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Text File | 1990-09-21 | 107.0 KB | 2,795 lines |
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- DRAFT CHOICE
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- Version 1.5
- September 1990
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- TRIUS Inc.
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- 231 Sutton Street, Suite 2D-3
- P.O. Box 249
- North Andover, MA 01845-1639
- Tel. (508) 794-9377
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- (C) Copyright 1988, 1989, 1990
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- COPYRIGHT NOTICE
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- The DRAFT CHOICE Product is NOT "Public Domain" and it is NOT
- "Freeware". DRAFT CHOICE is a copyrighted software product developed
- and owned by TRIUS, Inc. located in North Andover, Massachusetts,
- U.S.A.
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- You may make and keep back-up copies of the software for your personal
- use, provided that you copy all the copyright, trademark, and other
- information indicated on the initial screen display, on each backup
- copy label.
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- The rights to receive any financial or other benefit, and to modify
- the product or employ its components in any kind of derivative work,
- are reserved exclusively by TRIUS, Inc.
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- You may not reverse-engineer, disassemble, modify, decompile or create
- derivative works of the product. You acknowledge that the product
- includes certain trade secrets and confidential information, all of
- which is the copyrighted intellectual property of TRIUS, Inc.
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- DRAFT CHOICE is a trademark of TRIUS Inc. and the TRIUS Logo is a
- trademark of TRIUS, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide.
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- The DRAFT CHOICE User's Manual is copyrighted and all rights are
- reserved. The reproduction of this document, in whole or part, or its
- conversion to electronic medium are prohibited unless prior consent,
- in writing, has been given by TRIUS, Inc.
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- EPSON is a trademark of Epson America Inc.
- IBM is a trademark of International Business Machines, Inc.
- LOTUS 1-2-3 is a trademark of Lotus Development Corporation
- HERCULES is a trademark of Hercules Corporation
- MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
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- Additions and modifications to this program and the manual may be made
- periodically as needed and they should be considered additions to the
- material presented herein.
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- LIMITED WARRANTY
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- This program is provided on an "as is" basis without warranty of any
- kind, expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied
- warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.
- The entire risk as to quality and performance of these programs is
- with you. Should the program prove defective, you (not TRIUS, Inc.)
- assume the entire cost of all necessary repair, servicing, or
- correction. In no event will TRIUS, Inc. be liable to you for any
- damages, including any lost profits, lost savings, or other incidental
- or consequential damages arising out of the use or inability to use
- these programs, even if TRIUS, Inc. has been advised of the
- possibility of such damages. This warranty gives you specific legal
- rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to
- state. Some states do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties
- or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages so
- the above may not apply to you. You acknowledge that you have read
- this agreement, understand it, and agree to be bound by its terms and
- conditions. You further agree that it is the complete and exclusive
- statement of the agreement between us, which supersedes any proposal
- or prior agreement, oral or written, and any other communications
- between us.
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- TABLE OF CONTENTS
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- Page
- COPYRIGHT NOTICE
- LIMITED WARRANTY
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- INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
- THE SHAREWARE CONCEPT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
- WHAT'S ON THE DISKETTE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
- GRAPHICS BOARDS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
- MEMORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
- MOUSE INTERFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
- INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
- MAKING A WORKING DISK/DIRECTORY . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
- COMMAND LINE SWITCH OPTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
- CURSOR MOVEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
- KEYBOARD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
- MOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
- PROGRAM INTERFACES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
- MAIN MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
- DROP DOWN MENUS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
- INPUT WINDOW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
- DIALOG BOX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
- REFERENCE MARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
- ENTERING COORDINATES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
- FUNCTION KEYS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
- LEAVING THE PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
- DRAFT CHOICE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
- DRAW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
- ARC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
- [OTHER] ARROW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
- [OTHER] BEZIER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
- BOX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
- CIRCLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
- [OTHER] COMPLEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
- [OTHER] FREEHAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
- LINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
- [OTHER] MARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
- [OTHER] PARAMETRIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
- POLYGON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
- [OTHER] SPLINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
- TEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
- EDIT COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
- OBJECT SELECTION METHOD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
- [OTHER] ARRAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
- [OTHER] BREAK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
- COPY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
- ERASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
- [OTHER] EXPLODE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
- FILLET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
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- [OTHER] FIT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
- [OTHER] MIRROR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
- MOVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
- ROTATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
- [OTHER] RUBBER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
- SCALE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
- [OTHER] TRIM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
- UNDO! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
- XTEND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- ALTER COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- DOUBLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- FILL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- JOIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- MODIFY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
- STYLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
- TEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
- UNITS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
- IMAGE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
- DOUBLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
- HALF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
- LAST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
- PAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
- UPDATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
- WINDOW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
- ZOOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
- OPTION COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
- ATTACH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
- DEFAULT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
- FILL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
- GRID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
- MACRO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
- STYLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
- TOGGLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
- UNITS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
- PLOT COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
- [SETUP] CODES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
- [SETUP] DEVICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
- EJECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
- GO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
- IMAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
- [SETUP] OUTPUT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
- [SETUP] SERIAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
- FILE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
- CONFIG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
- ERASE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
- IMPORT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
- LOAD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
- NEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
- OSHELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
- SAVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
- XTRACT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
- SYMBOL COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
- ANIMATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
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- [ANIMATE] GET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
- [ANIMATE] PLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
- [ANIMATE] RESET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- [ANIMATE] STEP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- DELETE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- EXPLODE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- FONT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- [FONT] ALT-READ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
- [FONT] MAKE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
- [FONT] READ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
- [FONT] WRITE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
- MAKE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- RESET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- USE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- MEASURE COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- ANGLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- BOUNDARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
- COORDINATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- DIAMETER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- DIMENSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- LEADER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- [QUERY] ANGLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- [QUERY] AREA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- [QUERY] LENGTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
- [QUERY] OBJECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- RADIUS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- LAYER COMMANDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- ACTIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- COLOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- DISPLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
- MOVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
- PROTECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
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- INTRODUCTION
- ------------
- Computer Aided Design (CAD) programs have evolved from simple
- mainframe computer tools to powerful design and engineering
- environments for PCs, available to amateurs and experts alike.
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- DRAFT CHOICE is an inexpensive alternative to packages that cost
- hundreds, even thousands, of dollars and is being accepted as the
- design tool of choice. DRAFT CHOICE's popularity is due to the
- following:
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- Low Price: For a small investment you get a tool that makes
- drawing and designing a joy.
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- Power: With DRAFT CHOICE's editing and Auto-Dimensioning
- capabilities, design and engineering drawings can be
- easily created and checked by computer.
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- Flexibility: Dynamically modify your drawings until you get the
- results you desire. Say goodbye to messy erasing
- and redrawing.
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- Time Saving: Frequently used combinations of entities can be
- turned into reusable symbols to save time and
- memory.
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- Versatility: High quality drawings may be produced on 9-pin and
- 24-pin printers, laserjet printers and HPGL
- compatible pen plotters.
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- Support: TRIUS' development and technical support teams are
- always available to answer your questions and help
- you squeeze the most out of DRAFT CHOICE.
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- Compatibility: Bonus utility programs make translation back and
- forth from AUTOCAD files to DRAFT CHOICE files a
- breeze.
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- Simple DRAFT CHOICE requires only the bare minimum of
- Requirements: hardware. A PC compatible with 320K RAM, a
- Hercules, CGA, EGA, VGA, or AT&T monitor, and a
- 9-pin dot matrix printer are all you need to start
- enjoying the benefits of the program.
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- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 1
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- Expanded Draft Choice incorporates an amazing new technology
- Memory: that permits your drawings to use either EMS or
- emulate EMS with your hard drive, thus making it
- possible to create large-size (many entities)
- drawings.
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- This on-disk manual is written and designed to help you get the most
- out of DRAFT CHOICE while explaining some basic CAD concepts.
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- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 2
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- THE SHAREWARE CONCEPT
- ---------------------
- Shareware is a marketing concept which allows you to review and
- evaluate software without having paid for it first. If you don't like
- the software, don't use it. However if you do find the software
- useful, register to support continued product development and
- enhancement and of course to get a few things in return.
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- Registration entitles you to the latest version of the program, a
- printed manual, font and help files, example drawings, symbol
- libraries and update notifications.
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- Does this concept work? Yes and that's why the quality of shareware
- products gets better with each registration. Every registration we
- receive provides us with powerful motivation to continue improving our
- software.
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- DRAFT CHOICE is distributed under the shareware concept. You may copy
- the program (but NOT THE MANUAL OR UTILITY DISK) and give it to your
- friends or colleagues for their evaluation.
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- If you encounter problems with our program, please contact us and we
- will do our best to help you.
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- WHAT'S ON THE DISKETTES
- -----------------------
- The READ.ME file, provided on the DRAFT CHOICE program diskette,
- contains last minute news about the program, important information
- that did not make it into the manual, and a brief description
- of the files on the DRAFT CHOICE diskettes.
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- To view the READ.ME file on your screen, use the command TYPE from the
- DOS prompt:
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- A>TYPE READ.ME [ENTER]
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- To print the contents of the READ.ME file on your printer, use the
- command:
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- A>COPY READ.ME PRN [ENTER]
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- GRAPHICS BOARDS
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- DRAFT CHOICE works extremely well with basic PC systems. All you need
- is an IBM PC or compatible computer with a graphics board from the
- following list (and the corresponding monitor).
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- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 3
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- MNEMONIC GRAPHICS BOARD PIXEL RESOLUTION
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- CGA Color Graphics Adaptor 640x200--mono
- EGA Enhanced Graphics Adaptor 640x350--16 colors
- HGA Hercules Graphics Adaptor 720x348--mono
- ATT ATT Graphics Board 640x400--mono
- VGA Video Graphics Array 640x400--16 colors
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- The color assignment on a color monitor is as follows:
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- 0 - Black 4 - Red 8 - Dark Gray 12 - Light Red
- 1 - Blue 5 - Magenta 9 - Light Blue 13 - Light Magenta
- 2 - Green 6 - Brown 10 - Light Green 14 - Yellow
- 3 - Cyan 7 - Light Gray 11 - Light Cyan 15 - White
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- MEMORY
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- DRAFT CHOICE requires a minimum of 320K to operate. On a 640K machine
- operating under DOS 3.0, you should have approximately 200K of memory
- to use for your drawings. This corresponds approximately to a drawing
- composed of over 6000 individual elements (lines, circles etc). An
- average B size drawing might be made up of several hundred elements so
- you should clearly have plenty of room for your drawing(s).
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- Starting with Version 1.5, expanded memory is automatically detected
- and used by the program. If you don't have EMS, a hard disk or
- diskette may be used to simulate EMS RAM (see section on command line
- switches).
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- MOUSE INTERFACE
- ---------------
- If you want, you may select to use one of several different digitizing
- tablets and mice with DRAFT CHOICE. Most such devices connect to a
- serial I/O (Input/Output) port (usually COM1, i.e., the first
- communications port).
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- In the current version of the program, a digitizing tablet operates in
- the same mode as a mouse, therefore only the description of the mouse
- operation is treated in this section.
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- To attach the mouse to your computer, simply plug the mouse into the
- serial port (a 25 pin RS232C connector or a 9 pin mini-connector).
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- Next, install the mouse driver. A mouse driver is a small memory-
- resident program included with your mouse when it was purchased.
- There are normally two types of mouse drivers. One is loaded as a
- device through the CONFIG.SYS file, while the other can be installed
- at any time from the DOS prompt. DRAFT CHOICE works with both types
- of mouse drivers. (Refer to your mouse's operating manual for details
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- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 4
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- on how to install each type of driver).
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- The mouse driver provides a standard interface which permits different
- programs to interact with different mice. As an example, MOUSE
- SYSTEMS CORP. provides an optical mouse (with no moving parts) called
- the PC MOUSETM . The driver provided with this mouse is called
- MSMOUSE.COM.
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- Execute the driver from DOS by typing MSMOUSE and pressing [ENTER]. A
- message will be displayed which states that the mouse driver has been
- successfully loaded. That's all you have to do to make a mouse work
- with DRAFT CHOICE. If the mouse driver was successfully loaded, you
- will see the mouse pointer immediately upon entering DRAFT CHOICE.
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- NOTE: Variations in mouse names and operation do exist. The
- name of your mouse driver and installation procedures
- should be explained in the documentation that came with
- your mouse.
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- INSTALLATION
- ------------
- The DRAFT CHOICE program does not have a complicated installation
- process. Setting up to run on your system simply consists of copying
- the files to a working diskette or a subdirectory on your hard disk.
- Alternatively, you may use the SETUP program provided with DRAFT
- CHOICE, which does the same thing.
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- MAKING A WORKING DISK/DIRECTORY
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- Before using DRAFT CHOICE, we recommend that a working copy of the
- program be made either on your hard disk or on a separate floppy
- diskette. The SETUP.BAT file provided on the DRAFT CHOICE diskette
- makes the process simple. It will transfer the necessary files from
- the original diskette to your working disk/directory. There are no
- copy protection schemes or hidden files to wrestle with.
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- To make a working copy of the program, place the original diskette in
- drive A, and enter the command at the DOS prompt:
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- SETUP X:\Dir1\Dir2
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- where:
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- X: - Identifies the drive where the working copy will
- be placed, and
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- \Dir1\Dir2 - Identifies the directory on the specified disk
- (directories are normally used only on hard disks).
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- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 5
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- NOTES: 1. If you are making a working copy on a floppy disk,
- the diskette must first be formatted.
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- 2. If you are making a working copy on a hard disk, the
- specified directory must already exist.
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- For example, to make a working copy of DRAFT CHOICE on a floppy disk
- in drive B: you would enter:
- SETUP B: (.. and press [ENTER] ..)
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- To make a working copy on drive C: in a directory named DRAFTC, you
- would enter:
- SETUP C:\DRAFTC (.. and press [ENTER] ..)
- When the setup operation is complete, the DOS prompt will reappear on
- your screen. Place the original diskette in a safe place. If your
- working diskette later becomes damaged, repeat the above process to
- make a new working disk.
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- COMMAND LINE SWITCH OPTIONS
- ---------------------------
- No hardware configuration is required when executing DRAFT CHOICE.
- However, to take advantage of the higher resolutions and startup
- options the program may be started with one or more command line
- switches.
-
- DRAFTC /Switch 1/Switch 2.../Switch n [ENTER]
-
- The following command line switches are available in DRAFT CHOICE:
-
- /ATT - AT&T Monitor/Card
- /E - EGA Monitor/Card
- /EV - VGA Monitor/Card (640x480)
- /H - Hercules/Card
- /MONO - Use only two colors B&W mode
- /NE - Don't use Expanded Memory
- /NT - Disable the Turbo Cursor Feature
- /SET=NN - Set color to NN
- /VM=XXX - Use Virtual Disk Memory in 16K pages (limit = 256 pages)
- /V1 - Special VGA/CGA Mode
- /YD=NNN - Plotter Buffer Delay (milliseconds)
- /FNT=fontname; - Load a new Default Font File
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 6
-
-
- CURSOR MOVEMENT
- ---------------
- KEYBOARD
- --------
- The keyboard cursor keys can be used easily to navigate the pointing
- cursor around the screen. A menu or command can be selected by
- pressing the first letter of the command or by moving the pointer on
- top of the command and pressing the ENTER key. The following keys
- may be used to manipulate the cursor.
-
- UP - move the cursor one step upwards
- DOWN - move the cursor one step downwards
- LEFT - move the cursor one step to the left
- RIGHT - move the cursor one step to the right
- PGUP - Increase the step size 2 times the previous step
- PGDN - Restore the step size to 1 pixel of movement
- ENTER - Select a command, or indicate a reference point
- ESC - Cancel a command, exit a menu, or cancel a point.
-
- Keeping the UP, DOWN, LEFT, or RIGHT cursor keys depressed will cause
- the cursor to accelerate in the desired direction. Tapping the keys
- will move the cursor one step at a time.
-
-
- MOUSE
- -----
- Some mice have three buttons. DRAFT CHOICE, however, only uses two
- buttons on the mouse. They are the LEFT button which is functionally
- equivalent to the [ENTER] key on the keyboard (see above key
- explanation) and the MIDDLE or RIGHT mouse buttons which both
- represent the [ESC] key (see above). You can use either the keyboard
- or the mouse equivalents interchangeably.
-
- PROGRAM INTERFACES
- ------------------
- MAIN MENU
- ---------
- The DRAFT CHOICE interface consists of a line of main menu selections
- across the top line of the screen. A menu item may be selected by
- either typing the first letter of the menu item or by moving the
- pointer up to the top line, highlighting the item, and then pressing
- ENTER.
-
- The main menu items have the following names:
-
- DRAW - Drawing objects (Line, Circles...)
- EDIT - Editing features (Copy, Move ...)
- ALTER - Modify attributes of entities
- IMAGE - Image zooming features (Update, Window, Half...)
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 7
-
-
- OPTION - Global defaults (Grid, Toggles, Fill, Style...)
- PLOT - Print drawing/picture (Go, Image, Setup..)
- FILE - File handling (Load, Save, Import, Xport...)
- SYMBOL - Group and name objects and use as symbols
- MEASURE - Determine lengths, angles, areas
- LAYER - Select active layer, set colors, protection, etc.
- QUIT - Exit to DOS
-
-
- DROP DOWN MENUS
- ---------------
- When a menu item has been selected, a drop-down menu appears. You
- will notice that the first option in the drop-down menu is
- highlighted. Any option in the menu can be selected by typing the
- first letter of that option, or by highlighting it using the mouse or
- cursor keys and pressing [ENTER].
-
- For example, to begin drawing a BOX which is one option in the DRAW
- menu, press "D" to select the DRAW menu, and then press "B" to select
- the box.
-
- Note that some drop-down menus contain an OTHER option which, if
- selected, will display additional menu options.
-
- It is possible to return back through any menu or option by pressing
- the [ESC] key.
-
- INPUT WINDOW
- ------------
- An input window presents a prompt for a single piece of information,
- i.e. a name, dimension or scale factor. Note that the current
- contents of the input window can be erased by pressing either the
- [ESC] key or the right button on your mouse.
-
- DIALOG BOX
- ----------
- A dialog box is a window which presents multiple choices which can be
- selected or modified.
-
- To select a choice with the keyboard, just type the first letter of
- the choice, i.e. to turn on the GRID press the letter G. The
- highlight will move to the choice with matching letter.
-
- To select a choice with the cursor keys highlight the desired choice
- and press [ENTER].
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 8
-
-
- To select a choice with the mouse, move the mouse pointer. As the
- pointer passes over a choice the choice will be highlighted. To
- select that choice press the left button.
-
- REFERENCE MARK
- --------------
- Each drawing object created by DRAFT CHOICE has a reference MARK which
- is represented by a small cross (X). This feature is used by editing
- commands to select an object for copying, moving or other
- manipulations. The reference mark will NOT be plotted or printed on
- your hard copy.
-
- The display of the marks on the screen can be toggled on or off by
- selecting the command OPTION, ENABLE, MARK. A check mark next to the
- word MARK in the dialog box indicates the reference marks will be
- displayed the next time the screen is updated. When disabled,
- reference marks will not be removed until after the next screen
- update.
-
- ENTERING COORDINATES
- --------------------
- Drawings produced on DRAFT CHOICE use a floating point cartesian
- coordinate system with the following limits of accuracy. (X is
- measured horizontally and Y vertically)
-
- 1.0 E-37 <= | X or Y | <= 1.0 E+37
-
- NOTE: Although the magnitude of representable numbers is
- very large, only 11 significant digits of precision are
- provided. Realistically, if you try to draw a map of a
- city, and you want accuracy down to 1/1000 inch, the
- maximum range would be:
-
- +/- 99,999,999.999 inches (or 1,578 miles)
-
- IMPORTANT! In addition to using the crosshair cursor when drawing,
- ---------- coordinates can only be entered accurately from the
- keyboard using one of four methods below. The first
- letter of each method identifies the type of coordinate.
-
-
- ABSOLUTE: Type A50,50 and press [ENTER].
-
- Coordinate with respect to origin at a coordinate of
- 0,0. The first value represents X units and the second Y
- units.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 9
-
-
- NOTE: This is the default coordinate if a letter
- is not specified, i.e., 50,50 is the same
- as typing A50,50.
-
- RELATIVE: R35,20
-
- Similar to Absolute, but measured with respect to last X
- and Y coordinates entered. HINT, use this command to
- create objects with exact dimensions.
-
- POLAR: P100,45
-
- Coordinate with respect to origin at absolute coordinate
- 0,0. The first value represents a RADIUS of 100 units
- projected at an angle of 45 degrees. All angles are
- measured positive counter clockwise from the horizontal
- (i.e. 3 o'clock).
-
- BEARING: B300,25
-
- Similar to Polar but measured with respect to last
- coordinate.
-
-
- For example, if your last point was at 100,50, the following would
- result for each type of coordinate method used:
-
- A1000,200 - Absolute coordinate, means the new coordinate is
- located at 1000 units X and 200 units Y.
-
- R200,300 - Relative coordinate, means add 200 units X and 300
- units Y to the last coordinate. (The equivalent
- absolute coordinate for the same location would be
- A300,350).
-
- P100,45 - Polar coordinate, means radius is 100 units from the
- origin and the angle is 45 degrees from the
- horizontal.
-
- B200,30 - Bearing coordinate, means relative radius is 200
- units at an angle of 30 degrees from the horizontal.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 10
-
-
- FUNCTION KEYS
- -------------
- The bottom portion of the DRAFT CHOICE screen displays the
- identification of the function keys.
-
- F1 - Pressing F1 while in the ready mode of the program (not
- [HELP] when a secondary menu or command is displayed), invokes
- the help mode. The help screen contains a column of
- topics on the left hand side and a description of the
- highlighted topic on the right portion of the screen.
-
- Press ENTER to toggle between the Right/Left Window.
- Use the arrow keys to scroll up/down within each window.
- To exit the help menu, press the [ESC] key.
-
- F2 - Press this funciton key to execute a user-defined macro
- [MACRO] command sequence (see Options, Macro command).
-
- F3 - Invoke the calculator built into DRAFT CHOICE. The
- [CALC] operators and functions available in the calculator are
- defined below:
-
- OPERATORS
- --------------------
- + - Addition
- - - Subtraction
- * - Multiplication
- / - Division
-
- FUNCTIONS
- ----------------------------------------
- EXP(X) - Exponential (ex)
- SIN(X) - Sine of X (X in degrees)
- COS(X) - Cosine of X (X in degrees)
- ABS(X) - Absolute value of X
- TAN(X) - Tangent of X (X in degrees)
- ACOS(X) - Arc Cosine of X (Result in degrees)
- ASIN(X) - Arc Sine of X (Result in degrees)
- ATAN(X) - Arc Tangent of X (Result in degrees)
- INT(X) - Integer Portion of X
- LOG(X) - Logarithm (base 10) of X
- LN(X) - Natural logarithm of X
- MOD(X,Y) - Modulo division; return the remainder
- of X divided by Y.
- PI - Return constant value 3.1459265
- SQRT(X) - Square root of X
- IF(X,A,B) - Returns A if x>1, B if X=0
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 11
-
-
- NOTE: You may enter a formula anytime a numeric
- value is requested.
- The above operators and functions may be combined for
- complex calculations, e.g.:
- SQRT(36) * LOG(100) + 10 will result in the value of 22
-
- F4 - Toggle between the WINDOW and PICK selection methods,
- [WIND] (see OBJECT SELECTION METHODS).
-
- F7 - Permits drawing in vertical and 30-degree angles (six
- [ISO] directions) to produce isometric drawings. A check
- mark next to the F7-ISO in the bottom right of the DRAFT
- CHOICE screen indicates the Isometric mode is active.
- This mode can be adjusted at any time while drawing an
- object.
-
- F8 - The [F8] Function Key toggles the ORTHOGONAL MODE on and
- [ORTH] off. When turned on, all line segments are drawn either
- horizontal or vertical (four directions). A check mark
- next to the F8-ORTHO in the bottom right of the DRAFT
- CHOICE screen indicates the Orthogonal mode is active.
- This mode can be adjusted while drawing an object.
-
- F9 - Toggle the SNAP option ON and OFF. The snap spacing is
- [SNAP] set using the Option, Snap command. When snap is active
- the draw cursor is forced to the nearest snap point. A
- check mark next to the F9-SNAP in the bottom right of
- the DRAFT CHOICE screen indicates the Snap mode is
- active. This mode can be adjusted while drawing an
- object.
-
- F10 - Toggles ATTACH ON and OFF. When active and a point is
- [ATTACH] indicated, DRAFT CHOICE will search for the nearest
- object within the pick window distance (default is 8
- pixels). If an object is found, DRAFT CHOICE will
- determine the closest reference point on the object
- (Endpoints or Middle) and the cursor will be
- repositioned at that point. A check mark next to the
- F10-ATTACH in the bottom right of the DRAFT CHOICE
- screen indicates the Attach mode is active. This mode
- can be adjusted at any time while drawing an object.
-
- LEAVING THE PROGRAM
- -------------------
- You just completed your first masterpiece and are ready to quit for
- the day. MAKE SURE THAT YOU SAVE THE LATEST VERSION OF YOUR DRAWING.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 12
-
-
- Select the FILE option from the main menu, then the SAVE option. When
- SAVE is selected, the file will be saved into the current data drive
- and subdirectory.
-
- Access the QUIT command by pressing Q on the keyboard or highlighting
- the QUIT command with your cursor keys or mouse.
-
- Once QUIT is selected, you will be given a second chance to change
- your mind when DRAFT CHOICE asks you to Confirm or Cancel your
- selection.
-
- If you performed the above by accident, or changed your mind about
- quitting the program, highlight the NO response and press [ENTER].
- You will be returned to the DRAFT CHOICE work screen with your drawing
- intact. To exit completely, highlight the YES response and press
- [ENTER]. The program will now return you to DOS.
-
- Once the QUIT command is confirmed, all drawing information not saved
- will be lost. Remember to save your drawing before you QUIT!
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE COMMANDS
- ---------------------
- This section describes the powerful commands that are available within
- DRAFT CHOICE through the drop-down menus.
-
- DRAW
- ----
- This menu contains all the drawing commands available in DRAFT CHOICE.
- When the coordinates have been enabled (see OPTION TOGGLE COORD), the
- X-Y coordinate position of the cursor is displayed at the bottom of
- the screen. When enabled, delta X (dX) and delta Y (dY) coordinates
- are also displayed when one of the DRAW commands are selected.
-
- ARC
- ---
- Draw an arc by indicating the center of the arc, the starting point on
- the circumference, and then a second point on the circumference,
- clockwise from the first point. The arc is drawn according to the
- current circle aspect ratio. See DRAW CIRCLE SETUP ASPECT for
- information on adjusting the circle aspect ratio. (See also OPTION
- FILL)
-
- [OTHER] ARROW
- -------------
- The arrow head is a predefined shape which is specified by point 1,
- (the tip of the arrow head) and point 2 (any point directed away from
- the tip). The length of the arrow head from the tip to the tail can
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 13
-
-
- be specified in the current units of measurement from the SETUP menu.
- The orientation of the arrow can be adjusted by moving point 2 before
- pressing the [ENTER] key. Press [ESC] to cancel this object.
-
- [OTHER] BEZIER
- --------------
- Draw a bezier curve (a special parabolic curve). Indicate points 1
- and 2 as end points of the curve by moving the cursor and pressing the
- [ENTER] key when in position. Use point 3 (but don't immediately
- press the [ENTER] key) to adjust the shape of the curve. The curve
- will float, i.e. change size and shape as the cursor is moved. To fix
-
- The bezier curve to its final position press the [ENTER] key, or press
- [ESC] to cancel this object. (See also OPTION FILL) The bezier curve,
- has the characteristic that the slope of the curve at the end points (1
- and 2) is tangent to imaginary lines drawn to point 3.
-
- BOX
- ---
-
- Draw a horizontally-aligned box between two points which represent
- diagonal corners of the box. The first point is chosen by positioning
- the cursor and pressing [ENTER]. After repositioning the cursor to
- the location where the opposite corner of the box is to be placed, the
- last point indicated by pressing [ENTER].
-
-
- NOTE: You must type XY coordinates to precisely locate the
- diagonal corners of a box or have the snap mode active.
-
- CIRCLE
- ------
- Draw a circle using a choice of three modes, RADIUS, DIAMETER, or
- POINTS, from the SETUP menu.
-
- RADIUS: The circle can be defined by a center point and any
- point on the radius.
-
- DIAMETER: The circle is defined by two points on the
- circumference.
-
- POINTS: The circle is defined by three points on the
- circumference.
-
- ASPECT: The aspect ratio of the circle can be changed to
- produce an ellipse with either a vertical or
- horizontal main axis.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 14
-
-
- The circle can be located by using the PLACE command. You will be
- prompted according to the type of circle selected. The default circle
- is RADIUS with an ASPECT ratio of 1.
-
- [OTHER] COMPLEX
- ---------------
- A complex polygon is an irregular sided shape composed of straight
- lines. It is defined in a manner similar to the LINE command. New
- sides of the polygon are created by pressing [ENTER]. The last side
- is terminated by pressing the [ESC] key. The complex line will be
- filled with the default fill pattern if one is selected. (See Alter
- Fill, Option Fill)
-
- [OTHER] FREEHAND
- ----------------
- A freehand curve allows you to draw on the screen using the cursor.
- This allows you to enter information like your signature directly into
- the drawing. However, a maximum of 100 points may be stored per
- object. The faster you move the cursor, the bigger the step size and
- the more of your basic signature you can enter.
-
-
- LINE
- ----
- Draw a line from the last point to the current position of the cursor.
- Each time the [ENTER] key is pressed (or the left mouse button), a new
- line will be drawn from the last entered point. The sequence
- continues head-to-toe until the [ESC] key has been pressed (or the
- right mouse button).
-
- NOTE: You can type an XY coordinate at any time in order to
- precisely locate the end points of a line. (See Entering
- Coordinates, page 2-16)
-
-
- [OTHER] MARK
- ------------
- This object is used to place a construction mark on the drawing for
- reference purposes. It will not be plotted. Pressing [ENTER] creates
- a mark. You will stay in the MARK mode until [ESC] is pressed.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 15
-
-
- [OTHER] PARAMETRIC
- ------------------
- This powerful command can be used to create complex shapes based on
- parametric equations. A menu will be displayed which permits you to
- independently define the X-coordinate as a function of t and the Y-
- coordinate as a function of t. The equation is used to generate
- points connected by a continuous line, with the result being a complex
- line object. For example:
-
- X(t) =10 Sin (t/360)with 0 < t > 360 in 100 steps
- Y(t) =10 Cos (t/360)
-
- will produce a circle of radius 10 located at the origin. Experiment
- with other equations, eg.,:
- 10 Sin (t/360) * exp (-t/10)
- 10 Cos (t/360) * exp (-t/10)
- will create a spiral.
-
-
-
- POLYGON
- -------
- A polygon is a regular sided closed shape; i.e., all sides and all
- angles are equal. When this option is selected, you may either select
- one of the predefined polygons presented on the screen, or you may
- specify your own. You specify the number of sides first, then
- indicate point 1 (the center of the polygon). The size of the polygon
- floats until fixed by point 2. To fix the size press the [ENTER] key.
- Press [ESC] to cancel this object. (See also OPTION FILL)
-
- [OTHER] SPLINE
- --------------
- A spline is defined similar to COMPLEX. After the [ESC] key is
- pressed, a smooth curve is plotted through each of the line end
- points. The degree of smoothness is controlled by the value specified
- by LEVEL under the OPTION, DEFAULT menus. A LEVEL value of 1 results
- in the same shape as COMPLEX LINES. A LEVEL value of 3 results in a
- smooth shape.
-
- The tradeoff of a higher LEVEL value is that fewer data points can be
- used to define the spline curve. The maximum number of vertex points
- is approximately 100 divided by 2 raised to the power of the LEVEL
- value. Therefore, at LEVEL 3, the maximum number of vertex points is
- 100/8 or about 12. At LEVEL 1, the maximum number of points is about
- 50. (See Alter Modify to change the slope of the spline)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 16
-
-
-
- TEXT
- ----
- Text can be placed anywhere on the screen. You can individually set
- the height, width, angle and spacing of the text from the SETUP menu.
- You can further specify the placement of the text with respect to the
- cursor location: left, centered, right justified, or aligned (FIT)
- between two points.
-
- Note that the Height and Width are given in the current units as
- indicated at the top of the dialog window.
-
- Here, you may also select which of the two loaded fonts to use (see
- Symbol, Font command). If a secondary font file has not been loaded,
- only one font file selection option is available to the user.
-
- Note that the selected font here has no effect on text that is aleady
- drawn. If, however, text was drawn using the primary font, let's say
- ROMAN, and a new primary font is loaded using the Symbol, Font
- command, then all text that was written in ROMAN font will change to
- the new one.
-
-
- EDIT COMMANDS
- -------------
- Edit commands act upon objects allowing them to be erased, duplicated,
- translated, rotated, mirrored, or combinations thereof.
-
- NOTE: Although only one layer can be ACTIVE at a time (see
- OPTION LAYER), EDIT commands operate on all layers,
- whether active or not. To ensure objects are not
- mistakenly selected, make sure all layers are displayed
- when performing EDIT commands.
-
- OBJECT SELECTION METHODS
- ------------------------
- Two methods are available for selecting an object(s) for editing, the
- Window method and the Pick method.
-
- The Window method captures the reference mark associated with the
- object. You will first be prompted to press [ENTER] to establish one
- corner of the window. Move the cursor near the reference mark(s) of
- the object(s) you wish to edit and hit [ENTER]. Move the cursor
- diagonally to create a window which captures the reference mark(s) and
- hit [ENTER] again. To continue with the editing command, you must
- press [ESC] to halt the window selection mode. The objects associated
- with the reference mark(s) captured by the window will be modified by
- the selected EDIT command.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 17
-
-
- The Pick mode may be desirable when the reference mark is far from the
- cursor or when many reference marks are close together and you wish to
- select only one object for editing. To select the Pick mode, hit the
- [F4] Function Key. A small box will appear on the screen in place of
- the cursor. Position the box over a line associated with the object
- to be edited and hit [ENTER]. DRAFT CHOICE will display the number of
- object(s) found. To proceed, hit [ESC] again. If you desire to
- select additional objects, hit [ENTER] and position the box to select
- the next object. Hit [ESC] to proceed with the edit command.
-
- NOTE: You may switch between WIND and PICK modes by pressing
- [F4] at any time.
-
- [OTHER] ARRAY
- -------------
- This command combines a COPY operation with a ROTATION/ TRANSLATION/
- SCALING operation. You will first be asked for the object selection
- window and the center of rotation. You will then be asked for the
- number of copies of the object. DRAFT CHOICE returns an estimated
- rotation angle based on the number of copies plus one rotated equally
- about a full 360 degrees. If you accept this number, just hit [ENTER].
- Otherwise, type in your new desired angle.
-
- For example, to ARRAY a triangle (a 3 sided POLYGON) with 3 copies,
- the angle of rotation estimated by Draft Choice will be 360 degrees
- divided by (3+1) = 90 degrees.
-
-
-
- [OTHER] BREAK
- -------------
- This command will break a single LINE into two LINES at points
- perpendicular to the points you indicate. This command is very useful
- when you have one object intersecting another and you wish to
- selectively erase part of one of the objects.
-
- COPY
- ----
- The copy of the selected object is dynamically translated, i.e., the
- block of objects moves with the cursor, into its new position.
- Pressing [ENTER] places a duplicate of the block onto the drawing at
- the cursor position. You can continue to move and place a number of
- duplicates anywhere on the screen. To terminate this mode, press the
- [ESC] key.
-
- ERASE
- -----
- Erase the selected object(s) from the drawing.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 18
-
-
- NOTE: See UNDO to restore the last ERASE command. Previous
- erasures cannot be restored.
-
- [OTHER] EXPLODE
- ---------------
- This command converts COMPLEX objects such as bezier curves and
- circles into equivalent objects composed only of straight line
- segments. It will also convert a box into four line segments.
-
- One application of EXPLODE would be to allow scaling to be applied to
- a fragmented circle on other than an axis of symmetry.
-
- FILLET
- ------
- FILLET extends or trims two lines until they are tangent to an arc of
- specified radius. The two lines must intersect at a point within the
- drawing. DRAFT CHOICE will not FILLET parallel lines. If such an
- operation is attempted, an error message will be displayed. If a
- radius of "0" is selected, the two lines will be extended until they
- intersect.
-
-
- [OTHER] FIT
- -----------
- FIT is used to expand/contract selected entities so that they will fit
- a user specified area. The user is first asked to select the desired
- entities and then to define the envelope the entities are to fit in.
- (Similar to the Scale Command).
-
-
- [OTHER] MIRROR
- --------------
- This command will cause selected objects to be flipped/mirrored across
- the vertical axis. To flip an object vertically (across the
- horizontal axis), use the ROTATE command first, perform the MIRROR
- command, and then ROTATE back to the original angle.
-
-
- MOVE
- ----
- Translate the selected objects into a new position. Dynamic
- positioning occurs with the movement of the cursor (BW mode only).
- Press [ENTER] to indicate the final position.
-
- NOTE: A position coordinate can be specified just by typing in
- the values. (See Entering Coordinates in the Getting
- Started Section.)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 19
-
-
- ROTATE
- ------
- This command rotates the selected group of elements by a user-
- specified angle in degrees about a point of rotation. Positive (+)
- angles are rotated in a counter-clockwise direction, negative (-)
- angles are rotated in a clockwise direction.
-
- [OTHER] RUBBER
- --------------
- This command allows objects to be stretched into new shapes. First
- select those objects with end points you dynamically wish to move.
- Then you specify a "from" position. Next you specify a "to" position.
- The objects will redraw themselves as the cursor is moved to the new
- position. Press [ENTER] to freeze the shape. To cancel the "to" mode
- and restore the original shape, press [ESC].
-
- SCALE
- -----
- Scale the selected object(s) according to user-specified Horizontal
- (X) and Vertical (Y) scale factors. The current dimensions of the
- object(s) will be multiplied by the X and Y factors. You will be
- requested for a reference point about which to scale the objects. For
- convenience HALF and DOUBLE will adjust the scale factors by multiples
- of 1/2 and 2.
-
- NOTE: The SCALE command will not work on a CIRCLE or ARC with a
- non-orthagonal axis of symmetry (see EXPLODE).
-
- [OTHER] TRIM
- ------------
- The TRIM command is used to trim entities so that they do not extend
- beyond a specific boundary. Once the command is invoked, you are
- asked to specify the trim boundary. After the boundary is selected,
- you are prompted to select the lines to be trimmed. Note that complex
- entities (other than lines) need to be exploded before they are
- trimmed, in order for the trimming process to work correctly.
- Touching the cursor on the object on the side of the boundary will
- erase that portion up to the boundary line.
-
- UNDO!
- -----
- The UNDO command will restore the original size, shape, and position
- of objects modified by the last EDIT command.
-
- NOTE: A maximum of 200 objects per single edit is capable of
- being restored.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 20
-
-
- XTEND
- -----
- This command will extend the length of line segment 2 to intercept
- with line segment 1. You will first be prompted to identify the
- boundary line (line segment 1) to which line segment 2 is to be
- extended. You will then be prompted to identify the line segment to
- be extended.
-
- NOTE: No action will occur if the line which is extended will
- not meet the intersecting line.
-
-
- ALTER
- -----
- This powerful menu contains the commands that are required to change
- certain attributes for entities that are already drawn, and allows
- editing of special-type entities.
-
-
- DOUBLE
- ------
- This command is used to create border lines (doubles) around complex
- entities. You are asked to specify how far from the original you want
- these border lines to be.
-
- NOTE: The parallel line is always oriented from left to right
- on top of the object.
-
- FILL
- ----
- Similar to the Style command, above, this command is used to alter the
- fill pattern of already drawn complex entities.
-
- JOIN
- ----
- The Alter, Join command is used to connect lines or complex entities
- into a single object.
-
- MODIFY
- ------
- The modify command is one of the most powerful in this menu. It is
- used to change already drawn complex entities.
-
- The box on the left side was modified by relocating its top left
- corner as shown in the right portion
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 21
-
-
- STYLE
- -----
- This command permits you to change the line style of selected line
- entities. When the desired lines have been selected, you are
- presented with a menu of styles to choose from, similar to the one in
- Options, Style.
-
- TEXT
- ----
- The Alter, Text command allows you to edit text that has already been
- typed in your drawing. When selected, the desired string is placed on
- the edit line (top of screen) and the Arrow, Delete and Insert keys
- are active. Press [ENTER] to confirm any modifications. Note that
- the EDIT menu commands are used to copy, move, scale and otherwise
- perform operations on a string as a whole entity.
-
- UNITS
- -----
- This command is used to alter the units of an already drawn entity.
- It is useful when the drawing's overall units need to remain to be
- changed. After the element(s) to be re-dimensioned are specified, the
- user is presented with the available options.
-
-
- IMAGE COMMANDS
- --------------
- Imagine that you are looking through a magnifying window at a very
- large and detailed picture. At high magnification, you can only see
- that portion of the picture which is directly under the viewing
- window. To see more of the picture (but less detail), you must
- decrease the image scale factor. To zoom in on a specific detail, you
- increase the image scale factor (but see less of the picture).
-
- When DRAFT CHOICE is started, the default image scale factor is set to
- 1.00 and the coordinate of the lower corner of the screen is set at
- 0,0. This is called the origin. The image scale factor is displayed
- in the lower left of the DRAFT CHOICE screen. You can modify the ISF
- by using the IMAGE menu commands to adjust the position of the viewing
- window with respect to the drawing and the overall size of the drawing
- displayed on the screen.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 22
-
-
- ALL
- ---
- DRAFT CHOICE scans all objects in the drawing to determine the maximum
- and minimum X-Y coordinates of the drawing and uses this information
- to determine an image scale factor and viewing window which will
- display the entire drawing on the screen. The effect is to display
- the entire drawing in the largest scale possible while still fitting
- it on one screen.
-
- DOUBLE
- ------
- Double the image scale factor and reposition the viewing window about
- the center of the screen. Objects displayed in the drawing get larger
- by a factor of two.
-
- HALF
- ----
- Halve the image scale factor and reposition the viewing window about
- the center of the screen. Objects displayed in the drawing get smaller
- by a factor of two.
-
- LAST
- ----
- Swap between the last image/scale factor/position displayed and the
- current image settings. This is very useful when working on a very
- large drawing. It allows you to zoom in on a small work area, make
- your changes, and then returns you to the original scale which shows
- the entire drawing.
-
- PAN
- ---
- Dynamically reposition the viewing window on the current display. As
- soon as you designate a point (by pressing [ENTER]) you will discover
- that further movement of the cursor (with mouse or cursor keys) will
- result in the image on the screen moving instantly! (Hint: we
- recommend a point near the center of the screen to permit the greatest
- range of movement) Finally, to fix the new location of the viewing
- window designate a second point (by pressing [ENTER]). Once the new
- location is fixed, the drawing is redrawn at the specified position.
-
- UPDATE
- ------
- Redraw the entire screen at the current image scale setting. UPDATE
- will remove remnants of objects that have been ERASED or MOVED.
- UPDATE will also allow you to see the effect of toggling the various
- options. It is recommended that you use the Image ON or OFF, update
- command to eliminate the blip marks created while you are creating a
- complex entitiy.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 23
-
-
- WINDOW
- ------
- Zoom in on a small area of the current display. You select a portion
- of the drawing which will be enlarged to fill the screen, by enclosing
- the area with a flexible window. The size of the window will be used
- to determined the new image scale factor.
-
- ZOOM
- ----
- This command allows you to manually change the image scale factor and
- the location of the lower left screen coordinate (screen origin).
- Entering a scale factor of 1.0 will return the drawing to the default
- image scale setting, as will selecting the "ORIGIN" setting. A dialog
- window presenting the choices, will be displayed. The X and Y offset
- coordinates are used to move the origin of the drawing (lower left
- corner) to absolute coordinates X,Y.
-
- OPTION
- ------
- The OPTION menu allows you to change default parameters that effect
- the entire drawing. The changes will remain in effect until the next
- time a parameter is changed or DRAFT CHOICE is restarted from DOS.
-
- ATTACH
- ------
- This option presents you with a dialog window that allows you to
- select the attach point (F10) location. You may set the attach point
- to be the start, middle or end of the attached line.
-
- DEFAULT
- -------
- The following parameters control the response of the screen to
- keyboard or mouse input and the screen updating process.
-
- Each setting has the following definition:
-
-
- ASPECT - Set the video aspect ratio, so a circle looks correct
- and does not appear oval. The aspect ratios differ
- for CGA, EGA and HGA cards and may vary depending on
- your graphics monitor.
-
- NOTE: See FILE CONFIG for permanent setting.
-
- MOUSE - Set the mouse sensitivity to movement, the smaller the
- number the more sensitive the mouse.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 24
-
-
- RATE - Normally to speed up the drawing process, objects are
- drawn into a special video buffer and then transferred
- after every 7 objects have been drawn as a block to
- the screen. For very large complex drawings with many
- objects it is faster to transfer bigger blocks of
- objects.
-
-
- If the refresh rate is set to 1, the video buffer is
- bypassed and each element is drawn directly on the
- screen. This results in substantially slower overall
- drawing update but at the same time it appears that
- more action is occurring on the screen, and it is
- certainly more entertaining to watch.
-
- The default rate of 7 means that 7 objects are drawn
- in the screen buffer before the video screen is
- updated. Experiment with refresh rates of 1, 7, or
- pick an even larger refresh rate to get the greatest
- overall drawing speed.
-
- SPDUP - Set the sensitivity of the keyboard cursor keys when
- used to navigate the pointing cursor around the
- screen. Keeping a keyboard cursor key depressed will
- cause the pointing cursor to accelerate in the desired
- direction.
-
- The default value of SPDUP is 2. A value of 0 results
- in no acceleration and moves the cursor one pixel at a
- time no matter how long the cursor key is kept
- depressed. The larger the value, the greater the
- acceleration rate. Experiment until you find a value
- which is acceptable to you.
- NOTE: No matter what the value of SPDUP,
- tapping the keyboard cursor keys once
- will result in pointing cursor movement
- of one pixel at a time.
-
-
- COLOR - Set the overall color of your drawing as displayed on
- the screen. It has NO EFFECT on output to print
- devices (CGA mode only).
-
-
- LEVEL - Sets the degree of curve smoothness for Spline and
- circles (See DRAW COMPLEX SPLINE for the effects of
- various values of LEVEL.)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 25
-
-
- BSCALE - This factor is used to internally adjust the image
- scale factor to appear as a factor of 1.0 when a fixed
- drawing size has been selected.
-
-
- PICK - Modify the size (in pixels) of the pick window used to
- select objects when editing.
-
-
- FILL
- ----
- The following objects can be created so that their interior portions
- are filled with a bit pattern automatically, when they are drawn
-
- BOX ARC BEZIER CIRCLE COMPLEX
- POLYGON COMPLEX ARROW SPLINE FREEHAND
-
- Once created with a fill pattern, the pattern can be changed to
- another pattern with the EDIT FILL command. When FILL is selected, a
- dialog box will be displayed. The current default fill pattern is
- displayed in the lower-left portion of the screen.
-
- The difference between NONE and BLANK is that any object appearing
- inside the outline of the filled object, such as a BOX surrounding
- TEXT, will be BLANKed out and will not be seen. With NONE, only the
- outline of the main object appears so any enclosed object will be
- visible.
-
- GRID
- ----
- After selecting OPTION GRID, a dialog menu will appear.
-
- The grid option menu allows you to individually specify an X and Y
- construction grid spacing and snap spacing. The grid is visibly
- represented by a dot at each XY intersection coordinate. The default
- grid setting is X=1, Y=1, but the settings can be specified in any
- combination.
-
- The grid can be toggled on and off by typing "G" or selecting GRID.
- Note that the Grid Dialog menu also displays the current default
- units. (The Grid will not be displayed until the GRID menu has been
- exited.)
-
- The snap option allows you to constrain the movement of the cursor to
- exactly the spacing of the snap grid. The snap grid is similar to the
- construction grid, but when drawing an object, the physical
- coordinates are rounded to the nearest snap point. The snap grid can
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 26
-
-
- be toggled on and off by typing "S" or selecting SNAP. Snap can be
- toggled while drawing by hitting the [F9] Function Key.
-
- A check mark displayed next to the F9-SNAP in the bottom of the DRAFT
- CHOICE screen indicates the snap option is active.
-
- The default settings are for an X and Y grid at 1 unit spacing with H
- and V snap spacing at 0.25 units, and both GRID and SNAP disabled.
-
- MACRO
- -----
- Enter macro keystrokes that can be played back to perform the desired
- operations. Macro commands must be enclosed in curly brackets {}.
- The following commands are available:
-
- {~} - Equivalent to pressing [ENTER]
- {ESC} - Equivalent to pressing [ESC]
- {LT} - Move cursor one increment left
- {RT} - Move cursor one increment right
- {UP} - Move cursor one increment up
- {DN} - Move cursor one increment down
- {PGUP} - Increase cursor movement step by 10 pixels
- {PGDN} - Decrease cursor movement step by 10 pixels
- {F4} - Toggle the Windowing and Pointing selection modes
- {F7} - Toggle the ISO mode ON/OFF
- {F8} - Toggle the ORTHOGONAL mode ON/OFF
- {F9} - Toggle the SNAP mode ON/OFF
- {F10} - Toggle the ATTACH mode ON/OFF
-
- Menu commands can be invoked by using their first letter. Press
- [ENTER] to end macro recording. Press [F2] to execute the macro.
-
- As an example, DB{~}R100,500{~} will invoke the DRAW BOX command, fix
- the first corner of the box at the current position and draw a box of
- 100x by 500y units.
-
-
- STYLE
- -----
- Line styles can be selected from a dialog window representing the
- following styles:
-
- SOLID - Display line as solid and continuous (default)
- DASH - Display line as a series of dashes
- CENTER - Use a centerline dash-dash sequence
- PHANTOM - Use a dot-dash sequence
- CROSS - Place a cross at equal spacing on solid line
- HATCH - Place a double hatch at equal spacing on line
- NONE - Prevent the display of line or object outline.
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 27
-
-
- SLIM - Represent each line with 1 dot width
- THICK - Represent each line with 3 dots width
- FAT - Represent each line with 5 dots width
- SPACE - Set the spacing of dots and dashes for various
- line styles
- ACCEPT - Confirm new settings
- CANCEL - Revert back to original settings
-
- TOGGLE
- ------
- Toggle switches are features that can be enabled or disabled. The
- dialog window appears. A check mark next to each switch indicates the
- switch is active.
-
- The switches are listed below along with their defult settings:
-
- COORD - Dynamically display the X-Y coordinate position of the
- cursor at the bottom of the screen in the current
- units. [OFF]
-
- MARK - Display the object reference mark (X). This toggle
- switch is useful when fine editting of entities is
- desired. [OFF]
-
- TEXT - Display TEXT objects completely. If disabled,
- represent text with a solid line to speed up screen
- redrawing. [ON]
-
- B&W - Turn off COLOR for individual layers. [ON]
-
- AUTO - Commence CYCLE animation automatically when a drawing
- is loaded. [ON]
-
- STYLE - Display all lines with specified line style. If
- disabled, represent each line with a thickness of SLIM
- (see OPTION STYLE), regardless of the style used when
- the line was drawn. [SLIM]
-
- FILL - Display all shapes with specified fill pattern. If
- disabled, all shapes will be empty regardless of the
- fill pattern used when the entity was drawn. [BLANK]
-
- VERIFY - Force the user to confirm an erase action. [ON]
-
- RULER - Display a ruler aid on the screen. [OFF]
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 28
-
-
- UNITS
- -----
- Indicate the current units to use when mapping screen coordinates.
- The choices are presented in a dialog window.
-
- A check mark beside one of the units indicates the current default
- setting which will be used by all new dimension operations and by the
- coordinate position indicator displayed in the center of the bottom
- line of the screen. It does not have any effect on previous units
- that were already embedded in the drawing. (See Alter Units to change
- previous units.)
-
- PLOT
- ----
- To produce a hardcopy of all or part of your drawing, select the PLOT
- option from the main menu. The default plot settings are for an EPSON
- dot matrix printer or compatible which is connected to LPT1. However
- you can change the device (Plotter, Dot Matrix Printer, or LaserJet
- Printer) and the data port to which data is sent (LPT1, LPT2, COM1,
- COM2 or an ascii file or device driver).
-
- [SETUP] CODES
- -------------
- Specify the control codes needed for printing a graph to a dot matrix
- or laser printer. For each of the 9-pin, 24-pin, or raster (laser)
- the following selections need to be set:
-
- HIGH - Control Code that sets printer in high resolution graphics mode.
-
- MED - Control Code that sets printer in medium resolutions
- graphics mode.
-
- LOW - Control Code that sets printer in low resolution
- graphics mode.
-
- BGFD - Big Line Feed; Control Code to advance the printer one
- line corresponding to the low/medium resolution
- graphics mode.
-
- SMFD - Small Line Feed; Control Code to advance the printer
- one line (dot) corresponding to the high resolution
- graphics mode.
-
- RES - Control code to reset the printer to text mode.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 29
-
-
- Control Codes may be specified either by a their decimal ASCII code or
- by the ASCII character equivalent. When ASCII decimal codes are used,
- they need to be separated by a backslash "\". For example, the code
- sequence ESC "E" may be specified as \027E or \027\045.
-
- The setup control codes, already provided in the program, correspond
- to 9-pin and 24-pin EPSON, and HP Laserjet II printers. If your
- printer is different and cannot emulate the default printers 100% you
- need to change the setup codes, (you'll find these codes in your
- printer's manual).
-
- The default setup codes built into the program are shown below:
-
- HIGH: MED: LOW: BGFD: SMFD: RES:
-
- 9-pin \027Z \027L \027K \0273\023 \0273\001 \027@
- 24-pin \027*' \027*! \027*\032 \0273\024 \0273\001 \027@
- Raster (1) (2) (3) \027*b W \027*rB
-
- (1) : \027*t300R\027&a100h100v\027*r1A
- (2) : \027*t150R\027&a100h100v\027*r1A
- (3) : \027*t75R\027&a100h100v\027*r1A
-
- [SETUP] DEVICE
- --------------
- This command will display a dialog window which allows you to select
- the print device and the output port. The dialog window will appear
- with the following options:
-
- HP7470 - Produces a plot using the Hewlett Packard Graphics
- Language (HPGL) which is sent to the selected serial port
- or file. This option can be used with any plotter device
- that supports HPGL or sent to a plot file.
-
- NOTE: WordPerfect 5.0 and 5.1 can import HPGL files
- directly into documents.
-
- EPSONFX - Produces a dot matrix plot using EPSON FX- series
- compatible graphics commands. (Same graphics format as
- used with PCWRITE)
-
- LASERJET - Produces a printed image using HP LaserJet compatible
- graphics commands.
-
- P-LQ2500 - Produces a printed image using EPSON 24-pin or compatible
- graphics commands.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 30
-
-
- EJECT
- -----
- The EJECT command issues a form feed to the printer and causes the
- paper to advance to the top of the next page. The EJECT command does
- not function when the print device is a plotter.
-
- GO
- --
- To begin the printing process, make sure the paper in your printer is
- adjusted to the top of the form and then select the command PLOT, GO.
- Note that only portions of the drawing currently displayed on the
- screen will be printed according to the default paper width. (See
- Image WIDTH)
-
- When printing, the graphics information is created in horizontal
- strips and then sent to the printer. While each strip of the image is
- being generated there will be a short delay and then the information
- will be sent to the printer. The more complex the drawing and when
- higher print density is selected, the longer the delay. The progress
- of the plotting process is displayed as a status bar on the top line
- of the screen.
-
- When the drawing is complete, DRAFT CHOICE will give a short beep.
-
- IMAGE
- -----
- The IMAGE command will display a dialog window which allows you to
- modify the resolution, size, orientation, and aspect ratio of the
- drawing sent to the print device. The aspect ratio is only used to
- adjust the appearance of a plotted circle so it looks round.
-
-
- PORTRAIT - The width dimension matches the narrow page
- dimension horizontally.
-
- LANDSCAPE - Matches the height of the drawing.
-
- WIDTH - Specify the width of the printed drawing in inches.
- When the FIT flag is set, the maximum and minimum
- dimensions of the drawing will be scaled to fit the
- width exactly.
-
- V-ASPECT - Specify the vertical plotting scale. This is used
- to correct for differences in vertical resolution
- between plotting devices. The drawing will be
- adjusted vertically, i.e., divided by the V-ASPECT
- value. The larger the value of V-ASPECT, the
- smaller the vertical plot.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 31
-
-
- FIT - Auto scales the max/min drawing dimensions to
- exactly fit the WIDTH setting.
-
- DENSITY - Three print density options are available: high,
- medium, and low. High print density results in the
- best possible quality drawing (best possible for
- your particular hardware setup), but it also takes
- the longest plot.
-
- Dots Per inch Horizontal
-
- LO MED HIGH
- 9-Pin Dot Matrix 60 120 240
- 24-Pin Dot Matrix -- --- ---
- LaserJet 75 150 300
-
- [SETUP] OUTPUT
- --------------
- Select either the parallel port, serial port, or a file name to send
- the output to when GO is selected:
-
- LPT1 - Parallel Printer Port #1
- LPT2 - Parallel Printer Port #2
- COM1 - Serial Communications Port #1
- COM2 - Serial Communications Port #2
- FILE - Specify a file name used to store printer/plotter output
-
- NOTE: If a file name is selected for output, the drawing
- information will be written to the file using the
- selected device format. This option is used to produce
- graphics files to be imported to other programs. i.e.,
- WordPerfect 5.1, PCWRITE, etc. (Also see file XPORT)
-
- [SETUP] SERIAL
- --------------
- The Plot, Setup, Serial command allows you to define the parameters
- necessary for your computer to communicate with your serial
- printer/plotter. The parameters that need to be specified are:
-
- Transmission Speed : 110 to 9600 baud
- Parity : Odd, Even or None
- Data Bits : 7 or 8
- Stop Bit : 1 or 2
- Delay : an integer representing milliseconds
-
- You need to make sure that the serial setup variables that you select
- in this menu correspond to the configuration of your printer/plotter.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 32
-
-
- The Delay variable is used to make sure information sent to your
- serial plotter/printer does not get lost due to overflowing the data
- buffer. The Delay is usually set to 200 milliseconds but you may
- change that to a higher value if you notice that some information on
- your screen does not appear in your hard copy or your plotter output
- is fragmented.
-
-
- FILE
- ----
- This menu allows you to SAVE or LOAD your drawing and to IMPORT and
- XPORT information to/from other programs.
-
-
- CONFIG
- ------
- This command saves DRAFT CHOICE default settings into a file called
- DRAFTC.CFG:
-
- - Status of Toggles switches, COORD, STYLE, FILL, TEXT, B&W, AUTO,
- MARK, ORTHO, ISO
- - GRID/SNAP status, grid and snap spacing
- - Text height, width, angle, and spacing
- - Screen color, refresh rate, mouse and keyboard cursor
- sensitivity, screen aspect ratio
- - Fill pattern and line style
- - Circle aspect ratio, Arrow size
- - Unit of measurement
- - Polygon sides
- - Dash spacing
- - Arrow size
- - Array copies, scale, angle, counter rotate angle, circular/linear
- type of array
- - Plot device, plotter aspect ratios, landscape/portrait
- orientation
- - Drawing size
-
- When DRAFT CHOICE is executed from DOS, the settings contained in the
- CONFIG file will be automatically set.
-
- NOTE: If you use a CONFIG file from an older version of DRAFT
- CHOICE, unpredictable settings may result. Erase the old
- DRAFTC.CFG file from the DRAFT CHOICE working disk or
- directory and redefine and save your new settings.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 33
-
-
- ERASE
- -----
- This command erases a specified file from your disk. A dialog window
- will appear and you may select the file to be erased.
-
- NOTE: Wild card characters CANNOT be used with ERASE.
-
- IMPORT
- ------
- This command allows you to import ASCII TEXT files, and AS-EASY-AS
- compatible PIC files (the end product of a saved graph) and DCH files
- which where created with the FILE SAVE command or drawing files that
- were XTRACTed. The following options are supported:
-
- ASCII - Each ASCII line is stored as a TEXT object starting
- at the indicated cursor position with the text
- assuming the current default text height and width.
- Each new line is placed downwards by an amount
- equal to the text vertical spacing.
-
- VALUE - This is an ASCII file which has XY absolute
- coordinate pairs separated by commas, one pair per
- line. For example, the following would define two
- separate straight lines:
-
- line 1: 100,0
- line 2: 100,100
- line 3:
- line 4: 200,200
- line 5: 300,200
-
- PIC - The file must conform to PIC file format used to
- store spreadsheet graphics.
-
- DWG - Import a DRAFT CHOICE DCH file into the current
- drawing. all symbols defined in the imported
- drawing will be included/added to the main
- draawing.
-
- HPGL - Import a file in the HP Graphics Language format.
-
- NOTE: Set PLOT device to HP7470 and output
- filename to create an HPGL file.
-
- SYMBOL - Import a special symbol file. Since DRAFT CHOICE
- expects to load a SYM file, you are presented with
- a list of available *.SYM files to choose from. If
- you type a .DCH file name instead, drawing entities
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 34
-
-
- in the DCH files will be filtered out and the
- symbols saved with the specified file will be
- loaded into RAM.
-
- LOAD
- ----
- This command prompts for a file name by presenting a pick window which
- lists all files in the current drive and subdirectory. The current
- path can be modified within the pick window. To select a name from the
- directory list, move the cursor to highlight that name, press ENTER.
- The name will be transferred into the Name: field. To begin the
- loading process select LOAD. To cancel and return to the menu select
- CANCEL.
-
- To change the subdirectory (used to indicate where your drawing files
- are located), select PATH and then type in the new path. When ENTER
- is pressed the subdirectory will be read and a new list of names will
- be displayed.
-
- A file may be selected either by highlighting it and pressing [ENTER]
- or by selecting [FILE] and typing its name. The UP and DN indicators
- may be used to scroll the list of file names up or down.
-
-
- NEW
- ---
- This command clears the drawing from memory and it prepares DRAFT
- CHOICE for a new drawing to be started. Once this command is
- selected, you are presented with a dialog box.
-
- We advise that you select one of the available drawing sizes, since
- this makes printing to scale much easier. Once the drawing size is
- selected, you may specify the desired drawing scale (e.g., REAL units
- of feet, 20.0 vs. DWG units of inches 1.0 would result in a scale
- which, when plotted/printed, one inch of drawing should correspond to
- twenty feet of real distance).
-
- The available units may be cycled through by simply clicking the units
- box selection. (See Option Units)
-
- NOTE: The last drawing size specified with File, New is saved
- in the configuration file as the default size for next
- DRAFT CHOICE session.
-
- OSHELL
- ------
- This command allows you to temporarily shell to the operating system,
- (DOS). To get back to DRAFT CHOICE, type EXIT and press [ENTER] at
- the DOS prompt.
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 35
-
-
- SAVE
- ----
- This command prompts for a file name to be assigned to the current
- drawing in memory. When the name is provided, the file will be saved
- into the data drive and subdirectory currently specified.
-
- XTRACT
- ------
- This command allows you to extract a portion of your current drawing
- and save it in one of several formats:
-
- DWG - The extracted drawing is saved in native DRAFT
- CHOICE format with the extension .DCH.
-
- BSAVE - The image is saved as a binary byte image. The
- first two integers represent the width and the
- height of the image respectively. The rest of the
- image is saved as byte information row by row.
-
- PIC - The image is saved using the PIC file format used
- to store spreadsheet graphics. This file format is
- used to import drawings to programs that support
- PIC files.
-
- SYMBOLS - Save the symbols currently in RAM to a special
- symbol (.SYM) file. The Drawing entities are not
- saved, just the symbols.
-
- SYMBOL
- ------
- This menu allows you to group a number of drawn objects and assign a
- symbol name to that group. Thereafter, the name may be used to
- indicate the complex object symbol. For example, an electrical
- designer might have a set of symbol definitions for common objects
- like resistors, capacitors, inductors, voltage sources, current
- sources, etc. Each symbol might be composed of two or more primitive
- objects like lines, circles, and boxes. By defining the symbol once,
- and then using it by name many times, the designer will save time,
- effort and computer memory in creating the drawing.
-
- Symbols are saved with the drawings that use them. If you clear the
- current drawing from memory using the FILE NEW command, named SYMBOLS
- will be retained in memory.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 36
-
-
- When a new FILE is LOADed and there are SYMBOLS in memory, you will be
- prompted as to whether you wish to discard the symbol library
- currently in RAM. If you select yes, the symbol library will be
- cleared from memory. If you select cancel, the symbol library will be
- retained and any named symbols in the file being LOADed will be
- included with those currently in memory.
-
- When DRAFT CHOICE is first started, it looks for a symbol library file
- AUTOLOAD.SYM. If it finds it, the symbol library is loaded
- automatically. To make this process easier, if a DCH file is renamed
- to AUTOLOAD.SYM, then when it is loaded, all drawing entities in the
- file are filtered out and only the symbols are retained.
-
- CAUTION:
- --------
- As indicated earlier, symbols are saved with the drawings that use
- them in order to use RAM and disk space efficiently; however, only the
- symbols used, not the whole libraries, are saved.
-
- If you want to save the symbol library currently in RAM for later use,
- then you need to use the File, Xtract, Symbols commmand, which creates
- a file with the extension .SYM.
-
- ANIMATE
- -------
- ANIMATE allows you to create an animated display of images. Any
- portion of the screen can be captured providing it has an element in
- it. When a sequence of images has been captured, they can be played
- back in an animation sequence, forwards or backwards. The duration
- of each frame can be set in milliseconds. Hint: it helps to use a
- rectangular frame to blank out the last image placed on the screen.
-
- [ANIMATE] GET
- -------------
- Capture selected objects as a rectangular block of Binary Bits. The
- size of the block is determined by the maximum and minimum boundary of
- the selected objects. Once an image has been captured, you are
- prompted for the image display time in milliseconds.
-
- [ANIMATE] PLAY
- --------------
- Play back sequence of recorded slides . The following keys affect the
- play back display speed:
-
- [UP] - Speeds up the display sequence rate
- [DN] - Slows down the display sequence rate
- [LEFT] - Causes the display to rotate in a "forward" direction
- [RIGHT] - Causes the display to rotate in a "reverse" direction
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 37
-
-
- [ANIMATE] RESET
- ---------------
- Release memory assigned to slides.
-
- NOTE: Only conventional memory is used to store slides.
-
-
- [ANIMATE] STEP
- --------------
- This command permits you to view each slide individually. Press the
- Right cursor to advance to the next slide, and the left cursor to
- backup. Hit [ENTER] and [ESC] to exit from the step mode.
-
- DELETE
- ------
- To eliminate or remove ONE symbol from the library, either type the
- name in response to the prompt or select the name from the pick
- window.
-
- EXPLODE
- -------
- This command is exactly the reverse of a SYMBOL MAKE. It takes any
- symbol in the drawing which has in its definition lines, circles,
- etc., and replaces it with those lines and circles. An excellent use
- of this command is to permit you to make modificaiton to an existing
- symbol library. For example, take symbol "AA", explode it, define some
- new lines, delete some old lines, and then make a new symbol with the
- same name.
-
- FONT
- ----
- The character font used to DRAW TEXT belongs to its own special
- category of symbols. Only LINE objects may be used to define the font
- character. For example, the capital letter A could be constructed
- with three straight lines.
-
- NOTE: Circles and other complex shapes must be converted to
- LINE objects with the EDIT EXPLODE command before they
- are used to define a font character.
-
- [FONT] ALT-READ
- ---------------
- The current alternate (secondary) font in memory is replaced with a
- font specified by the user. For instructions on how to use the two
- available fonts, refer to DRAW, TEXT, SETUP.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 38
-
-
- Please note the font name information is not saved with the drawing
- file, only primary or secondary font indicators. If text was drawn
- using NFONT and ROMAN as the primay and secondary fonts respectively,
- and then two new fonts are loaded, all text will change to the new
- fonts.
-
- [FONT] MAKE
- -----------
- A selection window is used to indicate those lines used to define the
- character. The allowable range of font characters is from ascii 32 to
- 255 decimal. A font character is assumed to be a maximum of 256
- meters wide and 256 meters high. Any lines projecting outside this
- boundary are truncated at 256 and may cause some unexpected results.
-
- The default font used by DRAFT CHOICE was created by establishing a
- set of horizontal and vertical construction grid lines which created a
- box which was 240 meters high and 230 meters wide. One horizontal
- line was placed at 75 meters high to provide a reference line for
- character descenders like the lowercase y. The reference point of
- each construction line was placed outside of the box so that the
- selection window would not result in those lines being included. The
- units were set to meters, and for convenience the snap and grid were
- set to 16.
-
- Put a window around the character but make sure NOT to include the
- reference points of the construction lines. Use the 0,0 point as the
- reference point for the character. When a font character has been
- changed and DRAFT CHOICE is exited, a prompt will request the name of
- file to use when saving the modified font. If the [ESC] key is
- pressed, the altered font will NOT be saved on the disk. If a name is
- specified or the [ENTER] key is pressed, all your modifications will
- be saved.
-
- [FONT] READ
- -----------
- The current primary font in memory is replaced with the font which is
- read from the specified directory. Although a primary and a secondary
- font file may be loaded, only one font may be active at a time, as
- speicified in the Draw, Text, Setup options.
-
- NOTE: The font file must have an extension of .FNT and must be
- in DRAFT CHOICE font format.
-
- [FONT] WRITE
- ------------
- The current font in memory is written to the specified directory and
- will use the filename defined. The font will be assigned an extension
- of .FNT and will be written in DRAFT CHOICE font format.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 39
-
-
- MAKE
- ----
- To assign a symbol name to a group of primitives, first enclose the
- objects in the selection window. The next step is to type the symbol
- name in response to the prompt. Finally, using the cursor, you must
- indicate the reference point of the symbol. This is the point which
- identifies the symbol position when it is USEd.
-
- NOTE: Remember to save your drawing after defining the symbols
- to save them for future use.
-
- RESET
- -----
- Erases the symbol library.
-
- USE
- ---
- When the Symbol, Use command is selected, a pick window displaying the
- available symbols is presented.
-
- Move the cursor to highlight the desired symbol name and press
- [ENTER]. Once a symbol has been selected, a second pick window
- appears, which allows you to modify the copy of the symbol prior to
- placing it in your drawing. To make rotating the symbol easier, four
- rotation angles may be easily selected by the user, or, a rotation
- angle may be typed in.
-
- After accepting your selection, you must tell DRAFT CHOICE where to
- place the symbol. Move your cursor to the desired spot and press
- [ENTER]. The symbol will be drawn with the symbol reference point at
- exactly the cursor location.
-
- MEASURE
- -------
- This menu allows you to determine distance, interior angle, and area
- of the objects being created.
-
- ANGLE
- -----
- Draws an arc dimension with arrow heads and two leader lines. You
- specify the center, point one on arc and point 2 clockwise from point 1.
-
- BOUNDARY
- --------
- This command prompts for one or more objects to be selected (After
- selecting the objects, press ESC to continue), then determines the
- maximum and minimum X, Y dimensions, and then places dimension lines
- with leaders horizontally and vertically around the object.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 40
-
-
- COORDINATE
- ----------
- Creates an object which echoes the X,Y coordinate as text associated
- with the reference point.
-
-
- DIAMETER
- --------
- Draws a dimension line with arrow heads at both ends of the line.
-
- DIMENSION
- ---------
- Place a dimension line on the screen complete with end point arrow
- heads and a text string representing the distance between the end
- points. The orientation of the text string is controlled by the order
- in which the end points are indicated. The text is always written
- from the first point to the last point. If space permits, the
- distance text is centered between the end points. Otherwise, it
- overflows to the left.
-
- LEADER
- ------
- Places a leader line from point 1 to point 2. The leader line
- consists of a line angled at 60 degrees from the vertical connected to
- a horizontal line. It is commonly used in conjuntction with text to
- place notes on a drawing.
-
- [QUERY] ANGLE
- -------------
- Determine the interior angle between two lines. First specify the
- intersecting point and then respectively a distant point on each line
- segment of interest. The calculated angle will be displayed in a
- dialog window in the center of the screen, but it is not inserted in
- the drawing.
-
- [QUERY] AREA
- ------------
- Determine the total area enclosed by an irregular polygonal shape by
- indicating points on the outline of that shape. To terminate the
- operation press the [ESC] key and the total area will be displayed in
- a dialog window but will not be inserted in the drawing.
-
- [QUERY] LENGTH
- --------------
- Determine the length between two points by specifying first the
- starting point and then the end point. The calculated length will be
- displayed in a dialog window in the center of the screen, but it is
- not inserted in the drawing.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 41
-
-
- [QUERY] OBJECT
- --------------
- Display Object Type, Line Style, X Coord, Y Coord, dX parameters, and
- dY parameters for a selected object in a dialog box in the center of
- the screen.
-
-
- RADIUS
- ------
- Draws a dimension line with one arrow from the first point to the
- second. A cross line is placed at the first point.
-
-
- LAYER
- -----
- DRAFT CHOICE permits you to work on eight (8) different layers which
- can be thought of as transparent overlays. You can select the ACTIVE
- layer, the layer(s) to be DISPLAYED, layers protected from editing
- operations, and individually set the COLOR for each layer. You can
- turn on or off a specific layer by selecting that layer from the
- displayed list.
-
- ACTIVE
- ------
- This command allows you to specify the layer that will be active.
- When selected, you are presented with a dialog window. Only one layer
- can be active at a time.
-
- NOTE: The active layer is the only layer you can draw on.
-
- COLOR
- -----
- When COLOR is selected, a decimal 0 through 15 can be assigned as the
- color associated with a layer.
-
- NOTE: You can only see colors when B&W is disabled (see OPTION
- TOGGLE B&W), and an Image Update is performed.
-
- The color assignment on a color monitor is as follows:
- 0 - Black 4 - Red 8 - Dark Gray 12 - Light Red
- 1 - Blue 5 - Magenta 9 - Light Blue 13 - Light Magenta
- 2 - Green 6 - Brown 10 - Light Green 14 - Yellow
- 3 - Cyan 7 - Light Gray 11 - Light Cyan 15 - White
-
- DISPLAY
- -------
- A check mark next to a display number indicates that the layer is
- visible. All eight layers may be visible at one time.
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 42
-
-
- NOTE: Although only one layer can be ACTIVE at a time, EDIT
- commands will operate on all layers. To ensure objects
- are not mistakenly selected, make sure all layers are
- DISPLAYed when performing EDIT commands.
-
- MOVE
- ----
- This command permits you to move an object from its current layer to
- the indicated layer. This command operates the same as the Edit, Move
- command with the exception of specifying a To:layer rather than a To:
- position.
-
- PROTECT
- -------
- This command protects objects on specific layers from being modified
- during editing operations. You are again given the opportunity to
- select the layer to protect from a dialog window. You may protect as
- many layers as you wish. Protecting all layers would disable editing
- of the whole drawing until protection was reset.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- DRAFT CHOICE V.1.5 (C) Copyright TRIUS, Inc. 1988-90 Page - 43
-
-