• Home
  • Training Books
  • Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter
  • About
    • Contributors
    • Feedback
    • Contact
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookie Policy

CADnotes

CAD Tutorials and Best Practices for professionals and students

  • Featured
  • AutoCAD
    • AutoLISP
  • Revit
    • Revit Architecture Basic
    • Revit MEP Basic Tutorial
  • Inventor
  • MicroStation
    • MicroStation Basic Tutorial
You are here: Home / AutoCAD / AutoCAD Tip: Your template doesn’t have to be complicated

AutoCAD Tip: Your template doesn’t have to be complicated

February 22, 2013 by Edwin Prakoso 1 Comment

In this Article...

  • Only essentials styles and objects in template
  • You can keep your styles and objects on separate files
    • How can I insert it to my drawing?

Drawing template is a feature that you should optimize to gain more productivity. Read Brian Benton’s article here: why you should use a template.

You might be tempted to add everything you use in your template. It would be nice to have everything when we start our drawing, isn’t it?

Wrong. It would only make your template become complicated and become corrupt.

Businessman and problems

© alphaspirit – Fotolia.com

Only essentials styles and objects in template

It’s necessary to prepare your template so you can start drawing immediately. However, you shouldn’t put everything in your template. If you have all AIA layers in your drawing, you will have more than 500 layers. I seriously doubt that you will use all of them. This will only make us difficult when we need to find a layer.

If you put everything inside your template, this will make your template become large and inefficient. Too many objects can also make your drawings corrupt.

Some suggestions to keep in your templates:

  1. Some settings that are kept in drawing files.
  2. Necessary objects like frequently used page setup and title block.
  3. Most frequently used styles (text, dimension, etc.)
  4. Frequently used layers.

You can keep your styles and objects on separate files

Now you have a template. When your drawing has become complex, you need more items and settings to add. Do you have to create them manually?

No. You can create libraries for everything in separate files! Library is not limited to blocks.

You can have library for layouts, for example. Instead of defining a dozen of page setups in one template, you can save them in one separate file.

You can have library for layers. Instead of putting 500 layers in a drawing, you can put 25 layers in template, and the rest in a separate file.

How can I insert it to my drawing?

There are many ways to add additional objects to your drawing. You can use tool palettes. Tool palettes is popular for inserting blocks.

For more general purpose you can use AutoCAD Design Center. As you can see below, you can add almost every AutoCAD styles, blocks, linetypes, layers, and layouts.

supported objects by design center

Ideally, you can create templates for quickly start your drawing. Put frequently used objects and settings there.

But you need to define libraries in separate files. You will not want to create objects repeatedly in your drawings. It’s wasting time, and not good for company standard.

So simplify your template. But maintain your company standard by creating libraries.

How is your current company template? Do you think it’s already efficient? And do you think there are things that can be improved from your templates?

About Edwin Prakoso

I work as a Sr. Consultant in PT Cipta Satria Informatika. I've been using AutoCAD since R14 and Revit since Revit Building 9. I occasionally write for AUGIWorld magazine and I am also active in Autodesk discussion forum. I'm a member of Autodesk Expert Elite, an appreciation for individuals who give contributions to the Autodesk community.
Connect with me on twitter or LinkedIn.

Filed Under: AutoCAD Tagged With: autocad tips, library, template

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Login
Notify of
guest

guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

1 Comment
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Cadiclysm
Cadiclysm
12 years ago

True statement, but the article is light on content.
Very similar to the infommercials that offer advice: "To keep your house clean, use a broom", "Now buy my product".

0
Reply
wpdiscuz   wpDiscuz

Featured

8 Frequent Issues when installing Autodesk Products

Many times the installation failed. We need to know what the problem is and what the workaround is. If you don’t know what’s the problem, you may not be able to install it even you have tried several times. Let’s try to fix it!

Recent Articles

  • Autodesk Construction Cloud Activity Log
  • Exporting AutoCAD Plant 3D Model to Navisworks
  • Autodesk Data Connector for Power BI is Now Available

Advertisement

New on CADnotes

  • Autodesk Construction Cloud Activity Log
  • Exporting AutoCAD Plant 3D Model to Navisworks
  • Autodesk Data Connector for Power BI is Now Available
  • Autodesk Forma Design Contest
  • Revit 2025: Toposolid Enhancements

Meet the Authors

avatar for
avatar for
avatar for
avatar for
avatar for
avatar for

Get Connected

CADnotes on FacebookCADnotes on InstagramCADnotes on TwitterCADnotes on YouTube

© 2009 – 2025 CADnotes · Feedback · Privacy Policy · Become an affiliate

wpDiscuz