CAD test for drafting students

[brandonr92]

Hey everyone, I'm looking for a little help. I teach drafting at a community college and I'm looking for some hiring cad tests to give to my students so they can have an idea of what kind of skills employers are looking for. It would also help me evaluate their skills.

Also, I'm always looking for input from employers about what students should know coming out of school. Anyone have any suggestions?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[peter.ashby]

Ok I read your other post here and I can see that you have the experience - the point I was trying to put was the extra few minutes thought that you need to put in on a drawing that is hand drafted, to make sure that your views will fit on the page etc etc, but I can see that you are teaching drafting, so hopefully your students will come out at least knowing these basics, which I have to say is a lot more than most do. I had a fresh off a course guy work for me briefly, his major fault was setting a paper size / layout size to the paper size, then copying a 20mm border outside that - we are still finding the odd drawing that is off scale when printed and out of proportion to a standard paper size where drawn not to scale due to this. Needless to say when his review came up after 3 months he didnt remain with us ( this was in a period when management frowned upon checking drawings as a complete waste of time and we were pushed hard for productivity, standards and checking is now as big a part if not more important than the original drawing work a lot due in part to this gentleman)

[Anonymous]

Well, it is amazing how much that I know that I have taken for granted.
After reviewing your list, You are packing alot in a one semester class.
Still wish they had time to at least be given the concept of xref's so that
they could have an idea what it even is. Most won't grasp it with minimal
instruction, but the good ones will see a benefit and explore it further on
their own. These are the people we all like to hire anyhow!
Again keep up the good work. The future of our profession rest on the
shoulders of guys like you who teach.

--
Larry



"Craig Black" wrote in message
news:5155910@discussion.autodesk.com...
I have been using AutoCAD since v2.18. I worked in industry as mechanical
designer, and as the CAD manager. I worked as a drafter on the board for 7
years before my company switched to AutoCAD. I taught part-time in the
evenings for two semesters before I took a full-time job at a technical
college, splitting my time between program courses and Autodesk Training
Center courses. I have been working in that position for 16 years. I bring
a wealth of practical knowledge of how it is done in business and industry
as well as a wealth of knowledge in the use of AutoCAD software to the
classroom. I will be the first to admit that I learn something new in every
single course I teach. Any instructor that says they don't is lying.

My point is that if you never had to sit down and write curriculum for a one
semester drafting course, or write curriculum for a one semester AutoCAD
course, do not even begin to challenge what I include in my course, but of
course I will listen. Teaching XREFs to a student that at the beginning of
the semester doesn't know how to:

Start the AutoCAD program from the Windows desktop
Identify the various user input tools available within the AutoCAD software
Manipulate pull-down menus to access commands
Modify toolbar locations and utilize them to access commands
Perform rudimentary tasks with the LINE, CIRCLE, and ERASE commands
Access context-sensitive menus and dialog boxes
Utilize AutoCAD's HELP command and INFO palette for self assistance
Identify functions of keyboard buttons as used in AutoCAD
Use keyboard to enter commands at command prompt
Left-click the pointing device to activate toolbar buttons, create points,
and select objects
Right-click the pointing device to access context-sensitive menus
Perform basic viewing operations using the scroll wheel/button on the mouse
Start a NEW drawing
SAVE the drawing to a specific name and location
OPEN an existing drawing
Close a drawing
Exit the AutoCAD program
Adjust GRID and SNAP settings
Set linear and angular UNIT settings
Set drawing LIMITS
Create and use a drawing template
Use various options of the ZOOM command, including
All Extents Previous Window Object
Save and name of VIEW for quicker re-viewing
Create multiple VIEWPORTS to view more than one area of a drawing at a time
Affect the display order of objects in a drawing
Draw lines accurately using the LINE command

Understand how to create points using
the pick button
Absolute coordinates
Relative coordinates
Polar coordinates
Direct Distance Entry

Use the Polar Tracking and Ortho tools

Delete objects using the ERASE command

Understand how to create a selection set using
Implied Windowing
Window
Crossing
WPolygon
CPolygon
Fence

Remove objects from a selection set

Undo previous operations

Draw circles accurately using the CIRCLE command and its options

Draw arcs accurately using the ARC command and its options

Draw ellipses accurately using the ELLIPSE command and its options

Draw polygons accurately using the POLYGON command and its options

Draw rectangles accurately using the RECTANG command and its options

Properly use the DONUT command

Mark up revisions to a drawing using the REVCLOUD command

Use object snap modes to create precision drawings

Use object snap overrides for single point selections

Set running object snap modes for continuous use

Use temporary tracking and AutoTrack modes to locate points relative to
other points in a drawing

Use the OFFSET command to draw parallel lines and curves

Divide existing objects into equal lengths using the DIVIDE command

Use the MEASURE command to set designated increments on an existing object

Create construction lines using the XLINE and RAY commands

Create new drawing layers

Manage drawing layers

Utilize AutoCAD Design Center to copy layers from one drawing to another

Access the Layer Properties Manager to change layer name, color, linetype,
lineweight, and status

Utilize the Layers toolbar drop-down to change layer status (on/off,
freeze/thaw, make current)

Create objects on the appropriate layer

Change layers of existing objects utilizing the drop-down from the Layers
toolbar and the PROPERTIES command

Use the drop-downs from the Properties toolbar to change an object's color,
linetype, and lineweight

Use the PROPERTIES command to change layers, colors, linetypes, and
lineweights

Utilize the MATCH PROPerties command to copy properties from one object to
others

Draw angled corners with the CHAMFER command

Utilize the FILLET command to round corners and clean up intersections

Remove portions of objects using the BREAK command

Use TRIM and EXTEND to modify objects in relationship to other objects

Change the placement of objects with the MOVE command

Make single and multiple copies of objects with the COPY command

Create objects in a reflected position with the MIRROR command

Change the placement angle of objects with the ROTATE command

Copy objects in a rectangular or circular pattern with the ARRAY command

Utilize the ALIGN command to move and copy objects in relationship to other
objects

Change the size of objects with the SCALE command

Modify the lengths and heights of single objects and groups of objects with
STRETCH and LENGTHEN

Utilize grips to edit objects with the STRETCH, COPY, MOVE, ROTATE, SCALE,
and MIRROR commands

Control the appearance and behavior of grips with the Options dialog box

Use the PLINE command to create polyline objects

Change the appearance of polylines while creating them with PLINE options
(width, halfwidth, arc, line, and close)

Utilize the PEDIT command to change polyline width

Create fit and spline curves from straight polylines with PEDIT

Straighten curved polylines with the decurve option of the PEDIT command

Join lines, arcs, and polylines together with the join option of the PEDIT
command

Separate polylines into lines and arcs with the EXPLODE command

Modify polyline vertex points with the PEDIT command and with grips

Use the SPLINE command to create open spline objects

Use the SPLINE command to create closed spline objects

Change the appearance of splines with the SPLINEDIT command

Change spline control points with the Refine option of the SPLINEDIT command

Use the AREA command to calculate the area of a closed object or series of
points

Measure the distance between 2 points with the DIST command

Utilize the LIST command to obtain information about objects

Identify a point's coordinate information with the ID command

Utilize the STATUS command to obtain current drawing information

Track time spent on a drawing with the TIME command

Use the TEXT command to create single-line text.

Create paragraphs or multiple lines of text with the MTEXT command

Find and use special text symbols

Check spelling with AutoCAD's spell checker

Create and use text styles to change and save the appearance of text

Edit existing text with the TEXTEDIT command

Change text properties with the PROPERTIES command

Utilize DIMLINEAR to create horizontal and vertical dimensions

Create aligned dimensions with DIMALIGNED

Dimension angles with DIMANGULAR

Dimension circles with DIMDIAMETER

Dimension arcs with DIMRADIUS

Create datum dimensions with DIMBASELINE

Create continued dimensions with DIMCONTINUE

Use the QLEADER command to draw specific notes with linked leader lines

Add center marks to circles and arcs with DIMCENTER

Create and utilize dimension styles to control the appearance of dimensions

Change the dimension style of existing dimensions

Use the PROPERTIES command to change a dimension's properties

Edit dimension text with the EDITTEXT command

Move and stretch dimension components with grips

Select a Hatch pattern from the Boundary Hatch dialog box

Control the hatch pattern scale and angle

Pick an enclosed point in the drawing to apply the hatch pattern

Edit existing hatch patterns

Insert existing blocks into the drawing using the INSERT command

Control the block's insertion point, scale, and rotation angle

Utilize TOOLPALETTES to drag and drop blocks into the drawing

Utilize the Design Center to insert blocks

Create a block from a group of objects using the MAKEBLOCK command

Pick an appropriate insertion base point for the block

Enter a name for the block

Utilize layer "0" to control appearance of the block when it is inserted

Utilize REFEDIT to change all instances of a block in the current drawing

Use the EXPLODE command to break down a block into it the components that
make it up

Redefine blocks by inserting, exploding, editing, and resaving an instance
with the same name

Use the PROPERTIES command to change a block's properties

Create a block as a drawing file with the WBLOCK command

Redefine all instances of a BLOCK by inserting a file with the same name

Save global blocks in a folder to create a block library

Save blocks in a single drawing to create a block library

Utilize Design Center to insert blocks from the block library

Create tool palettes from block libraries

Utilize the PLOT command to print or plot areas of the drawing from the
Model tab

Understand and instruct AutoCAD what to plot, e.g.; display, limits, window,
or extents

Select the correct plotter, paper size, and drawing orientation

Preview the plot before sending to the plotter

Utilize the Page Setup Manager to select the plotter

Utilize the Page Setup Manager to set the paper size

Utilize the Page Setup Manager to set the drawing orientation

Create copies of a layout in the current drawing and export to others

Draw the drawing border within the printable area of the layout

Draw the title block and populate it with the necessary information

Create new floating viewports in the layout

Modify the size and shape of floating viewports

Set the plot scale for the floating viewport

Control the visibility of layers within the floating viewports

Utilize the plot command to plot the existing layout

Preview the plot before sending the drawing to the plotter

? (Again, the question was: Do I teach XREFs to a first semester student
that doesn't know the above topics before the semester starts?)

Let me answer the question with another question: Are you CRAZY??? 🙂

Remember, you have 18 hours to lecture on the above topics, and the students
have two hours to work with the concepts covered during each hour of
lecture. In addition, you must now find a way to squeeze in XREFs. Sorry,
in my 16 years of experience, it cannot be done, nor does it belong in the
first semester. It belongs in an intermediate level class. End of story.

--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


"gomez" wrote in message
news:5155384@discussion.autodesk.com...
just because you teach (and I'm not just referring to you) doesn't mean
anything, i have an employee who is still going to school and comes back in
and says he had to show the instructor how to something in cad. plus he
completely amazed how he can finish a project in a couple of hours when the
instructor was planning on a week. if you only teach and don't understand
how other disciplines use the program, what's the point in teaching. i
learned more from a book and working than any cad instruction taught me.


"Craig Black" wrote in message
news:5155113@discussion.autodesk.com...
Have you ever taught a drafting course or an AutoCAD course?


--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


"larry" wrote in message
news:5155120@discussion.autodesk.com...
"I believe an earlier post mentioned "needing to show students how to use
XREFs". That is not a drafting topic, nor is it a first semester AutoCAD
topic..."

I tend to disagree with this statement. It most certainly is a drafting
topic. Again, thinking the whole process thru it becaomes very relevant.
Say I have a base .dwg with information that will be used on 15 different
sheets in a construction document set. Are you teaching them to fix any
mistakes in 15 different .dwg's or are you teaching them to fix it once?
And as far as not being a first semester ACAD topic, if is not it should be.
Some students never have more than the one semester class and then go to
work somewhere. It would be nice if the had some understanding as to how a
production enviroment works. And depending on the disipline, Xref's play a
major part of production drafting. This way several people can work on the
same project. At least in my world this is how it works.

--
Larry


"Craig Black" wrote in message
news:5155080@discussion.autodesk.com...
Thanks... my whole point is that teachers need to know when to teach the
software and when to teach drafting - they are definitively two different
courses...

I believe an earlier post mentioned "needing to show students how to use
XREFs". That is not a drafting topic, nor is it a first semester AutoCAD
topic...


--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


"larry" wrote in message
news:5155005@discussion.autodesk.com...
Craig,
I understand what you are saying, but I think what the others are trying to
say is that the thought procees involved with board drafting is very
important. When you start a drawing, you have to consider the scale,
orientation, line wieghts to express what you are trying to show, in
general, you have to think the whole process thru before you start. Per
your later post, I see that you are teaching this and that's great. But
most don't teach this and these kids are coming out without a clue how to
even set up a drawing, let alone the whole process. It is great to see
someone teaching this mentallity, and combineing that with cad.
Keep up the good work!!!

--
Larry
larrye@dabrownengineering.com


"Craig Black" wrote in message
news:5154960@discussion.autodesk.com...
no, no, no... you misunderstood. I have been *teaching* drafting via the
computer for last two years. I have been drafting since 1978, and using
AutoCAD since 1985. We just got rid of our manual drafting portion of the
curriculum two years ago. As you will see by my other subsequent posts, I
do teach sketching manually, but it ends there. Saying that you need to
learn manual drafting to appreciate the wonders of the CAD system is like
saying you need to learn to write with ink and feather quill to appreciate a
pencil.


--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


wrote in message news:5154702@discussion.autodesk.com...
Two years?
My what a wealth of experience - I am sure some people here could probably
top my 26 years of draughting - by hand or CAD - and I would say that you
need to learn how to hand draft - if only to produce neat sketches from site
visits etc , and yes you can teach orthographic and other projections in CAD
but you will only really appreciate how important they are when you do them
by hand and make a mistake - Its really a case of learning that attention to
detail and that everything you do matters and has an effect on the
appearance of the finished drawing. Drawings are a work of art when done
correctly - they have a nice and relaxing feel to them - done badly they are
just plain ugly and put you on edge just looking at them.

[Anonymous]

Well, before the test, I look at the resume and ask how long they have been doing Autocad.
If they say "years" and answer "toolbars" to question #1, I know they are either lying, or never worked under someone
that taught them good habits.

I teach users to key in all the basic commands. Its a bad sign if they need the draw or edit toolbars to do work.
The zoom toolbar is ok for transparent zooms, but it kills me when I see people picking that stupid zoom icon for basic
zooming.

Toolbars make you take your eyes off the work, and add mouse movement and clicks. Its so much faster to learn to type Z
and spacebar to zoom. the same pattern goes for all common commands.

This is one of those things where opinions can be backed up, people who key-in the basic commands draw faster (once they
know what they want to draw).
Hence the question on the test.


Jeff Laurich
|>James,
|>Just curious. Under Command Habits - Question #1, if I said I used toolbars
|>almost exclusively and hardly ever type in a command, what would that tell
|>you about me?
|>Jeff
James Maeding
Civil Engineer and Programmer
jmaeding - athunsaker - com

[Anonymous]

Even worse are the one who use the menu bar.
clickVIEW>clickZOOM>clickWINDOW..... when all that is required is Z W


"James Maeding" wrote in message
news:5156889@discussion.autodesk.com...
Well, before the test, I look at the resume and ask how long they have been
doing Autocad.
If they say "years" and answer "toolbars" to question #1, I know they are
either lying, or never worked under someone
that taught them good habits.

I teach users to key in all the basic commands. Its a bad sign if they need
the draw or edit toolbars to do work.
The zoom toolbar is ok for transparent zooms, but it kills me when I see
people picking that stupid zoom icon for basic
zooming.

Toolbars make you take your eyes off the work, and add mouse movement and
clicks. Its so much faster to learn to type Z
and spacebar to zoom. the same pattern goes for all common commands.

This is one of those things where opinions can be backed up, people who
key-in the basic commands draw faster (once they
know what they want to draw).
Hence the question on the test.


Jeff Laurich
|>James,
|>Just curious. Under Command Habits - Question #1, if I said I used
toolbars
|>almost exclusively and hardly ever type in a command, what would that tell
|>you about me?
|>Jeff
James Maeding
Civil Engineer and Programmer
jmaeding - athunsaker - com

[Anonymous]

So, let me get this straight...

Since YOU like the keyboard, in order to be fast everyone needs to use the
keyboard?

Wrong-o, Keebler...

A good AutoCAD user will make appropriate use of all input devices:
keyboard, mouse shortcut menus, toolbars, pulldowns...

I always say typers aren't faster - they are just busier... 🙂


--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


"James Maeding" wrote in message
news:5156889@discussion.autodesk.com...
Well, before the test, I look at the resume and ask how long they have been
doing Autocad.
If they say "years" and answer "toolbars" to question #1, I know they are
either lying, or never worked under someone
that taught them good habits.

I teach users to key in all the basic commands. Its a bad sign if they need
the draw or edit toolbars to do work.
The zoom toolbar is ok for transparent zooms, but it kills me when I see
people picking that stupid zoom icon for basic
zooming.

Toolbars make you take your eyes off the work, and add mouse movement and
clicks. Its so much faster to learn to type Z
and spacebar to zoom. the same pattern goes for all common commands.

This is one of those things where opinions can be backed up, people who
key-in the basic commands draw faster (once they
know what they want to draw).
Hence the question on the test.


Jeff Laurich
|>James,
|>Just curious. Under Command Habits - Question #1, if I said I used
toolbars
|>almost exclusively and hardly ever type in a command, what would that tell
|>you about me?
|>Jeff
James Maeding
Civil Engineer and Programmer
jmaeding - athunsaker - com

[Anonymous]

I've been using AutoCAD since 1989, release 9. Our first AutoCAD
workstation came with a digitizer with four button puck and an Artist
graphics board. That graphics board had software that would create
customizable "pop-up" windows (in DOS!) that had the basic draw, edit,
zoom and osnap commands available as icons.

Since I used that setup from the start, later graduating to a 16 button
digitizer puck with at least two functions assigned to each button, I
never needed to use keyboard shortcuts and, thus, never really learned
them. Once we went to a Windows based AutoCAD moving to toolbars from
the old pop-up windows was a natural progression.

Because I had no training in CAD before starting with this company in
1989, I had to learn the software and all of my habits, good or bad, on
my own. I would answer your question #1 with "toolbars", tell you I've
been using AutoCAD for almost 16 years and not be lying. I also
wouldn't call my habits all that bad, just different than yours.

Now, if I could just manage to graft the scroll wheel from my mouse to
my digitizer puck, it would be perfect...

Charlie


James Maeding wrote:
> Well, before the test, I look at the resume and ask how long they have been doing Autocad.
> If they say "years" and answer "toolbars" to question #1, I know they are either lying, or never worked under someone
> that taught them good habits.
>
> I teach users to key in all the basic commands. Its a bad sign if they need the draw or edit toolbars to do work.
> The zoom toolbar is ok for transparent zooms, but it kills me when I see people picking that stupid zoom icon for basic
> zooming.
>
> Toolbars make you take your eyes off the work, and add mouse movement and clicks. Its so much faster to learn to type Z
> and spacebar to zoom. the same pattern goes for all common commands.
>
> This is one of those things where opinions can be backed up, people who key-in the basic commands draw faster (once they
> know what they want to draw).
> Hence the question on the test.

[Anonymous]

I only use the following buttons on different toolbars:

QSAVE
OPEN
QNEW
DRAWORDER FRONT, BEHIND
MSTRETCH
SHEETSET

:-)

been using acad since some moons ago......

--
http://www.geometricad.com



and ask how long they have been doing Autocad.
If they say "years" and answer "toolbars" to question #1, I know they are
either lying, or never worked under someone
that taught them good habits.

[skintsubby]

<< when all that is required is Z W >>

No need to type the W. 🙂

[Anonymous]

I didn't say typing only, I just said toolbar only is a bad sign.

I always say, non-typers get carpal tunnel. It takes a lot of extra work to pick buttons all day.


Craig Black
|>So, let me get this straight...
|>
|>Since YOU like the keyboard, in order to be fast everyone needs to use the
|>keyboard?
|>
|>Wrong-o, Keebler...
|>
|>A good AutoCAD user will make appropriate use of all input devices:
|>keyboard, mouse shortcut menus, toolbars, pulldowns...
|>
|>I always say typers aren't faster - they are just busier... 🙂
James Maeding
Civil Engineer and Programmer
jmaeding - athunsaker - com

[Anonymous]

My bad misinterpretation then - sorry.

I will agree that "only-anything" is bad...


--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


"James Maeding" wrote in message
news:5163160@discussion.autodesk.com...
I didn't say typing only, I just said toolbar only is a bad sign.

I always say, non-typers get carpal tunnel. It takes a lot of extra work to
pick buttons all day.


Craig Black
|>So, let me get this straight...
|>
|>Since YOU like the keyboard, in order to be fast everyone needs to use the
|>keyboard?
|>
|>Wrong-o, Keebler...
|>
|>A good AutoCAD user will make appropriate use of all input devices:
|>keyboard, mouse shortcut menus, toolbars, pulldowns...
|>
|>I always say typers aren't faster - they are just busier... 🙂
James Maeding
Civil Engineer and Programmer
jmaeding - athunsaker - com

[Gators]

My comments about the hand drafting issue. It must be taught. I do think perhaps too much time is spent on it, but the old form of drating was an art form. Not any "drafting monkey" can create beautiful drawings by hand. The lack of traditional drafting methods and principles (such as when to hatch a part of a cross section, what lines should be dashed, light or bold, etc) are lost among CAD classes. They need a good foundation of both to truly succeed in this business.

As for what to teach, stay atop of new features in ACAD, as well as the most used ones. Xrefs, Paper/Model space, with text/dims in paper space are the basic fundamentals of most firms in the industry now, yet I see no community or technical colleges in FL teaching it. Staying on top of things such as sheet set manager would also be very beneficial...then again, you only have so much time. Personally, I think having an entire course at a CC directed at 3D is completely useless. Time would be better off spent on continuing eduction of advanced CAD features, instead of the 3D stuff that they are likely to never use again in basic CAD, especially with all the vertical platforms form Autodesk....despite the 2007 release. This just coming from a Civil firm perspective though.

[Anonymous]

We teach drafting strictly on the computer, and we cover everything you
mention (hatching, linetype usage, lineweight usage, PS/MS, text and dims in
PS, and in MS). No need for any of that to be covered on the board...

--
Craig
_______________
Dreamers don't have strategic grill locations...


wrote in message news:5166939@discussion.autodesk.com...
My comments about the hand drafting issue. It must be taught. I do think
perhaps too much time is spent on it, but the old form of drating was an art
form. Not any "drafting monkey" can create beautiful drawings by hand. The
lack of traditional drafting methods and principles (such as when to hatch a
part of a cross section, what lines should be dashed, light or bold, etc)
are lost among CAD classes. They need a good foundation of both to truly
succeed in this business.

As for what to teach, stay atop of new features in ACAD, as well as the most
used ones. Xrefs, Paper/Model space, with text/dims in paper space are the
basic fundamentals of most firms in the industry now, yet I see no community
or technical colleges in FL teaching it. Staying on top of things such as
sheet set manager would also be very beneficial...then again, you only have
so much time. Personally, I think having an entire course at a CC directed
at 3D is completely useless. Time would be better off spent on continuing
eduction of advanced CAD features, instead of the 3D stuff that they are
likely to never use again in basic CAD, especially with all the vertical
platforms form Autodesk....despite the 2007 release. This just coming from a
Civil firm perspective though.

[Anonymous]

Drafting skills can be taught without a computer and may be an advantage in the beginning as the student concentrates on learning drafting techniques and not learning AutoCAD commands.

I have taught mathematics and physics for over 20 years, and both can be taught and learned without a computer.

Math, Physics and drafting have been around many years before the advent of the computer. I think the problem with too young students today is they do not learn the fundamentals instead learn how to push keys on a computer. Unfortunately many students and young teachers believe teaching a computer program will teach a student a subject.

The computer and calculator are better used as tools after a student has a knowldege of the subject. I have seen the decline of basic skills in my students because of too much dependance on the use of a calculator and computer.

And yes I both use and program a computer for work to quickly apply the fundamentals I learned over 25 years ago.

Maximo

[Anonymous]

On Tue, 9 May 2006 08:46:25 +0000, maxima10 <> wrote:

>Drafting skills can be taught without a computer...I have taught mathematics and physics for over 20 years, and both can be taught and learned without a computer.

I would hope so, otherwise we'd have to start looking at space aliens to explain
the Pyramids and the Pantheon.

Matt
mstachoni@comcast.net
mstachoni@bhhtait.com

[peter.ashby]

I grant you that it can be easier to teach with a computer, but I still feel that a little Drawing Board knowledge helps a lot - especially when there is a power cut - as I work for an electricity supply company we have contingency plans for catastrophic failure of the system - without a knowledge of Non CAD skills a lot of users might just as well go home if the power is out - we need those old skills to be able to get the system back up and running, we need maps to show us where the network is, and people who can read them, not just people who can query the database and find something, not to mention people in the field who can sketch up what has happened to the network so that the CAD can be updated to how things are now that we have it all back up and running - and that is just us 'support staff' the engineers have it even harder.

[Anonymous]

I think learning to draw by hand has exponential benefits for the student over
solely computer-based learning.

First off, it's a hell of a lot more fun.

Second, you are always looking at the work in its entirely - there's no ZOOM
command at the drafting table. Conversely, you rarely get the overall picture in
CAD. I think that really helps you learn spatial relationships.

Whereas the majority of learning CAD is a real exercise in what the command set
is. You are always busy translating a natural operation - erasing a line, for
example - to "Hit E. Pick the object. Repeat step 2 if required." Gads.

There are way too many times in a professional office where you have to sketch -
doing site surveys, for example. Being able to quickly draw by hand accurately
is a real key skill, and is completely foreign to someone brought up on just
CAD.

Matt
mstachoni@comcast.net
mstachoni@bhhtait.com

On Tue, 9 May 2006 15:24:41 +0000, Grendel <> wrote:

>I grant you that it can be easier to teach with a computer, but I still feel that a little Drawing Board knowledge helps a lot - especially when there is a power cut - as I work for an electricity supply company we have contingency plans for catastrophic failure of the system - without a knowledge of Non CAD skills a lot of users might just as well go home if the power is out - we need those old skills to be able to get the system back up and running, we need maps to show us where the network is, and people who can read them, not just people who can query the database and find something, not to mention people in the field who can sketch up what has happened to the network so that the CAD can be updated to how things are now that we have it all back up and running - and that is just us 'support staff' the engineers have it even harder.