The RealCADD Manual Mac version
RealCADD Cursors
RealCADD Select cursor
RealCADD Object is selectable
RealCADD Select has found an endpoint
RealCADD Select has found a centre
RealCADD Select has found an intersection
RealCADD Select has found a surface (periphery)
RealCADD Select is in parallel mode
RealCADD Select can draw a parallel
RealCADD Lasso cursor
RealCADD Hand cursor
RealCADD Zoom cursor
RealCADD Text entry cursor
RealCADD Draw cursor
RealCADD Draw from centre cursor
RealCADD Draw by diameter cursor
RealCADD Draw by three points cursor
RealCADD Draw cursor has found an end point
RealCADD Draw cursor has found a centre
RealCADD Draw cursor has found an intersection
RealCADD Draw cursor has found a periphery
RealCADD Can draw a perpendicular
RealCADD Can draw a tangent
RealCADD Lines up horizontally
RealCADD Lines up vertically
RealCADD Lines up both horizontally & vertically
RealCADD Rotate or symmetry cursor
RealCADD Rotate cursor has found an endpoint
RealCADD Rotate cursor has found a centre
RealCADD Rotate cursor has found an intersection
RealCADD Cutting tool is active
   
Window >> Tools – Trimming & Filleting
Select and click under the Window menu for the pallet to be displayed and active. Active pallets are marked with a ✓ in the Window menu. The menu displayed shows the pallets that I usually have active all the time.

Initially RealCADD will open with a new Plan – "Untitled 1" – which will be displayed at the bottom of the Window menu. As more drawings are opened, they will add to the list. To move from one to another, simply click the one you want. The current drawing will be ticked.

RealCADDRealCADDThe Tools pallet accesses RealCADD's drawing, operating and modifying tools. When you mouse over the pallet, it expands to show the full range of tools available. If you have "Display helptags" enabled in Preferences, hovering over a tool for a moment will display its helptag. The basic keyboard shortcut for the row of tools is shown alongside the expanded tool pallet.

To select a specific tool click the appropriate tool row on the right-hand image and then scroll down to go to the details of how it works. The red dot RealCADD indicates which selection you are on. The descriptions are based on the standard Mac Click & Drag drawing mode. If you have selected Click & Click in Preferences, then there will be minor differences.

Row 01 Row 02 Row 03 Row 04 Row 05 Row 06 Row 07 Row 08 Row 09 Row 10 Row 11

Tools with .. after them can be expanded to a fuller options menu by a double-click or an ⌥-click (option-click). Once a tool that has a further options menu has been selected, you can bring up the further options by hitting the space bar – this is very handy if you want to go on using the tool but merely want to change its action in some way.

All the tools have keyboard shortcuts as shown alongside the expanded tool pallet. Multiple entering the shortcut moves you along the horizontal row. A tool remains active until another tool is selected either by clicking on its icon or hitting its keyboard shortcut.

You can choose (in Preferences >> General) to have the Tools pallet expanded all the time by unchecking the "Tools" box.

With the Line, Rectangle, Oval and Arc tools, you draw the object approximately how you want it and then edit it in the Edit and Attributes pallets to get it exactly how you want it. The Edit pallet in particular is intimately bound up with drawing using the Tools and we will discuss it here along with each tool. Refer to Window >> Attributes for more details of that pallet.

Remember also that you can access all of, or your selection of, the tools by a right-click or a ⌃-left-click (control-left-click) anywhere in the drawing. The tools that are displayed are those chosen in Preferences >> "Tools" menu ... For a tool that has further options (those marked with double-dots in the Tools pallet), ⌥-right-click (option-right-click) or ⌃-⌥-left-click (control-option-left-click) as you select the tool will bring up the further options. Once you have selected the tool, if it is one that has further options, these can be accessed by hitting the space bar.

Tip: The screen version of the Tools pallet is only available when no object is selected. A right-click with an object selected will bring up the screen version of the Action menu.

With "Command Line" you draw an object (Line, Rectangle, Oval, Arc) and set its parameters on the fly as you draw. Refer to Window >> Command line.

Snap is also an important part of controlling how objects are drawn. Refer to Window >> Snap for details of how to set Snap up.

RealCADD cursors change to indicate many important aspects of using Tools; rather than endlessly discuss these changes in each section, they are listed in the table to the far right. Those that require Snap to be active are shown in green

Tip: The Surface cursor RealCADD requires "Intersection" to be selected in the Snap pallet

Tip: Once you have one or more RealCADD files open, they will be displayed at the bottom of the Window menu and can be selected from there to change from one to another.

RealCADD Back to top From left to right these are:

RealCADDCut & extend: Keyboard shortcut U.

A double-click or an ⌥-click (option-click) will bring up the menu to the right.

RealCADDStarting with the sketch to the right and dragging from the red line to the blue line will produce the result below:

RealCADDThe red line has been extended to the blue line.

If you want the blue line extended to the red, then drag from blue to red.

If you want both lines extended, check the "second line also" box.

RealCADDStarting with the sketch to the right and selecting "Extend and cut" and checking the "second line also" box will produce the result below:

RealCADDBoth the red and blue lines have been cut, leaving the magenta and cyan bits as separate lines. If you didn't check the "second line also" box, only the first line would be cut, depending on which direction you dragged (red to blue or blue to red).

RealCADDAgain, starting with the sketch above, right, and selecting "Extend, cut and delete" and checking the "second line also" box will produce the result near right:

Both the red and blue lines have been cut, and the magenta and cyan bits have been deleted. If you didn't check the "second line also" box, only the first line would be cut and deleted, depending on which direction you dragged (red to blue or blue to red).

RealCADDChamfer:

Chamfer joins two lines with a chamfer at the end instead of off to a sharp point. You can specify two methods of controlling the chamfer:

L1 is the distance from the intersection of the two lines back to the chamfer. If the two lines don't already intersect, RealCADD will, if necessary, extend the lines to the chamfer.

L2 is the length of the chamfer itself. If necessary, RealCADD will extend the lines towards the intersection point to get the specified chamfer length.

As with the previous section, you can select "Extend", "Extend and cut" or "Extend, cut and delete". These work in exactly the same way.

RealCADDFillet:

Fillet joins two lines with a fillet (radius) at the end instead of off to a sharp point. You can specify two methods of controlling the fillet:

L1 is the distance from the intersection of the two lines back to the start of the fillet radius. If the two lines don't already intersect RealCADD will, if necessary, extend the lines towards the intersection point to achieve the specified fillet length back to the radius.

R is the radius of the fillet itself. If necessary RealCADD will extend the lines towards the intersection point to get the specified fillet radius.

As with the previous two sections, you can select "Extend", "Extend and cut" or "Extend, cut and delete", and these work in exactly the same way.

Written by George Whisstock 2016 – 2021