for AutoCAD

Simply put “The quickest way to add typical drawing notes inAutoCAD without typing!”

Don’t take our word for it, take theirs....

“This is one of the most productive products we have purchased. Iteliminates wasted effort on repetitive tasks, saving time andmoney.”

Jack Turner, Dynamic Systems

Do you hate to type the same notes over and over again, drawingafter drawing, project after project?

Now you can instantly add typical drawing notes with or withoutleaders and without typing!

As a CAD user you know the difficulty when working with textinput, style, layers, and text heights. Wouldn’t it be great if youcould break free from these limitations and eliminate repetitivetasks? Eliminate typing mistakes within all the drawings in aproject and use consistent notation, style and abbreviations.

Software products listed herein are products of SoftDraft, LLC and not Autodesk® products. Autodesk®, AutoCAD®, and the AutoCAD® logo are registered in the U.S. Patentand Trademark Office by Autodesk®, Inc.

Copyright © SoftDraft, LLC. 2006. All Rights ReservedArchitectural/Engineering/Construction Software Applications

Significantly increase drawing notation speed and drawingproductivity.

You no longer have to remember scale factors for textheights, setting the correct text style, or even putting thenote on the correct layer, its all automatic.

Instantly add typical drawing notes without typing!

You have complete control over every aspect of notes andleaders.

Notes are stored by categories in Master Note files whichcan be specific for different projects.

Add notes directly from your drawing to the current MasterNote file.

Eliminate typing mistakes and have consistent drawingnotation, style and abbreviations.

Add single or multiple line notes.

Easily add, edit or remove notes from your master note files.

What is QuickNotes™? Features

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License Agreement/Copyright NoticeIt is important that you read this carefully before you use QuickNotes. Using QuickNotes implies full agreement withthis statement and its provisions.

QuickNotes software and manual are copyright © 2000-2011 by SoftDraft, LLC. All rights reserved worldwide. No part of this bookmay be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, or translated into any language, by any means, without the specific written consent ofSoftDraft, LLC.

1. LICENSE. SoftDraft, LLC, hereby grants to you as a Customer a non exclusive license to use the enclosed Computer Programonly on a single computer at a time and only by one user at a time subject to the terms of this agreement or the separate SiteLicense Agreement. For Program use on more than one computer at a time or by more than one user at a time, you must obtainadditional Program Rights via a Site License from SoftDraft, LLC.

2. COPYRIGHT AND PROPRIETARY RIGHTS. This Program and manual are protected by United States Copyright law.Unauthorized copying, reproduction, and/or sales can result in imprisonment of up to one year and fines of up to $10,000. Willfulviolations of Copyright law can result in civil damages of up to $50,000 plus actual damages. Therefore, you may not copy orotherwise reproduce any part of the Program or manual without permission from SoftDraft, LLC or according to your Site LicenseAgreement. You agree to abide by the terms and conditions of this Agreement and to instruct any person who uses this Program onyour behalf to be aware of the Terms and Conditions of this Agreement.

3. DISCLAIMER. THIS PROGRAM AND MANUAL ARE LICENSED “AS-IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY AS TO PERFORMANCE.SOFTDRAFT, LLC EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TOTHE IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS OF THIS PROGRAM FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

4. LIMITED WARRANTY. The diskette or CD on which this program is recorded is guaranteed for 90 (ninety) days from the dateof purchase. If a defect in the diskette occurs within 90 (ninety) days, contact SoftDraft, LLC, to arrange for a replacement.

5. LIMITATION OF REMEDIES AND LIABILITY. IN NO EVENT WILL SOFTDRAFT, LLC BE LIABLE FOR INCIDENTAL ORCONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM PROGRAM USE, EVEN IF SOFTDRAFT, LLC HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THEPOSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOFTDRAFT, LLCS' EXCLUSIVE LIABILITY AND YOUR EXCLUSIVE REMEDY WILL BEREPLACEMENT OF ANY DEFECTIVE DISKETTE AS PROVIDED ABOVE. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitationof implied warranties or liability for incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation may not apply to you.

6. TERM AND TERMINATION. This Agreement is effective from the date the diskette or CD seal is broken until this Agreement isterminated. The unauthorized reproduction of the Program and/or manual will immediately terminate this Agreement.

7. ENTIRE AGREEMENT. This Agreement constitutes the sole and complete Agreement between SoftDraft, LLC and theCustomer for the use of this Program and documentation. Changes to this Agreement may be made only by written mutual consent.

8. GOVERNING LAW. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee.

SoftDraft, LLC, http://www.softdraft.com

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About QuickNotesQuickNotes is a powerful, easy-to-use text notation system. This system allows you to instantly add drawing notes to yourAutoCAD drawings without typing.

Typical drawing notes are stored in master note files (you may have as many as you like) and arranged by categories.Each category is descriptive of the type of notes it contains. Text styles and layers are associated with each category ofnotes. Refer to the Note Categories section on their format and how to add to the Master Note files.

You have complete control over text attributes, layer placement, leader color, arrow heads and spline arc or multi-lineleaders. Text styles are set automatically by adding them in the Master Note file. Layers are also pre-set via the MasterNote file and are created during text placement.

Text heights are based on pre-set text styles as defined in the AutoCAD STYLE command. Text is placed according to thepre-set style names added in the Master Note File. If the text Style does not exist in the current drawing an alert box willindicate this and the text is set to the current style.

Typical notes are added, edited, or removed from the master note files via Notepad (default) or any other windows editorinterface. You can add existing notes directly from the drawing to the current master note file using the copy and pastemethods in the AutoCAD text screen window.

Changes from EZ-NotesText Styles (for notes without leaders use text styles, notes with leaders use the same name for a dimension style) arenow pre-set for each category in the Master Note File in order that all notes placed from the selected category arecreated using this style.

Layers for text placement are also pre-set for each category in the Master Note file in order that all notes placed from theselected category are placed on the same pre-set layer.

All Text Utilities have been removed as AutoCAD and the Bonus/Express Tools now contains most all of these utilities.

Text is now created using the MText command to allow for dynamic editing of multiple lines of text.

All leaders use the AutoCAD Leader command and are controlled by the pre-set dimension style.

Pre-set text styles should have a text height defined in the text style.

Dimension styles created in AutoCAD now control all aspects of the leader line, arrow heads and text.

Master Note Files .MNF extensions, now replace the Typical Note Files .TNF extension, with some additionalformatting for pre-set Text Styles and Layer Names.

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OverviewQuickNotes stores typical drawing notes within external ASCII text files by categories. Each category contains the most commondrawing notes for easy access and placement. You may have an unlimited number of Master Note files.

Any note within each of the categories may be placed on the drawing with or without a leader. Leaders may be arc, single or multi-lines with your choice of one of different leader terminators based on the Dimension Style Settings. The leader color may bedifferent from the actual note, but placed on the same layer as assigned in the dimension style.

QuickNotes includes complete control over text attributes such as style (using the AutoCAD Style command), justification, height,rotation angle and layer (pre-set in Master Note file) insertion.

QuickNotes FeaturesQuickNotes is always present when the partial menu file is loaded. Following is a list of the features found within the QuickNotesprogram:

Increased speed and productivity.

Instantly add typical drawing notes without typing.

Create multiple Master Note files for different projects.

Notes are stored by categories in the Master Note files.

Eliminate typing mistakes.

Consistent notation style, layering, and abbreviations.

Each note category is preset for text style and correct layer.

Adds single or multiple lines of notes.

Add notes with leaders in one pick.

Move text and leader follows.

Arrow head adjusts correctly after moving.

Add, edit, remove and update existing master note files

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Starting QuickNotesFrom the AutoCAD command line:After installation is complete and the QuickNotes toolbar is loaded, you may immediately begin using the QuickNotesprogram.

1. Start AutoCAD as usual, with the QuickNotes toolbar menu loaded.

2. At the AutoCAD command prompt type:

Command: QNOTES <Enter>

This displays the QuickNotes dialog as shown below. To begin trying the system out, just follow the steps listed below.

1. Select the Category: for the type of notes you want. This displays a list of what’s available in the Typical Notes: area.

2. From the list of available notes in the Typical Notes: area, simply click the desired note for insertion. Select one line for a singlenote placement or multi-lines by holding the mouse button down and dragging it down the list. Use the scroll bars at the right if thenotes fill the list box to locate additional notes.

3. Click in the Leader Points tile to add a one or more point leader. When None (default) is selected, the selected notes are addedwithout a leader.

4. Select a Leader Type 45 (default) from this tile to add a single straight line, spline arc or multi-line leader with the selected note.

5. Click OK and follow the prompts.

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Note File LocationQuickNotes inserts typical drawing notes stored within external ASCII text files. These files may be located in the \QNOTES folderor a folder of your choosing and have the file extension .MNF which indicates a Master Note File.

General notes are stored in the same or other folder and have a file extension of .GNF for General Note File.

These files have a special format required for proper program operation and line identification. If you edit these files in anexternal text editor, be sure to maintain the proper format and save the file in an ASCII or non- document format.

The following example explains the special format for these files:

("EQUIPMENT""GENERAL") /EQUIPMENTROMANSTEXTAIR SEPARATORCHILLER/GENERALROMANSTEXTBOP ELEVATIONEXISTING PIPE SUPPORTS1. NO ALLOWANCE\PHAS BEEN\PINCLUDED./END

("EQUIPMENT" "GENERAL") -- This is the first line in the file and contains the list of Note Categories for the file.

/EQUIPMENT -- This line denotes one of the categories as listed in the first line. Be sure to spell the categories the same as inthe first line.

ROMANS -- This line denotes the text style for the category.

TEXT -- This line denotes the layer for the category all notes are placed on.

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Note CategoriesThe first line within the file lists the categories that are found within the remaining portion of the file. Each category is placedbetween double quotes "" and all the categories are enclosed in parenthesis ( ). You may add additional categories within this listfollowing this same format. For example, to add the category “DETAIL” the list:

(“EQUIPMENT” “GENERAL”)

would now look as:

(“EQUIPMENT” “GENERAL” “DETAIL”)

The second line below the category list is a category designation. Categories are designated by placing a forward slash / before thecategory name. Category names must match exactly as they are typed within the category list on the first line. There order orlocation within the file is not critical, but the forward slash must be first to identify the category. To add the DETAIL category moveto the desired location in the file, type:

/EQUIPMENTROMANSTEXTAIRSEPARATORCHILLER/DETAIL

After the category, the next line would pre-set the text style when a note is placed without a leader.

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Adding Typical NotesTypical notes are added to each specific category based on a single line, per multi-line note. A multi-line note is added using thespecial character \P which indicates a return, during note insertion into the AutoCAD drawing.

You may use as many return \P characters as required for the specific note. However, the complete note does not have to be placedon one line within the note file, but can occupy several lines. The following note includes two returns:

1. NO ALLOWANCE\PHAS BEEN\PINCLUDED.

This note occupies three lines within the drawing at the time of insertion.

To add this note in the Master Note File as three lines it would appear as:

1. NOALLOWANCEHAS BEENINCLUDED.

To insert the above note, you would need to select all three lines from the list within the QuickNotes dialog.

A note file is terminated using the line /END as the last line in the file.

WARNING: Be sure to save the edited note file in an ASCII or non-document format. Improper program operation will occur if thefile is not in this format or proper format of the file is not adhered to when adding notes.

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Adding Note with a LeaderThe QuickNote’s commands are active immediately after the QuickNotes partial toolbar menu has loaded.

To start QuickNotes, at the AutoCAD command prompt type:

Command: QN <Enter>

This displays the QuickNotes dialog box as shown below. The default typical notes file QNOTES.MNF is loaded and ready forcategory selection.

1. Click within the Category: list box to select a category. All notes within this category are displayed in the Notes: section ofthe dialog

2. Select a note from those listed in the Typical Notes: list box.

3. Click the 1, 2, 3, 4, or None toggle in the Leader Points area (an X appears in the box). None is the default.

4. Note that the Text Style and Layer Name for this note appear below the Typical Notes list box area.

5. Select a leader type from the Leader Type tile, 45 is the default.

6. Click OK to place the note.

7. Select the points for the leader based on the number of points set. The text is placed after the last point selected.

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Adding Note without a LeaderThe QuickNote’s commands are active immediately after the QuickNotes partial toolbar menu has loaded.

To start QuickNotes, at the AutoCAD command prompt type:

Command: QN <Enter>

This displays the QuickNotes dialog box as shown below. The default typical notes file QNOTES.MNF is loadedand ready for category selection.

1. Click within the Category: list box to select a category. All notes within this category are displayed in theTypical Notes: section of the dialog.

2. Select a note from those listed in the Typical Notes: list box.

3. Click the None toggle Off (the box appears blank) within the Leader Points tile.

4. Select the required text justification from the Justify popdown.

5. Select the desired rotation angle for the note from the Rotation popdown.

6. Click OK to place the note.

7. Select a point for note placement.

8. You can adjust the note after placement using the AutoCAD Grips or from within the AutoCAD text editor usingthe DDEDIT command.

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Adding Leader OnlyFrom the QuickNotes Dialog

1. Click on one of the Leader Type toggles to select the type of leader line.

2. Click the Leader... button to place the leader and follow the prompts.

3. Select Leader Arrow to place a leader line from the arrow point first.

4. Select Leader Text to place a leader line from the Text Note to the arrow head.

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From the Toolbar

Select the second icon Leader Arrow to place a leader line from the arrow point first.

Select the third icon Leader Text to place a leader line from the Text Note to the arrow head.

From the Command Line

At the Command: prompt type LA for Leader Arrow to place a leader line from the arrow point first.

At the Command: prompt type LT for Leader Text to place a leader line from the Text Note to the arrow head.

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Loading Master Note File

1. Click the File... button at the bottom right, located in the Master Note File Utilities tile to load a different Master Note File.

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2. The file dialog displays the typical note files located in the \QNOTES folder with the .MNF extension.

3. Select the new note file from the list of files in this folder or from a different folder.

4. Click OPEN to continue.

5. The File dialog closes and returns you to the QuickNotes dialog adding the categories found within the new typical note file tothe Categories: section of the dialog.

6. Select the desired category to display the typical notes available for insertion.

NOTE: You may have as many external Master Note Files as you require. The default file DEFAULT.MNF must be present, and isthe default file to load, when the program is executed the first time. You may modify this file and save it in an ASCII or non-document format. All Master Note Files must use the extension .MNF