Autodesk AutoSketch 10, Commercial Full, EN 003A1-091111-1001 User Manual

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Chapter 3

AutoSketch Basics

Drawing scale is the ratio between the actual size of the entities in a drawing 
and their size on printed output. In conventional drafting, you scale the 
components of a drawing by using an architectural or engineering scale. In 
AutoSketch, you simply enter the actual (world) size of an entity, and the 
software keeps track of the scale for you. 

You can create 1:1 drawings in AutoSketch without regard for scale. Specify-
ing a drawing scale, however, has two important benefits. It allows 
AutoSketch to accurately depict how your drawing will look on a printed 
page. It also allows you to specify entities such as text, markers, and dimen-
sions by output size.

Any output you plan to measure with an architectural or engineering scale 
must be printed to scale. When you create scaled output, you can print the 
entire drawing or a portion of the drawing. The scale used when printing is 
the current drawing scale.

Coordinates are numbers that specify the location of one point in relation to 
another. This relationship is classified as either absolute or relative. 

Absolute coordinates reference the origin of whatever coordinate system is 
currently being used (for example, the drawing origin or the grid origin). 

Relative coordinates reference the last point you entered. They are useful 
when you want to draw or place another entity a known distance from 
another entity or point.

AutoSketch expresses location in three ways: xy (Cartesian), polar, and 
isometric coordinates. X- and y-coordinates express location in terms of 
horizontal and vertical distances from another point. Polar coordinates 
express location in terms of distance (radius) and angle. For example, the xy 
coordinates 7,5 are equivalent to the polar coordinates 8.6,35.5.

Isometric coordinates add a third axis (z) to the expression. Isometric draw-
ings are often used to create two-dimensional views of a three-dimensional 
object.