Using TxtScale

DataCAD How-To's

USING TxtScale (TEXT SCALE)

Using TxtScale in DCAD is simple to do, but difficult to understand - at first. First I’ll try to explain it, but then it may be easier to understand by doing, so we’ll do a little tutorial.

Without TxtScale offices came up with elaborate charts to remind everyone what the text size was supposed to be for different scale drawings. ¼" scale drawings may have used text that was, at ¼" scale, defined as 6" high for text that was to plot out at 1/8" high. What TxtScale does is figure out all those conversions for you on the fly. You tell TxtScale what the scale of the detail/drawing will be when you plot it (key concept, here), and how big you want the text to be (like 1/8" high), and TxtScale automatically figures out how big the text should be drawn at. Best of all, TxtScale carries over into DCAD's dimensioning, also. If you like your overruns and overlaps to always be 3/32", then you only have to set it once, make it part of your default drawings, and never ever have to set those settings again.

1. Open a new drawing in DCAD.
2. Go to Edit/Text.
3. Turn TxtScale ON.
4. Go to Size and make the text size 1/8" (type in ..1/8 <Enter>)
5. Now go to Utility/Plotter/Scale.
6. Set the scale to 1" (sorry to all the metric users). Your plotting scale is now set to 1" = 1'-0".
7. Now go back to Edit/Text.
8. Place the text cursor in the drawing screen and type, "This text will plot at 1/8" high at 1" scale."
9. Go back to Utility/Plotter/Scale.
10. Set the scale to 3". Your plotting scale is now set to 3" = 1'-0".
11. Go back to Edit/Text.
12. Place the text cursor in the drawing screen and type, "This text will plot at 1/8" high at 3" scale."

Now to see how Page Up and Page Down works with TxtScale:

13. Locate the text cursor below the previous text, but do NOT press the left mouse button. Now press Page Up. Notice that the text cursor gets larger. Notice also that the information line at the bottom of the screen is telling you what the new PLOT SCALE (yes, I'm yelling - it's an important concept) is. This is not the text size. The text size is still 1/8" high (and always will be until you change it in Edit/Text/Size), but by using PgUp/Dn you are defining what plot scale the text will be printed at.
14. To prove this, PgUp until the info line says, "Current plotting scale is now 1/4"
15. Now click the left mouse button and type, "This text will plot at 1/8" high at 1/4" scale". Note that at any time while you are typing you can use PgUp/Dn to Window In/Out, without affecting the text cursor or the plot scale.
16. Go to Utility/Plotter/Scale. You will notice that the "Current plotting scale is: 1/4". In effect, the PgUp/Dn in the Text menu acted as a shortcut to this Utility/Plotter/Scale function. This is also a key concept.

Now we'll print out a few pages of our text to see how it looks at different plot scales.

17. With the Plotter/Scale still set to 1/4", print out an 8-1/2"x11" page with the text inside it (all of it should fit).
18. Now go back to Utility/Plotter/Scale and set the plot scale to 1". Print out the page.
19. Now go back to Utility/Plotter/Scale and set the plot scale to 3". Get as much of the text into the sheet as possible. The largest text will not fit completely, but that's OK. Print out the page.

So, if you want to print all the notes of your details at 1/8" high (no matter what scale), set TxtScale to 1/8". When working on a 3" scale drawing use PgUp/Dn or Utility/Plotter/Scale to set the plot scale to 3" and then type away. When you want to start adding notes to a 1/4" scale drawing, use PgUp/Dn or Utility/Plotter/Scale to set the plot scale to 1/4" and then type away. etc, etc.

Best of all, TxtScale carries over into DCAD's dimensioning, also. If you like your overruns and overlaps to always be 3/32", then you only have to set it once, make it part of your default drawings, and never ever have to set those settings again.

Voila! No more trying to remember what size text should be at 3" or 1/4" scale, and no using antiquated (sorry, but I had to say it...) charts to tell everyone in your office what the text sizes and dimension settings should be. Set once, type many.

NOTE: One thing to remember. If you change the plot scale of your detail after having already placed the text, the text size will NOT change to match the new plot scale. TxtScale depends on your input up front to decide how big to display the text. In this one aspect, TxtScale is no different than doing things the "old" way.