When entering parameters and commands in AutoCAD on the command line, the full name or its abbreviation can be digitized. Here’s is how to go deeper into these parameters that help us go faster in the design of our projects. Lets take a look to some abbreviations and command keyboards in AutoCAD software.
AutoCAD shortcuts
AutoCAD like other software, has hotkeys for all its functions, commands and methods. It‘s not about memorizing all of them, but rather about at least knowing and managing the most used ones.
Every time a new or existing drawing is opened, AutoCAD searches the support path and reads the first acad.pgp file it finds. This file can be edited directly with the notepad or by accessing by AutoCAD in Manage – Customization – Edit Aliases. In this file you can see all the “aliases” or hot keys of AutoCAD.
Below are the most common abbreviations for any design and therefore those that are most recommended to save time. Choose the commands that you use the most:
Create and Modify Elements
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CS – When an element is selected, creates a new similar element
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DL – Create detail lines
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DR – Create Door
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M + Space – Match properties
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MV – Move
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UP – Unpin
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RM – Create room
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RT – Insert room tag
- SL – Split elements
Select Elements
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Arrow Keys – Nudges the selected element
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Shift + Arrow – Nudges the selected element 10x.
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CTRL – Select multiple elements
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MD – Activate the Modify tool
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TAB – Cycle through multiple overlapping elements
- SHIFT + TAB – Reverse the order of TAB cycling
Views
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HI – Isolate element
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HH – Hide element
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HC – Hide category
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SD – Shaded with edges
- TL – Thin Lines
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VV – Visibility / Graphics dialog for the current view
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WF – Wire frame
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ZE – Zoom to fit
SHIFT + Middle Mouse – Orbit in 3D views or pan in 2D views. Selecting an object before pressing SHIFT + Middle Mouse will cause the orbit to rotate around the selected object.
File Operations
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CTRL + O – Open a new file
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CTRL + N – Create a new project file
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CTRL + S – Save the current file
Miscellaneous
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ALT – Activates the keyboard designation for all the items on the interface. Might be useful if your mouse kicks the bucket before you’ve saved your file.
You have a lot of flexibility assigning shortcuts. A single command can have multiple shortcuts. Likewise, a single shortcut can be used on multiple commands.
Some custom shortcuts you might want to consider are:
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33 – Default 3D View
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AA – Activate view
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DD – Deactivate view
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JJ – Join geometry
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ML – Manage Links
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MM – Macro Manager
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SAV – Select all instances in view
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SAS – Select all instances in project
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WS – Worksets
- WW – Create walls
How to repeat the last AutoCAD command?
You can repeat the command that was last used, or select from a list of recently used commands.
To repeat commands, do any of the following
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Right-click in the drawing, and click Repeat [Last Command].
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Right-click in the drawing, and click Recent Commands
<Command Name>. Recently used commands are options as shown here. A maximum of five recent commands display in the list.
Note: The following are not available from the recent commands list: tool settings, in-canvas and view commands, modify, redo/undo, copy/cut/paste, finish/cancel, and some Options Bar commands.
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Press Enter to invoke the last-used command.
- Assign a keyboard shortcut for Repeat Last Command.
Use AutoCAD Shortcuts, Maximize Efficiency
That is all you need to know about AutoCAD shortcuts. Remember all the advantages that this process is capable of bringing to your business. These tips on using AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts will help you work more efficiently in AutoCAD. While it takes some extra time to master AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts at first, once you get the hang on things, you’ll never look back and enjoy the extra time you’ll save.
