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Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 11:09 am
by Lars
How do I change my drawing unit input from the default (feet.inch.fraction input?) I want something thats quicker... like true decimal inches with feet input as an option. For example... instead of having to do this... (0.0.1/2) ... It would be so much faster to just type this... (.5) ... or (.25) RATHER than getting the output 5/32, or 25/32.

Basically I want decimal inches to always to be my input. UNLESS I use FEET which would look something like this... 25'3.125

How can I do this?

Thanks!

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 11:39 am
by Roger D
You will find that in Settings, Scale Type, select Inch Decimal if that is what you want.
With the current setting of Arch, you could also enter as ..16, the base unit is 1/32" of an inch, so ..16 = 16/32 or 1/2".

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 11:42 am
by joshhuggins
In the Utility menu, F0 Settings, F2 Scale Type you can try to set either Decimal or Inch/Decimal and see what works best for you.

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 12:19 pm
by Lars
Thanks!

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 1:58 pm
by ORWoody
Lars:
If you like just using the period as your input control, rather than ',",/, etc. DataCAD lets you do that. I always use the period. For example, 5'2 1/2" would just be entered as 5.2.1.2. Granted, that is slightly longer than a straight feet, decimal entry, but I can't remember into the 32nds of an inch decimals equivalents, but I can type 5.2.7.32 easily. The period is an instant separator for distance elements.
That is my favorite thing about DataCAD.... Well, that and about seventy thousand other favorite things about DataCAD.
Seriously. Try the period input and all will be good.
Of course, if you have a reason for decimal feet or decimal inches, that capability is there too
Woody

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 8:24 am
by Lars
Decimal inch is about as close as I'm going to get it seems. Thanks!

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 8:59 am
by Mark F. Madura
Lars wrote:Decimal inch is about as close as I'm going to get it seems.
I think you want to use the Scale Type Eng. (Engineering).

For example:

..5 = 0.50"
[Spacebar][Spacebar]5 = 0.50"
0.0.5 = 0.50"

25.3.125 = 25'-3.125"
25[Spacebar]3[Spacebar]125 = 25'-3.125"

Just for fun, you can also explore the command-line calculator.

At the distance input prompt, type: =1/12/2 and press [Enter].
DataCAD will return 0.0.50 which is 0.50"

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 4:32 pm
by dmartens
Or like I learned here a long time ago you don't need the 0's. ..1.2 will work.

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 4:54 pm
by Roger D
and or
..8 = 1/8"
..4 = 1/4"
..16 = 1/2"
..20 = 5/8"
..24 = 3/4"

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Wed Feb 27, 2019 8:40 am
by Lars
:lol: Its like learning decimals in Elementary School again. Only this time around they're teaching us that "..16 = .5" :? (which if you have kids, you know that's not far from the truth.) Its hard enough with a direct fraction/decimal relationship. Now its a fraction cypher on top of it? I'd rather not relearn my fractions in how many 1/32 = 1/2.

Thanks, but I'll stick with .5 = .5

:lol:

Nice to know I dont have to keep using the 0's though.

Thanks!

Re: Change Relative Input Drawing Units

PostPosted: Sat Nov 23, 2019 12:19 am
by Ted B
Hehheh, ...I have the same annoying problem with Sketchup Layout. While the Sketchup modelspace handles units of length in various formats, Layout is paperspace and you have to dbl-check your units and paperspace scale when drawing or dimensioning. When drawing directly into Layout, I have to use the apparent scale. For an object like a roof plan in 1/8th-scale; to accurately enter a distance in Layout one foot is "1/8", and 16-inches is "16/96". I keep a little cheat sheet under my desk-glass ..next to the one for common lettering-hts. in DCAD at various output scales!

I have DCAD drawings where I have different scale-types in the same file, typically for site-work. I'll have a large siteplan in 1"=200-ft Engineering, then an xref'd detail dimensioned at 1/16th or 1/8th Archtectural. I just leave myself a note off-frame below the tiled and nested titleblocks to remind myself to change the scale-types setting before plotting so the dimensions are the correct type. I just can't use mixed scale-types on the same printed sheet when its time to plot...

While the surveyors and civil types are used to decimal feet, most trades on-site want feet-inches. I used to deal with a steel guy who worked in feet-decimal inches... May the old gods and the new protect us from metric.