By Dennis Collin
A common situation in AutoCAD is where elements are not located in the correct place, angle or size. AutoCAD has many ways to correct this, but for a new or occasional user of AutoCAD there are a lot of prompts and options to check and frequently mis-clicks occur which causes immense frustration.
The Align command allows users to orientate, position and even scale objects in relation to another existing object. This saves drafters having to use several commands to perform a single task. Typically, users will employ, Copy Rotate, Rotate by Reference or even Scale by Reference options. Align can do all of these in a simple command, in much less time and in a more intuitive way. When training I have found even some veteran AutoCAD users are not aware of this vital editing tool, if this is you, don’t worry you are not alone!
The Align command is also available in AutoCAD LT, although no icon exists on the ribbon, users can key in Align on the command prompt, or use the shortcut ‘AL’.
It is possible to customise the CUI to include the icon on the ribbon. I have described this process here (before doing so, ensure the relevant files have been backed up. It is recommended that only experienced users attempt this!).