Using Zwcad Layout Space To Avoid Linetype Scale Problems

By Author: Charlie Amrich
Total Articles: 4
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As a ZWCAD user, do you sometimes face a problem like the following? You make a drawing using a variety of line types, but when you view or plot the drawing in model space, the linetypes display as continuous lines or have spaces between the line segments that are too large. What to do?

Maybe you change the linetype scale, over and over again, but you still can't get a satisfactory result. I had the same problem when I first began using ZWCAD, and then I found a solution that I would like to share with you.

Generally, we make drawings in model space, and then plot them on paper in order to communicate with others. In model space, we draft the drawing at the real size of the object. For example, we might need to draw a cup with a diameter of 15 centimeters. We draw the top with a circle that has a diameter of 15cm. When we view the whole drawing or zoom into a specific part, the zoom factor changes. We don't know how to set the linetype scale correctly to match the drawing in model space.

When ...
... we think about the reason why we set linetype scales, we find that we just want to print them with the correct scale factor. We need to distinguish them from continuous lines. I'd like to show you how to meet these needs with the following solutions.

Solution 1. To distinguish linetypes from continuous lines in model space, I suggest you apply a unique color to the non-continuous linetypes. This alerts you that they are different types of lines.

Solution 2. The second question is how to print non-continuous lines correctly. Some users might be inclined to calculate the linetype scale according to the plot scale. When you plot drawings from model space, then you certainly must take this step.

But things are different when you use layout, also known as paper space. Layouts are very helpful for plotting, hence the old name called "paper space." After you complete the drawing in model space, you can set the scale easily and plot it out correctly by following these steps:

1. Switch to the layout tab in which you wish to view or plot the drawing.
2. Open Linetype Manager dialog box.
3. Turn on the "Use paper space units for scaling" option, as illustrated by the figure below.
(Alternatively, you can change the value of system variable PSLTSCALE to 1.)

4. Click OK to exit the dialog box.
5. Double-click inside the viewport to activate it.
6. Regenerate the view with the REGEN command.

You will find that the non-continuous lines display correctly according to the paper space scale, automatically! When you print out the drawing from paper space, it also looks correct.

With the help of layout, we can display and plot the non-continuous lines conveniently. From this example, we also can see that layout space is more suitable for plotting than model space.

Note. Please make sure your drawing is based on the correct template. This is very important. When you work with metric units, use the metric template; when you work with imperial ones, then use the imperial template.