AutoCAD 2025 Best Practices, Tips, and Techniques: Boost productivity with interface tips, dynamic blocks, annotations, customizations, and more

Make AutoCAD work for you with the help of a CAD productivity expert and master techniques that would take years to learn on your own in this part-color guide

Key Features

• Discover new ways to use common commands to improve your productivity in AutoCAD
• Learn how to customize your AutoCAD environment to fit your workflow
• Automate routine tasks to streamline your AutoCAD processes
• Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free PDF eBook

Book Description

Learning AutoCAD can be overwhelming, and even years of experience might not uncover all that it has to offer. Internationally renowned CAD expert Jeanne Aarhus condenses her extensive experience of over 35 years into many manageable AutoCAD tips and techniques in this guide. Through engaging, easy-to-follow exercise illustrated with real-world examples, you’ll uncover insider knowledge to master AutoCAD’s features.

This book provides insights into interface navigation, keyboard shortcuts, blocks, layers, annotation, dimensions, tables, and hidden commands that can significantly streamline your workflow. No matter your experience level, you’ll learn how to make AutoCAD work for you, not the other way around. You’ll also be able to leverage system variables that can affect how your AutoCAD responds. Aarhus guides you through specific commands and best practices to improve your understanding of AutoCAD’s features, helping you standardize your environment, with practical suggestions and customizations.

By the end of this book, you’ll have transformed your daily use of AutoCAD with practical advice to apply new methods to improve your productivity.

What you will learn

• Recognize hidden features in commonly used commands
• Explore innovative methods to make AutoCAD streamline your work for you
• Complete AutoCAD tasks in fewer steps using dynamic blocks and customizations
• Gain insider tips from AutoCAD veterans and gurus, saving you years of trial and error
• Use underutilized features of AutoCAD such as tables for data import and export
• Control how AutoCAD responds to your daily workflow and real-world environment

Who this book is for

If you are an intermediate user with a solid understanding of AutoCAD basics and want to become the go-to person in your organization, this book is for you. Whether you’re a designer, engineer, or CAD manager, this book offers valuable insights to elevate your AutoCAD skills to a level typically attained after years of experience.

Table of Contents

1. Using All of the AutoCAD Interface
2. Using More of the AutoCAD Interface
3. Taking Advantage of Annotation
4. Making the Most of Dimensions
5. Making Tables Work for You
6. Discover More About Blocks
7. Discover the New Block Tools
8. Learn to Automate with Dynamic Blocks
9. Taking Layers to the Next Level
10. Enhance Your Knowledge of Reference Files
11. Enforcing Your CAD Standards
12. Making the Most of Common Commands
13. Using Commands to Improve Performance

Jeanne Aarhus has been involved in computer-aided design for more than 40 years. During this time she has been a designer, trainer, administrator, programmer, and consultant using both Autodesk and Bentley products. She is known for keeping her presentations fast-moving and fun, while providing a thorough understanding of the topic. Her specialty is in providing users with the necessary tools for increasing productivity and getting the job done as efficiently as possible, and she continues to focus on maximizing the user's time and efficiency. Jeanne is a graduate of the University of Nebraska and has been certified in all levels of MicroStation and AutoCAD, which enables her to assist users in moving from one CAD environment to another easily and proficiently. She has worked in both private and government sectors, and she currently is self-employed and works as a consultant using both Autodesk and Bentley products.