Groups in AutoCAD
Groups are something fairly new to AutoCAD that for some people can be quite frustrating, and for others very useful. The biggest annoyance with a group is when you select an object and the whole group is selected, you think, "oh it's a block... I'll just explode it." You use the explode command and it says it could not be exploded. If you don't read the text carefully you may miss the statement that says it found a group. Groups cannot be exploded without using the group command. So, that having been said, what makes a group something useful?
A group is similar to a block in that it has a name and can be made up of various objects contained on different layers.
It is different, however, in that you can use the objects to extend and trim to without using any special bonus commands. You can also tell the group whether or not the items in the group will all be selected if you pick one member of the group. This is a major difference from a block. It means that if you turn off the selection option you can move, erase or in any way edit the items in the group, then turn the selection on again and be able to move the whole group around.
So, where is something like this useful? Let's say you are designing a house and you group the various elements: bathroom, kitchen, living room, etc. You can move them around to various areas then switch the selection to off and edit the items, move the door, stretch a wall out 6", etc and then switch it back on and move the stuff around some more. Think of it like a memory key on a calculator. It's a way of remembering a selection set for later usage without all the complications of a block, such as insertion points and scale.
When you type in the command GROUP, the above dialog box appears. What you need to do to create a new group is type in a name at the Group Name box and choose whether you want it selectable or not. If you are not sure, don't worry you can at any time switch it from one way to the other after it is created. Next press NEW< and it will take you back to your drawing where you can select the object for inclusion. When you are done selecting, press return and you are brought back to the dialog box. You can now either create another group, find the name of an existing group or select from the list a group to change it's properties. To find a name of an existing group, press FIND NAME< then in the drawing window click on an item. If it is part of a group it will display a box that tells you which groups it is in. I say groups because an object can actually be in more than one group, unlike with a block. Again, think of it as simply a selection set remember function.
Latest Articles