editable
record of the commands used while drawing.
7. When loading fonts for lettering only use the *.FON extension, the
corresponding .808, or .814 file will load automatically when
needed.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D has three main filetypes (the pixel filetype is really
just a snapshot of the screen and not a drawing data filetype) that it
stores drawings in: 3D-Quick, 2D-Real, and ASCII. The Elements
filetype is really an automated way of saving a set of 3D-Quick
elements that represent all the individual elements in the workspace.
It is important that you not mistakenly try to load a file of one type
into the program by asking the program to load a different file type.
Sub-directorys are created by INSTALL.BAT for you to segregate the
files of different types. The following is a detailed explanation of
the filetypes and how they are best used.
3D-QUICK DRAWING FILETYPE
[DANCAD3D.DOC-23]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
Whether you are drawing 2D or 3D drawings you should normally use
the 3D-Quick file type for saving all elements and finished drawings.
The 3D-Quick file format does not portray the objects you draw, (see
2D-Real below for a file type that does) but rather saves all the
drawing line segments just as you drew them there absolute positions
in the workspace. The 3D-Quick filetype is also the filetype that
loads fastest. When 3D-Quick files are saved to the disk you should
use (unless you need numbered file extensions (i.e. .1, .2) for a
macro to read) the file extension *.3D to avoid accidentally
forgetting what filetype the file is.
ELEMENTS DRAWING FILETYPE
Since complex drawings can contain hundreds for drawing elements
saving each one manually would not be practical. The Elements
filetype automates the saving of all the elements in the workspace.
Additionally the Elements filetype preserves the rotational centers of
the elements, and automatically restores the elements centers when the
Elements set is reloaded into the workspace. When DANCAD3D saves sets
of elements the last three characters of the filename are used for the
digits of the elements number (therefore the filename can only be five
characters rather than the normal eight.) The filename extension would
normally be given *.3DE unless you wanted to create a set of numbered
sets of elements (for complex animation purposes.) So if you have five
elements in the workspace, and you save them as a set of elements
under the name MYDR1.3DE these file names would appear in the disk
directory:
EXAMPLE: MYDR1001.3DE
MYDR1002.3DE
MYDR1003.3DE
MYDR1004.3DE
MYDR1005.3DE
MYDR1SET.3DE
The sixth file with SET in its name is a non-drawing data file
that holds the center information for the set of elements. Individual
drawing elements from an elements file set can be loaded into the
drawing workspace by selecting the 3D-Quick file format and entering
the full numbered element filename, i.e. to load the third element
from the MYDR1.3DE element set you would ask for the file by its name
MYDR1003.3DE.
Each set of elements can hold as many elements as the drawing
workspace can, i.e. 255. If you try to save a set of elements to a
floppy disk you will notice that each element file takes at least 1024
bytes from the free disk space. The 1024 bite size of small files is
a result of the way some versions of DOS store data on floppy disks
and is not what DANCAD3D asks DOS to do. The importance of this short
coming in DOS is that you will need to use an empty disk for each
workspace if you use 360KB floppies and if you have hundreds of
elements in the Elements file set (but since 360KB floppies only cost
[DANCAD3D.DOC-24]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
$0.21 its not much of a burden.)
It is possible to load a set of elements into the workspace when
the workspace already has some elements in it. If the workspace has
for instance 50 elements in it then when you load a set of 10 elements
on top of the 50 currently in the workspace the first of the elements
loaded from the set of ten would be element number 51 and so on.
2D-REAL DRAWING FILETYPE
Oddly enough, the 2D-Real file type is not meant to be used for
saving 2D drawings, but rather to make 2D perspective projections of
3D elements in the workspace. One set of Elements of any workspace
will preserve the actual location of all of the lines in the drawing,
but does not save any information of how the 3D shapes should be
presented on the 2D screen or print out. The 2D-Real filetype does
just the opposite, it only saves the way 3D objects LOOK on a 2D
surface (like a shadow) and saves no direct information about the
actual depth of objects. Only by making 2D projections of the 3D
workspace can humans gain an understanding of the 3D shape of the
elements (unless you use DANCAM to make a sculpture of the element.)
When making 2D blue prints and other numerically scaled drawings
you should save the elements with the 3D-Quick file type since the 3D-
Quick file format is very accurate. The 2D-Real file format is
intended to preserve perspective views of the elements in the
workspace as they appear in the main menu preview screen.
Frequently when working with three dimensional objects you will
have the scale, used in the main menu preview, set to many different
values. It would be hard to remember all those different scale values
at some later time. To avoid remembering what perspective scale value
looked good with a given set of elements the 2D-Real file type
"Normalizes" all 2D-Real files to print out with the scale set to 1
(or some number close to 1 depending on the size of paper you wish to
fill.) To avoid normalization you can set the preview scale to 1 when
you save the 2D-Real file. When saving all the elements into 2D-Real
files you would select element number 0 as the element to save and
thereby have all the elements in the workspace visible in the
perspective projection.
As a normal practice in using DANCAD3D you would save all the
elements as one set of Elements filetype, and also save many different
perspective views of the elements in normalized 2D-Real filetype
files. The normalized 2D-Real files would then be later viewed or
printed with the scale set to 1. Saving finished drawings in the 2D-
Real filetype takes less disk space than saving the finished drawing
in the 3D-Quick filetype (you should always save a back-up macro or
set of elements for any drawing you are working on in case you have to
edit the drawing at a later date, because the 2D-Real filetype limits
the amount of editing you can do since the third dimension is squashed
and therefore unalterable.)
[DANCAD3D.DOC-25]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
PIXEL DRAWING DISPLAY SCREEN FILETYPE
Since the writing of the perspective views to the screen takes a
few seconds a quicker way of displaying screens of perspective views
is built into DANCAD3D. After you display a perspective projection of
the elements in the workspace onto the computers screen, what is
displayed on the computers graphics screen can be saved to a pixel
file on your harddisk. By saving a series of screens to your harddisk
as pixel type files you will be able to reload the series of pixel
type files fast enough to simulate motion through the animation
technique (animation technique means that series of slightly different
still drawings shown in rapid session are perceived by humans to
appear to move continuously rather than jump from one to the next,
that is the mind of the viewer connects the series of drawings and
believes them to be one changing drawing rather than hundreds of non-
changing drawings as the drawings really are.) The [A]nimate command
in the [F]iles sub-menu from the main menu will read pixel files in
from your harddisk (or better yet from a RAM disk) and animate them
for you. The program DANMOVIE v2.x will also animate pixel files for
you, but works faster and smoother that loading the files from the
harddisk. DANMOVIE v2.x comes with the registered user outfit.
If you have 640KB of DOS system memory you can use on of the
public domain RAM disk programs that turn part of your DOS memory into
RAM disk to set up a 192KB RAM disk in your DOS memory. If you do not
have any large TSR programs loaded DANCAD3D will run with the free
system memory remaining. The 192KB RAM disk is large enough to store
about eleven CGA mode pixel frame files. Eleven CGA pixel frame files
should be enough to rock the display of the workspace a few degrees
from right to left. When you use the Animate command you can press
[B] to set the display to "Back-'n-Forth" mode. To make a set of
perspective pixel files automatically, set the [F]actors in the main
menu [P]review command, then select [A]nimate from inside the main
menu [P]review command (if your RAM disk is drive D: you would start
the filename for the pixel file set with D:\.) If you have a large
enough RAM disk above your DOS system memory you can smoothly animate
up to 999 frames with the [F]iles sub-menu [A]nimate command.
Pixel frame files (unlike the drawing data files) are only able to
be displayed if you have DANCAD3D set to the same video board type
that DANCAD3D was set to when the pixel files were saved. Most people
will not be changing video modes since there computer only supports
one video board type. If you use several computers, or have a video
board that changes graphics modes, you should use some method of
marking your pixel files by video board type used make the files
(perhaps use different sub-directories for each pixel file type, i.e.
\CGAPIXB, \CGAPIXC, \EGAPIX, and \HGAPIX.)
When you are using the macro DISPLAY command to draw line segments
from the workspace to the video screen, you can initialize the
workspace without erasing what is on the video screen there by
[DANCAD3D.DOC-26]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
allowing you to reload the workspace with different line segments and
use the macro DISPLAY command repeatedly to write more line segments
to the video screen than the workspace can hold at one time (in other
words there is no limit to the number of line segments a pixel file
can hold.)
ASCII 3D DRAWING DATA FILE TYPE
DANCAD3D's 3D-Quick 3D drawing data file format is not accessible
to users since it is in binary form. Because of the need to be able
to interface DANCAD3D to other programs easily DANCAD3D can create
ASCII data files of the drawing elements 3D line segment data. The
ASCII data files take the form of a text document without page brakes.
The ASCII drawing files can be loaded with the main menu [F]iles
[L]oad [A]SCII command or run in the macro interpreter [R]un from
DANCAD3D's main menu. If ASCII 3D data files are run in the
interpreter the CENTER command will be used to set the elements center
point.
You can read, write, or edit DANCAD3D format ASCII 3D data files
with the text editor. The text editor is command [W]rite from the main
menu. You can also write programs in BASIC or other languages to
create or translate DANCAD3D ASCII data files into filetypes required
by other application programs. DANCAD3D's hardcopy commands can be
used to print drawings make by programs you have written in some other
language if you write your program produce a DANCAD3D type ASCII data
file as an intermediate step.
DANCAM and DANPLOT both read DANCAD3D ASCII data files. If you
want to save a tool path drawn with DANCAD3D for use with DANCAM or
DANPLOT you should use the ASCII 3D data filetype. The format of the
ASCII data file looks like this:
ENTER
x1 y1 z1 x2 y2 z2 1 1 0 0
x3 y3 z3 x4 y4 z4 1 1 0 0
x5 y5 z5 x6 y6 z6 1 1 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
As you see the first line of text of the ASCII has the macro
command ENTER on it. The following lines of text each have the end
point data for individual line segments, grouped, first end point x,
y, and z, second end point x, y, and z, then the four numbers at the
end are the line segment's attributes. The default attributes would
always be 1 1 0 0. The numbers must be separated by spaces (ASCII
code number #32.) The last line of text in the data group is ten
spaced zeros and marks the end of 3D data entry. Each line of text in
the ASCII data file should end with an ASCII #13 (carriage return) and
ASCII #10 (line feed.) Double spacing within the ASCII data file is
not permitted, nor is additional text at the ends of the lines of
text. The number of line segment data text lines between the ENTER
and ten zeros allowable depends on the maximum number of drawing lines
[DANCAD3D.DOC-27]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
DANCAD3D can hold (i.e. less than 10920.) DANCAM and DANPLOT can read
ASCII data files of any length, you can combine ASCII data files made
with DANCAD3D into larger ASCII data files for use with DANCAM and
DANPLOT.
OTHER FILETYPES DANCAD3D USES
DANCAD3D has several filetypes that you see mentioned in the menu
prompts. Some of the more important are described bellow.
MACRO COMMAND FILES
DANCAD3D's macro command files can be used as drawing storage
files. It is not possible to save a finished drawing as a macro
command file (unless you just use the ENTER command) but it is now
possible in v2.5 of DANCAD3D to save all the commands necessary to
construct any finished drawing WHILE the drawing is being created.
The automatic [O]utput macro prompt from the main menu lets you turn
on the output macro so that the output macro is built (appended to) as
you make a drawing. One interesting application of the output macro
file as a drawing file is the possibility of translating other drawing
file data formats into DANCAD3D macro code and then running the
translated macro in order to import drawings into DANCAD3D from other
CAD systems. The output macros also let you correct the spelling of
the text in lettering commands and make other changes in the drawing
that are not as easy with the other ways to save the drawings. The
reason that the macros are not the standard way to save drawings is
that the macros take longer to "load" (run) than the other data file
formats.
The DANCAD3D manuals and disk set have extensive explanation of
the macro commands and examples of how they can be used. Some
important applications of macro programs would be: printing several
drawings while you are away from your computer, simulation of the
motion of several parts in a dynamic system, computer animation
including the use of a stop motion cine film or video recorder, and
the operation of changes on several drawing files in batch form.
VECTOR FONT FILES
DANCAD3D has built in facilities for the creation of fonts for
lettering. The process involves drawing each character for the font
and saving the character as an ASCII file. The commands in the [F]iles
sub-menu from DANCAD3D's main menu can then transform the drawings of
the characters into a *.FON file for use with DANCAD3D's lettering
commands. Version 2.5 of DANCAD3D adds the ability to create *.808 and
*.814 screen font files that match the vector font files so that the
characters displayed on the screen will match the characters that will
appear in the drawing (i.e. for foreign language fonts.) Complete
instructions for creating font files come with the outfit, as do
[DANCAD3D.DOC-28]
[ D I S K F I L E T Y P E S ]
example foreign language fonts for eastern and western Europe.
ALIAS SYMBOL INDEX FILES
To make loading frequently used element files (e.g. symbols of any
type) DANCAD3D has the provision to allow for the constriction of an
index file that lets an [Alt] and [SomeKey] combination to stand for
the name of some drawing element file. For instance, while drawing
you might press [Alt] and [F] to have a symbol file named SYM12345.ASC
loaded, and them press [Alt] and [2] to have a symbol file named
XYZ123.3D loaded where the cursor is. You of course decide what key
will load what symbol when you make the alias index file. Up to 360
symbols can be referenced through the alias index files (alias refers
to the fact that the [Alt] & [SomeKey] becomes the alias for the
symbol files true name.) Complete instructions for making your own
alias index files and many example symbol files come with the outfit.
DANCAD3D STATUS FILES
When you quit DANCAD3D the program automatically saves the
responses you entered at many of the programs important prompts.
Since this environment of most recent answers is usually associated
with a current drawing you may want to save a status file along with
the set of elements file for each drawing you make. The status file
save and load are found in the main menu's [F]iles [L]oad and [S]ave
sub-menus.
DANCAD3D'S CONFIGURATION FILE
DANCAD3D's configuration file is loaded automatically every time
you run DANCAD3D. To alter the contents of DANCAD3D's configuration
file you need to use the main menu [C]hange command. Things that are
saved in the configuration file are those that if incorrectly entered
would seriously disrupt DANCAD3D operation, such as: the mouse
sensitivity, the printer and plotter driver names, the alias index
file filenames, the default scale to be used to set the line with in
printed drawings, and so on. If you get the configuration file messed
up you should erase DANCAD3D from your harddisk and reinstall it from
your original disks (of course you would back up any drawings you
wanted to save.) If you do not understand the prompts in the [C]hange
sub-menu leave the values at their default value.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-29]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
As you remember DANCAD3D has four major parts: the menus accessed
from the main menu, the macro interpreter, the text editor, and the
drawing editor. The drawing editor is the part of DANCAD3D that
allows you to draw lines, curves, lettering, and other shapes in 2D or
3D within DANCAD3D's workspace space. DANCAD3D's workspace exists
even when you are not in the drawing editor, so you can [Q]uit the
drawing editor and return to the main menu (to activate other
commands) without lousing the drawing you saw on the drawing editor's
screen.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. To enter the drawing editor select [D]raw from the main menu.
2. To draw lines select [D]raw from the drawing editor root menu.
3. Use the [M]ove command to set the cursor movement interval.
4. Use the [S]cale and [*] commands to set the screen magnification.
5. Use the cursor keys or mouse to move to the first point of a line.
6. Press the [.] or [Del] key or [Right] mouse button to mark the
start of the line segment.
7. Use the cursor keys or mouse to move to the second point of the
line segment you want to draw.
8. Press the [0] or [Ins] key or the [Left] mouse button to draw the
line segment into the workspace.
9. Repeat steps 3., 4., and 5. through 8. to make a drawing. You can
change the scale of the drawing editor while drawing to zoom in
and out to see what you are doing better.
10. Press [Escape] to return to the drawing editor root menu to access
any other drawing editor commands you will need to use.
11. Press [Q] to quit the drawing editor and go out to the main menu.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
The drawing editor is not needed to create drawings with DANCAD3D,
but it does make creating drawings much easier since you can see
exactly what you are doing on the screen. Other ways to make drawings
would be to use the macro commands, or to draw on graph paper enter
the coordinates as a list of numbers. To get into the drawing editor
select [D]raw from the main menu.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-30]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
The primary function of the drawing editor is to place line
segments into the workspace at precise locations. The drawing editor
has many commands that make such tasks as automatic dimensioning and
lettering much easier and quicker than manually drawing the required
line segments. Curves and circles are created in DANCAD3D by using
many short line segments (which looks satisfactory when used
properly.) The drawing editor also lets you edit any drawing made with
DANCAD3D after it has been finished. Editing drawings is made easier
if when the drawing was being made thought was given as to how the
drawing should be broken up into separate elements. The [B]egin and
[J]oin commands in the [E]lements sub-menu control which lines belong
to same or different elements. Some of the many commands available in
the drawing editor are described below.
DRAWING EDITOR VIEWS
The DANCAD3D drawing editor screen lets you draw and edit lines
and elements that are loaded into DANCAD3D's workspace. Since
DANCAD3D is a 3D CAD program the drawing editor lets you view the
drawing workspace from the Front, Side, and Top. Some variations on
the Front view are also available such as Oblique, and Isometric
views. Since it is possible to get confused while drawing in 3D I
recommend that you ALWAYS look at the reading of the x, y, and z
values for the drawing cursor at the top of the drawing editor screen
while you are working. It is also wise to change from Front, to
Oblique, to Side, to Top views to check that you have the drawing
cursor at the actual point that you want it to be. If you are only
drawing in 2D you should use the Front view and locate the cursor so
:z always reads 0 (if you accidentally make a 2D drawing that has some
lines out of the z = 0 plain simply use the Magnify command in the
Elements sub-menu of the drawing editor and set the factors to x=1,
y=1, z=0, and all points z values will be set to zero.) You can change
the view displayed in the drawing editor by pressing [V] (for View)
while drawing.
DRAWING EDITOR ROOT MENU
After you select the appropriate view that you will use while
drawing the drawing editor root menu comes up. The command [D]raw in
the drawing editor root menu is the main drawing sub-menu. The other
sub-menus have descriptive names and can be seen on the screen. When
the root menu of the drawing editor is displayed the menu selection
bar is on. When the menu bar is on you can select from the menu on
the right of the screen with the mouse or cursor keys (pressing the
[Right] mouse button or the [Return] key will select the command under
the menu bar. When you are in the sub-menus of the drawing editor the
mouse and cursor keys can be used to control the drawing cursor or the
menu selection bar. To toggle the control of the drawing cursor to or
from the menu bar while in one of the drawing editor sub-menus (but
not the root menu) press the [Center] mouse button or the keyboards
[DANCAD3D.DOC-31]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
[SpaceBar]. The menu bar must be off in the drawing sub-menu in order
to draw lines, so the menu bar automatically toggles off when you
select the drawing sub-menu.
DRAWING CURSOR
A cursor is a point or symbol on the screen that tells you where
the current active point is. For entry at the prompts you see a small
underline or block (blinking in the text screens) under the space
where the next letter you type will appear. In the drawing editor
there is a different kind of cursor. The drawing editor cursor looks
like a large plus (+) symbol. Extending from the plus shaped drawing
cursor are some dotted lines that make aligning the drawing cursor to
lines and elements already drawn easier. The center point on the
drawing cursor is "clear" to allow you to see when the drawing cursor
is over a drawn line or point. If you have difficulty locating the
drawing cursor over a drawn line, increase the scale (zoom in) as
described below and press [*] to redraw the screen. The drawing
cursor can be positioned in three ways as described in detail below:
1. By rolling the mouse or trackball. If your mouse does not work be
sure to check that the mouse driver is installed in your
CONFIG.SYS and or AUTOEXEC.BAT file on your harddisk!
2. By pressing or holding down the cursor keys. Change the amount
the cursor moves with each keypress with the [M]ove command in the
drawing editor's [D]raw or [M]ove cursor sub-menus. The PD
program HOTKEY on the DANCAD3D utility disk that comes with the
outfit speeds up the keyboard repeat and makes the drawing cursor
move faster.
3. By entering the coordinates that the cursor should have. Enter the
new cursor coordinates with the [G]oto command in the drawing
editor's [D]raw or [M]ove cursor sub-menus.
DRAWING LINE SEGMENTS
The basic drawing technique in using the drawing editor is the
drawing of line segments. Select [D]raw from the drawing editor root
menu to be able to draw line segments. There is a simple and direct
procedure used to draw line segments:
1. Move the drawing cursor to the first end point of the line segment
you wish to draw.
2. Press the [Right] mouse button or [.] or [Del] or [Delete] key on
the Keyboard.
3. Move the drawing cursor to the second point of the line segment
you wish to draw.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-32]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
4. Press the [Left] mouse button or the [0] or [Ins] or [Insert] key
on the keyboard.
It is possible to make perfectly useful drawings with DANCAD3D
simply by repeating the steps 1. through 4. above over and over. When
drawing line segments for a tool path that will be given to DANCAM you
should keep the direction of the line in mind, i.e. from first point
to second point, since the line direction will be the direction that
the tool will move! Tool paths are normally drawn as a series of line
segments that touch, but you do not need to draw the retrace (back
wind) if you can accept that the tool will move from the last point
drawn to the next point drawn even if the two points are not at the
same location.
DRAWING EDITOR SCALE
The drawing cursor can be moved by rolling the mouse or trackball
as well as by pressing the cursor or num-pad keys. Before you start
drawing line segments you should check the values next to the :s and
:m at the top of the drawing editor screen. The :s tells you the
current drawing editor scale for the display and can be changed in
three ways:
1. Press [S] to enter a display scale.
2. Press [+] to make the scale value larger.
3. Press [-] to make the scale value smaller.
To make it easier to center the area to be zoomed in on a dotted
outline border can be turned on by pressing the [1] or [End] key on
the keyboard. The dotted border shows what will fill the drawing
editor screen when you press the [*] or [*/PrtSc] key on the keyboard
to re-draw the screen at the new scale. The dotted boarder will
follow the drawing cursor around and can even move completely off the
screen if you need to zoom in on some part of the drawing that is not
currently displayed (assuming you know or have [R]ecorded the point
you want to zoom in on.)
DRAWING CURSOR MOVEMENT
When drawing most drawings you do not draw line segments to points
that have irrational decimals in the line segments end point values.
Rather you usually draw with all the line segments ending on the even
mile, inch, mm, 0.001 of an inch, or micron. The [M]ove command in
the drawing editor drawing sub-menu lets you set the smallest amount
you would want the drawing cursor to move when you roll the mouse or
press the cursor keys. You can change the [M]ove at any time while
drawing. To know what the current [M]ove value is just look at the
value next to the :m at the top of the drawing editor screen.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-33]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
If you are drawing without a mouse or trackball you can use the
cursor or num-pad keys. The trick to using the cursor keys is to use
[M]ove to be set to as large a value as you can to get to the points
you want to get to. The cursor keys for drawing when viewing the
front view are:
[7] or [Home]......Move cursor away from you, -z axis.
[8] or [Up]........Move cursor up the screen, -y axis.
[4] or [Left]......Move cursor left on the screen, -x axis.
[6] or [Right].....Move cursor right on the screen, +x axis.
[2] or [Down]......Move cursor down on the screen, +y axis.
[3] or [PgDn]......Move cursor toward you, +z axis.
[Z]................Put the cursor at x=0, y=0, z=0 (Zero cursor.)
[G]................Put the cursor at any point (Goto point.)
[R]................Record cursor position.
[J]................Jump to recorded cursor position.
Another way to move the drawing cursor is to use the [G]oto option
and simply enter the values you want for the cursor's location. When
entering values into the [G]oto command (or any other value prompt)
you can press [I] to invert (n=-n), or [R] for the reciprocal (n=1/n)
of the value you see at the prompt. The inverse will move the cursor
to the other side of the axis prompted for. Reciprocal would be used
if you had used the Magnify command and needed to scale the cursor's
location.
There is a two part command that allows you to record and jump to
points that you may need to put the drawing cursor at several times.
By pressing [R] for record while drawing you can let one of the letter
or number keys on the keyboard stand for that point in the workspace.
You simply press [R] then [SomeKey] to assign the current drawing
cursor location to [SomeKey]. Then whenever (in the drawing or cursor
move sub-menus) you want to have the cursor return to that point you
press [J] (for Jump) and then the same [SomeKey] that you pressed
before. Actually all the ASCII codes (entered through the num-pad by
holding the [Alt] key down) can be used to record points by so up to
255 cursor points can be recorded. To erase a recorded point simply
use the key to record some other cursor position.
ELASTIC LINE SEGMENT
As an aid to visualizing where the next line segment drawn will be
in the workspace an elastic (rubber band like) line segment follows
the drawing cursor around the screen. When you click the [Right]
mouse button, or press [.] or [Del] keys the elastic line will then
stretch from the location of the cursor when you marked this new
starting point by clicking the [Right] mouse button, or pressing [.]
or [Del] key. You can toggle the elastic line on and off by pressing
[E] (for Elastic) while drawing.
BEGIN ELEMENT COMMAND
[DANCAD3D.DOC-34]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
To make editing drawings easier you should group line segments
that go together into elements. To begin a new element while you are
drawing line segments (in the drawing sub-menu of the drawing editor)
press the [B] (for Begin) key. The begin element command will ask you
for the position of the center point you want the new element to have.
If you do not plan on rotating the new element around some particular
point leave the cursor where it is and press [Escape] to get out of
the Move Cursor menu and back to the Draw Lines sub menu. The center
point of any element can be changed at any time with the [S]et center
command in the [E]lements sub-menu of the drawing editor.
OTHER VALUES DISPLAYED ON DRAWING EDITOR SCREEN
At the bottom of the drawing editor the numbers before the :l and
:e tell you how many lines and elements have been placed into the
workspace and correspond to the values displayed at the top of the
main menu. The values before the :c and :w tell you the current
values for the line color, and line width attributes. The drawing
line attributes are set from the [L]ine style command in the [L]ines
sub-menu of the drawing editor. The words "NEW macro", "Macro OFF",
or "Append MAC" displayed in the lower right of the drawing editor
screen tell you the status of the automatic output macro. You can
change the status of the output macro by selecting [O]utput from the
[F]iles sub-menu of the drawing editor.
ABSOLUTE OR RELATIVE MEASUREMENT
When moving the drawing cursor the display of the cursor's
position can be toggled between reading the absolute position in the
workspace, and reading the distance relative to the point marked by
pressing the [Right] mouse button or the [.] or [Del] key. To toggle
between the reading of absolute and relative distance measurement
press [D] (for Delta) while in the Draw lines or Move cursor sub-menus
of the drawing editor. If you are drawing many small objects
distributed over a large area (such as in making maps of
archaeological sites) use the [G]oto command to move the cursor to
some reference point near where the small object is to be drawn, then
use the relative distance measurement (i.e. :Dx :Dy :Dz) to locate the
cursor accurately.
MEASURING ANGLES AND DISTANCES
The [M]easure command from the drawing editors root menu lets you
measure angles and distances in three-dimensions. The distance
measurements are given in three ways: the absolute position of the
cursor relative to the center of the workspace, the distance from, the
marked point that you are measuring to (you mark a point by pressing
the [.], [Del], or [Delete] keys or the [Right] mouse button), from
the cursor position, and the distance along the arbitrary through the
[DANCAD3D.DOC-35]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
workspace from the marked point to the cursors position. The angle
measurements are given in degrees around each of the three axis and
are angles equivalent to the angles that would be required for use
with the Rotate command if the marked point was the center to the
element. Automatic dimensioning is available with the [D]imension
command in the [C]alligraphy sub-menu of the drawing editor root menu.
DRAWING CURVES
To draw a curve that is like a curve made using a french curve or
other template follow these steps:
1. In the [D]raw sub-menu of the drawing editor draw a series of line
segments that roughly resemble the curve you are trying to get.
Try making the rough curve from about 10 line segments whose end-
points are exactly on the desired curve. Keep the line segments
in the rough curve all about the same length for best results.
Remember to use the [B]egin command to begin a new element just
before you draw the rough curve.
2. Use the [F]it-curve command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of the
drawing editor to make the rough curve into a smooth curve. To
start with, try 2 iterations and damping factor of 0.2.
Increasing the damping factor will make the curve turn more
sharply around the points of the rough curve. Using more
iterations will increase the number of line segments in the final
curve. To conserve the capacity of the workspace you should use
the smallest value of iterations that will give satisfactory
smoothness to the final curve.
DRAWING CIRCLES
The [P]olygon command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of the drawing
editor is used to produce circles. Basically the idea is to make
polygons with enough sides that the eye cannot see that the sides are
straight. The number of sides needed to make the polygon look like a
circle increase as the radius of the polygon is increased. The
following table will give you some starting values (DANCAD3D cannot
pick these values for you since the program has no idea how large you
will be printing the drawing and or how much you will be zooming in on
a particular circle in an animation.)
RADIUS ON PRINT-OUT SIDES TOTAL SIDES DRAWN MAXIMUM RADIUS UNITS
0 to 0.25 inch 18 1 to 18 0.25 at scale of 240
0.25 to 0.5 inch 36 1 to 36 0.5 at scale of 240
0.5 to 1.0 inch 72 1 to 71 1.0 at scale of 240
1 to 2 inches 144 1 to 144 2 at scale of 240
[DANCAD3D.DOC-36]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
2 to 4 inches 288 1 to 288 4 at scale of 240
4 to 8 inches 576 1 to 576 8 at scale of 240
The exact number of sides total entered is not absolutely
critical, and if you find smaller values acceptable by all means use
smaller values. Note that the maximum radius for a given number of
total sides depends of the scale used for printing (additional scaling
factors can also affect the scale so keep the compound scale in mind),
i.e. if 36 sides total is all right for a 0.5 unit circle at a scale
of 240 then a 36 sides total polygon with a radius of 1.0 units would
be all right at a scale of 120, and so on.
MAKING PARTS OF CIRCLES
You noticed that the [P]olygon command mentioned in the above
section lets you enter the number of sides to draw as well as the
number of sides total around the polygon. It is very simple make a
half circle if you choose a number of sides total that has a factor of
2 in it (divisible by 2), and the number of sides to draw as half the
number of sides total. Similarly any fraction of a circle can be
drawn by making sure that the number of sides total contained the
factors of the denominator of the required fraction. These examples
should clarify the point:
FOR FRACTIONS THAT GO INTO 360 DEGREES
1/2 circle = 180/360 degrees (/10) = 18 sides drawn / 36 sides total
1/3 circle = 120/360 degrees (/10) = 12 sides drawn / 36 sides total
1/4 circle = 90/360 degrees (/5) = 18 sides drawn / 72 sides total
1/5 circle = 72/360 degrees (/6) = 12 sides drawn / 60 sides total
1/6 circle = 60/360 degrees (/5) = 12 sides drawn / 72 sides total
FOR OTHER TYPES OF FRACTIONS OF CIRCLES
1/7 circle = (n*1)/(n*7) = if n=10, 10 sides drawn / 70 sides total
7/11 circle = (n*7)/(n*11) = if n=2, 14 sides drawn / 22 sides total
26/29 circle = (n*26)/(n*29) = if n=1, 26 sides drawn / 29 sides total
52/58 circle = (52/n)/(58/n) = if n=2, 26 sides drawn / 29 sides total
As you can see the factors you multiply or divide by depend on the
[DANCAD3D.DOC-37]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
need to make the numerator larger or smaller. The sides total is then
worked out according to the proper ratio to the sides drawn. You
probably also noticed that the polygon command only accepts integers
for the number of sides in a polygon, if you are working in radians
rather than degrees you will need to convert the radians to degrees
and factor the numerator and denominator (or just round off the values
to the nearest degree in non-critical applications.)
OTHER ROUND SHAPES
Ovals can obviously be made by drawing two half circles and
connecting the ends of the half circles with line segments. Ellipses
and similar shapes can be made by using the [M]agnify and [R]otate
commands in the [E]lements or [O]n-screen sub-menus of the drawing
editor. By entering different values for the x, y, and z
magnification factors you can stretch and or squash circles and other
shapes. Macro programs can of course be used to create any curve, and
especially curves that follow mathematical formulas.
EDITING LINES
If you draw a line segment in the wrong location while drawing you
can press [U] for "Undo last line segment" to erase the last line
segment drawn. If you need to change or erase a line segment that in
embedded in an element you will need to use the commands in the
[L]ines sub-menu from the root menu of the drawing editor. The [P]ull
point command lets you adjust the end point where one or more line
segment terminate. If you have difficulty getting the [D]elete
command to delete a line segment, make sure that what you see as one
line segment is really one line segment and not two or more line
segments end to end (when drawing if you need to lengthen a line
segment you should use the [P]ull-point command rather than drawing
another line segment as an extension to the one already drawn.) The
[P]ull-point can be used to move the end-points of any line segment
that will not delete because the line segment is really more than one
line segment. Also check that the drawing cursor is over the desired
point by changing [V]iews from Front, to Side, to Top.
EDITING ELEMENTS
If you wish to [E]rase, [R]otate, or move around ([O]ffset, and
[D]rag) whole elements (made from line segments) use the [E]lements
sub-menu of the drawing editor root menu. The [O]n-screen sub-menu
from the drawing editors root menu lets you: [R]otate, [M]agnify, and
[D]rag around, elements (that have fewer than about 500 line segments)
in such a way that you can see how the element will appear on the
screen while you change the elements shape or position (rather than
only entering a specific value and seeing the result of the change.)
Since the [+] and [-] keys are used to rotate or magnify elements in
the On-screen sub-menu commands the [<] and [>] keys control the zoom
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scale. When working with elements you can pick the element to work
with by touching the drawing cursor to one of the end points of a line
segment in the desired element, or by entering the sequential number
of the element.
WYSIWYG AND SCREEN REDRAW SPEED
If you use several thickened line segments in your drawing and you
have the What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) turned on you will
notice that the thickened line segments take somewhat longer to draw
on the screen than the lines of thickness 1. The WYSIWYG display in
DANCAD3D is very accurate when the global scale has been set properly
with the main menu [C]hange command. But normally you do not need the
WYSIWYG on all the time, so you can toggle the WYSIWYG on and off with
the [W]YSIWYG command in the drawing editor [S]et-up sub-menu form the
drawing editor root menu. In other words, turning the WYSIWYG off
will speed up the screen redraw if you have thickened lines in your
drawing.
SCREEN UPDATE LIST AND SCREEN REDRAW SPEED
Another way to speed up the redrawing of the screen is to have the
elements that do not need to be displayed not be displayed. The
Screen Update list that controls which elements are to be displayed on
the screen is accessed withe the [U]pdate command in the drawing
editors root menu. You can turn on or off the display of any elements
you wish, the elements themselves remain in the workspace and are
unaffected by being on or off. The screen update list can be used to
figure out which elements on the screen go with the various element
numbers on the list by turning all but one of the elements off (The
[N]umber command in the [E]lements sub-menu can also be used to figure
out what numbers go with what element on the screen.) The redrawing of
the drawing editor screen can be interrupted by pressing [SpaceBar]
while the screen is redrawing.
DRAWING GRIDS TO AID IN SPACING
DANCAD3D lets you have a layout grid appear superimposed on the
drawing editor screen while you work on your drawings. The layout
grid consists of a grid work of points (dots) that are spaced as the
corners of squares. The spacing of the grid points, and the point
from which the grid points measure from can both be set with the
[G]rid command found in the drawing editors [S]et-up sub-menu. You
should set the drawing editor scale to the amount you will be using
and redraw the screen before you turn the layout grid on since the
grid spacing limits the amount you can zoom out (reduce scale.) If you
are drawing in inches (scale of 240) you might set the layout grid
spacing to 0.25 and put the center of the layout grid at 0:x 0:y 0:z.
Another grid is available for drawing individual characters that
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will be made into a font file. The drawing editor scale would be set
to about 7 to 14 when working on font characters since the width of
the em unit (width of capital M in an ideal font) in DANCAD3D is 96
drawing units (the fonts are of course automatically scaled to any
decimal values when drawn into the drawing with the lettering
commands.)
AIDS TO DRAWING OF SHAPES
DANCAD3D has several commands that make the drawing of shapes
easier than the manual insertion of line segments with the mouse or
cursor keys.
POLYGON
The Polygon command was described above in regard to making
circles. You should keep in mind that the Polygon command can also
make triangles and squares by setting the sides total and drawn to 3
or 4.
RECTANGLE
When drawing it is common to draw rectangular boxes around parts
of drawings, as well as outlining the whole drawing. The [R]ectangle
command in the drawing editors [2]D-Shapes sub-menu lets you mark one
corner point of the rectangle you want and then move the opposite
corner of the rectangle with the mouse or cursor keys while you see
the rectangle change shape on the computer screen. The ability to
have an "elastic" rectangle is called "rubber banding" in CAD lingo,
because the appearance on the screen is like a rubber band being
stretched between four movable pins.
CUBE
The three-dimensional equivalent of the Rectangle command is the
[C]ube command found in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu. When using the cube
command remember to position the first corner of the cube in all three
dimensions, and then move cursor in all three dimensions to position
the second corner. For example, set the drawing editor view to front
and set the first corner point, move the cursor in the x and y axis
for the opposite corner, then change the view to side, or oblique to
move the cursor in the z axis (so you can see the movement of the
cursor and cube outline.)
LETTERING
Lettering is one of the areas in drawing that most needs
automation. The [L]ettering command in the [C]alligraphy sub-menu of
the drawing editor will translate words and numbers you type in from
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your keyboard into line segments and elements in the drawing you have
in the workspace. DANCAD3D's lettering command gives you extremely
precise control over the size of the individual characters and the
spacing and size of whole words. DANCAD3D has several font files
(including fonts with special international characters) available on
the disks that come on the set of disks that are part of the
registered user outfit (the font file filenames all end with *.FON.)
You can also create fonts to meet any special needs you may have.
DANCAD3D's lettering has all of the popular letter spacing
options, i.e. Monospaced, Justified, Proportional, and Kerning.
DANCAD3D's lettering command supports international character sets and
displays corresponding characters on screen as you enter the text if
the special screen fonts files are installed properly on your
harddisk.
When used with DANPLOT, DANCAD3D's font files and lettering
commands allow you to engrave letters, symbols, numbers, and other
lines such as scale rulings on parts and manufactured goods.
AUTOMATIC DIMENSIONING
In mechanical drawing you will frequently need to have dimensions
lettered and marked out with arrows. The [D]imension command in the
[C]alligraphy sub-menu will automatically measure and letter
dimensions for you. Dimensions not parallel to the major axis can be
drawn by rotating the whole drawing by the required amount before the
dimensions are drawn. Specify element number 0 (all elements) with
the [R]otate command in the [E]lements sub-menu and use the workspace
Zero as the center of rotation (you of course rotate the element with
the off-axis dimensions back to its original orientation by using the
inverse angle of rotation value.) It is standard practice in
mechanical drawing to have all dimensions parallel to the major axis
since three axis machine tools only move the work-piece along lines
parallel to the major axis.
BLOCKS OF TEXT
ASCII text files of a half page or so can be automatically made
into lettering with the [B]lock command in the [C]alligraphy sub-menu
of the drawing editor. How much text can be brought in depends on the
font used and how many line segments are free in the workspace. A
special [E]ditor is provided that will let you edit the block of text
ASCII files and see fonts on screen that correspond to the DANCAD3D
calligraphy fonts. Foreign language symbols can be displayed on the
editor screen and the lettering and dimension text entry prompts.
Complete details of the operation of the special fonts is explained in
the registered user outfit. By using the macro language and the page
files it is possible to type-set whole pages of text and drawings that
can be printed out on dot matrix or LaserJet type printers (but since
each page is laid out as a drawing I would not recommend using
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DANCAD3D to type-set documents longer than several pages.) You can
freely mix text with drawings on a single page and control the
placement of the text and drawings to extremely precise positions (if
you use a LINOTRONIC 300 for the final print out the layout can be
accurate to better that 0.001 inch.)
DRAWING AIDS THAT WORK FROM DRAWN ELEMENTS
DANCAD3D has three commands in the drawing editor that use simply
drawn elements and make more complex elements. The three commands
that make elements more complex are: [F]it-curve, [T]hicken, and
[L]athe and are located in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu.
THE FIT-CURVE COMMAND
The [F]it-curve command lets you make smooth curves from roughly
drawn "curves" made from line segments of drawable length. The [F]it-
curve command will work in all three dimensions, so curves in the form
helix type shapes can be made if you have such a need (a helix tool
path would be required to mill threads with DANCAM.) [F]it-curve is
useful for smoothing lines in graphs and other 2D drawings. To use
the Fit-curve command follow these steps:
1. Enter the [D]raw sub-menu of the drawing editor.
2. Press [B] to Begin a new element if any elements are in the
workspace. Do not begin a new element if the workspace is empty
since element 1 is begun automatically when you start drawing line
segments.
3. Draw a series of (abutting) line segments whose end points fall on
the curve you want to have. The last point of each line segment
(except the last line segment) should fall on the same point as
the first point of the next line segment (except for the first
line segment.) For best results use 8 or more line segments for
every 360 degrees of turn in the curve you want. If the curve is
less than 360 degrees and does not turn back on it self the rough
curve should have about 10 line segments. Air foils and ship
hulls, and other symmetrical curves that have a pointed corner
should be drawn in halves with the sharp corner at the end of the
curve (or use the [C]opy and [F]lip commands in the [E]lements
sub-menu to make the full symmetrical pattern.) Try to make all
the line segments in the rough curve about the same length (to
avoid over shoot problems where long line segments are followed by
short line segments.)
4. Press [Escape] to exit the Draw sub-menu.
5. Enter the [3]D-shapes sub-menu.
6. Press [F] to select [F]it-curve. Answer the prompts. The number
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of iterations controls the number of line segments in the curve
element created. The number of line segments in the fit-curve
doubles with each iteration. The damping factor controls how
"roundly" the new curve element will go through the end points of
the rough curve you drew. To begin with try 2 iterations, and a
damping factor of 0.2. The curve element made by the fit curve
command can it self be fit again if needed. You want to use the
smallest number of iterations that will give an acceptably smooth
result.
7. You can erase the rough curve, or leave the rough curve in the
workspace in case you want to try fitting the curve again with
other values for the iterations and damping entered. The rough
curve can always be erased later by using the [E]race command in
the [E]lements sub-menu. You should note that when an element is
erased all the elements with numbers above the element that is
erased will have their element number decreased by one, i.e. if
you have three elements in the workspace and you erase element 2,
element 3 will have its number changed to element 2. If the rough
curve is drawn is the element with the highest number, the fit
curve element will have the same number as the rough curve element
after the rough curve element is erased.
THE THICKEN COMMAND
When representing 3D outlines of objects a frequent form is to
have two identical parallel faces with lines connecting to end points
of the line segments in each face. Since one face of the final form
and the thickness (or distance between the parallel faces) is all the
information needed to construct such forms an automatic command to
thicken a drawing of one face would be a possible convenience. The
[T]hicken command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of DANCAD3D's drawing
editor will automatically thicken the outline or plan of a face of the
element you want. Thickening takes place along one of the major axis.
The [M]agnify command in the [E]lements or [O]n-screen sub-menus will
let you change the thickness axis after the element is thickened.
Examples of shapes that can be made with thicken are: stamped parts
like gears and plates with holes, extrusions, and rows of studs or
columns. The steps involved in the use of thicken are:
1. Enter the [D]raw sub-menu of the drawing editor.
2. Press [B] to Begin a new element if any elements are in the
workspace. Do not begin a new element if the workspace is empty
since element 1 is begun automatically when you start drawing line
segments. Thicken works best if there are no other elements in
the workspace, or the element to thicken is the element with the
highest element number.
3. Draw an outline or plan view of one face of the 3D element you
wish to make. The [P]olygon command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu
can be used to make circles that thicken will make into cylinders
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to represent posts or holes. If you use commands such as
[P]olygon that make new elements you will need to use the [J]oin
command in the [E]lements sub-menu to join the polygon elements to
the other line segments in the outline you are drawing (so all the
line segments to thicken are in one single element.) When drawing
an element to be thickened you would ordinarily make the plane of
the element parallel to the major axis, i.e. if you are drawing
from the front view and the cursor reads -3:z when you draw the
first line segment all the other line segments would be drawn
without changing the z axis value of the drawing cursor. It is
possible to incline the plane of the outline element to be
thickened to have the edge of the produced thick element beveled
(slanted.)
4. Press [Escape] to exit the Draw sub-menu (or just go to the root
menu of the drawing editor).
5. Enter the [3]D-shapes sub-menu.
6. Press [T] to select the [T]hicken command. Answer the prompts.
7. Rotate the thickened element into its proper position with the
[R]otate command in the [E]lements or [O]n-screen sub-menus is
needed. When you rotate elements always keep in mind where the
center of the element is, and use the [S]et-center command when
needed to be sure.
The thicken command takes a few moments to act. Generally the
thicken command is used very infrequently while drawing (and so its
contribution to the total time spent on the drawing is insignificant),
and is more often used in macros (macros are normally run while you
are away from the computer so the time it takes a macro to run does
not matter either.) Although the thicken command takes a few moments
to act it actually saves a great deal of time when you need to make
shapes with connected parallel faces.
THE LATHE COMMAND
Another area where automation in the drawing of 3D elements is in
the production of round shapes like those that are turned on a lathe
or potters wheel. The unique aspect of shapes produced on a lathe is
the cross section of the shape. Additionally the shape produced by a
lathe has symmetry around the axis of the work pieces rotation.
Because of the symmetry of the profile of shapes made on a lathe only
half of the profile is needed (being bisected by the axis of
rotation.) In DANCAD3D you can draw a half profile of a shape that is
to look like it was made on a lathe (turned) and have the [L]athe
command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of the drawing editor. The lathe
command works best when the element to be lathed is the only element
in the workspace.
1. Enter the [D]raw sub-menu of the drawing editor.
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2. Press [B] to Begin a new element if any elements are in the
workspace. Do not begin a new element if the workspace is empty
since element 1 is begun automatically when you start drawing line
segments. Lathe works best if there are no other elements in the
workspace, or the element to Lathe is the element with the highest
element number. The [B]ackup and [R]estore elements commands in
the [F]iles sub-menu can be used (along with [I]nitialize in the
root menu) to temporally empty the workspace.
3. Draw a half profile of the 3D element you wish to make such that
the half outline lies in the 0:z plane and is right of 0:x on the
screen. The [P]olygon command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu can be
used to make circles that will become ring shapes when lathed.
Drawing a square or rectangle right of 0:x will make a washer
shaped element when lathed. When using the lathe command you
should try to keep the number of line segments in the element you
want to lathe to the smallest number that will represent the
desired shape. In general the element to be lathed should have
less than 100 line segments, with 10 being a more desirable
number. If you want to make a sphere you can put a half polygon
with about 20 sides total, 10 sides drawn so that the open part of
the half circle is at 0:x. The [J]oin command in the [E]lements
command can be used if needed to combine elements into a half
profile to be lathed (lathe acts on one element at a time, so you
will need to [J]oin all the elements you want to be part of the
profile element that you are going to [L]athe.)
4. Press [Escape] to exit the Draw sub-menu (or just go to the root
menu of the drawing editor).
5. Enter the [3]D-shapes sub-menu.
6. Press [L] to select the [L]athe command. Answer the prompts. The
Sides total, and Sides drawn work just as in the [P]olygon
command. If you want to make a half or quarter round then you
would enter values like: 20 sides total 10 drawn, or 40 sides
total 10 drawn.
7. Rotate the lathed element into its proper orientation with the
[R]otate command in the [E]lements or [O]n-screen sub-menus is
needed. Position the element with the [O]ffset command in the
[E]lements sub-menu or the [D]rag command in the [O]n-screen sub-
menu (the drag command may be to slow because of the large number
of line segments in the lathed element, the [O]ffset command
requires that you work "blind" but is much faster.) When you
rotate elements always keep in mind where the center of the
element is, and use the [S]et-center command when needed to be
sure.
The lathe command takes a few moments to act. Generally the lathe
command is used very infrequently while drawing (and so its
contribution to the total time spent on the drawing is insignificant),
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and is more often used in macros. Although the lathe command takes a
few minutes to act it actually saves a great deal of time when you
need to make shapes with many "ribs" and "hoops" rotated around some
axis. When using the lathe command you should always keep the number
of line segments in the profile element and the sides drawn to the
smallest values that will give an acceptable representation of the 3D
shape you need to draw.
THE WINDOW COMMAND
The [W]indow command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu lets you select a
rectangular prism shaped portion of a drawing and make a new element
that contains only the line segments or parts of line segments that
fall with in the indicated prism (box shaped volume.) When working
with 2D drawings [W]indow can be used to enlarge a detail of the
drawing for emphasis, or to cut out parts of the drawing that you want
to use as elements you can add to other drawings. Since [W]indow
creates a new element the workspace will need to have sufficient line
segments free to allow for the number of line segments to be created
for the new windowed element. The [W]indow command has an option that
lets you have a border automatically drawn around the windowed element
so as to make the windowed section look like an outlined cut out. The
window command is useful to clip (limit) tool path elements that will
be used with DANCAM so that the tool will not move out of the useful
range of tool positions (and possibly damage the work-piece or tool.)
1. Load the elements or drawing that you want to window.
2. Select [W]indow from the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of the drawing
editor.
3. Move the cursor to the first point that will define the volume to
the extracted. If you are extracting line segments from a 2D
drawing the cursor can be in the z=0 plane for both corners of the
volume, i.e. just like using the [R]ectangle command in the [2]D-
shapes sub-menu.
4. Move the cursor to the other corner of the rectangular prism
volume that contains the line segments you want to extract
(duplicate.) If you are making a 3D window try changing from the
front view to the side view, or use the oblique view, so you can
see that the cursor is positioned properly in all three
dimensions.
5. Answer the prompt that asks if you want to make a border around
the new element.
6. The new element will be in the same position as the line segments
you took it from, so you will need to move the new windowed
element with the [O]ffset or [D]rag commands (in the [E]lements
sub-menu) before you can see it. You can also [E]rase the element
that the windowed element was taken from to make the windowed
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element visable.
7. Use the commands [M]agnify and [R]otate in the [E]lements or [O]n-
screen sub-menus to alter the windowed element.
8. Use the [S]ave command in the [F]iles sub-menu to save the
windowed element if the windowed element will be needed for other
drawings (Use the [3]D filetype for drawings, and [A]SCII for tool
paths that will feed DANCAM.)
It is possible to split a drawing in half in order to spread the
drawing so as to put more lines between the halves. To split a
drawing with the [W]indow command try these steps:
1. Load the drawing to split into the workspace.
2. Window one half of the drawing. You would probably not want a
border added.
3. Save the new windowed element (the number of latest element in the
workspace is indicated at the bottom of the drawing editor screen
next to the :e.) Be sure to press [Z] to zero the cursor before
saving the element (to make loading the element less confusing
later.)
4. Erase the new windowed element.
5. Window the other half of the drawing. The second rectangular
window should have one side or plane in common with the
rectangular window used to make the first rectangular window.
6. Erase the drawing that was loaded (element 1 if the drawing was
one element.)
7. Load the element of the first half of the drawing that was saved
in 3. above.
8. Use the [O]ffset or [D]rag commands in the [E]lements sub-menu as
needed to spread the halves of the drawings apart.
If you need to have one of the sides of the rectangular windowing
volume an some angle to the major axis you can rotate the element or
drawing the windowed element is to be extracted to the desired angle
(with the [R]otate command in the [E]lements sub-menu) before the
windowing is done. After the new windowed element has been created
the new element and the source element or drawing can be rotated back
to their original orientations (when you use the [R]otate command for
rotating drawings pick the [Z]ero option for the element center to use
and pick element number 0 so all the elements will rotate together
around the workspace center.)
THE HOLE COMMAND
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The [H]ole command in the [2]D-shapes sub-menu lets you select a
rectangular shaped portion of a 2D element or drawing and make a new
element than contains only the line segments or the parts of line
segments that fall outside the indicated rectangle. The [H]ole
command does the opposite of the [W]indow command. If you need to
make a hole in a 3D perspective, save the elements to a disk file in
the 2D file format (with the perspective scale set to 1) and reload
the "flattened" element to make a hole in the "flattened" projection
of the element(s). Since [H]ole creates a new element, the workspace
will need to have sufficient line segments free to allow for the
number of line segments to be created for the new holed element. The
[H]ole command has an option that lets you have a border automatically
drawn around the holed element so as to make the holed section look
like an outlined cut out. The hole command is useful to make open
areas in drawings so that you can get the effect of having pasted a
small drawing or block of text over a larger drawing.
1. Load the 2D elements or 2D drawing that you want to make a hole
in.
2. Select [H]ole from the [2]D-shapes sub-menu of the drawing editor.
3. Move the cursor to the first point that will define the rectangle
to the extracted. The cursor should be in the z=0 plane for both
corners of the rectangular hole, i.e. just like using the
[R]ectangle command in the [2]D-shapes sub-menu.
4. Move the cursor to the other corner of the rectangular area that
contains the line segments you want to remove.
5. Answer the prompt that asks if you want to make a border around
the new element.
6. The new element will be in the same position as the line segments
you took it from, so you will need to move the new holed element
with the [O]ffset or [D]rag commands (in the [E]lements sub-menu)
before you can see it. You can also [E]rase the element that the
holed element was taken from to make the rectangular hole element
visable.
7. Use the commands [M]agnify and [R]otate in the [E]lements or [O]n-
screen sub-menus to alter the holed element.
8. Use the [S]ave command in the [F]iles sub-menu to save the holed
element if the holed element will be needed for other drawings
(Use the [3]D filetype for drawings (even though the element is
2D, you should save elements in the 3D file type, the 2D filetype
is mostly for use in making perspective projections of 3D
elements), and use [A]SCII filetype for tool paths that will feed
DANCAM or DANPLOT.)
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COMMANDS THAT CHANGE LINE SEGMENTS
The [L]ines sub-menu from the drawing editors root menu has
several commands that let you control the attributes of line segments
in drawings. Additionally the [L]ines sub-menu lets you to delete or
alter any line segment in a drawing.
LINE STYLE AND ATTRIBUTES
The [L]ine style command in the [L]ines sub-menu has options to do
these tasks:
1. Set the line attributes that the next lines drawn in the drawing
sub-menu of the drawing editor will have. Possible line
attributes are: color, width, end shape, and styles like doted and
dashed. On mechanical pen plotters line widths should be selected
with the line/pen color number rather than the line width value
since the pens of different line widths in the plotters pen
changer are selected by color number regardless of the pens line
width (you will have to make a table you can refer to that will
equate the pen you want used to the DANCAD3D line color drawn.)
The current line color and width numbers are shown next to the :c
and :w at the bottom of the drawing editor screen and indicate the
line color and line width attribute that lines will have when you
draw line segments in the drawing sub-menu of the drawing editor.
The value of the (global or world) scale entered with the main
menu [C]hange command needs to be set to the value that will be
used when the drawing will be printed out for the WYSIWYG of
thickened or dotted/dashed lines to appear correct in the drawing
editor.
2. Change the line attributes of any line segment in the workspace.
3. Change the line attributes of all the line segments with in any
single element.
4. Change the line attributes of all the line segments in a drawing
by selecting element number 0 as the element to change.
Pressing [L] from the [D]raw sub-menu of the drawing editor will
also bring up this [L]ine style menu even though [L] is not given in
the [D]raw sub-menu. Having the access to the [L]ine style menu
duplicated in the [D]raw sub-menu makes changing the line color
easier.
INSERTING LINE SEGMENTS INTO ELEMENTS
The [I]nsert command in the [L]ines sub-menu lets you insert a
line segment into an element that is NOT the element with the highest
number (normally line segments are appended to the element with the
highest number unless you use the [B]egin new element command.) If you
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are going to insert many line segments into an element you would do
better to use [C]opy and [E]rase from the [E]lements sub-menu to copy
the element you want to add line segments to so the copy is now the
element with the highest number and erase the original element. In
the [D]raw sub-menu line segments are appended to the element with the
highest number unless you use the [B]egin command to start a new
element (you should be careful that you use the [B]egin command after
the commands that create elements before you start drawing line
segments or you will not be able to erase the line segments drawn
after the element without also erasing the element it self as well
(DANCAD3D normally appends line segments to the highest numbered
element to allow additions to elements you are working on when you
quit the program and rerun it or initialize the workspace and load
another drawing).)
DELETING LINE SEGMENTS FROM DRAWINGS
The [D]elete command in the [L]ines sub-menu of the drawing editor
lets you delete any line segment in a drawing or element. Be sure
that the line segment you wish to delete is actually only one line
segment and not two line segments end to end! If you have two line
segments end to end use the [P]ull-point command to move one of the
end points so you can see where the other end point(s) of the line
segment(s) you wish to delete are. Also use the [V]iew option to
check the cursor alignment from the [F]ront, [S]ide, and [T]op views
to make sure the line segment and cursor are aligned. Use the [+] key
and [*] key to zoom in and check cursor alignment with the line
segments end points.
PULLING THE END POINTS OF LINE SEGMENTS
The [P]ull-point command in the [L]ines sub-menu of the drawing
editor lets you change the end point of any line segment in the
workspace. Options in the [P]ull-point command let you pull one, two,
or all the line segments that meet at a given point in the workspace.
If the [P]ull-point command is used twice both ends of the line
segment can be moved.
If you have several line segments meeting at one point and want to
move one of the line segments you can use the option of the [P]ull-
point command that will pull the first matching line segment found.
Since the first matching line segment found may not be the one you
want to move you may need to use the [P]ull-point command several
times to spread out the end points of the line segments that meet at
the end point of the line segment you want to move. Once you have the
end points spread out so the end points are no longer meeting at a
common point you can use the [P]ull-point command to place the end
points of the line segments you spread out where you want them to be.
The [R]apid-pull command is a variation of the [P]ull-point command
that lets you pull several points without having to reenter the
command from the [L]ines sub-menu each time. The [R]apid-pull command
[DANCAD3D.DOC-50]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
is useful in adjusting tool-path drawings for use with DANPLOT and
DANCAM.
An alternative to using the [P]ull-point command is to [D]elete
the line segment you want to change and [I]nsert a new one. Be aware
that if you [D]elete and [I]nsert a line segment the order of the line
segments in the element will no longer be the same. Where the
preservation of line segment order is important, such as in a tool
path, the [R]apid-pull command should be used exclusively.
LINE SEGMENT NUMBERS
The [N]umber and [F]ind commands in the [L]ines sub-menu of the
drawing editor let you find the absolute sequential number of any line
segment in the workspace. With the [N]umber command the same
precautions apply as to the [D]elete command, that you are really
marking the end points on ONE line segment and not two or more end to
end. The number of a line segment is not used very much, but can be
useful to know if you use the commands in the [N]umerical sub-menu of
the main menu. Also knowing the number of a line segment can help you
edit ASCII data files in the text editor since the reading of the text
cursor line at the top of the text editor screen will be one higher
than the sequential number of the line segment number (the first line
of the ASCII data file is ENTER so line segment #1 will be on text
line #2 of the ASCII data file.)
COMMANDS THAT CHANGE ELEMENTS
Previously discussed were some commands that transform elements
into new elements. More often you will just want to move elements
around or make them larger and smaller. There are two menus that let
you change elements (in most cases you can affect whole drawings by
selecting element number 0 as the element to act on and the workspace
Zero point as the rotational center to use.)
THE ELEMENTS SUB_MENU
The commands in the elements sub-menu let you [R]otate, [M]agnify,
[F]lip, and [E]rase elements by touching the drawing cursor to one of
the end points of a line segment (the cursor does not really need to
touch the end point if you set the tolerance to a larger value, but
generally you want to keep the tolerance small so you will not
accidentally "find" the wrong element), or by entering the element
number of the element you need to affect (the [N]umber command in the
[E]lements sub-menu will find the number of any element in the
workspace if you forget what an element's number is, also the
[U]pdate-list command from the drawing editors root menu will help you
figure out what elements go with what numbers (by turning off all but
one at a time).)
[DANCAD3D.DOC-51]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
If negative values are entered into the [M]agnify command the axis
with the negative value will be inverted (flipped.) Be very careful
that you do not enter a value of 0 to the magnify command. Magnifying
by 0 will irreversibly squash your drawing into nothing (Magnifying
the Z axis by 0 is a useful technique to make a 3D element into a 2D
element.) Any axis you do not want to change when you use the Magnify
command should be magnified by 1. You can distort elements by
magnifying the three axis with different values. If you are making a
movie to be projected through an 2X animorphic lens you can save the
perspective projection as a 2D file, initialize and reload, then
magnify the 2D perspective element with x=0.5, y=1.0, and z=0
(animorphic lenses are used to show wide screen movies.) Notice that
magnifying by a number larger than 1 makes the element larger, and
magnifying by values less than 1 make the element smaller (to reverse
magnification re-magnify the element using the inverse of the values
used the first time, i.e. magnifying by 0.5 will cancel magnifying by
2.0.)
The [O]ffset command will move an element to any point in the
workspace, at any time during the development of a drawing. The term
offset is used in electronics to designate relative values, such as
the voltages of the x and y centering controls on an oscilloscope. In
DANCAD3D the position of an element is its original position "offset"
any number of times some relative (or absolute) distance. In geometry
the term for what [O]ffset does is Translate, but I thought naming the
command Translate might confuse users as to what it does.
The "center" of each element is important to keep in mind when
working with elements. You have the choice of having an element
affected relative to the workspace's center Zero point (x=0, y=0, z=0)
or the movable center point of each individual element. The center
point for the individual elements can be set and changed with the
[S]et-center command in the [E]lements menu. The difference in the
affect on the element from using the [Z]ero center or the elements own
[C]enter are as follows:
FOR MAGNIFY:
Center Z: Element grows toward or from the center of the workspace.
Center C: Element grows toward or from the selected elements center.
FOR ROTATE:
Center Z: Element rotates (orbits) around center of the workspace.
Center C: Element rotates around the center point set for it.
FOR FLIP:
Center Z: Element flips and goes to the other side of the axis.
Center C: Element flips across a line through the set center point.
FOR OFFSET:
Center Z: Element moves the given distance from the workspace center.
Center C: Element moves the given distance from is current position.
You should keep in mind that the point that an element has set for
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its center does not need to be within the element. Putting the center
point for an element at one of its corners is a very useful method of
preparing an element for re-positioning by rotation around the point
at the corner (the center for an element can be set to ANY point in
the workspace.) When you use the [P]olygon command you will inevitably
be using the [R]otate command to re-orient the polygon at some point
while working on your drawing.
INTERACTIVE EDITING: THE ON-SCREEN SUB-MENU
The commands in the [E]lements sub-menu do their job well, but
sometimes it is faster and easier if you can see how elements will
look in relation to the other elements while they are moved (offset),
rotated, and magnified. The commands in the [O]n-screen sub-menu work
best on elements that have fewer that 500 line segments (fewer that 50
works best) and the computer being used is at least 8 PC's of CPU
power.
INTERACTIVE OFFSET: THE DRAG COMMAND
The [D]rag command in the [O]n-screen sub-menu of the drawing
editor lets you move elements around on the screen to visually
position them. You can zoom in and out with the [+] and [-] keys
while inside the [D]rag command in order for you to see the fit of
elements better. The [D]rag command is most useful when you are using
a mouse to move the drawing cursor, because the element can be moved
rapidly across the screen, then moved into final position by moving
the mouse slowly (use the [M]ove command to set the cursor movement
increment.)
The [D]rag command can be set to automatically be activated when
an ALIAS symbol has been loaded. See the [PgUp] command in the [D]raw
sub-menu of the drawing editor.
The [D]rag command can be used to visually adjust the location of
a cutting tool outline relative to an outline of the desired shape in
the preparation of tool paths for use with DANCAM or DANPLOT. To
prepare a tool path, that requires compensation for the tool or flame
size (difference between the tool axis and its cutting edge), for use
with DANCAM or DANPLOT follow these steps:
1. Draw an outline of the finished part you wish to make. The
outline of the finished part should show all important edges in
all three dimensions. As part of the finished part outline
element you can draw the maximum dimensions of the raw material
the part will be cut from so you can see where to start the
movement at medium feed rate for the roughing cuts (DANCAM moves
at the highest speed the motors can follow between when no line
color and therefore no feed rate is selected, you need to know
where the rough block of material and the tool will meet so you
can slow the tool feed to a safe speed.) Objects of constant
[DANCAD3D.DOC-53]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
interference such as lathe chucks (as cylinders since the jaws
make a stepped cylindrical volume while moving) can be included in
the stock outline to help avoid having the tool hit the chuck!
2. Begin a new element and draw an outline of the cutting tool in 3
dimensions. You can include the tool holder or tool post so while
you are drawing the tool path you can check for interference of
the tool holder as well as the tool. Try to use as few line
segments as possible when drawing the tool and holder outline.
3. Enter the [D]rag command and give the element number of the tool
and holder element as the element to drag. Start with the drawing
cursor at the tool's home position and draw line segments for the
tool motion into the block of raw stock material. After you have
drawn enough line segments to rough out the part look carefully at
the proximity of the tool outline to the outline of the finished
shape and carefully draw the final cuts taking care that no part
of the tool cuts past the outline of the final shape outline.
When all the line segments for the final cut have been drawn, draw
a safe path clear of the work-piece so the tool can go back to the
home position (do not draw a line past the home position away from
the work-piece! It might really be better to stop short of the
home position and let DANCAM (or DANPLOT) bring the tool back to
the home point and or home switches for you.) Press the [Escape]
key to exit the [D]rag command. You can and should change view
points frequently with the [V]iew command while drawing tool
paths. You can change the line color for the next line to be
drawn while within the [D]rag command by pressing the [L] key (for
Line style, line colors control the cutting rate in DANCAM (or
DANPLOT) and also activate the programed pause and auxiliary
device control lines (see the set-up menu in DANCAM (or DANPLOT)
to install the feed rates your equipment can operate at (if you
are using medium large size stepper motors you should only count
on a maximum of 120 RPM at 200 in/oz of torque at the motor
shaft)).)
4. You can use the [W]indow command to clip your tool path so that
the tool path will not accidentally run out of range. You can
write a macro to automatically clip all your tool paths before you
save them for use (by running the macro while the tool path is in
the workspace.)
5. Press [Z] to zero the drawing cursor and then Save the tool path
(element number 3) as an ASCII type data file for use with DANCAM
or DANPLOT. You would of course also want to save the cutting
tool outline for future use, and probably also the finished part
and stock material outline until it is no longer needed.
You can build a Symbol library of three dimensional shapes like
tools and holders, vises and chucks, even your whole lathe or mill so
you can see exactly how the tool movements you make will appear when
the tool path is executed on the machine! The [U]p-date list from the
drawing editor root menu will let you turn elements display on and off
[DANCAD3D.DOC-54]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
to make visualizing easier. Be sure to change view points frequently
while you draw a tool path and keep an eye on the x, y, and z readings
at the top of the drawing editor screen so you do not make any silly
mistakes (if you have the Automatic Macro feature turned on you will
be able to edit out (from the output macro with the text editor) any
silly mistakes you might make and continue adding line segments to
your tool path.)
IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE DRAWING EDITOR
There are several important things you should know about the
drawing editor to make your using DANCAD3D most efficient.
The redrawing of the screen is much faster if you have the WYSIWYG
turned off (if any thickened line attributes were given to lines in
the drawing.) For the most part you should only have the WYSIWYG
turned on when you are inspecting the fit of lines (principally
lettering) that have a line thickness greater than one. To turn the
WYSIWYG on or off select command [W]YSIWYG from the [S]et-up sub-menu
of the drawing editor. In order to have the WYSIWYG display the
proper line width and dot-dash spacing the global scale MUST be set to
the value that will be used when the drawing will be printed out (or
if the drawing is to be made into a 2D file the scale ratio used to
save (normalize) the 2D file.)
If the [G]rid command is used from the drawing editors [S]et-up
sub-menu the main menu [C]hange command MUST be used to set the global
(world) scale to the value that will be used when the drawing is to be
printed out or made into a 2D file (such as a DXF, PostScript, or HPGL
file.) The amount you can zoom out when the layout grid is used is
limited by the grid spacing since having zoomed out very far would
produce grid dots much to close together to be useful (therefore turn
the layout grid off if you need to zoom out a great deal from the
normal amount that is displayed on the drawing editor screen.) If you
have the layout grid turned on and are zoomed in tremendously then
quit DANCAD3D, when you run DANCAD3D again and enter the drawing
editor you may get an error message telling you to use the drawing
editors [S]et-up sub-menu to change the grid dot spacing. To avoid
the layout grid spacing error message turn off the layout grid before
you quit the drawing editor when you are done drawing.
The [U]p-date list command in the drawing editors root menu lets
you turn "off" the display of any element(s) in the drawing workspace
as seen from inside the drawing editor. When your drawing has several
elements of lettering or other complex elements you should use the
[U]p-date list command to turn the lettering or other complex elements
"off" when you are not specifically involved with working around or on
them. Turning elements off in the drawing editor should not affect
saving or printing the elements, but you may want to turn all the
elements "on" so you can see that they all look correct before you
save or print the final version of a drawing (be careful of entering
element numbers in commands when some elements are hidden by being
[DANCAD3D.DOC-55]
[ D R A W I N G E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
turned "off" since you might accidentally alter an unseen element.)
The [U]p-date list makes an excellent way of seeing what element
numbers go with the displayed elements on the screen. Using the
[E]rase command and some other commands can change the element numbers
of several elements at once, so if you get mixed up, use the [U]p-date
list to see what the current sequential numbers of the elements in the
workspace currently are.
When you are drawing you should use the [B]egin command in the
[E]lements or [D]raw sub-menus to begin a new element before you draw
line segments. If after using the [B]egin command you decide that you
do not want to draw line segments, you should use the [E]rase command
to erase the "empty" element you began before you use the other
commands that automatically begin a new element. Empty elements can
cause some confusion, so I mention here that you can avoid such
confusion by erasing any empty elements that might occur.
The commands in the [O]n-screen sub-menu of the drawing editor are
meant to be used on fast computers with elements that have fewer than
a few hundred line segments (or more like a a dozen line segments.)
The [D]rag command works very well with loading symbol files since
symbols are usually not overly complex. If you need to manipulate
whole drawings it is usually easier to workout the scale ratio or
rotation angle manually and then use the commands in the [N]umerical
sub-menu of the main menu.
In some other drawing programs the drawing editor is where your
creation ends, but in DANCAD3D the drawing editor is only the start of
the creation of the raw material for animation and manufacturing. The
text editor is your next destination to write and edit macros to
transform your drawings and elements into dynamic simulations and
programed automated actions.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-56]
[ T E X T E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D uses several types of ASCII text files. To make it
easier for you to edit the ASCII text files DANCAD3D has a built in
text editor (a text editor is like a word processor, but it is used on
text that is not formatted into paragraphs.) To enter the text editor
select the [W]rite command from DANCAD3D's main menu. To exit the
text editor select [Q]uit from the menu that pops up when you click
the [Left] mouse button or press the [Control] and [K] keys then press
the [Control] and [X] keys.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Select [W]rite from the main menu.
2. Abort or save the workspace if asked.
3. Press the [Left] mouse button, the [F1] key, or the [Control] and
[^] keys; to pop-up the text editor command menu.
4. Load a text file to edit. You can of course create a new text
file just by typing into the empty text editor if you wish as
well.
5. Select [T]utor help from the pop up menu to read more information
about the text editor commands available. When you see a command
like ^[A] it means that you press down the [Control] key and hold
it down while you and then press the [A] key then let both the
[Control] and [A] keys up (like using the [Shift] key to make a
capitol letter.) The most used commands are on the function keys,
and in the menu that pops up when you press [F1], or the mouse
left button.
6. When you are finished editing your file make the pop up menu come
up as in 3. above and select [W]rite file to save the file you
were working on. YOU MUST ALWAYS SAVE THE FILE YOU ARE WORKING ON
TO YOUR DISK BEFORE YOU QUIT THE TEXT EDITOR IF YOU WANT THE
CHANGES YOU EDITED SAVED!
7. Select [Q]uit from the pop up menu, or press the [F2] key (or
^[K]^[X]) while editing, to exit the text editor and return to the
main menu.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
The [W]rite command from DANCAD3D's main menu is a text editor for
pure ASCII text files (text files are stored on your harddisk and have
a DOS filename.)
The [W]rite command text editor can be used to display more than
[DANCAD3D.DOC-57]
[ T E X T E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
one text file on the screen at a time by splitting the display screen
into two or more parts. When a text editor screen is split into two
or more parts where each part shows part of a different text file the
parts of the screen where each of the text files is displayed is
called a "Window". The command to "Open" a window is in the pop-up
menu that comes up when you press the Left mouse button or [F1] on the
keyboard.
The most frequently used commands for the text editor are in the
pop up menu you get when you press the Left mouse button or the [F1]
key. Other commands can be accessed by holding the [Control] key down
and pressing one or more of the other keys on the keyboard. The
cursor keys and the function keys can also be used, see the text
editor help screens (press [F1] then [T] (tutor) in the text editor.)
The text cursor shows you where the characters you type will
appear in the text file. Two text entry modes are available: Insert
and Overwrite. You can toggle the text entry mode between Insert and
Overwrite by pressing the [Ins] or [Insert] key on the keyboard (when
you press the [Ins] key an indicator at the top of the editor screen
will change to show you which mode you are in.)
You can control the position of the text editor cursor by moving
the mouse or trackball, or by pressing the cursor keys on the key
board. The [U]p-window command in the afore mentioned pop-up menu can
be used to move the cursor from one window to another one.
USES OF THE WRITE COMMAND TEXT EDITOR
DANCAD3D's text editor is useful in editing many of the ASCII text
files DANCAD3D uses to store information on your harddisk.
EDITING MACRO FILES
The primary reason DANCAD3D has a built in text editor is to
allow you to write and edit macro files. You can write macro files by
referring to the commands listed in Appendix B of the DANCAD3D
technical reference manual, or just edit macro files created for you
by the main menu Output command. When editing macro files you should
remember to leave a space character between all commands and
parameters. And also to save the edited file back to disk before you
exit the text editor (you save a file back to disk by selecting
[W]rite file from the pop-up menu.)
EDITING ASCII DATA FILES
DANCAD3D has an ASCII data file format to allow easy access to the
line segment data used to make drawings with DANCAD3D. To create an
ASCII data file of some element in the drawing workspace select
[F]iles [S]ave [A]SCII from the main menu. The ASCII file format is
[DANCAD3D.DOC-58]
[ T E X T E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
the same as the Macro ENTER command's parameter list, to allow you to
read an ASCII data file into the text of a macro file and have the
line vector data entered into the workspace automatically. To load an
ASCII data file into a macro file simply load the macro file into the
text editor (with the [R]ead command from the pop-up menu (you get the
pop-up menu by pressing the [Left] mouse button or [F1] key)) then
locate the text cursor where you want the ASCII data file to be
inserted into the macro file and load the ASCII data file into your
macro (you load the ASCII data into your macro by selecting the [R]ead
command from the pop-up menu as before except you enter the mane of
the ASCII data file in place of the macro filename.)
Editing ASCII data files is an alternative to using the [P]ull-
point command in the [L]ines sub-menu of the drawing editor. The
[N]umber command in the [L]ines sub-menu of the drawing editor can be
used to help you locate the vectors you want to change in the ASCII
text file of the element's line segment data.
Similar to editing ASCII data files is writing them from scratch.
If you know where you want line segments end points to be in the
workspace you can simply type in the numbers for the values of the end
points at the x, y, and z axis. The ASCII data file starts with the
macro command ENTER on the top line, each line of text following has
the six end point numbers and four attribute values for a single line
segment, and the file ends with a line of text with ten spaced zeros
to flag the end of the line segment data entry. The line segment data
text lines start with the x axis value of the first point, then the y
and z axis values of the first point, then the x y and z values of the
second point, then come the attributes of the line color, and line
width, then two spaced zeros (the last to attributes are normally set
to 0, but some times to other values when DANCAD3D has created the
data file automatically.)
EXAMPLE: ENTER
-1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0
1 1 0 1 -1 0 1 1 0 0
1 -1 0 -1 -1 0 1 1 0 0
-1 -1 0 -1 1 0 1 1 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
In the above example the x and y values change to make a square,
the file specifies four line segments, and the line color and width
are always set to 1. You can write programs in any other computer
language to produce DANCAD3D ASCII data files if you wish to use
DANCAD3D to print out some vector data you may have accumulated.
EDITING TEXT FOR THE BLOCK TEXT COMMAND
The Block text command in the Drawing editors [C]alligraphy sub-
menu reads short text files and automatically draws an element of
lettering into the workspace to correspond to the text in the short
text file. You can use the [W]rite command from the main menu to edit
[DANCAD3D.DOC-59]
[ T E X T E D I T O R B A S I C S ]
short text files for the block text command, or you can use the
foreign language compatible short text file editor, [E]dit in the
[C]alligraphy sub-menu of the drawing editor. The Fit option of the
[B]lock text command makes text look especially nice since Fit will
automatically do vertical and horizontal justification on the text
file so the block of text will fit perfectly into the space you have
allowed in your drawing.
OTHER USES OF THE WRITE COMMAND
Some other reasons for using the [W]rite command are: editing the
screen font files created by the commands in the [C]alligraphy sub-
menu of the drawing editor, writing or editing index files for the
Alias symbol loading feature of the drawing editor, and editing of the
configuration files for DANCAM and DANPLOT to assign the cutting rates
for the unused line colors (up to color 127.)
[DANCAD3D.DOC-60]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D can read a text file containing english like commands and
run itself automatically to produce drawings, animated films, and
almost any other task that you can do by operating the program
manually. DANCAD3D was originally designed to operate entirely
automatically and although DANCAD3D can be operated manually from the
menus you should take seriously the advantages if this important
automatic operation feature. Additionally because DANCAD3D can be
automatically made to run a macro from the DOS command line you can
write DOS batch files to invoke DANCAD3D and have some macro run then
have DANCAD3D automatically quit back to the DOS batch file to run
other programs (normally DANCAD3D returns to its main menu at the end
of a macro, but the HALT macro command at the end of the macro will
return control to DOS.)
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. To make a macro file of commands automatically that record
whatever you do with DANCAD3D's menus press the [O] key from the
main menu.
2. To Run one of the demo macro files supplied on the disks select
[R]un from DANCAD3D's main menu and enter the name of the macro
file you wish to run.
3. You can look at and possibly edit the DEMO macro files with the
text editor.
4. To have a DANCAD3D macro automatically run from DOS simply put the
filename of the macro after DANCAD3D on the DOS command line (of
course macros can be called from DOS batch files in this same
way.)
5. Understanding macro programs fully takes much more explanation
than can fit in this shareware disk. The DANCAD3D registered user
outfit has lots of information about the many macro commands and
numerous examples of how the macro commands can be used to do many
different jobs.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
A macro in DANCAD3D is simply a text (text is letters, words,
symbols, and numbers arranged like in a book or news paper, and
readable by a human) file of commands that DANCAD3D and you can read.
You would read the macro file in order to edit it, DANCAD3D would read
the macro file to accomplish the task that the macro commands indicate
should be done. DANCAD3D's macro commands can be used for very simple
tasks by listing the commands in the order that they are to be
executed (first at the top of the file and last at the bottom) or more
[DANCAD3D.DOC-61]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
complex program like tasks can be written using conditional branching
and loops.
If you are not a programmer you should not be frightened away from
writing macros. Using the list programming structure you simply write
the commands in the order you want them to happen. After you become
proficient in writing lists you can try loops and branches. Loops let
you repeat a portion of the file several times. In place of a loop
you can of course just repeat the commands over and over in the list,
but if you were to repeat several commands several hundreds of times
using the programming loop would make the macro file much shorter and
easier to edit. The conditional branch lets you have the macro
commands test if certain conditions exist and skip over parts of the
file if they do.
The macro commands can be useful to you even if you have no desire
to think up lists of commands. The automatic output macro file will
record the commands you select from DANCAD3D's menus and write the
appropriate macro commands into the output macro. The name of the
output macro the macro commands are automatically written into is
whatever you tell DANCAD3D to use when you open the output macro with
the [O]utput command from the main menu or drawing editors [F]iles
sub-menu.
The names of the macro commands correspond to the commands in
DANCAD3D's menus. The command to rotate an element is ROTATE, the
command to magnify an element is MAGNIFY, and so on. Most of the
macro commands have and are followed by a parameter list. The
parameter list may contain numbers, letters, words, filenames, or
variable names. A complete description of all the parameters that go
with the macro commands is found in Appendix B of the DANCAD3D users
technical manual.
Macro command files are what are known as ASCII text files. You
can use DANCAD3D's built in text editor to write and edit macro text
files. You can also use most other text editors or word processors to
edit macro files if they have a pure ASCII text mode (non-ASCII word
processors insert hidden commands (or control codes) into the text and
will not be readable with DANCAD3D's macro interpreter ([R]un from the
main menu).) Some word processors that claim to write pure ASCII code
can insert the control Z (ASCII code number 26) into the text of the
file. Loading a text file that has been contaminated with control Z's
into DANCAD3D's text editor and saving the text back to disk should
remove the contaminating control Z's (control Z's in a text file that
has be edited in some other word-processor can make the bottom part of
a macro not be run (the execution would stop when the control Z is
read).)
One of the more powerful features of DANCAD3D macros is their
ability to have the RUN command in them which lets one macro run
another macro and then the sub-macro and RUN still further sub-sub-
macros. If you are interested in doing so DANCAD3D will let you
tackle some very useful and intricate tasks.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-62]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
On the simple side you can write out the values of the parameters
as literal values. A lot of interesting macros can be made using only
literal values i.e. 90, 1.0236. If you want to get into more
sophisticated macro programming you can use variable names in place of
the literal parameters that go with the macro commands. Variable
names in DANCAD3D can have eight letters. Variable names preceded
with the | characters (ASCII code number 124) are stored in your
computers RAM, variables without the vertical bar are stored on your
computers harddisk (or RAM disk) so you can have virtually unlimited
numbers of variables. The LET command assigns and or declares
variables. Equations can be used in place of variables or literal
constants if you enclose the equation in square brackets. ALL
COMMANDS SYMBOLS AND PARAMETERS MUST BE SPACED, do not use commas or
other punctuation marks to space parameters.
EXAMPLE: LET |ZROT = [ SIN( |DZ ) / 2 ]
In the above |ZROT and |DZ are stored in RAM for quick
access. The size of the RAM scratch pad is limited and
should be used for variables that are used frequently.
Variable names that are no longer needed can be removed with
the RELEASE command e.g. RELEASE |ZROT.
LET ZROT = [ SIN( DZ ) / 2 ]
In the above ZROT and DZ are stored on the harddisk.
LET E:\ZROT = [ SIN( E:\DZ ) / 2 ]
In the above ZROT and DZ are stored on the RAM disk E:\.
The original reason for having DANCAD3D have macro capability was
to have DANCAD3D produce animated sequences of significant complexity.
When tasks become very complex or time consuming it is much easier and
less mistake prone to make a list of commands, proofread the list of
commands, and let the program read the list of commands and carry out
the commands. DANCAD3D has the ability to operate your laser printer,
dot matrix printer, or cine film recorder automatically, thereby
allowing the writing of macro programs that have virtually an
unlimited number of elements moving in any number of complex motions.
So DANCAD3D's macros can be used for a wide range of tasks from
printing several drawings overnight, to making animated simulations of
thousands of moving parts. I am mentioning the range of tasks
DANCAD3D can perform not to brag, but rather to let you know that
DANCAD3D may give you years of interesting challenges as you learn and
explore its capabilities.
USING THE AUTOMATIC MACRO FEATURE
DANCAD3D's automatic output macro feature can be used for three
major purposes:
1. To protect against making mistakes while drawing.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-63]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
2. To allow editing and spell-checking of lettering commands. Spell-
checking would be done with your favorite spell checker on the
output macro file after you quit DANCAD3D.
3. To make prototype macros or sub-macros that will be run from or
incorporated into larger macro programs produced with the text
editor.
k:Using~the~automatic~macro~to~correct~mistakes
USING THE AUTOMATIC MACRO TO CORRECT MISTAKES
The thing you need to remember most to protect against mistakes
when using DANCAD3D is to have the automatic macro command turned ON!
The display a the top of the main menu says NEW, APPEND, and OFF. NEW
means you have started a new file or are over writing and old one.
APPEND means you are adding new commands to the bottom of a macro file
that was started before. OFF of course means that the macro is not
having commands added to it.
The steps to go through in using an automatic macro for protection
against mistakes are:
1. Initialize the workspace by pressing [I] from the main menu. Turn
on the automatic macro file (by pressing [O] from the main menu)
before you start working on a drawing. Give the macro a
descriptive filename you will remember. The standard file
extension for macros is *.MAC.
2. Work on your drawing until you make a mistake you can not correct
with one of the menu commands (such as [E]raise or [U]ndo.)
3. Turn the automatic macro off (by selecting [O] from the main
menu.)
4. Select [W]rite from the main menu and edit the bottom of the macro
text to remove the commands that messed the drawing up. Each
macro command in the automatic macro file has a time and date
stamp that should help you know what commands happened after the
drawing stopped looking the way you wanted it to. Lines of text
in the macro are deleted by putting the text cursor on the line
you want to delete and pressing the [Control] and [Y] key at the
same time (press [Escape] to recover deleted text.)
5. Save the edited text back to your harddisk. If you are not sure
you edited the macro properly you should save the edited macro
text under a different file name. Quit the text editor and go
back to the main menu.
6. Select [R]un from DANCAD3D's main menu and let the macro
interpreter re-generate the elements you drew. Since the
workspace was empty when you opened the automatic output macro
[DANCAD3D.DOC-64]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
file the automatic output macro file starts with an initialize
command that will destroy any elements in the workspace before the
[R]un command was selected. If you want to save any elements in
the workspace before you run the macro you can use the [F]iles
[S]ave [E]lements command from the main menu.
7. Turn the edited automatic macro file back on be pressing [O] from
the main menu after the macro interpreter has finished. Select
the APPEND mode so new commands will be added to the bottom of the
edited macro.
8. Enter the drawing editor [D]raw from the main menu and confirm
that the mistake has been corrected. Continue working on your
drawing. You can look at the bottom of the drawing editor to make
sure you see APPEND to tell you that the menu commands are being
saved to the designated macro.
k:Using~the~automatic~macro~to~correct~and~edit~lettering
USING THE AUTOMATIC MACRO TO CORRECT AND EDIT LETTERING
By using the automatic output macro to store drawings rather than
a vector data file you can edit and change the lettering commands
without erasing the lettering elements and using the lettering command
to make new elements. This ability to edit lettering can let you
change units from english to metric, alter dates, translate the
language of any text in a drawing, and of course fix spelling
mistakes! The calligraphy command BLOCK reads small text files, and
so you can of course also edit the small text files that the BLOCK
reads (the filenames that go with each BLOCK command will appear in
the automatic macro file as part the the parameter list with each
BLOCK command.)
1. Initialize the workspace by pressing [I] from the main menu. Turn
on the automatic macro file (by pressing [O] from the main menu)
before you start working on a drawing. Give the macro a
descriptive filename you will remember. The standard file
extension for macros is *.MAC. When you use the lettering command
from the Calligraphy sub-menu try to use the Justify option for
the letter spacing since the Justify option will hold the text
length constant if you change the length of the line of text later
(this only works of course if you change the number of characters
in the line of text be fewer than 10%.)
2. Turn the automatic macro off (by selecting [O] from the main
menu.)
3. If you want to edit any of the text for the lettering commands the
select [W]rite from the main menu and edit the bottom of the macro
text to remove the commands that messed the drawing up. Each
macro command in the automatic macro file has a time and date
stamp that should help you know what commands happened after the
drawing stopped looking the way you wanted it to. Lines of text
[DANCAD3D.DOC-65]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
in the macro are deleted by putting the text cursor on the line
you want to delete and press the [Control] and [Y] key at the same
time. Save the edited macro back to your harddisk before you exit
the text editor. If you edit the lines of text be sure that you
do not add any spaces at the end of the lines of text since spaces
at the ends of lines of text will make the line of text look
shorter or off center in the finished drawing.
4. Quit DANCAD3D and run the automatic output macro file you were
creating through your spell checker. Be careful that your spell
checker does not alter any of DANCAD3D's commands and parameters,
and only changes the lines of text.
5. Run DANCAD3D again.
6. Select [R]un from DANCAD3D's main menu and let the macro
interpreter re-generate the elements you drew. Since the
workspace was empty when you opened the automatic output macro
file the automatic output macro file starts with an initialize
command that will destroy any elements in the workspace before the
[R]un command was selected. If you want to save any elements in
the workspace before you run the macro you can use the [F]iles
[S]ave [E]lements command from the main menu. If all goes well
your drawing should look as it did before except for the changes
you intentionally made to the lettering commands. Once you become
familiar with the parameters of the LETTERING, BLOCK and
DIMENSIONING commands (Appendix B of the technical manual) you
will be able to alter the line color, width, and even the font
used just by editing the macro commands in the text editor. Keep
in mind that the search and replace command of text editors can be
used to locate the LETTERING commands in a macro, or to locate the
name of the font files file names used (search for .FON.)
7. Save the re-generated (re-generated means that the macro
interpreter (RUN from the main menu) has repeated the steps that
you took when you entered the commands from the menus) drawing by
using the commands in the [F]iles [S]ave sub-menu from the main
menu, or print the drawing out by using the commands in the
[H]ardcopy sub-menu.
USING THE AUTOMATIC OUTPUT MACRO TO PROTOTYPE MACRO CODE
Sometimes when writing a set of macro commands in the text editor
to draw a particular figure you might have difficulty visualizing
exactly where certain points are in the three dimensions. You can RUN
the macro commands you have written manually with the macro
interpreter and then use the automatic output macro feature to APPEND
commands that will manipulate the elements created by the macro
commands you wrote manually while you SEE what you are doing in the
drawing editor (and especially the [O]n-screen sub-menu.)
You can also use the automatic output macro feature to produce
[DANCAD3D.DOC-66]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
several small output files that can be read into a larger macro with
the read block of text function (^[K]^[R] or [F9] in DANCAD3D's text
editor) or the small output macros can be RUN with the RUN macro
command as sub-macros. I frequently use the automatic output macro
feature to aid in the placement of lettering since it is easier to see
where lettering should go by using the drawing editor than just
working with the values to the lettering command out of my head (you
can though do some page layout tasks just fine by making a sketch on a
piece of paper with a pencil and entering the values manually to the
lettering commands parameter list.)
Steps to manipulate elements interactively as part of the writing
of a macro manually i.e. using the automatic output macro feature to
append commands to a macro that you have written manually in the text
editor:
1. Initialize the workspace by pressing [I] from the main menu.
Select [W]rite from the main menu. Write a macro file (you will
probably need the DANCAD3D technical reference manual to use the
commands whose parameter list is not obvious.) Save the macro you
wrote to your harddisk. Quit the text editor.
2. Run the macro you wrote by using the macro interpreter (Run from
the main menu.)
3. Use the [O]uput command from the main menu to to APPEND commands
to the macro filename you were writing in step 1.
4. Enter the drawing editor (Draw from the main menu) and manipulate
the elements as needed. Try using the [O]n-screen sub-menu when
you need to rotate or move (drag) elements around.
5. Turn off the outputting (appending) of macro commands to your
macro file (by pressing [O] from the main menu) and repeat steps
1. through 5. as needed to complete your macro.
6. When the macro is complete run it one last time in the macro
interpreter to fill the workspace with the desired elements. Save
or print out the elements in the workspace as desired.
Steps to create sub-macros and macro procedures with the automatic
output macro feature, i.e. how to create macro file procedures largely
through the interactive drawing editor, and then edit the macro
procedures into a functional macro with the text editor:
1. Initialize the workspace with the Initialize command in the main
menu. It is not necessary that the workspace be empty while
creating special sub-macros and procedures, but if the workspace
is not empty you will have to keep track of the element numbers
that go with the various macro commands. On problem you have to
face when combining macro code from several macro files into a
single macro file is that the element numbers that go with the
various commands really are the element numbers of the elements
[DANCAD3D.DOC-67]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
that the commands are meant to act on. There are two ways to
minimize problems with element numbers. One is to divide the
concatenated macro file into sections where each section ends with
the elements that are to be used again being saved to disk and
then the next section of the concatenated macro would begin with
the initialize command. Having the workspace empty at the
beginning of each section of a macro makes keeping track of what
element belongs to what number much easier. Another way to keep
track of element numbers is to assign a variable to the current
highest element number and then make the elements added after the
"marker" variable relative to the markers value.
EXAMPLE: LET |MARKER -> ELEMENTS
; -> is a special symbol that reads special values like the
; number of LINES or ELEMENTS in the workspace and assigns
; the value to one of DANCAD3D's user named variables.
; Ordinary assignment of variables is made with the = symbol.
LOAD 3DQ PART.146 ; This is [ |MARKER + 1 ]
LOAD 3DQ PART.987 ; This is [ |MARKER + 2 ]
LOAD 3DQ PART.767 ; This is [ |MARKER + 3 ]
# [ |MARKER + 2 ] ROTATE C 0 0 90 ; Rotate PART.987
LET |PART987 = [ |MARKER + 2 ] ; Assign a variable
# |PART987 ROTATE C 0 0 45 ; Rotate PART.987 again
2. Use the [O]utput command from the main menu to open a automatic
output macro.
3. Use the [D]raw command from the main menu to create a macro
procedure in the current automatic output macro file.
4. Close the current automatic output macro file.
5. Repeat steps 2. through 4. to make several macro files that
perform different manipulations or create unique elements.
6. Use the [W]rite command from the main menu to edit and combine or
concoct the macro procedures you created with the automatic output
macro into a larger macro file (if you want to, so the order of
the running of the small macros can be scripted.)
7. Save the edited of concatenated macro and quit the text editor.
8. Use the [R]un command from the main menu to run the concatenated
and scripted macro programs to produce some useful result.
9. Save or print out the elements created by running the concatenated
macro program as desired.
I hope the above description of some of the tasks you can put
DANCAD3D's macro feature to have encouraged you to increase your use
and interest in DANCAD3D. Do not feel that you need to understand
everything at once. As time passes and you gain confidence in using
the simpler features of DANCAD3D your experience will help you grow
[DANCAD3D.DOC-68]
[ M A C R O B A S I C S ]
into the more advanced features.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-69]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
Please read all the Questions and Answers bellow before writing to
me since I do not have a lot of free time to write individualized
letters as I have in the past (not to say I would not enjoy hearing
from you, just that the questions and answers below make up 90% of the
mail I get each day.)
Q: The program said Run-Time Error F0 what does that mean?
A: You have not installed DANCAD3D on your harddisk properly, or you
do not have a complete set of overlay files on your shareware disks.
Unfortunately many of the shareware disks sold have files missing and
therefore you will be unable to get the copy you have to work
properly. Check that all the files named DANCAD3D.0?? have the same
date as DANCAD3D.COM, if not your disks are not usable. You should
have gotten five 5 1/4" floppy disks or three 3 1/2" floppy disks for
the DANCAD3D program. Use the batch file INSTALL.BAT to install
DANCAD3D on your harddisk. When you want to run DANCAD3D on another
day you need to use the DOS Change Directory (CD) command to change
the current directory of your harddisk to the directory DANCAD3D is in
(i.e. DC25.)
EXAMPLE: C>CD C:\DC25
C>DANCAD3D
DANMOVIE v1.x is no longer to be distributed with the shareware
version of DANCAD3D (DANMOVIE v2.x was never a shareware program, and
now only comes with the registered user outfit.) All versions of
DANCAD3D prior to v2.5D are replaced with the current version (v2.5x.)
Current updates of DANCAD87 (for the math chip) DANCAM and DANPLOT
come as part of the DANCAD3D registered user outfit (all offers are
subject to change, if any change in price has happened you will
probably be informed by mail before your order is shipped, in any case
your order will be shipped or you will get a letter (I do not deposit
checks or money orders unless I am going to ship the order to you) so
please include a return postage for a letter with your check if the
disks you have are more than a year old (see the date of the
DANCAD3D.COM file on disk 1 of 5).)
Q: Can I run a macro from the DOS command line?
A: Yes, just put the name of the macro after DANCAD3D on the DOS
command line.
EXAMPLE: C>DANCAD3D DEMO1.MAC
Q: Is there some more information on the disks I have?
A: In addition to the DANCAD3D.DOC file on the program disks there are
many help screens within the DANCAD3D program. You can read the help
screens by selecting [T]utor from the main menu, [T]utor from the
[DANCAD3D.DOC-70]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
drawing editor root menu, and [F1] then [T]utor from the text editor.
The help screens can be printed out by pressing [Shift] and [PrtSc]
while the screen is displayed and your printer is on and ready.
Q: What dot matrix printer driver should I use?
A: These drivers works with most printers, if they do not work on your
printer your printer will probably not work. Be sure you have
installed the proper printer port in the correct driver and used the
DOS MODE command to set up your serial ports if needed. DANCAD3D does
not support color dot matrix printers.
PROPRINT.PRN or IBM5152.PRN for 9 pin printers with 1/216 line feed.
FX286E13.PRN for wide carriage 9 pin printers with 1/216" line feed.
LQ_1500.PRN or NEC-P6.PRN for 24 pin printers with 1/180" line feed.
LQ_1500W.PRN for wide carriage 24 pin printers with 1/180" line feed.
STARG15X.PRN for older star SG15X and SG10X with 1/144" line feed.
MX_80.PRN for older Epson type printers with only 120 dpi print mode.
Select Change from the main menu to install the driver name.
Press [H] [D] [W] from the main menu to print a drawing that is loaded
into the workspace.
Q: Why does the program crash before I get to the main menu?
A: Seven reasons for this have been reported:
1. You have some resident program that displays something on the
screen, e.g., a clock program or FAX program. Do not run the
clock display or FAX program while using DANCAD3D!
2. You picked the wrong video mode for your video board, or your
video board is not IBM compatible. Try reinstalling everything.
3. You ran a CGA emulation program. NEVER run a CGA emulation before
running DANCAD3D version 2.5. Version 2.5 supports Hercules video
mode, install it properly by selecting H when you run DANCAD3D for
the first time.
4. You did not install all five disks onto your Harddisk. All the
files named DANCAD3D.??? must be on the same drive for the program
to work. Run-time error F0 means that one of the Overlay files
was not found! The overlays have numbered extensions like
DANCAD3D.000, DANCAD3D.001, DANCAD3D.002 and so on.
5. You have a version of mouse driver software that has a bug in it.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-71]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
Try not loading the mouse driver with your CONFIG.SYS file and see
if that helps, if so then write to your mouse company and ask them
for an update.
6. You have a bad spot on your harddisk. You should run the DOS
command CHKDSK to check out your harddisk. I have been told that
reformatting your harddisk with DOS 3.3 can fix this problem. You
should take your computer back to the shop and have them enter the
manufactures disk error table (the error table is usually glued
onto the harddisk by the manufacture) and low level format your
harddisk again for you (many of the clone dealers do not low level
format the harddisks properly.)
7. You have a bug in your BIOS chip, DMA chip, or harddisk
controller. I recommend updating your BIOS chip to the latest
AWARD BIOS when you have your harddisk low level formatted. Some
of the cheaper clone BIOS do not work properly with the harddisk,
and since DANCAD3D uses the harddisk frequently problems with your
harddisk are more likely to show up while using DANCAD3D (if your
harddisk and other computer hardware is in good order you should
not have any problems with running DANCAD3D.)
Q: The program crashes when I try to enter the drawing editor. why?
A: Five causes of this problem have been found:
1. Your harddisk was not low level formatted properly, you will need
a computer expert to enter the bad sector numbers properly and
reformat your harddisk. The bad sector numbers are printed on a
label that is attached (or should be) to your harddisk.
2. Your Mouse driver has bugs in it. Try not installing the mouse
and see if the problem goes away.
3. You have a defective copy of DANCAD3D. Or perhaps you did not
install the program properly by using the INSTALL.BAT file
supplied.
4. If you are using a Hercules or MGC type video board with your
board may not be fully Hercules compatible. DANCAD3D will not
work on some EGA boards that are connected to monochrome monitors.
Also check 1, 2, and 3 above. The EGA multisync option of the
video board selection will activate the EGA monochrome video mode,
but should only be used on monitors that support both the 50Hz and
60Hz vertical sweep rates.
5. You mouse got stuck, try rolling the mouse and clicking its
buttons then hit the [Escape] or [Return] keys on the keyboard.
This is not a common problem and may also indicate problem 2.
above.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-72]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
Q: Can I load a DANCAD3D drawing into my other programs?
A: DANCAD3D will make the following file types:
EXAMPLE: 1. BSAVE type video pixel file.
2. PostScript type code file.
3. HPGL type plotter code file.
4. DXF type AutoCAD format file.
Whether or not your program will be able to read these files
depends on whether the manufacture of your program is being honest
about his programs ability to import this type of file, and also the
amount of memory required to hold complex drawings in memory. You can
create other plotter drivers (or modify these) if other similar
filetypes are needed through the use of the [I]install command in the
plotter sub-menu (the DANCAD3D manual goes into more detail about the
structure of plotter drivers if you really need to get into writing
drivers.)
Q: I notice that there are several different filetypes that can be
used to save and load drawings, can you give me a brief explanation of
which one I should use?
A: Whichever file type you use to save a drawing, you should keep
track of the type it was. There are several sub-directories in the
DANCAD3D program directory to segregate the files. You can also use
different file extensions (e.g. .ASC, .3D, .2D.)
Pixel.........Saves screen display in current video mode. You cannot
transport pixel files between computers running
different video modes (unless you create a set of pixel
files in each video mode to correspond to the modes you
want to use.) Pixel files load into the video screen and
NOT the drawing workspace. You cannot edit or rotate
pixel files, they are only for animation and user
created menus in macro files.
3D-Quick......Normal choice for saving individual elements and whole
drawings as one element (selecting element 0 will join
all the elements in the workspace into one file.) You
should use the 3D-Quick file type for 2D or 3D drawing
elements.
2D-Real.......Special filetype that creates a perspective projection
of the elements in the drawing workspace. You should
set the perspective scale to 1 if you want the 2D-Real
file to be in the scale you normally work in. Finished
drawings can be saved in the 2D-Real format if you do
not want to edit them since the 2D-Real format takes the
least disk space. The 2D-Real data file squashes the z
axis so the 3D aspect of elements can no longer be
edited if files are saved in the 2D-Real format.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-73]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
Elements......An automatic way to save all the elements in the drawing
workspace so that they can be later loaded and retain
their independence. Only a five letter filename is
allowed since the last three characters of the filename
are used to indicate the elements number.
ASCII.........A special purpose type of 3D data file that is used to
transport drawings from DANCAD3D to DANCAD87, DANCAM,
and DANPLOT. You should use only the ASCII file type
when you are going to save a tool path that will be
executed with DANPLOT or DANCAM. The ASCII 3D data file
type can be loaded into a text editor or word processor
and be edited manually if you need to correct some
mistake or manually enter some vector data in an
element.
The other filetypes in the Save and Load menus from the main menu
are used in the creation of font files for the lettering commands in
the drawing editor and are not normally used (the DANCAD3D technical
manual has a tutorial on creating special purpose font or typeface
files.)
Q: How can I make a drawing file to load into my other programs?
A: The PostScript, HPGL, and DXF files are made with the plotter
driver. Select [H] [P] [I] from the main menu and change the output
port name to the name of a file like A:OUTPUT.DXF. Then select [H]
[P] [P] from DANCAD3D's main menu and plot the drawing in the
workspace (use the main menu preview to select the perspective
values.) The plotter driver will then make a file on the disk rather
than sending the information to a port. If the program you have can
REALLY read ANY proper PostScript, HPGL, or DXF files you should have
no problems loading the drawing. Unfortunately many programs claim to
be able to read these file formats, but actually only read a subset of
the commands in these graphic languages (that's not my fault!.) You
may need to change the size of the drawings when you load the output
files into you other software since different software uses different
scaling factors. The BSAVE type files are made with the [P]ixel option
in the [F]iles sub-menu from the main menu. Pixel files can be loaded
into the video buffer of your computer with the BASIC language BLOAD
command, the video addresses to use are given in the DANCAD3D
technical manual.
Q: Will DANCAD3D do hidden line removal?
A: DANCAD3D v2.5 only display wire frame drawings. Although I plan to
work toward eventually having a hidden line option available I cannot
say when exactly I will have the time to work on adding that feature.
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Q: When I try to use the [C]ube command in the [3]D-shapes sub-menu of
the drawing editor why do I only get a rectangle?
A: The cube command works by marking the extreme opposite corners of a
cube or rectangular prism. When you are asked to mark the second
point for the opposite corner of the cube you have to move the drawing
cursor in ALL THREE DIMENSIONS, otherwise your cube will have no
thickness! DANCAD3D v2.5 has Oblique and Isometric views that make
the visual display of the cube better. Select [V]iew from the "Move
Cursor" menu, that comes up when you are told to mark the other
corner, to change the display view type.
Q: I need to draw lots of curves, how can I do this?
A: Version 2.5 has curve fitting that will make a smooth curve from a
rough series of line segments. Begin a new element, then draw the
rough curve from a chain of line segments, then use the [F]it-curve
command in the 3D-shapes sub-menu of the drawing editor.
Q: I just bought a computer and am not really into computers, will I
find DANCAD3D easy to use?
A: If you do not understand DOS commands and tree structured
directories I would recommend that you purchase a good book about DOS
and learn about its commands. Since you have the shareware version of
DANCAD3D you will be able to try out many of the simpler commands and
run the demo files. The DANCAD3D technical manuals go into more
detailed instructions of the more advanced features of DANCAD3D and
should help you grow in your knowledge of both DANCAD3D and how
DANCAD3D uses your computer. Since DANCAD3D's commands emulate
classical drawing tools like a pen and ruler you can apply lessons
found in books on mechanical drawing to drawing with DANCAD3D.
Q: Will I be able to apply the price of the v2.5 shareware disks
toward the purchase of the v2.5 outfit?
A: I am sorry to say that my profit margin is far to small to allow
discounts from the list prices. If you send me a self addressed
stamped envelope and request the current price list for the whole
DANCAD-DANCAM product line I will be happy to send you the current
price list (if you live outside the U.S. get a international first
class postal voucher from your post office and enclose it with your
request in place of the stamped envelope.)
Q: How do I install the port for my dot matrix printer?
A: Look at the files with the *.PRN extension that should be on the
program disks you have. Try to pick the one that looks like your
printer's model name (see the above description of the driver names.)
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
Then run DANCAD3D and press [C]hange from the main menu and enter the
filename of the driver for your printer. If the driver not installed
for the port your printer is connected to you can install the printer
port manually with [H] [D] [I] from the main menu.
Q: How do I install my plotter?
A: Look at the files with the *.PLT extension that should be on the
program disks you have. Try to pick the one that looks like your
plotter's model name or code type. Then run DANCAD3D and select
[C]hange from the main menu and enter that driver filename as your
plotter driver. If the there is no driver that will work on your
plotter you can install the printer manually with [H] [P] [I] from the
main menu. If the plotter driver installation confuses you I will do
it for you if you send all the necessary codes when you order the
registered user outfit. Be sure that you use the DOS MODE command to
set up your serial port, if you are using it, to correspond to the
baud rate that the DIP switches are set to in your plotter.
EXAMPLE: C:\DOS\MODE COM1:9600,N,8,1,P
Q: Why can't I get a screen dump from the drawing editor screen?
A: In order to get a screen dump from the graphics screen you need to
run a TSR program like the DOS GRAPHICS.COM before you run DANCAD3D.
The [D]ot command in the [H]ardcopy menu from the main menu prints
drawings much sharper (about 30 times as sharp) than the screen dump.
The DOS GRAPHICS.COM program that comes with some versions of DOS only
works on the CGA video mode, so you may need to use one of the
substitute screen dump utility programs available from the Public
Domain software or your video board manufacture.
EXAMPLE: C:\DOS\GRAPHICS.COM
Q: Why do I not get the correct characters in the graphics screen for
ASCII codes 128 through 255 (n.b. DANCAD3D v2.5 normally supplies its
own screen fonts for the graphics screen superseding the ROM fonts on
your video board to allow for a fully WYSIWYG display)?
A: On some computers you will need to run the GRAFTABL.COM program
supplied with your computer before running DANCAD3D.
EXAMPLE: C:\DOS\GRAFTABL.COM
Q: How do I spool a PostScript (tm) file to disk so I can take it down
to my local desk top publishing center to print it out?
A: Press [H] [P] [I] and enter ADOBE_PS.LZR as the plotter file to
work on. Press [Return] until you come to the question about the port
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
to use. Enter the name of the file you want the PostScript ASCII data
file to be put in, e.g. OUTPUT.PS. Then press [Return] then [Esc]
then [Y] to overwrite the old ADOBE_PS.LZR file. When you are ready
you can press [H] [L] from the main menu to spool to the designated
file. If you want to make several files remember to change the
designated file or use [F] [R] to rename the last PostScript file
output to a new filename so the file just output will not be over-
written, i.e. [F]iles [R]ename OUTPUT.PS PAGE1.PS. If you are going
to put your PostScript files on a floppy disk it is simpler to
designate the laser printer's driver's port path as something like
A:\OUTPUT.PS and put a blank formatted disk into the A: drive each
time you want to save a PostScript file. The drivers LASERPS1.LZR to
LASERPS5.LZR give progressively heavier lines. On super resolution
devices like the Linotronic 300 you may want to have heavier lines
since the lines will look thinner than on the LaserWriter Plus.
Q: How do I connect a LaserWriter to my PC's serial port?
A: Use a cable that connects the pins as:
PC or XT port 25 pin female <- to -> LaserWriter 25 pin male
pin 2 ------------------------------------- pin 3
pin 3 ------------------------------------- pin 2
pin 7 ------------------------------------- pin 7
pin 5 ------------------------------------- pin 20
AT 9 pin serial port female <- to -> LaserWriter 25 pin male
pin 2 ------------------------------------- pin 2
pin 3 ------------------------------------- pin 3
pin 5 ------------------------------------- pin 7
pin 6 ------------------------------------- pin 20
pin 8 ------------------------------------- pin 20
Set the switch on the LaserWriter to 9600 baud and then issue the
DOS command: MODE COM1:9600,N,8,1,P. Run DANCAD3D, load your drawing
and then select [H]ardcopy [L]aser from the main menu to plot on the
LaserWriter. This may cable wiring also work on other PostScript
compatible laser printers.
Q: How do I avoid time out problems printing large drawings on the
LaserWriter?
A: If your LaserWriter is version 23 or higher and has a ROM made
after April 1986, switch it to 9600 baud and this in from DOS with it
connected and turned on:
EXAMPLE: EXAMPLE: C>COPY CON COM1
serverdict begin 0
exitserver
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
25 9600 4 setsccbatch
^Z
1 file(s) copied
C>
Press the [Return] key at the end of each line. The ^Z means hold
the [Control] key and press [Z]. Wait one minute then turn the
LaserWriter off and then back on. It will now be set to DTR (Data
Terminal Ready) protocol, to return it to the XON\XOFF protocol do the
same thing but change the 4 to a 0.
Q: How do I run the demo files?
A: Enter DEMO1 from DOS directory DC25 (to get into the directory DC25
on your harddisk enter CD C:\DC25 if your harddisk is the C: drive or
CD D:\DC25 if DANCAD3D in on your D: drive harddisk.) The file
DEMO1.BAT will work if you have all of the DANCAD3D files installed
onto your harddisk. The other demo files (i.e. DEMO2.BAT and so on)
work the same way. You can also run the demos from DANCAD3D's main
menu by selecting [R]un from the main menu and entering DEMO1.MAC or
DEMO2.MAC, or DEMO?.MAC and so on.
Q: How do I draw something?
A: Select [D]raw from the main menu. After selecting the view type
([F]ront view to start) select [D]raw lines from the drawing editor
root menu. With the scale set to 240 the reading of the cursor x, y,
and z (at the top of the screen) will read 1 unit equal to 1 inch. To
draw a line press [M]ove and pick the amount you want the cursor to
move each time you press one of the cursor arrow keys or move the
mouse. Then move the cursor the the starting point for a line segment
and press the [.] key or the [Del] key or mouse-trackball's [Right-
Button]. Then move the cursor to the end point for the line segment
and press the [0] key or the [Ins] Key or the mouse-trackball's [Left-
Button] to draw and record the line segment. You can group lines into
elements by selecting [B]egin new (to begin a new element) from the
[E]lements drawing sub-menu or the [D]raw lines sub-menu. Grouping
line segments into different elements makes editing drawings much
easier, and is the basis of DANCAD3D's flexibility. When you start
drawing with an empty workspace the lines you draw will belong to
element number one. If there where any elements in the workspace when
you started drawing, the lines you draw will be appended to the last
element loaded, unless you use the [B]egin new command to start a new
element, i.e. element number two.
Q: How do I control the amount the drawing cursor moves when I move
the mouse or press the cursor keys?
A: While in the [D]rawing sub-menu from [D]raw from the main menu
press [M]ove to set the amount of movement. For instance if you want
to draw to even eights of an inch enter 0.125, or if you want the
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
cursor to move by one thousandths enter 0.001. If you move the mouse
rapidly the cursor will move faster and farther than if you move it
slowly. To measure distances relative to the starting point of the
line segment you are drawing select [D]elta from the drawing screen
menu. To toggle the elastic line that follows the drawing cursor
around select [E]lastic from the drawing editor drawing screen. Since
the mouse and cursor keys can be used in the drawing editor to both
select commands from the menu at the right of the screen and also to
control the drawing cursor you will need to learn to press the mouse
[Center] button (or [SpaceBar] on the keyboard) to select or de-select
the menu selection bar that covers the selected command name in the
drawing editors menu (you can select commands in the menu by pressing
the [key] shown at the beginning of each command name in the menu when
the menu selection bar is off.)
Q: Can I erase any of the lines I have drawn?
A: Yes, just use the commands in the [L]ines sub-menu of the drawing
editor. Be sure that when you mark a line for deletion that it is
actually one line segment and not two line segments end to end on a
single ray. If you get two line segments end to end use the [P]ull
point command in the [L]ines sub-menu to "bend" one of the line
segments so you can see where all the end points are.
Q: How can I zoom in for fine drawing?
A: Press the [+] key until the doted border is around what you want to
see then press the [*] key or [*/PrtSc] key to redraw the screen.
Q: How can I zoom out to see the whole drawing?
A: Press [S]cale and enter the value of the world scale (i.e. 240) you
are using or somewhat less (e.g. 120), then press [*/PrtSc] to redraw
the screen. The [-] key will also let you zoom out, but be sure you
look at the drawing editor scale display (:s) at the top of the screen
when the dotted border gets larger than the area of the workspace that
shows on the screen.
Q: How can I view my 3D drawing in perspective?
A: Press [P]review from the main menu and select the perspective you
want. The Preview command has its own perspective values and scale
that are independent from the display type and scale used in the
drawing editor. The perspective values of rotation and scale entered
with the preview command also control the perspective of the hardcopy
commands and therefore the print quality. Use preview to look at your
drawing before you enter the hardcopy sub-menu to print the drawing
out. You can press the [+] and [-] keys to rotate the object by
redrawing the screen with more or less perspective. Press the
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
[Escape] key while the preview command screen is displayed (after the
re-draw is finished) to have a menu of preview commands pop-up.
Q: How can I print out the drawing I have made?
A: Press [H] [D] [W] from the main menu to print out a drawing that is
in the workspace. Add 90 degrees of rotation in the z axis if you
want to print the drawing out long-ways on the paper. Be sure that
you have installed your printer's *.PRN file with [C]hange from the
main menu. Press [H] [D] [I] to select the port your printer is
attached to. Try the printer driver IBM5152.PRN first if your printer
has 1/216" line feed. If your printer has 1/180" line feed try driver
LQ_1500.PRN. If you have a LaserJet Plus, II, or III compatible
printer the procedure is the same but just use the [J]et sub-sub-menu
rather than the [D]ot sub-sub-menu.
EXAMPLE: 1. Use main menu [C]hange command to install driver name.
2. Use [H] [D] [I] or [H] [J] [I] to install the port name.
3. Load the drawing into the workspace.
4. Use the main menu [P]review command to set perspective.
5. Use [H] [D] [W] or [H] [J] [W] to print the drawing.
Q: How can I plot a drawing of what is in the workspace?
A: Press [H] [P] [P] to plot a drawing. Be sure that you have
installed your plotter's *.PLT file before you try to plot the
drawing. Also remember that you must set up your COM? port with the
DOS MODE command before it can be used (put MODE in your AUTOEXEC.BAT
file so your serial port will be set up automatically when you turn
your computer on.) Press [H] [P] [I] to install the computer port your
plotter is attached to.
EXAMPLE: 1. Use main menu [C]hange command to install driver name.
2. Use [H] [P] [I] from main menu to install the port name.
3. Load the drawing into the workspace.
4. Use the main menu [P]review command to set perspective.
5. Use [H] [P] [P] from main menu to plot the drawing.
Q: How can I plot a drawing that I have loaded into the drawing
workspace on a PostScript (tm) laser printer?
A: Press [H] [L] to laser plot a drawing from DANCAD3D's main menu.
The ADOBE_PS.LZR driver is the default PostScript driver and is
installed for port COM1. You can select an alternative PostScript
driver with the main menu [C]hange command. If you need some port
other that COM1 for your printer press [H] [P] [I] from DANCAD3D's
main menu.
EXAMPLE: 1. If you want some driver other than ADOBE_PS.LZR use the
main menu [C]hange command, else skip to 2.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-80]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
2. Use [H] [P] [I] from the main menu to install the port
name set in driver ADOBE_PS.LZR.
3. Load the drawing to print into the workspace.
4. Use the main menu [P]review command to set perspective.
5. Use [H] [L] to print the drawing.
Q: How can I save everything in the drawing workspace so that I can
continue working on the drawing later?
A: Select [F]iles [S]ave [E]lements from the main menu. The [B]ack-up
command in the drawing editor also saves the elements in the workspace
as a set of elements. DANCAD3D will also prompt you when you [Q]uit
the program from the main menu with [S]ave or [A]bort. If you [S]ave
when you [Q]uit DANCAD3D the workspace will be automatically reloaded
for you when you run DANCAD3D again (if when you get back into
DANCAD3D you do not want the elements that were reloaded you can use
the [I]nitialize command in the main menu to clear and empty the
drawing workspace.)
Q: How can I load a drawing I saved as a set of elements or one of the
automatic backup on exit files?
A: Select [F]iles [L]oad [E]lements from the main menu. The [R]estore
command in the drawing editors [F]iles sub-menu will also load a set
of elements back into the workspace. If any elements are currently in
the workspace the element set loaded will be renumbered starting with
the element number above the element that had the highest number
before the new element set was loaded.
Q: How come I have trouble loading a 3D file from a drawing I made
with DANCAD3D v1.xx into DANCAD3D v2.5x?
A: The old 3D-real file is now referred to as Real-3D, and the 3D
refers to the new 3D-Quick file type. Press [F] [L] [R] from the main
menu to load a 3D file that was drawn with the older version 1.xx of
DANCAD3D. To load a file made with DANCAD3D v1.xx into DANCAD87 v2.5x
you will first load the file into DANCAD3D v2.5x than save the
workspace as an ASCII file in the v2.5x format then load the ASCII
conversion of the Real-3D v1.xx file into DANCAD87 v2.5x as an v2.5x
ASCII file. DANCAD3D v2.0x drawing data files are fully compatible
with DANCAD3D v2.5x (the printer and plotter drivers for v2.5x are
different so you should only use the drivers supplied with v2.5x.)
Q: What features are new to v2.5?
A: Version 2.0 added support for high resolution video modes, and
mice-trackballs to draw with. The macro commands were expanded with
many powerful new commands, conditional branching through the IF THEN
GOTO construct, and the automatic evaluation of expressions and
[DANCAD3D.DOC-81]
[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
equations. The drawing feature called ALIAS files was added to let
you build symbol libraries and load them very rapidly with simple alt-
keystroke commands. A drag feature was added to let you visually
position elements where you want them if you are using a fast
computer. The lettering commands were enhanced to support a library
of font files and a built in font editor lets you make your own
special fonts or type-faces. DANCAD87 was introduced in order to use
the 80x87 math-co-processor.
Version 2.5 broadens the mouse support to most of the program
menus and prompts. DANCAD3D now remembers the filenames, and numbers
you enter at prompts and can store them in special *.STA status files
(you use the [Up-Arrow] and [Down-Arrow] keys at DANCAD3D's entry
prompts to recall previously entered values and filenames.) The file
directory lets you highlight and select filenames with the mouse or
cursor keys so you no longer need to type in filename of files already
saved to disk. You can enter the same global search filename
characters i.e. * and ? in any filename at any filename prompt in
DANCAD3D to get a sorted directory (e.g. enter DEMO????.MAC at a
filename prompt to get the names of all the filenames that start with
DEMO and end with .MAC.) Support for LaserJet Plus, II, and other HP-
PCL code printers has been added. Wide carriage dot matrix printers
are now supported. The plotter driver now has plotable area clipping,
so you can plot close-up views where some line segments of the drawing
fall off of the edge of your plotter paper without the plotter
reporting an error. The Windowing and Fit-curve commands have been
added to the drawing editor. The draw editor now has Isometric and
Oblique views, as well as an adjustable layout grid. The automatic
output macro feature now protects the user from ruining a drawing
because of a mistake with one of the drawing commands (the output
macro also gives some protection against power failure and program
crash as well.) The macro command interpreter now runs up to eight
times faster, and some macro variables can be stored in RAM rather
than on the harddisk (put an | character in front of the variable
name, i.e. |XROT rather than XROT.) A simple text editor has been
added that can let you edit text for the block text command with
foreign language characters that match the characters that will be in
the drawing (the screen font for the simple foreign language text
editor in the Calligraphy sub-menu can be converted into a text file
(with the commands in the Calligraphy sub-menu of the drawing editor)
that you can edit with the Write command to have screen fonts include
any special symbols you may need.) The Animate command has been added
to the main menu Preview command and to the main menu Files sub-menu
to bring all the animation features of DANMOVIE v2.x into DANCAD3D
with the enhancement of now being able to animate up to 999 frames of
continues animation. The 999 frames the Animate command allows for
from one to two minutes on continuous animation to be displayed on
your computers screen (Animate works best if you have several
megabytes of extra memory on your computer to form a RAM disk that the
frame files can be stored in.) Unlike DANMOVIE than stored a limited
number the pixel files in the computers 512KB to 640KB of memory the
Animate command uses your harddisk (or RAM disk) to store up to 999
frame files (you may still want to use DANMOVIE v2.x if you have a
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[ F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S ]
slow harddisk since DANMOVIE can show the frames faster and at a more
even rate (DANMOVIE v2.x comes with the user outfit).) Hundreds of
other small changes in DANCAD3D have been added to make the program
run faster and be easier to use.
Q) I get "snow" in the text editor and some or the other text screens,
is that normal?
A) Some old CGA boards and the cheep CGA clones can have this problem.
I recommend that you buy a Hercules monochrome clone board and a amber
monitor since the text and graphics are much sharper (250560 pixels
for the Hercules, as compared to 128000 pixels for CGA) and Hercules
mono graphics video boards do not normally have snow problems. You
should be able to get a board and monitor for less than $120.
Q) Will DANCAD3D work on my VGA video board?
A) DANCAD3D should work on your VGA video board if your video board
can be made to support the EGA 640 by 350 pixel by 16 color video
mode. DANCAD3D does not currently (Fall of 1990) support the VGA 640
by 480 video mode because there is not enough free memory in the DOS
640KB to store the higher resolution VGA screen for the operation of
DANCAD3D's menus. It is actually to your advantage to use the 640 by
350 video mode since the screen will redraw faster (fewer pixels to
draw makes the redraw faster) which is usually more important when
drawing than the vertical resolution of the screen (DANCAD3D lets you
zoom in and out while drawing to see details so it is important that
the screen redraw as fast as possible.)
Q: If I bought the shareware program from a dealer, why would I also
buy something from the program's author?
A: The shareware version of DANCAD3D for the most part represents a
form of advertising for the shareware author. Unlike some other
shareware authors I have not crippled the shareware version of
DANCAD3D, so you get to try most of the program features. DANCAD3D is
a powerful and feature filled program that it requires more
documentation to be fully used than can fit on the shareware disk set.
Also you may want to help me out (and your self in the process) so I
can continue to make interesting and useful programs like DANCAD3D and
DANCAM available to persons like your self at a reasonable price.
[DANCAD3D.DOC-83]
[ T I P S O N U S I N G D A N C A D 3 D ]
QUICK DISCUSSION OF IDEA
DANCAD3D, like any other tool designed for technically minded
craftsmen, is easier to use once you catch on to the gimmicks of the
trade (i.e. CAD-CAM.) This section discusses some tricks that you can
apply to make your use of DANCAD3D more efficient once you become
familiar with the programs structure.
STEPS TO CARRY OUT IDEA
1. Install DANCAD3D on your harddisk and read the file DANCAD3D.DOC.
2. Carefully read all of DANCAD3D's menus and help screens.
3. Plan your tasks before you begin working on them.
4. Try to keep your drawings and Animations as simple as possible at
first. You will make better progress if you succeed at simple
tasks than if you fail because you "bit off more than you could
chew".
5. Avoid using the commands you do not understand. Try to use only
the simple commands for drawing lines and printing the drawing
that is currently in the workspace. Many of the commands in the
menus are used only for special purposes, do not feel that you
need to use every command just because you see all of them in the
menus! Concentrate on the commands in the [L]ines, [D]raw, and
[E]lements sub-menus of the drawing editor, as well as the [S]ave,
[L]oad, and [H]ardcopy sub-menus of the main menu.
6. If you have specific tasks in engineering and manufacturing that
you are working on you will find that you will learn the less
frequently used commands as you need them. When you have found
that you can use DANCAD3D at least partly in the production of
simple drawings you will probably want to order the full outfit to
have a larger base of examples and explanations to draw knowledge
and gimmicks from. Once you master DANCAD3D, like so many users
have, you will find that it is adaptable to so many tasks that you
will use it in many different ways. Some tasks will involve using
the text editor and others will not, eventually you will grow to
understand that the commands can be used for as many different
purposes as there are different users of DANCAD3D. What you
produce with DANCAD3D will become a reflection of your effort.
DETAILED DISCUSSION OF IDEA
The most important tip I can give you is to make sure that
DANCAD3D is installed properly on your harddisk. You should use the
batch file INSTALL.BAT that comes on the shareware disk set. If the
program will not run after being installed the reason is probably that
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you did not install it properly or you have bad copies of the disks.
If you see the DOS message "Abort, Retry, Ignore" never press any key
other than [R] for Retry. If Retry will not work your disks are bad
and you should get replacements (probably directly from me (at a
charge) since many dealers make copies from disks they did not get
from me.) If you get the DOS error message "Data reading error Drive
C" you harddisk probably needs to be repaired. As mentioned before
the DANCAD3D error message "Run time error F0" means that DANCAD3D is
not properly installed (there are 5 disks in the shareware set) or you
forgot to use the DOS CD command to change to the DC25 directory, i.e.
CD DC25 on the DOS command line before you enter DANCAD3D to run the
program.
GENERAL TIPS ON RUNNING DANCAD3D
When you reboot (turn on) your computer DOS will probably set the
directory of your harddisk to its root directory. In order to run
DANCAD3D you will need to use the DOS CD command to change the
directory to the one DANCAD3D was installed i.e. DC25.
EXAMPLE: C>CD C:\DC25
C>DANCAD3D
Before you can print out drawings made with DANCAD3D you will need
to use the main menu [C]hange command to install the names of the
printer drivers. You can get a listing of the drivers installed in
the sub-directory DC25\DRIVERS by entering a filename with the same
"wild card" characters (i.e. * and ?) that you use with the DOS
commands (e.g. DRIVERS\*.PRN, DRIVERS\*.PLT, DRIVERS\*.JET.) Be sure
that you use the proper driver for your hardware. If you have your
printer or plotter on some port other than the one the driver has
selected you will need to use the [I]nstall command in the [D]ot,
[P]lot, or [J]et sub-menus of the [H]ardcopy sub-menu (the PostScript
drivers are [I]nstalled in the [P]lot sub-menu.)
If you use the serial ports you will need to use the DOS MODE
command as described elsewhere in this file BEFORE you run DANCAD3D to
set up your serial port to match your plotter or printer (probably set
to 9600 baud.) Put the MODE command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file with the
[W]rite command from the main menu. Remember to save the AUTOEXEC.BAT
file back to your harddisk (usually the root directory) before you
press [Control] and [Alt] and [Del] keys on the keyboard! The
AUTOEXEC.BAT file will automatically set-up your serial port(s) every
time you turn your computer on (make sure that you have two serial
ports on your computer if you use a mouse since you cannot share a
serial port with the mouse and printer or plotter.)
From its inception DANCAD3D has been designed to produce tangible
products. When working with DANCAD3D you should look through DANCAD3D
to the end product. What DANCAD3D looks like as a program on the
computer screen is not important since you are not normally showing
DANCAD3D to people, you, rather, are showing the drawings, films, and
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manufactured goods to people. The quality of the finished goods
produced with DANCAD3D, DANCAM, and DANPLOT are as good as most
practical tasks need.
DANCAD3D, DANMOVIE, DANCAM, and DANPLOT can all be run from the
DOS command line. DANCAD3D accepts the name of a macro file from the
DOS command line. DANMOVIE accepts the name of a set of pixel frame
files from the DOS command line. DANCAM and DANPLOT will accept the
name of an ASCII data file that holds the tool path that you want your
machine tool to take from the DOS command line. Because the programs
will accept actuating instructions in the form of data or macro files
you can write DOS batch files that will run DANCAD3D, and DANCAM or
DANPLOT sequentially and automatically. (In the next example the
prompt reads C:\DC25> if you are using the DOS PROMPT command
otherwise the DOS prompt would be C>.)
EXAMPLE: C:\DC25>DANCAD3D OFSZ1MIL.MAC
C:\DC25>DANCAM TPPART07.ASC 1
C:\DC25>DANPLOT TPPART09.ASC 1
C:\DC25>DANMOVIE ANISET01
Always remember that DANCAD3D and the other programs are designed
to run them selves automatically. You do not need (but may want to)
be present for your computer to print dozens of different drawings on
your dot matrix or laser printer. If the program is going to print
ten drawings overnight it does not mater that each takes half an hour
to print since the printer would be idle all night anyway. Likewise
if you are machining parts with DANCAM the time required to
automatically manufacture each part is only important if the machine
has no idle time. My own experience is that manually operated devices
must sit idle most of the day, but automating the devices lets you set
them up and then make parts while you do other things (during the time
when the devices would normally be idle, or to free you from manually
operating the device thereby giving you more goods and more time to do
other things.) I should warn you that letting equipment run unattended
carries a risk of fire or other types of damage. If you plan your
computers time for tasks that will take several hours for when you are
away from the computer doing other things the time required to do the
tasks might as well be instantaneous since you personally spent no
time getting the tasks done (except for perhaps the small amount of
time writing the macro or batch file to execute the task.)
GENERAL TIPS ON USING THE DRAWING EDITOR
One question I have been asked several times is how to visualize
the edge of the paper when working in DANCAD3D's drawing workspace.
The simplest way is just to divide the width and height of the paper
by two and watch the reading of the x, y, and z values at the top of
the drawing screen. An example of centering a drawing on the final
print out for an 8 1/2 by 11 inch page would be to keep the x values
between -4.25 and +4.25, and the y values between -5.50 and +5.50
(note that most printers do not print all the way to the edge of the
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paper, so you will have to allow for the "printable region" that your
printer supports (the printable region may not be symmetrical around
the center of the piece of paper).)
Another trick to center drawings is to use the [R]ectangle command
in the [2]D-Shapes sub-menu of the drawing editor to draw a rectangle
element the size of the paper with the corners of the rectangle at the
appropriate +/- x and y values. After using the [R]ectangle command
be sure to use the [B]egin command in the [E]lements sub-menu before
you start drawing line segments. When you use the [B]egin command the
line segments in the drawing will belong to element #2 and higher,
enabling you to use the [E]rase element command in the [E]lements sub-
menu of the drawing editor to erase the rectangular outline before you
save or print out your drawing.
If your drawing will be a perspective projection of three-
dimensional elements in the workspace the centering of the drawing may
need to be altered for best composition experimentally. The x_shift
and y_shift parameters of the main menu [P]review command let you
slide the drawing around to center the drawing as needed. You can set
all the factors in the [F]actors option from the [P]review command
pop-up menu to the inactive value except one of the shift factors so
you can slide the drawing by pressing the [+] or [-] keys (if you see
that the screen is redrawing off center hit the [SpaceBar], answer [Y]
to abort redraw, then press [P], [F], or [+] or [-] again as needed.)
Another way to center drawings is to use the [O]ffset command from
the main menu's [N]umerical sub-menu or the drawing editors [E]lements
sub-menu. To move all the elements in the drawing at once select
element number 0, and offset the elements from there current position.
You use the main menu [P]review command to find x and y shift values
and then use the x and y shift values you found in the [O]ffset
command to center drawings if the drawings will be printed with the x
and y rotation perspective parameters set to 0 (offsetting elements in
the workspace changes where the line of sight passes through the
elements but this change is only visable if x and y rotations are used
in the printout, you can avoid making the change in the line of sight
visable by saving the workspace as a 2D-Real file, initializing the
workspace, loading the 2D-Real file back in and Offsetting the now 2D
perspective of the 3D elements that were in the workspace.)
Three features of the drawing editor should be kept in mind while
drawing: the Up-date list for the screen redraw, the WYSIWYG toggle,
and the interrupt up-date pop-up menu. The [U]p-date list command in
the drawing editors root menu lets you turn off elements so that they
are not re-drawn when the screen re-draws. You should turn off all
the elements that are not in the part of the drawing you are working
on so the screen will redraw as fast as possible. The [W]YSIWYG
toggle (in the drawing editors [S]et-up sub-menu) should be toggled
off normally and only turned on when you really NEED to see exactly
how thickened line segments and lettering will look in the final print
out. When the WYSIWYG is off thickened lines are drawn as thickness 1
and therefore redraw faster. When you need to move around to another
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part of your drawing you can set the [S]cale to 120 (or whatever will
show the area you want), then press [Z] then press [*]. If you hit
the [SpaceBar] while the screen is redrawing a menu pops up that will
let you have every other line skipped while the screen re-draws.
Usually skipping every other line segment during the screen redraw
will still allow you to see where to put the cursor so you can zoom in
(you zoom in by pressing the [+] key repeatedly and then press the [*]
key when the doted border shows the desired area to fill the screen)
and also save a lot of time since the screen will redraw twice as fast
(you can also abort the redraw from the pop-up menu that comes up when
you press the [SpaceBar] while the drawing editor screen is
redrawing.)
If you are using the automatic output macro while drawing you can
put notes in the output macro by pressing the [;] key (the [;] key
works from most of DANCAD3D's menus.) If you want to mark a spot in
the output macro that you will want to edit later with the text editor
you might enter a comment that has some special character or word in
it thereby giving the search and replace option something unique to
search for, e.g. enter a macro comment like:
{ @$$ Change font above to BLOCK20.FON }
where the @$$ would be what you enter when the search and replace
option asks you what to search for (Search and replace is activated in
the text editor with ^[Q]^[A] (or [Alt][F1]) and stopped by pressing
^[U] (or [Alt][F2].)
If you need come back to a point somewhere in the drawing you can
use the [R]ecord and [J]ump commands. The [R]ecord command should be
used if you need to zoom in to get a very precise position for the
drawing cursor and then zoom out and use the cursor for some other
task, then return to the precise location you first went to and
[R]ecorded. The [J]ump command will return you to the [R]ecorded
precise location much faster than fumbling around with the mouse and
[M]ove command a second time. The [R]ecord and [J]ump commands are
also useful for centering the cursor at different points in the
drawing so you can divide up the drawing into equal sections like
tiles that allow you to redraw close-up views of sub-divisions of the
drawing without thinking about where the cursor should go all the
time.
DANCAD3D can print out drawings with unlimited numbers of line
segments, but you will need to divide the drawing into sections that
can be held in the workspace. Dividing the drawing into sections that
can be held in the workspace is not normally a problem since the
workspace holds about 10,000 line segments at once. One simple way to
divide your drawing is to start the drawing by drawing the basic
skeleton (the skeleton can be the drawing made up to the point that
curves and lettering are to be added, that is less than 2000 mostly
long straight line segments) and then saving the skeleton to disk.
You can load the skeleton element and draw over it until the workspace
is full then save the workspace as a set of elements, initialize, load
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the skeleton element again and draw some more until the workspace is
full and repeat the process until the drawing is finished. Although
this method takes some thought it allows the program to work much
faster since only the lines in the workspace need to be drawn to the
screen. After you have built up a collection of sets of Elements
files on your harddisk that all belong to one drawing, you can use
these following procedures for printing the sets of Elements on your
dot matrix printer or HP-PCL type laser printer:
1. Make a Page file with the [M]ake page command (The commands in the
[D]ot and [J]et sub-menus of the [H]ardcopy sub-menu are very
similar but should only be used with their corresponding *.PRN or
*.JET drivers.) With the commands in the [J]et sub-menu of the
[H]ardcopy sub-menu of the main menu you must first install the
proper LaserJet type driver by using the main menu [C]hange
command.
2. Initialize the workspace with the [I]nitialize command.
3. Load a set of elements.
4. Add the lines in the workspace to the page file you made in step
1. above with the [A]dd line segments to page command.
5. Repeat steps 2. through 4. until all the element sets have been
added to the page file on your harddisk.
6. Use the [P]rint command to print the page file you added all the
line segments to.
The steps for printing unlimited numbers of line segments to a
plotter or PostScript laser printer are:
1. Use the [I]nstall command in the [P]lot sub-menu of the [H]ardcopy
sub-menu to prepare three drivers for your plotter, the first
should initialize the plotter, plot lines, but not eject the page,
the second driver should only plot lines, and the third driver
should plot lines, then send the pen home and eject the page. For
PostScript plotters the drivers FIRST.LZR, MIDDLE.LZR, and
LAST.LZR are supplied on the disks you have.
2. Initialize the workspace with the [I]nitialize command.
3. Load a set of elements.
4. Plot the elements in the workspace using the [P]lot command in the
[P]lot sub-menu of the [H]ardcopy sub-menu. Remember to use the
first driver for the first plot, the second driver for next plots
except the last plot, and the third driver for the last plot. Not
all plotters need three drivers, for instance most flat bed
plotters have no problems with being initialized and sent home for
each plot since the paper cannot louse register.
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5. Repeat steps 2. through 4. until all the element sets have been
added to the page file on your harddisk.
6. Remove the finished drawing from your plotter.
I should mention that you should not use thickened lines in
drawings that will be plotted on a mechanical pen plotter since the
pen tends to poke holes in the drawing! It is better to control the
line width in pen plotters by selecting different with pens by using
the line color line attribute (the pens in your plotter can be any
color or width you want since the color numbers of the line color
attribute in DANCAD3D are only numbers between 1 and 127 and can stand
for any type of pen you want to use since the color number is just
passed to your plotters pen changer.)
CLOSING COMMENT FOR SHAREWARE DOCUMENTATION
As a closing comment I would like to say that I hope you enjoy
using DANCAD3D and are able to get some practical work accomplished
with it. I always enjoy hearing from users of DANCAD3D and seeing
what kind of tasks they are putting DANCAD3D to. Over the last five
years DANCAD3D has evolved into an interesting and in some respects
unique tool that has taken on a life of its own and has become
independent of my direct control. Please let me apologize if you have
any problems with the copy of the program you got from a third party
(if the program is not working it is not because I have purposefully
sent defective copy to the distributor to make you register, on the
contrary I have carefully tested the master disks that I have sent to
the distributors to insure that as much as I can that the disks you
get will be exact copies of my set of master shareware disks
(unfortunately not all distributors write to me for a set of the
current master disks).) Feel free to write to me if you are having
problems or just have some comments or suggestions. In the past I
have answered every letter I have received but the cost of postage and
material in answering so many letters of inquiry (I get about 30
letters asking questions for each order for the outfit) has absorbed
most of my profit (sending several sheets in a letter to Australia
costs $.90 in postage) from the sales of the outfit. So feel free to
write, but PLEASE send some stamps or international postal vouchers
for the return postage! Please help more people learn about DANCAD3D
by sharing good copies of these five shareware disks. Until we work
together again, best wishes for happy computing from the author of
DANCAD3D.
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Very nice! Thank you for this wonderful archive. I wonder why I found it only now. Long live the BBS file archives!
This is so awesome! 😀 I’d be cool if you could download an entire archive of this at once, though.
But one thing that puzzles me is the “mtswslnkmcjklsdlsbdmMICROSOFT” string. There is an article about it here. It is definitely worth a read: http://www.os2museum.com/wp/mtswslnk/