Tips & Tricks

Improvements to Spline Editing in ZWCAD 2010

How time flies; the year 2010 is already here! I browse some CAD software websites as usual, and I am interested in a piece of important news : "ZWSOFT announces its fastest ZWCAD ever - ZWCAD 2010". No doubt this is an exciting message for me, a devotee of CAD.

 

In browsing the ZWCAD 2010 Web site (http://www.zwcad.org/cad-software/whatsnew.html), I found one improvement that really impressed me: the editing of splines. Splines are used in many applications, especially in the GIS (mapping) industry. For example, we can draw the contour lines on topographic maps in CAD with splines. Compared to ZWCAD 2009i, the SplineEdit command is greatly improved; in particular, the command’s Fit Data option is an improvement.

One of my best friends works at a geological survey design institute. He tells me that he uses the Spline command frequently to draw geographic contours, and that the spline editor improvements in ZWCAD 2010 will make his job more efficient. During our conversation, he shared with me his experiences of editing spline with grips. 

When he selects a spline in ZWCAD 2010, grips are now displayed on the fit points. He can use the grips to modify the location of the fit points, which modifies the flow of the spline.

After purging the fit data and changing the location of control points, the grips are displayed on control points instead. (When the spline’s control frame is turned on, then grips are displayed on both the control points and the fit points.)

The grips allow him to modify the fit points. He can delete, move, and add points to change the spline’s accuracy. Additionally, he can change the tolerance of the spline; when the tolerance is lower, the spline moves closer to the fit points.

From my friend’s introduction, I quickly grasped the improvements to spline editing in ZWCAD 2010. Meanwhile, I am looking through the other improvements in this version.