2. In the Style Name drop-down list, select each style in turn to see what text styles have been created in this drawing.
Note the font name and look at the Preview panel to get a feel for what the different fonts look like.
3. If you find a suitable text style, select it in the Style Name drop-down list and then skip to Step 9.
What constitutes a suitable text style depends on industry practices, office standards, and personal preferences about how the text should look. The information in preceding sections may help you decide. If not, ask an experienced drafter in your office or look at some printed drawings and try to match the text on those.
The selected text style name becomes the current style.
4. If you don’t find a suitable text style, or if you prefer to create your own text style, click New.
The New Text Style dialog box appears, with an edit box for you to type a name.
5. Type a name for your new text style and then click OK.
Your new text style is added to the Style Name list and becomes the current style.
6. Choose a font from the Font Name list.
ROMANS.SHX is the best all-purpose font for most drafting work. If you’d like to use a different font, review the font suggestions and warnings in the previous section.
The font that you choose becomes the font that’s assigned to your new text style.
7. Set the remaining text style settings as shown in Figure 9-1: Height=0.0, Width Factor=1.0, Oblique Angle=0.0, and all four check boxes unchecked.
A text style height of 0.0 makes the style
8. Click Apply.
9. Click Close.
The Text Style dialog box closes, and the text style that you selected or created is now the current style for new text objects.
In Chapter 3, I describe the importance of choosing an appropriate drawing scale when you set up a drawing. I warn you that you need to know the drawing scale factor for tasks described in other chapters of this book. This is one of those chapters, and I’m about to explain one of those tasks!
Drawing scale
One of the things that distinguishes knowledgeable CAD users is that they
“Why do I need to know the drawing scale factor in order to draw text?,” you may ask — especially if you’ve spent time “on the boards,” as we grizzled old-timers like to call manual drafting. You need to know the drawing scale factor because you handle scaling of objects and text in CAD opposite from the way you do in manual drafting.
In manual drafting, you squeeze real-world objects (the building, widget, or whatever) down by a specific scale factor, like 10 or 48, so that they fit nicely on a sheet of paper. Naturally, you always draw text the size that you want it to appear on the paper (for example, ? inch or 3 mm high), regardless of the scale of the drawing.
In CAD drafting, you draw objects as if they were at their actual size. Then, when you plot, you shrink — or, if you make drawings of tiny things such as microprocessor circuitry, expand — the entire drawing by that same scale factor (for example, 10 or 48) to fit on the paper. When you shrink the whole drawing to fit on the paper, text shrinks, too. To avoid indecipherably small text, or incredibly large text, you must create text at a size that’s scaled appropriately by the drawing scale factor. (If you’re an architect, imagine that your text is neon lettering on the side of the building. If you’re a mechanical designer, think of a brand name stamped on the side of a screw.)
For example, assume that someone has drawn a widget at a scale of 1:20 (corresponding to a drawing scale factor of 20), and you want your notes to appear 3 mm high when the drawing is plotted to scale. You need to create text that’s 20 times 3 mm, or 60 mm, high. In a building plan drawn at a scale of ?”=1’–0” (drawing scale factor equals 48), text that will appear ? inch when plotted needs to be ? inch times 48, or 6 inches, high.
This “tiny text”/“enormous text” approach seems peculiar at first, especially if you were schooled in manual drafting. But it’s a consequence of CAD’s ability to let you draw and measure the geometry in real-world units. After all, the geometry of what you’re representing, not the ancillary notes, usually is the main point of the drawing.
Most industries have plotted text height standards. A plotted text height of ? inch or 3 mm is common for notes. Some companies use slightly smaller heights (for example, 3?32 inch or 2.5 mm) to squeeze more text into small spaces.
To calculate AutoCAD text height, you need to know the drawing scale factor, the desired plotted text height, and the location of the multiplication button on your calculator. Use the following steps to figure out text height:
1. Determine the drawing’s drawing scale factor.
If you set up the drawing, you should know its drawing scale, as described in Chapter 3. If someone else set up the drawing, try the suggestions in the sidebar, “Figuring out a drawing’s scale factor.”
2. Determine the height that your notes should appear when you plot the drawing to scale.
See the “Plotted text height” section for suggestions.
3. Multiply the numbers that you figured out in Steps 1 and 2.
Table 9-1 lists some common drawing scales and text heights for drawings in imperial and metric units. You should know how to calculate the drawing scale factors and text heights, but you’re allowed to use the table to check your work. (Hint: Multiply the number in the second column by the number in the third column to get the number in the fourth column!) The Cheat Sheet tables include some additional drawing scales and text heights.
Table 9-1 Common Drawing Scales and Text Heights
| Drawing Scale | Drawing Scale Factor | Plotted Text Height | AutoCAD Text Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| ?” = 1’–0” | 96 | ?” | 12” |
