The MiniCad user is expected to set drawing units and (for the sake of the appearance of the drawing on screen and on paper) scale, paper size, and paper orientation, prior to creating a drawing. The paper-based approach to MiniCad's drawing screen should be familiar to users of other Macintosh drawing programs, though it may be confusing to AutoCAD users. All of the tools for converting 2D objects to 3D objects, as well as all of the 3D viewing and rendering option, save the walk-through and fly-over tools, are available through menu commands. In addition to the overlay tools, menu commands supply a host of tools to manipulate the drawing's objects and organization. Though tools can be selected with command-key equivalents, some degree of mouse movement is required for nearly every drawing task.
However, most beginning users will need to consult the reference guide to be certain of the tool's function - whereas more advanced users can opt to create their own overlays by arranging the available tools with the OverlayEdit application. An active help window across the top of the drawing screen explains each tool, when selected. Hidden from the user at startup are overlays with 3D and dimensioning tools. A quick glance at its available functions yields no surprises: a main screen and a palette (called an "overlay" in MiniCad's parlance) with basic 2D drawing and selection tools. The drawing screen is the most obvious element of any CAD program, and MiniCad is no different in this respect.
#Minicad manual software
New functionality available in version 6 of MiniCad has allowed us to greatly expand the capabilities of our own software (the development and use of which have served as both my introduction to MiniCad and the basis of my fondness for it). The heart of MASCA's ForeSight surveying package is the automation of the plotting of surveying data through MiniPascal macros. In particular, the careful integration of the drawing screen, the database, and MiniPascal have allowed us at MASCA (the Museum Applied Science Center for Archaeology at the University of Pennsylvania Museum) to manage disparate needs found in our wide range of archaeological surveying applications. Though the operator may choose to use only the drawing screen, MiniCad's greatest strengths lie in the program's other parts. Conceptually, MiniCad's user interface remains divided into three interrelated functions: the drawing screen worksheets and the records database and MiniPascal (its scripting language). Though MiniCad 6 adds a host of new features and tools that were previously unavailable, the overall user experience is not radically altered from previous versions. The manufacturer, however, claims that the program's capabilities and interface are the same across platforms.) Though the manufacturer, Graphsoft, Inc., has just released a version of MiniCad 6 for Windows, I have no experience with it. (The following review is of MiniCad 6.0.1 for the Macintosh. Eiteljorg's review of MiniCad 6 against that of a MiniCad partisan such as myself. With this background in mind, it may prove useful to the reader to compare Mr.
Thus, in the same manner that AutoCAD is his tool of choice, my years of MiniCad experience have made me unable to comfortably (or effectively) use AutoCAD or MicroStation. Oftentimes, one's prior CAD experience, instead of being a strength, hinders the user from easily learning another program. Eiteljorg regarding his review and unfavorable impression of MiniCad has led me to one inescapable conclusion: the complexity inherent in CAD programs trains their users to adapt to and think like the programs they most frequently use. University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropologyįrequent contact with Mr. Museum Applied Science Center for Archaeology CSA Newsletter, Nov '96: MiniCad 6 - Another View
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