If you missed it please go to  WELCOME to MYCADHELPER for a description of the overall concept of MYCADHELPER that embodies the four chapters:

1. MYCADKEYS             Faster command execution using short aliases and reduced keystrokes.

2. MYCADFUNS           Offering greater functionality and more OSNAPS and OBJECT SELECTION options.

3. MYCADLAYERS       The key to structured modeling and accuracy of form and data.

4. MYCADZONES          More complete yet compact file structure, faster viewing and plotting.

MYCADKEYS PRESENTLY OFFERS APPROXIMATELY 900 COMMAND ALIASES ABOUT A HALF OF WHICH HAVE BEEN ACFIVATED. HALF OF THOSE ARE THE MOST COMMONLY USED AUTOCAD COMMANDS AND ALL OF THE MYCADKEYS FUNCTIONS.   THE BALANCE OF LESS USED AUTOCAD COMMANDS AND PROPOSED MYCADKEY CUSTOM FUNCTIONS ARE BEING PROGRESSIVELY PROVIDED WITH MYCADKEYS STYLE ALIASES AND ACTIVE FUNCTIONS. THESE WILL BE REGULARLY UPDATED S MYCAKEYS EVOLVES.

 

Then when you are ready to review MYCADKEYS Command Aliases read on or follow the links below.

MYCADKEYS Aliases to AutoCAD Commands    

AutoCAD Commands to MYCADKEYS Aliases

MYCADKEYS System Aliases to AutoCAD  System Commands 

MYCADKEYS Drawing Aliases

AutoCAD Alias to AutoCAD Commands

MYCADKEYS is a multifaceted custom AutoCAD Command Interface. Written in AutoLISP by an architect for architects (me actually – Colin Wright) but it works equally well for any profession.

MYCADKEYS achieves a dramatic reduction in the time taken to both start and execute commands. This is done by using the Command line and very short command Aliases that both access and control improved commands requiring greatly reduced keystrokes .

Let’s take a quick look at the structure of MYCADKEYS:

Some of the benefits of MYCADKEYS:

• DOUBLE your drawing output? (yes double – seriously)

• Produce more INTELLIGENT more ACCURATE drawings?

• Finally solve the layer naming problem?

• Provides a complete system of short but intelligent command aliases?

• Fast intuitive Commandline interface.

• Supports generic AutoCAD program without corrupting it

• Solves ALIAS naming problem.

• Provides custom MYCADLAYER layer naming system compliant with international standards.

• Layers may be generated, named and managed automatically by dialogue or Commandline.

• Automated layer naming solves LAYER naming problem.

• Automated layer names support WORKZONE creation, editing and management.

• Eliminates screen clogging menus and hunting for Command icons...CLEANSCREEN.

• Eliminates wasteful keystrokes and mouse clicks.

• Reduces all MYCADKEYS command responses to single character.

• Eliminates pressing <enter> to confirm input.

• Improves range of OSNAPS.

• Improves range of OBJECT selection options.

• Improves range of command OPTIONS.

• Improves command FUNCTIONALITY.

• Supports COINCIDENT OVERLAY drafting

• Permits multilevel, multi-function WORKZONES in a single integrated model.

• Automatically creates and manages WORKZONES that aid viewing and printing.

• Easy to learn and actually speeds learning of AutoCAD.

• Provides a link to BIM

AutoCAD's major fault.

AutoCAD's major benefit that distinguishes it from other programs is its Command line. However this has been ignored in favor of more and more varieties of clumsy graphical menus. There are said to be eight different menu systems in AutoCAD yet the only complete one is the Command line. After many menu iterations Autodesk has finally acknowledged that the Command line is the fastest and most transparent way of controlling AutoCAD. Unfortunately their latest incarnation, their so-called “smart” command on-screen interface, has become yet another unnecessary distraction. The other thing that Autodesk has overlooked is providing an intelligent and complete command Alias (keyboard short-cuts) system.

But let’s first deal with REVIT and BIM.

Are you worried that 2D drafting is a thing of the past?

Although some major projects may be using Revit or Archicad to produce Building Information Models (BIM) Their real benefit is for presentation and 3D modeling. Eventually simple 2D production drawings are the most common outcome. The jury seems to be still out on AutoCAD versus Revit and BIM and myths and complaints are plenty.

AutoCAD 2D is still going strong. It has significant underused capabilities of OVERLAY drafting that can avoid the common errors of alignment and clashes inherent in traditional methods of drawing and claimed to be the main benefit of BIM.

With both BIM and 2D drafting the data extracted is only as good as the data put in. In less complimentary colloquial terms "garbage in garbage out". OVERLAY drafting using MYCADZONES provides an excellent opportunity to ensure good data in.

The advanced automated Layer naming and management that comes with MYCADLAYERS not only facilitates but encourages OVERLAY drafting using MYCADZONES to produce multi-discipline, multi-level, single integrated models saving time and enhancing data integrity.

MYCADKEYS uses a few very simple concepts:

• MYCADKEYS uses keyboard shortcuts (Aliases) and single key-press responses together with a more effective use of the mouse and keyboard allowing almost all AutoCAD menus to be turned off clearing the screen for drafting area and accelerating input and control of commands. 

• Whereas AutoCAD Aliases merely start generic AutoCAD commands.  MYCADKEYS Aliases both start and execute commands.

• MYCADKEYS Aliases provide logical short command Aliases for almost ALL commands both AutoCAD and MYCADKEYS. (Not quite true since AutoCAD is said to have as many as 2000 commands).

• Reduces command responses including Osnaps and Object selections to single key-press except for text and numbers.

• Uses single key Accelerators to control the drawing environment.

• Make use of the fifty plus keys on the keyboard and right mouse button not just the basic twenty-six alpha keys.

Creating Aliases:

MYCADKEYS assumes NOUN–VERB order rather than VERB–NOUN for example COPY-select-objects rather than SELECT- objects Copy.

The best shortcuts are naturally single characters but how does one create the over 900 shortcuts provided by MYCADKEYS (or even the 650 required by AutoCAD)  with an average of two and never more than three characters from about 54 keys?

MYCADKEYS achieves this by assigning single character aliases to the most common commands and then grouping remaining commands by general function using one character for the command group plus one further character for the specific command.  Commands with options can include an additional single key option making a maximum of three characters.

Examples of Aliases:

C Copy E Erase

Place Line (PL) Place Arc (PA)

Join Fillet (JF) Join Trim (JT)

Query Area (QA) Query Layer (QL).

By inventing a few new command words for groups such as Place, Join and Query a very large number of commands can be given recognizable two character aliases. Thus one and two character aliases are available for just about every command that you will commonly use.

An interesting group of commands are those that change object properties thus requiring a third character for the property.

Foe example ChanGe commands require further information such as a property to chanGe. Thus: GL chanGe Layer and then GLC chanGe Layer Color.  Hence many edit commands may be compounded into three character aliases allowing three different command approaches by starting with G <enter>, GL <enter> or GLC <enter>. For most common options these one, two or three levels of command instructions are available as defined MYCADKEYS aliases.

Edit commands and some other commonly used commands are assigned single character shortcuts:

-	undo	=	set vars	*	explode	&	group	^	select
¬	stretch	+	r	$	style	%	scale	[	architl.
]	custom	//	mirror	/	reverse	|	linetype	+	render
<	Design C.	>	action	3	threeD	@	@ttedit	A	Array
B	Block	C	Copy	CR	C/Rotate	D	Dim	E	Erase
F	Files	G	chanGe	H	Hatch	I	Insert	J	Join
K	breaK	L	Layer	M	Move	MR	M/Rotate	N	reName
O	Osnap	P	Place	Q	Query	R	Rotate	S	Solid
T	Text	U	UCS	V	Viewpoint	W	Window	X	Xref
Y	sYmbols	Z	Zoom	+	render

 

Go to https://mycadkeys.com menu item MYCADKEYS for a complete list of Aliases.

Accelerator Keys:

In addition to conventional Alias type keyboard command shortcuts AutoCAD provides a number of special Accelerator Keys.  Examples that you will be familiar with are F1 for AutoCAD’s HELP and F8 for Ortho ON and OFF. The distinction between Accelerator Keys and command Aliases is that whereas command Aliases are typed at the command line and must be completed by <enter> or [space-bar]; accelerator keys execute immediately without the need to press <enter>, Accelerator Keys also include some special key combinations such as Ctrl+chr.

MYCADKEYS Accelerator keys:

F1                         MYCADKEYS HELP

F2                         Same as AutoCAD (Textpage)

F3                         Toggles MYCADKEYS Command- repeat ON and OFF

F4                         3DORBIT

F5                         REGENALL

F6                         Toggles MYCADKEYS Edit Text mode ON and OFF

F7                         Toggles layer name length between 5chr, 12chr or OFF 

F8                         Same as AutoCAD (Ortho)

F9                         Toggles SNAP ON and OFF

F10                       Same as AutoCAD (Polar ON/OFF)

F11                       Toggles TILEMODE ON and OFF

F12                       When Tilemode is OFF toggles Vport active or inactive

AutoCAD accelerator keys:

Shift+F1                AutoCAD HELP

F2   or Shift+F2     Toggles between the AutoCAD drawing screen and the text screen

F3   or Shift+F3     Starts OSNAP command.

F4   or Shift+F4     Toggles TABMODE ON and OFF.

F5   or Shift+F5     Toggles ISOPLANE ON and OFF

F6   or Shift+F6     Toggles COORDS ON and OFF

F7   or Shift+F7     Toggles GRIDMODE ON and OFF 

F8   or Shift+F8     Toggles ORTHOMODE ON and OFF.

F9   or Shift+F9     Starts SNAPMODE command.

F10 or Shift+F10   Toggles Polar Tracking ON and OFF

F11 or Shift+F11   Toggles object snap tracking ON and OFF

F12 or Shift+F12   None

 

MYCADKEYS leaves the Ctrl+Shift+character keys as defined by AutoCAD. 

 

EDIT

 

MYCADKEYS OSNAP Ctrl+character shortcuts:

Ctrl+#   aLong or diVide

Ctrl+A   Apparent

Ctrl+B   COPYBASE

Ctrl+C   Center

Ctrl+D   noDe

Ctrl+E   End

Ctrl+F    From

Ctrl+G   general midpoint between two points

Ctrl+H   Hidden EXTension

Ctrl+I    Intersection

Ctrl+J    midpoint between two end points

Ctrl+K   kwik  END, MID, INT, CEN

Ctrl+Ll    paralleL

Ctrl+M  Mid

Ctrl+N  Nea     

Ctrl+O  nOn

Ctrl+P  Perpendicular

Ctrl+Q   Quadrant

Ctrl+R   not used

Ctrl+S   inSertion point

Ctrl+T  Tangental point

Ctrl+U  Until meet line

Ctrl+V   PASTECLIP

Ctrl+W not used

Ctrl+X  Xval     X value filtered from a point

Ctrl+Y  Yval     Y          “”

Ctrl+Z  Zval     Z          “”

On a keyboard with a number pad the following definitions may be usefully added to your accelerator keys.

Numpad 1 -  <90

Numpad 2 -  <270

Numpad 3 -  <315

Numpad 4 -  <180

Numpad 5 -  <@

Numpad 6 -  <0

Numpad 7 -  <135

Numpad 8 -  <90

Numpad 9 -  <45

 

 

 

 

 

 

Graphic menu systems are fundamentally flawed.  Can you imagine playing a piano using only a mouse to select keys? The Keys to MYCADKEYS success are a substantial reduction in required keystrokes plus the use of ten fingers instead of one mouse.  (Think of the pianist - not only play with one