SolidWorks 2011 Parts Bible - Matt Lombard [224]
FIGURE 16.3
Stretching the characters in note text by using Fit Text
Figure 16.3 shows the Note Property Manager when you are editing text. When you are creating the note, the vertical justification buttons (to the left of the Fit Text tool tip) are not displayed. These are called (from left to right) Top Align, Middle Align, and Bottom Align. They work differently from most vertical justification tools that you find in Microsoft Word or PowerPoint. In Microsoft applications, this feature justifies the text within the text box, but SolidWorks vertical justification justifies the text box on the placement point. So if you click a spot on the drawing sheet and use Bottom Align, the bottom of the text box will go to that point. It winds up working almost backwards from what you might be used to if you use Microsoft applications. Figure 16.4 shows what this justification does. Selecting the Bottom Align option actually makes the text move up, even though the graphic on the icon definitely shows it going down.
FIGURE 16.4
Using the vertical justification options in a note
Patterning notes
Starting in SolidWorks 2011, you are now able to pattern notes in linear and circular patterns. Both commands are in the Annotation tool set, but are not on the toolbar by default. To put them on the toolbar, go to Tools⇒Customize⇒Commands⇒Annotations, and drag them from the dialog box to the toolbar area. Figure 16.5 shows the Linear Note Pattern PropertyManager. It looks very similar to the sketch pattern PropertyManager.
Once the note is patterned, you can change individual pattern instances. I have to mention, though, that changing a patterned note does not work the same as changing a regular note. In a regular note, you double-click to activate it and type to replace the note contents. With a patterned note, you have to activate it, click again to deselect the text, press Delete or Back to remove the text, and then type new text.
Circular patterns work similarly to linear patterns, and also work like circular sketch patterns, with the same editing limitations.
FIGURE 16.5
Patterning a note
Placing notes and leaders
When you start to place a note, a preview shows the text box with or without a leader depending on the position of the cursor. If the cursor is over a blank section of the drawing, the note is placed without any leader. If the cursor is over a face, edge, or vertex, then a leader is added using the arrow found in the Attachment dialog box at Tools⇒Options⇒Document Properties⇒Arrows⇒Attachments. By default, a leader attached to a face uses a dot as an arrow, and a leader attached to an edge, sketch entity, or nothing at all uses a regular arrow. You can change these defaults at the options location mentioned previously, and you can change individual note leaders in the PropertyManager that becomes available when you select a note. These settings can also become part of a custom drafting standard.
Figure 16.6 shows the preview that is displayed by the cursor when you place a note over a face, an edge, and blank space on the drawing.
FIGURE 16.6
Placing a note with a leader
You can also change settings for bent leaders by choosing Tools⇒Options⇒Document Properties. It is recommended that you use the same bent leader lengths for all annotations, and save them in the templates that you use.
Single-clicking inside an active text box places the cursor between letters, as expected. Double-clicking inside an active text box selects the entire word that you click, again as expected. Ctrl+A selects all the text inside a text box. If you double-click an existing note to activate it, the entire contents are highlighted immediately. You also cannot drag-and-drop selected text to move it within a text box. However, you can Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, and Ctrl+V the text.
To format the entire note, do not activate the text box; instead, only select the border of the note, and apply the setting to the entire note rather than to selected text within the note.
Adding a leader to a note
To add a leader to a note that was created