Using print styles

Implementing print style tables

Every drawing is designed to use print style tables, but you decide whether to implement them. Even if you use one of the default print style tables available with IntelliCAD, using print style tables requires planning ahead of time to ensure that your drawing prints as planned.

For example, a single drawing of a floor plan might require the printing of the following drawing sheets:

Main Floor Plan Walls print with thick, black lines.

Electrical Plan Walls print with normal gray lines, indicating that they are not the focus.

HVAC Plan Walls print with normal gray lines, indicating that they are not the focus.

Roof Plan Walls print with thin, gray lines and a hidden linetype, indicating that they are hidden under the roof in a plan view.

In this example, you can create four named print style tables, each containing a print style named WallPstyle. Each print style table contains its own settings for
WallPstyle to control how the walls print. Assign WallPstyle to either the wall entities or to a wall layer. Then, assign a different named print style table each time you print, or create four layouts and assign a different print style table to each layout.

The following table describes, in order, the steps to get you started using both color-dependent and named print style tables.

Getting started using print style tables

Color-dependent	Named	Task	Command	Where to get details
X	X	Create a new drawing. Select a drawing template that uses the desired print style table type or choose it in the New Drawing Wizard.	File > New	Creating a new drawing
X	X	(Optional) Create a new print style table.	File > Print Styles Manager	Creating new print style tables
X		Assign colors to entities and layers that correspond with print style table settings.	Modify > Properties Tools > Explorer	Setting the current entity color; Modifying the properties of entities; Setting the layer color
	X	Set the current print style assigned to new entities.	Tools > Drawing Settings > Entity Creation tab; status bar; printstyle	Setting the current print style
	X	Assign print styles to entities.	Modify > Properties; Entity Properties toolbar; printstyle	Modifying the properties of entities
	X	Use the Explorer to assign print styles to layers.	Tools > Explorer	Setting the layer print style
X	X	Assign a print style table to the Model tab, a layout, or to all layouts in the drawing.	File > Print > Advanced tab	Assigning print style tables
X	X	(Optional) Make changes to the assigned print style table.	File > Print Styles Manager File > Print > Advanced tab	Modifying print style tables
X	X	Print the drawing.	File > Print	Printing or plotting your drawing

The following table describes how to further customize how print styles work within your drawings.

Further customizing print style tables

Task	Command	Where to get details
Copy, rename, or delete print style tables.	File > Print Styles Manager	Copying, renaming, or deleting print style tables
Change a drawing to use another type of print style table, for example, change a drawing that uses color-dependent print style tables to one that uses named print style tables.	convertpstyles	Changing the print style table type of a drawing
Convert a color-dependent print style table to a named print style table.	convertctb	Converting print style tables
Change the default location where print style tables are stored.	Tools > Options > Paths/Files tab	Changing the options on the Paths/Files tab
Customize how print styles work with new drawings that you create and older drawings that you open.	Tools > Options > Printing tab	Changing the options on the Printing tab