About Styles

Styles enable administrators to set the default values that will be applied to all properties of such elements as sheets, geometry, annotations, dimensions, dress-up and dress-up symbols, callouts, etc.

The default values are defined and stored in the standard XML file, where a set of new parameters are defined, one parameter for each element property whose default value can be set.

Default values are applied to elements as they are created. After creation, the user can modify element values as required.

If you modify styles in the standard itself and then update the standard file used by the drawing, the elements which have already been created will NOT be modified (i.e. their default values will remain as previously). Updating the standard will only have an impact on the next elements to be created.

The default values for all element properties are stored in a specific Styles section of the standard XML file, and are defined by the administrator.

Styles are defined for all Drafting element types. By default, one style named Default is predefined in the standard files for each type of element. In this Default style, all element properties are pre-defined, enabling the administrator to set the value for this property. This Default style cannot be renamed.

You can create your own styles (based on existing styles), as well as delete styles (providing there remains at least one style for each type of element).

When creating a Drafting element, default values are automatically used. So, when you select a command that creates a specific type of element, the Style toolbar displays the current style for this type:

• If only one style is defined for this type of element, then this style is displayed in the toolbar.
• If several styles are defined for this type of element, then a style is defined as the current style and is displayed in the toolbar. Users can use the toolbar to select another style of the same type before creating the element.

The toolbar reflects the value of the style, but users can always modify the value of specific elements.

When a Drafting element is selected, the Style toolbar displays the list of the styles that can be applied to it. If the user selects one of these, this style is re-applied to the element. This enables users to reset to its default values an element whose properties have been modified.