Snapping :: OffSet Snapping

Question

How to I start drawing an object from a particular Delta X, Delta Y location which is offset from an existing piece of geometry. For example, I'd like to start drawing a line which is offset 2'-0" X and 6" Y from the corner of my building.

Requirements

PowerCADD v5 or newer and Mac OS^? 9 or Mac OS X
PowerCADD v7 and Mac OS X Tiger (10.4.4) or newer recommended

Background

There are several methods to start drawing an object which is offset from an existing piece of geometry. This article will limit it's discussion to using PowerCADD's Offset Snap feature as it is the most direct method.

O snapping is the Offset Snap, allowing you to specify how far away from an objects vertex a snap should occur. O snapping is intelligent and will find the most logical Offset location based on your current mouse location when the O (oh) key is pressed.

What to do

To use Offset Snap, do this:

1. select a drawing tool , for example the Line Tool, from the Tool Palette
2. place the cursor on an existing object (e.g. a line defining the corner of a building)
3. press the O key (that's 'oh', not zero)
4. observe: the red snap indicator highlights showing you where the snap will occur (the O also becomes red on the Snap Indicator Window)
5. press the mouse button down and start to drag to draw the object
6. release the O key and continue to drag to define the object

Note, it's important to press and sustain the O key from step 3 through step 6.

You can specify the x,y offset by pressing Option + O and making the desired adjustments to values in the Snap Offset dialog. The settings you specify will remain in effect until you change them.

Demo Movie (270KB download) outlines the basic process. In this demo movie, we did this: (need movie help?)

1. Note we press the O (that's 'oh', not zero) to force an Offset Snap
2. we press Option + O to force the Offset Snap Dialog to appear
3. values entered are 'to scale' (in this example 1/2" =1'-0")
4. notice the position of the mouse relative to the end point of the line. Offset Snap will calculate geometry so it's not necessary to have the mouse precisely on the End Point from which the desired Offset Snap is intended.

The same process may be used to begin or end the drawing operation using any PowerCADD tool.

We hope that helps
caddpower.com

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