Another patch for AutoCAD 2009 (and LT) is available at the Autodesk Web site. It includes all of the fixes in Service Pack 1 as well as a number of new ones. Service Pack 2 addresses problems that can cause AutoCAD to crash when:

• you edit multiple mtext objects through the Quick Properties palette.
• you select objects in groups.
• you edit text with space before or after the text within a table cell.
• you bind a drawing with an xref that contains annotative hatches.
• you attempt to switch layouts in drawings.
• you attempt to edit the properties of multiple Tool Palette tools.

Other issues that are remedied include:

• The Attedit command fails when a drawing contains xrefs.
• Associative hatches do not work when you copy and paste a dynamic block.
• Some dynamic blocks lose their dynamic properties after you open a drawing.
• When Alternate Units is on and you edit dimension text, the alternate units text is duplicated.
• The Find command performs slowly when you search for text.
• Some objects may not hide when you use the Hide command with a drawing that contains text.
• When you edit mtext in a viewport, it may be duplicated in other viewports.
• Osnaps on polylines and mesh objects do not work correctly.
• A drawing that contains hatches and gradients may plot slowly.
• When PUBLISHCOLLATE=1, only the first sheet of the set is plotted when you attempt to publish multiple sheets.
• When you move text to a new position within a drawing, it disappears.

Be sure to read the Readme file for additional fixes and some known issues with the patch. Also be sure to back up custom CUI, MNR, and MNL files before patching.

When you use grips in combination with dynamic input, you can customize the tooltips that appear when you grip edit. Right-click on Dyn on the status bar (at the bottom of the drawing window) and select Settings from the menu that appears.

Caption: Right-click on the Dyn button for quick access to the Drafting Settings.

In the Drafting Settings dialog box that appears, the Dynamic Input tab should be on top.

Caption: In the Drafting Settings tab, select Settings under Dimension Input.

Select Settings in the Dimension Input section to display the Dimension Input Settings dialog box.

Caption: Dimension Input Settings apply to grip editing.

Settings in this dialog box apply to grip editing. The default setting is Show Two Dimension Input Fields. You can opt to display one input field or add more. Note that when you select multiple grips to edit an object, no Dynamic Input field will appear.

Caption: Grip tips with default setting of 2 dimension input fields shown.

Caption: Grip tips with all available tips visible.

The Filter command offers two big advantages over other AutoCAD selection methods such as Qselect. It lets you fine-tune the selection based on a variety of criteria, and it lets you save selections for reuse in the future. Type Filter (or Fi) at the command prompt to bring up the Filter dialog box. You can start the command transparently by typing ‘filter (apostrophe filter) at any Select Objects prompt.

Caption: Filter dialog box.

The first step in creating a filter is to select the type. You can filter by object, property (layer, color, linetype, etc.), or object characteristics (text height, block insertion angle). Select the type of filter you want to create in the Select Filter pull-down menu.

Caption: The Select Filter pull-down menu displays the various types of filters available.

Then click on the Add to List button. Your filter choice will then appear in the window at the top of the dialog box—for example, Object = Line when you select Line in the Select Filter box. Depending on the filter choice, you may need to enter additional information (for example, layer name). Some filter types accept numeric coordinates, which you enter in the x, y, and z boxes below the Select Filter window. From the pull-down menu under the equal sign, you can select the following operators:

! not equal to
< less than
<= less than or equal to
> greater than
>= greater than or equal to
* all possibilities

Another way to add filter criteria is to select the Add Selected Object button at the bottom left of the Filter dialog box. This allows you to select an object that has the characteristics you want to include in your filter. AutoCAD automatically adds them to the filter set window, where you can add or delete as needed.

Caption: Use the Add Selected Object button to import properties of an object in your drawing. In this case, the properties of the rectangle at right have been added to the filter criteria list.

Continue to add filters to define your selection set. The Substitute button lets you insert a saved filter into the filter definition you’re currently working on.

You can add AND, OR,XOR,  and NOT logical operators in the top window to further fine-tune your filters.
AND finds all objects that meet all criteria.

OR finds objects that meet any of the criteria.

XOR finds objects that meet one criterion or the other, but not both. Note that there must be two filters between Begin XOR and End XOR.

NOT excludes all objects that meet the criteria.

Select these operators from the bottom of the Select Filter pull-down list. You must include both a Begin and an End operator, and the Begin and End must be the same operator. Note that if two or more filters are listed without a logical operator, AutoCAD will treat them as if they were grouped with AND.

Caption: Build your named filter by adding filter criteria and logical operators to the top window.

When you’re done, enter a name in the Saveas window and click on the Apply button. Note: Don’t wait until the end to save your filter. Saves are when AutoCAD notifies you if you’ve done anything wrong, and it’s easier to fix problems as you go.
Filter names are saved to filter.nfl. To clear all named filters, press the Clear List button.

When you need to cram dimension text, lines, and arrows into a tight space, try reducing the gap between the dimension text and dimension line. On the Text tab of the Dimension Style dialog box, set the gap in the Offset from dim line box.

Caption: To change the dimension gap setting, adjust the value in the Offset from dim line box at bottom left.

When the dimension line is broken, the gap is the space between each side of the dimension and the two dimension lines. When the dimension line is unbroken and the text is above the line, the gap is the space between the bottom of the text and the dimension line. The gap also controls the space between the Basic tolerance dimension box and the text inside. The gap is also used to calculate the minimum space required on either side of the dimension text, which is why decreasing its value can help you squeeze in dimensions.