CAD + GIS EN Tutorial

Tutorial

Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent any commitment on the part of Pythagoras BVBA. Software described in this document, which has been developed by Pythagoras BVBA, may not be copied by or for third parties without the prior written authorization of Pythagoras BVBA. Pythagoras CAD+GIS V12.00 July 2010 Trademarks Microsoft, MS-DOS and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. (C) Copyright Pythagoras BVBA. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system or translated into any language in any form by any means without written permission of Pythagoras BVBA.

Table of Contents

INSTALLATION ...................................................................................... I

INTRODUCTION: PYTHAGORAS CAD+GIS ....................................................................... 1

ABOUT PYTHAGORAS CAD+GIS .......................................................................................... 1

HOW TO USE THE PYTHAGORAS MANUALS? ......................................................................... 1

CHAPTER 1: MICROSOFT WINDOWS ENVIRONMENT ............................................. 3

GENERAL INFORMATION ...................................................................................................... 3

INSTALLATION PROCEDURE ................................................................................................. 3

CONFIGURING THE PYTHAGORAS INSTALLATION ................................................................... 4

STARTING PYTHAGORAS ..................................................................................................... 5

TUTORIAL ............................................................................................. 7

ABOUT THIS TUTORIAL......................................................................................................... 9

TOPICS NOT COVERED IN THIS TUTORIAL ............................................................................. 9

HOW TO USE THIS TUTORIAL ............................................................................................... 9

CHAPTER 1: GETTING ACQUAINTED ...................................................................... 11

STARTING, VIEWING AND TERMINATING .............................................................................. 11

Starting Pythagoras ..................................................................................................................... 11

Opening an Existing Drawing ...................................................................................................... 12

Viewing a Drawing ...................................................................................................................... 12

Terminating the Drawing Session ............................................................................................... 14

DRAWING AREA ................................................................................................................ 15

THE CONTROL PANEL ....................................................................................................... 16

Scale and Coordinate System .................................................................................................... 16

Local - Page Coordinate System ................................................................................................ 18

Toolbox Buttons, Tools Menu and Cursor .................................................................................. 18

Position Indicators ....................................................................................................................... 19

Distance Indicators ...................................................................................................................... 19

CHAPTER 2: DEFINING OBJECTS ........................................................................... 23

SIMPLE OBJECTS .............................................................................................................. 23

Defining and Checking Points ..................................................................................................... 23

Defining and Checking Lines ....................................................................................................... 24

Connecting Points and Lines with the "Sight" ............................................................................. 25

SELECTING, CLEARING AND UNDO-ING ............................................................................... 27

Selecting a Single Object ............................................................................................................ 27

Selecting Multiple Objects ........................................................................................................... 27

Selecting a Group of Objects ...................................................................................................... 28

Selecting all (similar) Objects ...................................................................................................... 28

Clearing Objects .......................................................................................................................... 29

Undo-ing Actions ......................................................................................................................... 30

COMPOUND OBJECTS ........................................................................................................ 30

Parallel and Perpendicular Lines ................................................................................................. 30

Arcs ............................................................................................................................................. 31

Circles .......................................................................................................................................... 32

Parallel Objects ........................................................................................................................... 33

Exercise With Objects .................................................................................................................. 33

Polygons ...................................................................................................................................... 33

Title and Object Texts ................................................................................................................. 35

Dimensions en Annotations ......................................................................................................... 36

User Coordinate Systems ........................................................................................................... 37

Curves ......................................................................................................................................... 37

CHANGING THE FORMAT OF OBJECTS ................................................................................ 38

CHAPTER 3: CREATING A NEW DRAWING ............................................................. 39

STEP 1: SELECT A PRINTER OR PLOTTER ........................................................................... 39

STEP 2: SET UP THE DRAWING TO THE PAGE CONSTRAINTS ................................................ 40

STEP 3: DESIGNATE AND CHECK THE DRAWING DEFAULTS .................................................. 41

Splitting up a Drawing in Layers .................................................................................................. 42

Checking Other Defaults ............................................................................................................. 42

CHAPTER 4: SAVING AND PRINTING OR PLOTTING ............................................. 43

SAVING, CLOSING OR QUITTING ......................................................................................... 43

Saving a New Drawing ................................................................................................................ 43

Saving an Existing Drawing ......................................................................................................... 44

PRINTING OR PLOTTING ..................................................................................................... 44

Printing or Plotting a New Drawing .............................................................................................. 44

Adapting an Existing Drawing to the Active Printer or Plotter ..................................................... 45

CHAPTER 5: DIGITAL TERRAIN MODELS ............................................................... 47

CREATING A TERRAIN MODEL ............................................................................................. 48

CONTOUR LINES................................................................................................................ 49

VOLUMES ......................................................................................................................... 50

CROSS SECTIONS ALONG PATH ...................................................................................... 51

CROSS SECTIONS - PERPENDICULAR TO PATH ................................................................... 52

3D-VIEW .......................................................................................................................... 56

COLORIZED MAP OF A TERRAIN MODEL ............................................................................... 57

SLOPE INTERCEPT............................................................................................................. 59

CHAPTER 6: THEMATIC MAPS ................................................................................. 63

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 63

First example ............................................................................................................................... 63

Second example ......................................................................................................................... 65

Third example ............................................................................................................................. 66

Fourth example ........................................................................................................................... 67

CHAPTER 7: DATABASES IN PYTHAGORAS .......................................................... 69

CREATING A TABLE ........................................................................................................... 69

CHAPTER 8: COORDINATE AND POLYGON LIST .................................................. 72

CREATING COORDINATE LIST ............................................................................................. 72

CREATING POLYGON LIST .................................................................................................. 74

CHAPTER 9: GOOGLE EARTH ................................................................................. 76

EXPORT .KML .................................................................................................................. 76

VIEW DRAWING DIRECTLY FROM PYTHAGORAS IN GOOGLE EARTH ....................................... 78

CHAPTER 10: ROAD DESIGN TUTORIAL .................................................................. 81

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 81

TECHNIQUE ...................................................................................................................... 82

CHAPTER 11: SPECIAL FUNCTIONS ....................................................................... 100

DRAWING INFORMATION .................................................................................................. 100

IMPORT & EXPORT .......................................................................................................... 100

OBJECT INFORMATION ..................................................................................................... 101

DEFAULT SELECTIONS ..................................................................................................... 101

DISPLAY AND PRINT OPTIONS .......................................................................................... 102

COPY AND PASTE ........................................................................................................... 102

CALCULATIONS ............................................................................................................... 103

PRINT SHEET MANAGEMENT ............................................................................................ 104

Installation

Installation Introduction: Pythagoras CAD+GIS 1

Introduction: Pythagoras CAD+GIS

About Pythagoras CAD+GIS

Pythagoras is the ideal Computer Aided Design tool for land surveyors, civil engineers, design firms, utility companies and construction companies. Pythagoras runs on the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows XP

Microsoft Windows Vista

Microsoft Windows 7

How to Use the Pythagoras Manuals?

All user information about Pythagoras is brought together in three volumes.

First, Pythagoras must be installed on your computer. This is explained in this first volume: the Installation Manual.

The second volume, the Tutorial, is made for all novices to Pythagoras. Its language and tone is such that new computer users quickly will be on the move. But also connoisseurs of computers and CAD programs will gain time by catching the rhythm of Pythagoras this way.

Detailed and complete information on all functions of Pythagoras can be found in the third volume: the Reference Manual.

Finally the appendices to the Reference Manual provide information on advanced functions as well as the file formats used by Pythagoras.

Installation Microsoft Windows Environment 3

Chapter 1: Microsoft Windows Environment

General Information

The following minimum system specifications are needed:

a Pentium or higher processor

Minimum 128 Megabyte RAM memory

Windows XP, Vista or 7 Any printer or plotter supported by the Operating system(s) above may be used.

Installation Procedure

WARNING!

USB key:

We recommend that you first install the software, and then restart the PC, before connecting the USB security key.

Caution: Windows needs you to be logged on as "Administrator".

1. Download Pythagoras 12 from our website www.pythagoras.net under

Downloads.

2. Fill in the form

And click on Download

4 Microsoft Windows Environment Installation

3. Click on Download US English (or UK English)

4. Double click on SETUP.EXE.

5. Click OK in the RUN dialog box

6. Follow the instructions on your screen.

The installation program will automatically detect an older version of Pythagoras and will

delete it. If you have installed Pythagoras 11, you can keep this version if you specify

another folder.

The next installation of Pythagoras 12 will first delete all older versions (also V11)!

7. Restart your computer.

Configuring the Pythagoras Installation

The actual operating size of the Pythagoras program is defined by three parameters. These parameters have default values which can be changed by the Pythagoras Configuration program This program has the name "Configure" in your Windows Applications window. At any time, if you try to start Pythagoras and you have trouble opening Pythagoras, double click on the Configure icon and change one or all of the three following parameters:

Number of objects per drawing

Each object, be it a point, a line or whatever occupies some space in memory. When Pythagoras runs, it reserves memory space for the number of objects indicated here.

Installation Microsoft Windows Environment 5

The maximum number of objects is limited to 4 million objects per drawing. As a default, this value is set to 65000. We advise you not to set the max. number of objects higher than necessary. The higher the number, the more memory Pythagoras will use.

Image cache (in MB)

This is the maximum size of RAM space reserved by Pythagoras to speed up the display of images. When you set the image cache too small (for example 0MB), Pythagoras will always need to read the image from disk to display it. When the image is smaller then the size of the Image cache, it will be read only once and kept in memory. When a drawing contains several images, or there are several drawings open containing images, the image cache will be used for all images. When the cache is not large enough to keep all images, Pythagoras will retain the most recently used information in the image cache. The maximum size of the image cache is 128MB. It is obvious that the size of the image cache should not be made larger then what is really required. Consult the reference manual "Import of images" to make an estimate of the size.

Automatic save:

When automatic save is activated, a value can be entered which represents a time interval (expressed in minutes) between each automatic save. While working in Pythagoras, you will get the choice whether you want to save your drawing automatically or not.

Automatic backup When activating automatic backup, Pythagoras will create a backup copy of the drawing you are opening. This backup copy will be saved in the same folder as your original, but the filename starts with ~$.

Starting Pythagoras

Starting Pythagoras is as easy as starting any other application on your computer. If you want to start Pythagoras the first time, turn to the Tutorial and follow the guidelines of the "Getting Acquainted" chapter. Note: If you have not read the preceding section on "Configuring the

Pythagoras Installation", do it anyway. It will save you a lot of time if you run into starting problems.

Pythagoras

Tutorial

Tutorial 9

About this Tutorial

This tutorial introduces you to Pythagoras, your new collaborator for your drawing work. As you read through the tutorial and perform the exercises, you will catch the rhythm of Pythagoras. We suggest you make a quick start first with chapter 1. With the following chapters you will learn gradually more about all basic Pythagoras functions without the need to digest it all at once. It will take a few hours, but meeting Pythagoras this way will prove, even for the experienced computer user, worthwhile. At the end you have touched every basic function and you are able to "feel" where to look for a particular function you want to activate. It is necessary to have a basic knowledge of the graphic environment in which you work. In particular, having a good feel for handling the mouse is essential. Before you can use it, Pythagoras must be installed on your computer of course. This is explained in the Installation Manual. Detailed and complete information on all functions of Pythagoras can be found in the third volume, the Reference Manual. This manual can be downloaded from our website www.pythagoras.net or you can find it on the installation cd.

Topics Not Covered in this Tutorial

Although you can always use the three dimensions, exercises on objects are explained with a two dimensional coordinate system in mind. This option was taken because it simplified the exercises. If you like, do all exercises with three dimensions. Just enter a value for the third coordinate also. A line with an elevation can be used as a reference to define other objects, such as parallel or perpendicular lines. This tutorial does not cover the more complex functions. We trust that once you have read this manual and performed the exercises, your surveying knowledge combined with the easy Pythagoras user interface and the explanations in the Pythagoras Reference Manual will enable you to uncover them yourself.

How to Use this Tutorial

If you are completely new to Pythagoras then Chapter 1 is essential. It makes a quick tour through the basic concepts of Pythagoras. Chapter 2 is the most important chapter. It brings exercises on all objects that you will use very soon in every new drawing. In Chapter 3 you will find very useful hints to create a new drawing. Among other topics, it explains the use of layers to structure your drawing.

10 Tutorial

Chapter 4 explains you how to save your valuable work and how to make a hard copy from it. Chapter 5 introduces some applications of the module Digital Terrain Models. In Chapter 6 you will be introduced to Thematic Maps Chapter 7 explains you how to set up an internal Database in Pythagoras. Chapter 8 shows the creating of coordinate and polygon lists. Chapter 9 will shown the link between Pythagoras and Google Earth In Chapter 10 you will be introduced to the Road Design module. To be complete, chapter 11 summarizes the special functions not covered in this tutorial. These functions are not considered essential for your very first drawings. More detail on them can be found in volume three, the Reference Manual. Each chapter is made so that you can work through it section by section, at your own pace. Each exercise takes only a few minutes. In addition to the material covered in this tutorial, we would also like to recommend that you check out our Web site www.pythagoras.net. Under the sections Downloads and Support you will find numerous extra material such as training movies, a document that summarizes the Toolbox items, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), etc. These documents are invaluable during the learning process. Therefore, we recommend that you take a close look at those documents. We are sure that Pythagoras will delight you and we hope that this tutorial will help you to discover its power in the fastest way possible. Thank you.

Tutorial Getting Acquainted 11

Chapter 1: Getting Acquainted

Starting, Viewing and Terminating

Starting Pythagoras

To begin, double-click on the Pythagoras icon with the mouse button. Now, you see the Pythagoras screen with its four main parts:

A. The control panel B. The menu bar C. The drawing area D. The toolbar

The Windows version of Pythagoras shows an empty drawing in here.

The control panel and the toolbar can be moved anywhere on the screen. Pythagoras will remember their position the next time it starts.

Pythagoras

Control panel

Menu bar

Toolbar Drawing area

12 Getting Acquainted Tutorial

Opening an Existing Drawing

1. Select Open in the File menu or click on in the toolbar. The file selection window pops up.

2. In the Examples (a folder that you will find inside the folder in which you installed Pythagoras) directory/folder Windows/Macintosh respectively), select a sample drawing from the list by clicking on its name.

3. Click on the Open button. The file selection window disappears. A new window appears with the selected drawing. The complete drawing will be visible in the drawing area.

Notes:

The easiest way to start Pythagoras and open an existing drawing is to double-click on the drawing icon or name.

More than one drawing may be open at the same time (see also "Configuring the Installation of Pythagoras" in the other Pythagoras manual volumes). In the View menu the list of all activated drawings can help you to jump from one drawing to another.

Viewing a Drawing

Actual Size Select Actual Size in the View menu. The drawing will be displayed in its actual size. Overview Select Fit in Window in the View menu. The complete drawing becomes visible in the drawing area. Zooming In Further and Further

1. Make the drawing fit in window again (see Overview section above). 2. Select Zoom In in the View menu. The mouse pointer becomes a

magnifying glass with a plus sign at the center. 3. Place the mouse pointer above and to the left of the point you want to

zoom in on. 4. Press and hold the mouse button while moving the mouse to the right

and downwards. A rectangle appears and grows or shrinks as you move the mouse.

5. Make the rectangle surround the entire area you want to zoom in on, then release the mouse button. The indicated area fills the drawing area completely. The zoom factor (top line of control panel) shows its corresponding value.


Note: You may zoom in with a factor 2 when you just click the mouse button on the position where you want to zoom in.

6. Go back to the first step of this procedure and repeat it step by step until

the Zoom In field of the View menu becomes gray.

This is the point where zooming in is no longer possible -- zooming in can be done until a factor 1000 of the actual scale. 7. Continue with the next procedure. Notes:

You can cancel zooming in any time by pressing the Escape key on the keyboard.

To define the "zoom in" area (in step 4. above), the rectangle can be made to grow in any of four directions.

Zooming Out 1. Select Zoom Out in the View menu. The previous view from the "zoom in"

procedure re-appears. 2. Go back to step 1 of this procedure and repeat it until Zoom Out in the

View menu becomes gray. Now the drawing "Fits in the Window" again. Notes:

As you zoom in, Pythagoras keeps track of the successive zoom factors.

Of course, at any point during your drawing work you can select any one of the fields of the View menu to return to the view you like best. You can even do this during the construction of objects (lines, arcs, circles, ...).

Zooming using the Scroll-Wheel If your mouse has a Scroll-Wheel, you can use the wheel to zoom in or out. That is as long as you did not set up the wheel to perform scrolling (refer to Appendix C for the setup). Simply turn the Scroll-Wheel to zoom in our out. While zooming in, the position of the cursor is important: it determines the part of the drawing that will be placed in the center of the screen after zooming in.


Terminating the Drawing Session

At this point, we do not want to save a drawing; we simply want to leave Pythagoras. Notice however that Pythagoras always warns you if you try to quit and some work has not been saved. You can terminate Pythagoras in one of two ways:

Select Quit in the File menu.

Use the short cut key combination indicated in the Quit field of the File menu (CTRL-Q).

If you have not created new objects in the sample drawing, then this is all there is to it. If not, quitting results in a pop-up menu which leaves you the choice to save the file or not. In it, you must select one of 3 buttons:

Don't Save Pythagoras terminates without saving &anything. Take this option if you do not want to change the sample drawing.

Cancel Pythagoras does not terminate -- you can continue your work.

OK All modifications to the indicated drawing are saved to the indicated file and Pythagoras terminates.

Note: If more than one drawing is open and if necessary, Pythagoras asks

you to save the modifications on each of these drawings.


Drawing Area

The background color of the drawing area can be changed into black or white. This setting can influence the visibility of certain symbols, lines texts and hatches. Using the short-key SHIFT + B allows you to change the background color.

1. Open the drawing Example.pyt 2. Hold down the SHIFT button while pressing the letter B 3. The background color changes into black. The black lines are shown

in white now. 4. Double click a line in the drawing. The dialog window Edit Object

pops up. The color of line did not change 5. Use the short-key SHIFT + B again to change the background color

into white.


The Control Panel

The special window at the left side of your Pythagoras screen is the control panel. It acts as your dashboard while you run Pythagoras. In it, you find essential information and entering fields and also toolbox buttons for the most important functions. To illustrate the explanations in this section: 1) Load the drawing "EXAMPLE.pyt". 2) Select Actual Size in the View menu.

Scale and Coordinate System

The top line of the control panel shows the scale of your drawing. By selecting the menu View-Actual size you will see the real size of your drawing. You will see the scale changing as you zoom in or zoom out (see also upper paragraph about Viewing your drawing). The maximum zooming factor is 1000 times the actual scale. Just below the scale, you will find the Unit of Measure menu button. This determines the unit of measure that is currently being used. The values in the control panel are expressed in the unit of measure that is shown here. Below the Unit of Measure button, all information on the coordinate systems is brought together under three buttons.


The following procedures clarify the meaning of these buttons: Coordinate System Display Button 1) Make your drawing Fit in Window. 2) Move the mouse pointer to the square with the coordinate cross in it. This

square is the Coordinate System Display button. 3) Press and hold the mouse button. See the actual coordinate system

appear on your drawing. Note: While you hold the mouse button you still can move the mouse

pointer to any position on your drawing. 4) Release the mouse button. The coordinate system lines disappear from

your drawing. Coordinate System Notation Button 1. Move the mouse pointer to the menu button to the left of the Coordinate

System Display button. This is the Coordinate System Notation button. 2. Press and hold the mouse button. You can select now one of the four three

dimensional entering methods for the definition of a point: Cartesian -- indicated by NEZ or XYZ, polar -- indicated by HDZ, HVD or HVS (see Notes below).

If you like, play around a bit with this menu and see how each change is reflected on the 3 position indicators underneath while you move the mouse around in the drawing area. Coordinate System Name Button 1) Make sure that NEZ or XYZ is selected before you continue. 2) Move the mouse pointer to the third and lowest of the three menu buttons

of the coordinate system. This is the Coordinate System Name button. Note: On it, you will always see at first the name "Local", referring to the

Local Coordinate System (see Notes below). 3) Press and hold the mouse button. Now, you see other coordinate system

names appear -- apart from the Page Coordinate System, these are User Coordinate Systems (see Notes below).

4) Select one of these other coordinate systems. The name appears on the Coordinate System Name button and the Coordinate System Display button changes.

5) Click on the Coordinate System Display button again. See where the selected user coordinate system originates (except for the Page Coordinate System; see Notes below).

Notes:

The values displayed in the "Position Indicators" (see further) are the coordinates of the mouse pointer with regard to the currently selected coordinate system.

The first part of the name of a User Coordinate System is the identifier of the origin point of the UCS. The second part, after the hyphen, is the identifier of a point on the X-axis (or N-axis). A section of the "Defining Objects" chapter explains how you can create user coordinate systems.

For more details on NEZ (North, East and elevation Z), XYZ (X, Y and elevation Z), HDZ (Horizontal angle, horizontal Distance and elevation Z), HVD (Horizontal and Vertical angle and horizontal Distance), HVS (Horizontal and Vertical angle and Slope distance) and CDZ (cumulated distance, distance and elevation) see the section on Coordinate Systems in the Reference Manual.

Under Preferences in the Defaults menu, you can make your choice between NEZ and XYZ and even change the angle units.


Local - Page Coordinate System

The Local Coordinate System All objects of a drawing are stored internally in the Local Coordinate System. By selecting the menu item "Select Print Area", in the "File" menu, the position and the angle of the local coordinate system relative to the page can be defined. The Page Coordinate System This system is used to draw page related information. It has its origin invariably fixed to the bottom left corner of the page and the page edges are its axis lines. The scale of this coordinate system is independent of the scale of the drawing. You can change it using the Defaults menu.

Toolbox Buttons, Tools Menu and Cursor

Now look at the 33 toolbox buttons at the bottom of the control panel. Click on them alternately. See how they highlight when you select them. With these buttons you may either select an existing object in a drawing or define a new object. These same functions and a few more are available using the Tools menu. Select the Tools menu and choose every possibility. By most of the choices, the corresponding icon lights up and the cursor will have its corresponding appearance. The chapter on Defining Objects and the Reference Manual give details on all these objects. Try this exercise to get acquainted with the toolbox buttons, the Tools menu and the Cursor: 1. Click on one of the toolbox buttons. The button highlights. 2. Move the mouse pointer over the drawing area. See how the mouse

pointer has changed into a different Cursor. 3. Select the Tools menu. The corresponding Tools name is flagged now. 4. Select, in the Tools menu, another tool. See how the corresponding

toolbox button highlights. 5. Move the mouse pointer over the drawing area. See how the mouse

pointer has changed again to a cursor specific to this tool. 6. Go back to step 1 and continue this exercise until you feel acquainted with

the Tools names, their buttons and their pointers. TIP: An extensive description of each of these buttons can be found on our Web site. Go to www.pythagoras.net and then to the Downloads-section. Select Toolbox Quick Reference Guide and click on Download for the language of your choice.


Position Indicators

While you were moving the mouse pointer around the drawing, you probably noticed also all these changing numbers in the control panel. The three equally sized fields under the Coordinate System Name button are the position indicators. They continually display the current position of the mouse pointer on the drawing relative to the origin of the active coordinate system. In the Cartesian notation the Position Indicators are (from top to bottom):

The "North" or "X" coordinate

The "East" or "Y" coordinate

The "Z" coordinate (elevation) Notes:

The unit of measure can be changed using the Defaults/Preferences menu.

You can indicate your preference on the XYZ or NEZ notation through the Defaults/Preferences menu (see the "Creating a New Drawing" chapter). Note: In the NEZ-system, the N-axis indicates the reference direction. In the XYZ-system, the X-axis indicates the reference direction.

In the HDZ, HVD and HVS notation the Position Indicators reflect the respective distance or angle position values.

The Position Indicators may also be used as fields for manually entering the exact coordinates of a point. The "Defining Objects" chapter explains this further. If you want to get a feel for how the numbers in the Position Indicators react to mouse movements, do the following exercise: 1. Quit Pythagoras completely or alternatively use Close in the File menu to

remove all active drawings. 2. Start Pythagoras again by double clicking on the Pythagoras icon or

alternatively select New in the File menu. Pythagoras starts with a new empty drawing.

3. Make the drawing Fit in Window using the View menu. 4. Move the mouse pointer to the Coordinate System Display button. 5. Press and hold the mouse button. The active coordinate system appears

on the drawing. 6. Move the mouse pointer to the origin of the coordinate system in the

drawing. 7. Release the mouse button. Look at the values in all three Position

Indicators as they are all close to zero now. 8. Make little movements with the mouse. See how all three indicator values

follow these movements.

Distance Indicators

The Distance Indicators occupy the area of the Control Panel between the Position Indicators and the Toolbox buttons.


These indicators do not display absolute coordinate information like the position indicators. Instead they give distances relative to already defined points and lines. This is why you see their values only when the mouse pointer comes close enough to an existing point or line. 1. Open the sample drawing you used before in the section "Viewing a

drawing". 2. Move the mouse pointer around the drawing area, approaching points and

lines. Watch the Distance Indicators continuously change, appearing only when you approach existing points and lines.

The 4 Distance Indicators give (from top to bottom): Field A When the cursor is on an approached object, Field A contains information about the object: a) For a number: the name of the point and the information. b) For a line either:

The length

The oblique length

The elevation between the endpoints

The bearing of the line relative to the N or Y axis of the currently selected coordinate system

The gradient

Use the TAB key to select information to be displayed.

c) For an arc either:

The length

The radius

The angle at the center

The oblique length

The elevation between the endpoints

The gradient

Use the TAB key to select information to be displayed.

d) For a polygon:

The surface

The length of the outline

The oblique length of the outline e) For a path:

the length

the slope length

the difference in elevation between the end points

the slope. f) For a spiral (clothod):

the length

the K-factor (clothod parameter)

the start radius R1

the end radius R2

the slope distance

the difference in elevation between the end points


the slope. For lines and arcs, the length will be displayed when the mouse is near the object. Use the TAB key to display the next available information about the object. Field B The distance from the mouse pointer to the starting point of the approached line. Field C The distance from the mouse pointer to the end point of the approached line. Field D This field contains either: a) L: value where value is the distance from the mouse pointer relative to

the starting point of a line being created (thus corresponding with its developing length).

b) R: value where value is the radius of a circle or arc being created.

c) D: value where value is the distance from the mouse pointer relative to the reference line or arc when a parallel line or arc is created.

d) B: value where value is the bearing of the line being created. Note: The first three indicators are visible while moving around in an existing

drawing; the last one comes up only when you create a new line, arc or circle object (see the "Defining Objects" chapter).

To further illustrate the use of Position and Distance Indicators, repeat the procedures from the section on "Viewing a drawing". This time, however, pay special attention on the Position and the Distance Indicators.

Tutorial Defining Objects 23

Chapter 2: Defining Objects

Simple Objects

Defining points, lines, circles and arcs: that's what it is all about. Once you have let Pythagoras help you do this, you never think of doing it any other way again. In this chapter, it is assumed that you are familiar with some of the basic principles of Pythagoras. If not, read the "Getting Acquainted" chapter first. NOTE: While you define objects, you can always abandon this action by

hitting the ESC key. You can also click on the Cancel button if it appears in the Control Panel.

Defining and Checking Points

Defining a Point by its Coordinates Define the point (10,20,0) in NEZ coordinates: 1. Start Pythagoras with a new empty drawing. 2. Click on the point button in the control panel. 3. Move the pointer to anywhere within the drawing area.

Notice also the point form of the pointer. 4. Click the mouse button. The coordinate system lines pop up in the

drawing area. The N-position indicator in the control panel highlights: it has become an entering field. The OK and Cancel buttons can now be used to confirm or cancel the action.

5. Type the value 10 but do not press the Enter key. 6. Hit the Tab key. The E-position indicator highlights. 7. Enter the value 20. 8. Hit the Enter key or click on the Ok button. The coordinate system

disappears and the point (10,20,0) is defined.

Notes:

If you make a mistake while you enter values, you can always return to the field with the wrong value by hitting the Tab key several times and then correcting the error.

You can also click on the Cancel button or hit the Esc key to abandon entering.

In a new empty drawing the elevation value for Z equals 0 on start up.

You can do this exercise also with any other coordinate system notation (XYZ, HDZ, ...).

If you press the Shift Lock (or Caps Lock) key before the coordinates of a point are confirmed, Pythagoras will keep on prompting you to enter the coordinates of a next point immediately after each confirmation. After entering a few points you can abandon this situation with the Esc key.

24 Defining Objects Tutorial

Checking the Coordinates of a Point 1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel. Note: You can also press the SPACEBAR key to toggle between the "select

mode" and the previously selected mode. 2. Move the pointer slowly towards the defined point. Watch all position indicators change continuously. At once, the position indicators stop changing -- they hold the coordinate values (10,20,0) now and keep holding these values as long as the pointer remains close enough to the point. As long as the position indicators are stable, you can see underneath them, at the left, the name of the point between 2 hyphens and when available the object comment (if codes were used to identify points and lines while collecting data in the field, the code will be shown here). In Pythagoras terms, all this means: "The point has come into the Sight" 3. Repeat the procedures in the previous section (starting with step 2)

several times and then continue with the one above and play around a bit.

Notice that it is not necessary to keep on entering exact coordinate values. You can simply click on a few points. Each time the OK and Cancel buttons pop up, click on the OK button or the Enter key and a new point is defined.

Defining and Checking Lines

Because a line is defined by its starting and end point, you create a line by simply defining the two points. Defining a Line using its Coordinates To create a line with starting point (10,20,0) and end point (-10, -20,0) in XYZ: 1. Start Pythagoras with a new empty drawing. 2. Click on the line button in the control panel. The line button highlights. 3. Move the pointer to anywhere into the drawing area. Notice the crosshair

shape of the pointer. 4. Click the mouse button. You can enter the coordinates of the starting

point now. 5. Type the value 10; hit the tab key; enter the value 20; hit the enter key.

The coordinate cross disappears and the starting point of the line is defined.

6. Move the mouse around in all directions. You see a line growing, diminishing and turning around the starting point.

7. Click the mouse button. You can enter the coordinates of the end point now.

8. Type the value -10; hit the tab key; enter the value -20; hit the enter key. The coordinate cross disappears and the line is defined.


Checking the Coordinates of a Line You can check the line with the mouse in the same way as you checked the coordinates of a point before. 1. Click on the Select Object button. 2. Move the pointer slowly towards the end points of the line. Watch the

starting point of the line "coming into the Sight". Watch the end point of the line "coming into the Sight".

3. Make the pointer follow the line. Watch the line "remain in the Sight", i.e.: Points of the line are continually displayed in the position indicators. The length of the line (A) and the distance of the pointer from the starting (B) and the end (C) point are continually indicated in the distance indicators.

Connecting Points and Lines with the "Sight"

The previous paragraphs explained what is meant by "an object coming into the Sight". In this paragraph, the power of this statement gets clearer: "The Sight becomes visible". Defining a Line between Two Existing Points If you do not have two points somewhere on your drawing, define them first as you did before. 1. Click on the line button. 2. Move the pointer to the first target point: the starting point of the new line.

As the pointer approaches the target point a Sight appears on this point and the position indicators stabilize.

3. Click the mouse button and then move the mouse. The Sight disappears. A line appears which originates in the "clicked point" and which follows the pointer everywhere. The bottom distance indicator receives the name "L:" and its value changes continuously, displaying the varying length of the new line.

4. Move to the second target point: the end of the new line. As the pointer approaches, the growing line is sucked to the target point. The Sight appears again.

5. Confirm the line by clicking the mouse button. The new line is created. Defining a Point on a Line If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the procedures in previous sections. 1. Click on the Point button. 2. Move the pointer towards the target line. A Sight appears on the line. 3. Click the mouse button. 4. Enter the distance from the starting or the end point of the line.

Notes:

With the Tab key you can jump to the other distance field if necessary.

With the Shift Lock (or Caps Lock) key down, you can quickly define multiple points on the same line.


Defining a Line Originating on another Line If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous sections.

Select the Line button.

Define the starting point like you did define the point in the previous procedure.

Define the end point. Just click the mouse button and enter its coordinates; or, first move to another existing point and then click the mouse button.

Defining a Line with End Point on another Line If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous sections. 1. Select the Line button. 2. Define the starting point either by defining its coordinates or by selecting

an existing point. 3. Move towards the target line. The Sight appears on the line. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Either enter:

The distance to one of the endpoints of the target line.

The length of the new line.

The bearing of the new line. Notes:

With the Tab key you can jump to another field.

When you move the mouse near the point where the new line is perpendicular to the existing line, a special Sight will appear on the object.

Defining a Line with a Given Length and Bearing If you feel unfamiliar with the following procedure, review the previous sections. 1. Select the Line button. 2. Define the starting point -- anyhow, by its coordinates or as an existing

point. 3. Move the mouse in any direction. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Enter the length of the new line. 6. Enter the bearing of the new line. Defining a line with given elevation difference (dZ) between the beginning and the end of the line or with a given gradient (%) 1. Select the Line button. 2. Define the starting point -- anyhow, by its coordinates or as an existing

point. 3. Move the mouse in any direction. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Enter the length of the new line. 6. Hit the TAB key a few times 7. Enter the elevation height (dZ) between the beginning and the end of the

line OR Enter a gradient (%)


Selecting, Clearing and Undo-ing

Selecting an object can serve several purposes:

Clear the object

Change the attributes of the object

Move the object to a different layer

Obtain or enter or export information about the object

Move the object

Rotate the object With the undo function, most actions that have been done can be undone. For now, we will discuss only how you can clear and eventually restore selected objects. To do the exercises of this section, you need a drawing with a few points and lines in it.

Selecting a Single Object

To select an object, you need to place Pythagoras in its selecting mode and then indicate the object. 1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel (alternatively you

can select "Select Object" in the Tools menu, or press the SPACEBAR). 2. Click on different points. See how each one, in turn, is shown in reverse

video. 3. Click on different lines. See how the lines are highlighted. Sometimes a drawing area is crowded with objects and then it is difficult to select an object. You could zoom in to solve this problem. But Pythagoras can help you in another handy way. While you move the mouse, press one of the following keys on the keyboard:

P-key: only points can be selected

L-key: only lines, arcs or circles can be selected

T-key: only text objects can be selected

O-key: only polygons can be selected

X-key: only paths can be selected Try this out with the points and lines on your drawing. Notice the difference in the Distance Indicators with and without pressing one of the keys while you move the pointer towards all types of objects. Notes:

When you click on a line, only the line will be selected. If you want to select the line and its end points, press the ALT or CTRL key on the keyboard while you click on the line.

For the use of the CTRL-, ALT- and SHIFT key: consult the introduction in Appendix B.

Selecting Multiple Objects

1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel.


2. Select a point, line, arc or circle. Watch the object turning in reverse video.

3. Press and hold the Shift key on the keyboard. 4. Select one or more points or lines. See how these objects become

highlighted too. Notes:

You can hold down the Shift key while also pressing the P, L, T, O or X key of the previous section.

You can deselect one of the selected objects when you click on the selected object while you press the Shift key on the keyboard.

Selecting a Group of Objects

Selecting in a rectangular area 1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel. 2. Place the mouse pointer above and to the left of the group of objects you

want to select. 3. Press and hold the mouse button while moving the mouse to the right

and downwards. A rectangle appears and grows or shrinks as you move the mouse.

4. Make the rectangle surround the entire group you want to select, then release the mouse button. All objects, which are completely in the area, will be selected.

Selecting in a random area 1. Click on the Select Object button in the control panel while you hold down

the CTRL key. 2. Place the mouse pointer somewhere in the drawing to select the group of

objects you want to select. 3. Press and hold the mouse button while you draw a random zone.

A random shape appears. 4. Make the shape surround the entire group you want to select, then

release the mouse button. All objects, which are completely in this area, will be selected.

Notes:

You can combine holding the Shift key with holding the P, L, T, O or X key of the previous section.

You can deselect one of the selected objects when you click on the selected object while you press the Shift key on the keyboard.

If you hold the CTRL key down when selecting, the objects that cross the rectangle will also be selected.

Selecting all (similar) Objects

If you want to select "All Points" or "All Lines" at once, this is possible too, for example: 1. Select "Select" in the Edit menu. A sub menu opens. 2. Select in the sub menu for example "All Points". See how all lines are

selected at once.


Notes:

To undo the selection, just click on another object or somewhere in the drawing area where there is no object.

As you probably noticed, other types of objects or all objects can be selected at once too. This selection can be combined with the Shift key function of the previous section. Selections based on more criteria can be executed using the Find-command.

Clearing Objects

Once you have selected one or more objects, it is possible to delete them.

1. Select a line. 2. Select Clear in the Edit menu or press the Delete or Backspace key on

the keyboard. The line is removed from the drawing.

Practice the same procedure with a point, "All Object Types" or "All Points" or "All Lines".


Undo-ing Actions

If you have accidentally cleared an object, this object can be restored, but only if this was one of your last actions. The first field of the Edit menu lets you undo your last action. If this action has been a "Clear" then this field becomes an "Undo Clear" field. As an exercise, select some objects, clear them, and then click on Undo Clear in the Edit menu to restore them.

In addition to the menu-items, the buttons and in the menu can be. They are used to undo and redo. Notes:

Even the last Undo action can be undone. If that is necessary, simply select the second field of the Edit menu; it says "Redo..."

If the last action was the definition of a Point or Line for example then the Undo field in the Edit menu becomes an "Undo Point" or an "Undo Line" field respectively.

The number of undos or redos is 25.

Compound Objects

Up to this point we have only discussed simple objects: points and lines. Compound objects differ from the simple objects in that they depend for their creation on existing points and lines. Once you have created an object, its relation to other objects is lost. This means that parallel and perpendicular lines are simply lines and that all title, object, measurement or annotation texts have become simply texts. Like points and lines, compound objects can also be defined in a very straightforward manner. We strongly advise you to perform the following exercises and to play around with the compound objects as you read through. To do the exercises of this section, you need a drawing with a few points and lines in it.

Parallel and Perpendicular Lines

Creating a Line Parallel to an Existing Line

1. Select the Parallel Line button in the control panel.

When within the drawing area, the pointer changes into two small parallel lines.

2. Click on an existing line. The Parallel Line icon remains fixed on the line and the pointer becomes a crosshair.

3. Define the starting point of the parallel line by clicking on an existing point or clicking on an approximate position (on a line or not).


3a. If you have chosen an approximate position, define it more accurately now by entering values in the Position Indicators or enter the distance from the reference line in the bottom Distance Indicator. Validate the starting point.

4. Move the mouse. A growing or shrinking line, parallel to the first one, can be seen as you move the mouse. Intersections with other lines, arcs or circles will be indicated. A sight appears on the object.

5. Define the end point of the parallel line by clicking when another object is in the sight or clicking at an approximate position. 5a. If you have chosen an approximate position, the bottom Distance

Indicator in the control panel is activated. Enter the correct length of the parallel line and validate.

Notes: - Notice that it is possible to cancel the definition of a parallel line during the

drawing procedure by clicking another toolbox button in the control panel or ultimately by clicking the Cancel button or hitting the Escape key on the keyboard.

- If, when indicating the reference object, you click on an arc or circle instead of on a line, a tangential line to the arc or circle will be created.

Creating a Line Perpendicular to an Existing Line To define a perpendicular line, use a similar procedure to the one in the previous section. This time, select the Perpendicular Line button in the Control Panel. The pointer has its own adapted shape.

Arcs

To create an arc with Pythagoras, you must first have a set of points, lines or arcs on the drawing. Creating an Arc through 3 Points Start with a drawing containing at least 3 points. 1. Click on the button presented beside in the control panel.

The pointer becomes an "Arrow with a P". 2. Consecutively click on:

The starting point of the arc

An intermediate point of the arc

The endpoint of the arc The arc is drawn. Creating an Arc Tangential to an Existing Line 1. Select the Tangential Arc button in the control panel. 2. Move the pointer towards the target line. A Sight appears on the line. 3. Click the mouse button. 4. Enter the distance from the starting or the end point of the line. 5. Move the mouse around in different directions. You will see an arc

tangential to the line, varying in radius and length. Note: When the arc has the wrong direction, first move the mouse close to the

starting point and then move the mouse in the correct direction. The direction of the arc will change.

6. Define the end point of the tangential arc by clicking when another object

is in the sight or by clicking at an approximate position.


6a. If you have chosen an approximate position, the Angle Indicator and the Radius Indicator in the control panel will be activated.

Either enter the arc angle and arc radius, or the coordinates of the end point, and confirm.

Notes:

When you move the mouse near a line, arc or circle, a Sight appears on the object. When the new arc you are creating is nearly tangential to the object in the Sight, a special Sight will appear on the object. Click the mouse button. An arc tangential to the two objects will be created. The point where the arc is perpendicular to another line will be indicated with a special Sight.

Notice that the starting point of a tangential arc may be:

A point on an existing arc

The end point of an existing arc or line.

The starting point and the endpoint of the arc can have different elevations. The elevations of points placed on the circular curve will correspond to the elevations of the projections of these points on the chord of the circular curve.

Creating an Arc Tangential to Two Lines/arcs or line and arc 1. Click on the button represented beside in the control panel.

The pointer changes in 2 parallel lines. 2. Consecutively click on 2 existing lines/arcs. 3. Move the mouse. A growing or shrinking arc will be drawn tangential to

both lines. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Either enter the coordinates of a point on this arc, or the radius of the arc,

and confirm.

Circles

Start with a drawing containing at least 3 points, a few lines and a few arcs. Creating a Circle Through 3 Points 1. Place 3 points on the screen 2. Click on the button presented beside in the control panel. 3. Consecutively click on 3 points. The circle is drawn. Creating a Circle Defining the Center and the Radius 1. Click on the button presented beside in the control panel. 2. Click on an existing point. This point will be the center of the circle. 3. Move the mouse. A growing or shrinking circle will be drawn. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Enter either the radius of the circle, or the coordinates of a point on the

circle, and confirm.


Note: When moving the cursor near other objects, a Sight will be displayed. The Sight indicates whether: - The circle goes through an existing point - A point of the circle is on an existing line - The circle is tangential to an existing line, arc or circle.

Parallel Objects

You may use the "Parallel Objects" tool to create:

A circle with the same center point but a different radius.

A line parallel to an existing line but having the same length

An arc parallel to an existing arc and having the same aperture angle.

A polygon parallel to an existing polygon

A polygon parallel to an existing path 1. Click on the Parallel Object button in the control panel. 2. Click on an existing arc. 3. Move the mouse. An arc parallel to the first arc and having the same

aperture angle will be drawn. 4. Click the mouse button. 5. Enter either the distance or the radius, and confirm. Note: You can do this exercise with lines, circles, polygons and paths.

Exercise With Objects

This tutorial does not cover all possible combinations when creating objects. We strongly advise that you try the following exercises to get a better feel for the way Pythagoras supports you in creating drawings. Note: For none of these exercises you need to construct temporary objects.

They all can be done using one very simple operation. 1. Draw a line perpendicular to an existing arc. 2. Draw a line tangential to an existing circle. 3. Draw an arc tangential to 3 existing lines. 4. Draw an arc tangential to the endpoint of an existing arc, and

perpendicular to an existing line. 5. Draw a line tangential to 2 circles.

Hint: - Select the Parallel Line button in the control panel and click the mouse button on a circle.

- Move the mouse around (go also inside the circle) and move the mouse near the tangential point of a second circle.

6. Draw a line tangential to an arc and perpendicular to a line. Hint: - See exercise 5, but move the mouse near the point where the

new line is perpendicular to the existing line.

Polygons

To create a polygon with Pythagoras, you must first have a set of points on the drawing. The polygon is then created by identifying these points as its vertices. Start with a drawing containing at least a dozen points.


1. Click on the Polygon button in the control panel.

The pointer becomes an "Arrow with a P". 2. Consecutively click on each vertex point, which is part of the polygon.

Each line, which is part of the polygon, appears. Notice also the benefits of the Sight here.

Note: You cannot click twice on the same point an error beep will notify

you , unless it is the starting point.

3. Finally, click on the starting point again. The polygon is closed and its perimeter remains indicated by a bold line, which means that the polygon is still selected.

4. Select the "Polygon Pattern" menu in the Format menu. Select one of the patterns in this sub menu. The polygon is filled with the selected pattern and the polygon remains selected.

5. Confirm the polygon by clicking on one of the buttons at the bottom of the control panel.

6. Click on the Select Object button and reselect the polygon: Move the pointer approximately to the center of the polygon (hold the O-key on the keyboard while you search for the center). There, a Sight with the shape of a square with the letter P in it pops up. Click on it. The perimeter of the polygon re-appears.

7. Double click the Polygon Center, then select the INFO tab and you will see a list of all the polygon vertices.

The area and perimeter are indicated in the Info dialog.

Notes:

If the polygon consists of more than 10 points, then you will see two arrow buttons at the right hand side. Click on these buttons to scroll up and down through the list.

To include an arc in a polygon, click on the arc after clicking the starting point of the arc.

While creating the polygon, you can use the BACKSPACE key to remove the last point or arc from the polygon.

Creating a polygon is a great deal more effective when the points are connected by lines. Then there are 3 ways to create a polygon.

1. Click on a point that belongs to the polygon. Then, click, in sequence, on each line/arc that is a part of the polygon. Clicking the last line segment (which connects the last point with the first point of


the polygon) closes the polygon. The perimeter of the polygon will be highlighted with a black line.

2. Click on a point that belongs to the polygon. Then, double-click on

the first line/arc segment that departs from that point and that belongs to the polygon. The polygon will find its own way, connecting all sequential line/arc segments until the starting point has been reached. This closes the polygon and the perimeter of the polygon will be highlighted with a black line.

Note : if the polygon perimeter goes through a point from which 2 lines depart, the automatic creation of the polygon will pause in order to allow you to select the appropriate line segment. Simply double-click the line segment, and the polygon will continue to find its way around the perimeter.

3. Click anywhere inside an area that is surrounded by lines or arcs.

Pythagoras will search for the boundaries and will create a polygon from this area. Note : if you would like Pythagoras to exclude islands inside the polygon, hold down the CTRL-key while creating the polygon.

Title and Object Texts

Title Text is a row of words, numbers or signs, which is defined parallel to the horizontal borders of the drawing paper. If you rotate the drawing with regard to the border of the paper, the text remains horizontal. Object Text on the other hand is defined parallel to an existing line, arc or circle object and thus rotates with the drawing. Even when the referenced object is subsequently cleared, object text keeps its original direction in the drawing. You define both types of text in the same way:

1. Select the Text button in the Control Panel. The pointer changes its shape.

1a. For Object Text, click on the desired reference object. The reference object remains indicated by the icon and the pointer changes its shape again.

2. Move the pointer to the desired position of the text. 3. Click on that position: an Edit-window appears.


4. Enter the text and confirm it with the OK button. The buttons in the

Edit Text window can be used to change the aspect of the text (see Notes below).

Notes:

In the rectangle of the Edit Text pop up window the actual text can be edited.

The Point size defines the height of the characters (it is expressed in 1/72t of an inch). If you click on this button a submenu with all possible values becomes visible.

The Weight submenu lets you choose between Light, Medium, Bold and Extra Bold characters.

With the Alignment submenu you can modify the horizontal (left, right or centered) and vertical (top, middle or bottom) alignment of the text

You can always select the text (with the Select Object button active) afterwards and then drag it to another position on the drawing or even modify its format by double clicking on it.

Dimensions en Annotations

A dimension or annotation is really just a special type of text object. The only difference with a "regular" text object is the way you create the text object.:

1. In the Tools menu, select "Dimension. The cursor will change into an "arrow with an M" (for Measurement).

2. Move the cursor to an object -- a line or a polygon. You can verify whether you have selected the right object by keeping an eye on the control panel. You can also press and hold down a key (L for line, O for polygon) while moving the mouse around.

3. Click the object. The length of a line, for example, will be shown parallel to the line.

Annotations (also in the Tools Menu) are special dimensions. You can create annotations in the exact same way. Please also refer to the Reference manual.


Note:

The length of a line is simple text object.

The format and position of a dimension can always be modified (e.g. by double clicking the text object), just like any other text object.

You can define the format for all new measurements in the menu Defaults - Preferences (refer to the chapter "Creating a new drawing").

User Coordinate Systems

All objects in a drawing are not necessarily defined with respect to the same coordinate system. Therefore you can define User Coordinate Systems. 1. Select User Coordinate System in the Tools menu. The pointer turns into

an "Arrow with CS" when within the drawing area. 2. Move to an existing point, which must become the origin of the coordinate

system and click on it. Note the benefit of the Sight here. 3. Move to a second point. This point must be a point, which is situated on

the N-axis (in NEZ coordinates) of the desired user coordinate system. Click on the second point. The Coordinate System Display button in the control panel shows the new coordinate system and the Coordinate System Name button underneath it indicates the two defining points.

4. Click on the Coordinate System Display button and hold down the mouse button. The user coordinate system axis lines are displayed in the drawing area.

5. Click on and hold the Coordinate System Name button in the control panel. Drag the selection bar to "Local". The local coordinate system is active again.

Note: You can return to the new defined user coordinate system the same

way. Notes:

All positions indicated in the control panel are displayed with respect to the active coordinate system.

When a User Coordinate System is active, it can be deleted, no matter what objects have been defined with it. Simply select Delete Coordinate System in the Edit menu and release the mouse button.

The Page Coordinate System is not a User Coordinate System. See the "Getting Acquainted" chapter under section The Control Panel.

Curves

In Pythagoras it is possible to create 2 kinds of curves: the open and the closed curve. To create a curve, the points must already exist. If they dont, youll need to create them using the point tool.

1. Select the curve tool (open/closed)

2. Click all the points that need to be part of the curve. When

finishing the curve, click the first point again. An open curve will remain open; a closed curve will be closed.

Curves are often used to create contour lines and such.


You can change the elevation of a curve by holding down the CTRL-key and double clicking the curve.

Changing the Format of Objects

At any time, the format of:

A point

A line

A text

A polygon can be changed, i.e. its attributes can be changed. In principle only a few steps are necessary:

1. Select the object. The object is highlighted. 2. Open the Format menu. 3. All non-relevant items in the menu are in gray, meaning that you cannot

select them. 4. Drag the pointer to the desired menu item. The submenu opens up. 5. Select the desired formatting attribute. The object changes and remains

selected, enabling you to change other attributes (go back to step 2). Notes:

"Text Content" in the Format menu causes an "Edit Text" window to pop up. In this window all formatting items of the text, including the text contents can be changed.

All objects have a default format. You can change this default format with the Defaults or with the Defaults/Preferences menu (see the "Creating a New Drawing" chapter).

Tutorial Creating a New Drawing 39

Chapter 3: Creating a New Drawing

One of the main advantages of a Pythagoras drawing compared to a drawing by hand is that you can change every object or parameter afterwards without the need to redraw everything all over again. Nevertheless, it remains good practice to think about the way your drawing must be set up. Pythagoras does not change the truth that a good start is half the work. If for some reason, you are uncertain about the way to tackle a problem, do not hesitate. Make a choice; optimizing it afterwards is a piece of cake. In this chapter, you find some indications to help you make a good start for a new drawing.

Step 1: Select a Printer or Plotter

When you save a Pythagoras drawing the information about the active printer or plotter is saved with it. If you start with a wrong printer or plotter, you will be forced to adapt your drawing before you print (see the "Saving and Printing or Plotting" chapter). Your graphic environment has its own way to activate a printer or plotter. If you do not know how to do it, consult its manual. Here are some indications:

40 Creating a New Drawing Tutorial

Step 2: Set Up the Drawing to the Page Constraints

Selecting Preferences 1. Start Pythagoras with a new empty drawing. It automatically has the

name "Untitled 1".

2. Select Preferences in the Defaults menu. 3. Check if the units for "Distance" and the units and direction for "Angle"

are in accordance with your requirements. If you use the Cartesian coordinate system, select North East or X-Y in the CS field.

4. Make any necessary changes and make sure you click on the OK button afterwards.

Important notice: You may use multiple units in a Pythagoras drawing, e.g. some dimensions are entered in US survey feet and others in meters. In order to allow Pythagoras to do correct conversions, you need to change the actual settings in the Preferences dialog box. For example: if the project data is available in US Feet, set the preferences in Pythagoras to US Feet. If you need to add additional data in meter, switch to meters and data can be added. Pythagoras stores all data internally in meters and converts the input and output data to the actual units. Data on the Pythagoras clipboard is always converted to meters. So if one project has been entered in meters and another project in feet, the copy-paste function will work correctly between both drawings. The conversion is also applicable for import and export of data (DXF, List of Coordinates, Data collector, etc.)

Tutorial Creating a New Drawing 41

Setting Up the Page 1. In the File menu, select Printer. A list of available printers will be shown.

Select the printer and click "Setup". In the window that pops up you can make miscellaneous settings (dependent on your printer), such as page size, portrait or landscape, etc. Pythagoras takes these parameters into account.

2. Choose the desired printer or plotter parameters and click on the OK button. The Select Print Area window pops up. In this window you define the Scale, rotation Angle and Position of the Local Coordinate System with respect to the Page Coordinate System.

Note: The Page Coordinate System invariably has its origin in the bottom left corner of the page; its X-axis corresponds with the bottom edge and its Y-axis with the left edge of the page.

3. Type in the appropriate Scale value and hit the Tab key. 4. Type in the desired rotation Angle and hit the Tab key. 5. Type in the value for the horizontal translation "x" and hit the Tab key. 6. Type in the value for the vertical translation "y" and hit the Tab key. 7. Hit the Enter key or click on the Preview button. Now, you see a preview

of the drawing with the origin of the Local Coordinate System clearly indicated with regard to the printed page.

8. If you are satisfied with all values, click on the Ok button. If not, keep on hitting the Tab key to return to the desired field and change it.

While you are in "Select Print Area", you can drag the page over the drawing by using the mouse. When you do this while you keep the CTRL-key down, the page will move horizontally or vertically. You can rotate the page relative to the drawing by moving the mouse to the corner of the page. The shape of the cursor will change, and subsequently you can rotate the page using the mouse. You are ready to draw now, unless you want to change some more default values (see next section). Notes:

The Fit on Page and Center buttons in the Select Print Area window have no meaning yet. The drawing is still empty and thus no objects can be centered or made to fit on the page.

Anytime later, you can check the position of the Local Coordinate System. Make your drawing "Fit in Window" with the View menu and hit the Coordinate System Display button in the Control Panel. When you do this, "Local" must be active on the Coordinate System Name button

Step 3: Designate and Check the Drawing Defaults

Although you can always change every object until you are satisfied with the result, it is a good idea to make up kind of a drawing plan before you define all objects.

42 Creating a New Drawing Tutorial

Splitting up a Drawing in Layers

Layers are used to give complex drawings a structure and/or to combine different views on the same drawing. You can think of layers as transparent overhead projection sheets. One layer could hold the basic overview drawing, a second one more detail on some parts and the third, for example, most of the measurement information. Still another one could hold information, which is prescribed by legislation. You can split up your drawing in up to 4096 layers. Later on, you can re-combine these layers to have certain views on your drawing. You can also print these combined views. You can give each layer its own special name. This name is then used in the toolbar and in all Pythagoras menus and pop up windows. Select Display Options in the View-menu. Under the tab Layers at the bottom you will see all the names of the existing layers and/of layer groups displayed in a column. By (un)checking the checklist box you can make layers visible or invisible. In the Toolbar you activate a certain layer in order to "connect" new objects to this layer. You can choose layers in other menus too:

Edit menu: to select objects from one layer only.

Format menu: to move an object from one layer to another.

Defaults menu: to choose the Default layer when you start Pythagoras. Finally layer names are used when you want to print. Before you start you have the chance to change the selection of the layers that need to be printed.

Checking Other Defaults

Some other default parameters are worth checking before you start drawing. Although the list hereafter contains items, which are not discussed in this tutorial, they are given here in an attempt to be complete. In the Reference Manual you find more information on them. Check:

In the Control Panel: the kind of coordinate system you use NEZ (or XYZ), HDZ, HVD or HVS.

In the Defaults menu: the Point, Line and Text attributes; the selected ones have a check mark in the sub menus.

In the Defaults menu: "Preferences" in order to define the way you identify points (Point Identifier), enter values (Decimal Sign and Places) and annotate objects.

In the Defaults menu: "Preferences" Data collector - Tolerance Stationfor the Station Accuracy.

Tutorial Saving and Printing or Plotting 43

Chapter 4: Saving and Printing or Plotting

If you have spent a few hours making a new drawing, you probably cannot wait to make a hard copy of it. It is always good practice to save your valuable work first. You never know what can go wrong -- certainly if you are going to print or plot for the first time.

Saving, Closing or Quitting

Depending on what you want to happen afterwards, you can choose several ways to save your drawing:

If you want to continue to work with the same drawing, you must use the "Save" or "Save As..." command in the File menu. You can also use the

-icon in the Toolbar.

If you want to save and abandon the active drawing and continue with another one, you can choose the Close command in the File menu or click on the Close button of the drawing window.

If you also want to leave Pythagoras choose the Quit command in the File menu.

The Close and Quit commands give you the option to save all your work before you abandon the drawing completely. If you choose to save your changes to the drawing, Pythagoras goes on the same way as if you selected the Save command first. So, we discuss the Save commands here, leaving you to experiment with Close and Quit.

Saving a New Drawing

If you have made your first new drawing, you probably noticed that this drawing was named "Untitled 1" by default. 1. Select the Save or Save As... command in the File menu. Another

method is to click on the -icon. They both result in the same pop up window now.

2. Enter the name that you wish your new drawing to have. 3. Hit the Enter key or click on the Save button. Note: The other buttons in the pop up window let you choose or create

another WINDOWS directory to save your drawing in. Since this is a standard procedure of your graphic environment, experiment with it now if you like.

44 Saving and Printing or Plotting Tutorial

Saving an Existing Drawing

If you make some changes to an existing drawing, the Save and Save As... commands in the File menu act differently. If you open an existing drawing but do not make any changes, you cannot

select the Save command. The -icon will be dimmed, which means that saving is unnecessary. If you can select the Save command, selecting it saves the adapted drawing immediately and let you continue your drawing work. CAUTION !

As soon as you select the Save command, the original drawing no longer exists.

The purpose of the Save As... command is to save your changed drawing under another name or in another folder or directory, leaving the original drawing intact.

Printing or Plotting

In this section, it is assumed that your printer or plotter is properly installed and ready for operation. If you are not sure, or should you encounter problems, then first save your drawing -- if you have not done so already -- and quit Pythagoras. Once you are sure that your printer or plotter is ready to operate, then proceed as in the following sections.

Printing or Plotting a New Drawing

In this section, it is assumed that you have followed the indications above and the guidelines of the "Creating a New Drawing" chapter. Furthermore, the active printer or plotter selection of your graphic environment must still be the same as the selection at the time you first started to make this drawing.

1. Select Print in the File menu or click the -icon in the Toolbar. The Print window pops up.

Note : The items that are selected in this window correspond to the

items selected in the menu View - Display View options. The idea is that whatever you can see on the screen is whatever you would like to have printed; so no changes are necessary. You can, of course, indicate the number of copies you would like printed, as well as some more specific print options.

2. Click the OK button. You may be reminded to "wait while printing".

Depending on the size of your drawing and the speed of your printer, it could take a little while before you can continue.

Tutorial Saving and Printing or Plotting 45

Adapting an Existing Drawing to the Active Printer or Plotter

It is possible that you want to print a drawing on a printer or plotter other than the one for which the drawing was originally created. Under these circumstances, chances are that you get an error message since the drawing may be incompatible with the new printer or plotter. You first need to adapt the drawing to the new equipment. CAUTION !

It is a good idea to make a backup copy of the drawing BEFORE you adapt it.

NOTE ! Before you start adapting the drawing note the scale factor of the original drawing -- you need it later.

For example assume that the original drawing has a scale factor of 1/1500. It is assumed now that the drawing is loaded.

Scaling the Drawing

1. Select Printer in the File menu. If the drawing has been saved with settings from another printer you will get a warning message.

2. Click the OK-button. A dialog box will pop up where you can select the printer. Click "Setup" which will take you into a dialog box specific to the printer you selected.

3. Verify the parameters shown. The parameters are probably already OK if your printer or plotter was ready for use when you started Pythagoras. Do not make unnecessary changes. Then click the OK-button. The "Select Print area" window pops up (also refer to the chapter "Creating a new drawing"). This window shows how the existing drawing will be printed on the selected page format.

4. Select the Fit on Page button. The print area parameters are adapted so that

the drawing fits completely on the page; the scale factor probably has a rather strange value; for example 1/2328.

5. Round off the Scale value (make the denominator somewhat bigger) -- to 1/2500 -- and hit the Enter key.

6. Select the Center button. The drawing with the new scale is centered on the page.

7. Select the Ok button. You see the adapted drawing in its "Actual Size".

Scaling Text

1. Select Fit In Window in the View menu.You can see that the drawing actually fits, but all the text on the drawing might look a bit out of proportion -- this is normal, and can be adapted also.

2. Select in the Edit menu "Select" and in its subm

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