The following commands and tools provide quick navigation and exploring in different versions of AutoCAD.

 

1. QVDRAWING  command (alias QVD) available in AutoCAD2009+. Enter the command or use taskbar button

 

 

Drawings thumbnails appears on the screen. Click to open any file.

 

Play video: QVdrawing

 

2. Window pull-down menu - all AutoCAD versions.

 

 

3. Access recent files - click on button (Acad2009+) to open the list of drawings (up to 50 recent files)

 

 

Set the number of recent files in Options dialog window (Open and Save tab)

 

 

4. Set TASKBAR variable equal 1 (AutoCAD2005+) to display multiple open drawings as separate items on the Windows taskbar

 

 

5. AutoLISP commands. If you have a number of opened drawings, you can use keyboard only for closing each document and omit extra clicks on “Yes” or “No” answering Save changes to… dialog window. Command SD = close drawing without saving;

SS = qsave + close

(defun c:SD()(command "vbastmt" "activedocument.close false"))

(defun c:SS()(command "qsave" "close"))

6. Optimize Windows Explorer Views.

List and Details views provide the best viewing option for large folders containing a big number of files. You can make all folders views the same: open any folder, select View (e.g. List); then on the Tools menu click Folder Options and on the View tab click Apply to All Folders (as shown below):

7. If you need to quickly open Windows Explorer, you can do it from AutoCAD command prompt: type EXPLORER and press enter.

Similarly you can launch Notepad: type NOTEPAD and hit enter twice.

8. Edit Desktop shortcuts. If you add 1 at the beginning of word Windows (as shown on picture below) on Windows Explorer

 

icon, then when Desktop is on your screen, you can type 1 and press enter to launch Explorer – no need to spend time for finding this icon on overcrowded Desktop. Just make sure you don’t have on Desktop other icons with names starting with 1. The same modification you can make with AutoCAD or other frequently used program icon (e.g. change AutoCAD to 0AutoCAD).

9. Use Control + Tab – perfect solution for switching between drawings, especially if you have two opened drawing.

For three or more drawings:

  • repeat Control + Tab in order to iterate through opened drawings,
  • if you interrupted pressing Control + Tab and used Window pull down menu or other way of changing current drawing, then the next Control + Tab will activate the last opened drawing (works like Last button on TV remote control).

10. Quick close drawings.

Command CLOSEALL closes all currently open drawings intelligently and quickly.

11.  Additional options in Acad Officer:

  • Command FOL – explore current drawing’s folder contents.

  • Instantly change drive or directory - open the drawing. Videos: Open Drawings and Add Folders

Alex Borodulin 1/15/10

NYacad, Inc.

NYacad@gmail.com