DataCAD Changelog

What's new in DataCAD 19.01.00.00

Jul 11, 2018

Enhancements to DataCAD 19.01.00 (Since 19.00.01):
Helplines (a.k.a. Construction Lines)
A new option, [S4] Helplines, has been added to the Utility Menu. Helplines are infinite lines you can add to your drawing for reference only. You can offset them, snap to them, and trim to them, but they do not print.
To add helplines to your drawing;
Select Helplines from the Utility menu.
Click the first point of the helpline.
Click the second point of the helpline.
DataCAD draws an infinite line between the two points.
The following options are available in the Helplines menu:
F1 Delete All
Select Delete All to remove all of the helplines from your drawing.
F5 Color
Select Color to choose a color for helplines.
F6 Pen Style
Select Pen Style to choose a pen style for helplines.
F0 Show
Toggle Show off to disable the display of helplines.
S2 Draw First
Toggle Draw First on to have helplines draw before (i.e., underneath) other geometry.
S3 Draw Last
Toggle Draw Last on to have helplines draw after (i.e., on top of) other geometry.
The following Helpline-related extended codes have been added:
1111 : Helplines Show On
1112 : Helplines Show Off
1113 : Helplines Draw First
1114 : Helplines Draw Last
Z-Datum Reference
A new option, [S5] Z-Datum, has been added to the Utility, Settings menu. You can enable this feature to set a Z offset to a relative zero height (a.k.a. Z-Datum Reference). For example, if the first floor of your building is at a real world height of 212', you would set the Z-Datum value to 212'.
Subsequently, when you add a wall at Z-Base zero and Z-Height 8', DataCAD will automatically calculate the offset to position the wall at a real world Z-Base of 212' and a real world Z-Height of 220'. This makes it easier to model your project relative to the first floor, rather than having to calculate the offset yourself.
Note: When this feature is enabled, the Coordinates/Hints Toolbar, Identify, and 3D Coordinate Identification indicate both the relative and world Z values.
The following Z-Datum-related extended codes have been added:
1117 : Z-Datum Reference On
1118 : Z-Datum Reference Off
1119 : Enter Z-Datum Reference point
Drag-n-drop Layer Files
In addition to the default action, replace current layer, you can now hold down the [Ctrl] key while dropping a layer to merge its contents with the current layer, or hold down the [Ctrl] + [Alt] keys while dropping a layer to create a new layer.
A New Layer option has been added to the Layer, Import menu.
Associative Dimension lines now support No. Divisions object snapping.
The following extended codes have been added for Dimension Rounding:
1115 : Dimension Rounding On
1116 : Dimension Rounding Off
Ctrl] + [Enter] may now be used with DataCAD's input line.
A new option, Create, has been added to the Identify, Set All menu. After you identify an entity and selct Set All, you can then select Create which will take you to the identified entity's creation menu.
A new toggle option, Layer, has been added to the More... sub-menu of Change, Match. After you select Change, Match, toggle on Layer to apply the layer property of one entity to another.
Note: The state of the Layer toggle when Change, Match, All is selected can be set by the key, Change Match All Includes Layer, in the [General] section of DCADWIN.INI. Set this key to TRUE if you want the entity's layer property to be included during Change, Match, All. The default value is FALSE.
Change Match All Includes Layer=FALSE
The Reload option is now available in the Symbol Browser's context menu, for loaded symbols, when browsing by folder.
Pressing and holding [Ctrl] + [Shift] and selecting the New Layer option in the Layer Manager will force the New Layer dialog to display at the center of the main display.
MText can now be selected in Tangents.
A new key, Entity Context Menu Obeys Layer Search, has been added to the [General] section of the DCADWIN.ini. If FALSE, the default, [Ctrl] + Right-clicking on an entity ignores the Layer Search toggle. If TRUE, the Layer Search toggle will apply to the Entity Context Menu.
Entity Context Menu Obeys Layer Search=FALSE

New in DataCAD 18.00.00.06 (Nov 13, 2015)

Symbol Attribute Enhancements:
Resolving Broken Links to Databases
Starting with this version of DataCAD, a prompt will appear when the database associated with a symbol text attribute cannot be found. Previously, DataCAD would always ignore the error and allow you to enter the value manually, rather than select it from the database. You can still choose to ignore the error, but now you have the option to search for the file yourself in order to repair the link
If you are able to redefine the path to the file, you will then have the option to make the change permanent. Otherwise, DataCAD will again look to the original path for the database the next time you open the drawing.
DataCAD will automatically search the following locations to find the database link before prompting you to locate the file yourself.
The original path
The currently configured Databases path
The current drawing file path:
Note: The "Pak-N-Go" command will now include any symbol attribute database linked files. After un-packing the file, if the database file is not in the original path, DataCAD will automatically look in the current drawing folder, similar to the manner in which XREFs are resolved if not found.
Note: A new key, 'Databases Have Header Row', has been added to the [Symbol Attributes] section of DCADWIN.INI. When set to TRUE, DataCAD will assume the first row in CSV files linked to symbol attributes is a Header row. The default value is FALSE.
Edit Attribute Menu:
A new menu item, Edit Attribute, has been added to the context menu for Symbol Attribute Text within the Symbol Editor. When you [Ctrl] + Right-click on an attribute text entity, you can select this menu item to display the Edit Symbol Attribute dialog. You can use the fields and options in this dialog to redefine the properties of text attributes contained within a symbol’s definition.
Note: While you can define many text attributes within a given symbol, DataCAD will only recognize one database per symbol. So all of the text attributes within the same symbol must be linked to fields in the same database.
Edit Attributes Menu:
A new menu item, Edit Attributes, has been added to the context menu for symbols. When you [Ctrl] + Right-click on a symbol that contains attribute text entities, you can select this menu item to display the Edit/Customize Symbol Attribute dialog.

New in DataCAD 17.00.00.03 (Oct 31, 2014)

SketchUp translator built on the Trimble SketchUp Toolkit.
Support for reading and writing the latest versions of SketchUp 2013 and 2014 files, translation of geometry and materials has been improved.
Inference Snapping:
Added a new option labeled "Inference Snapping," located in the "Dynamic Snapping" section of the "Interface" tab under Tools/Program Preferences. Either the dynamic snapping "Hint" or "Indicator" must be enabled to use this feature.
New command to "Open this symbol's folder in Windows Explorer," under the [Ctrl]+[right-click]/Symbol Tools context menu for symbols in the drawing area, and the [right-click] context menu for symbols in the Symbol Browser. Selecting this option will open the folder in which the symbol is saved using Windows Explorer.
XREFs on locked layers can now be refreshed (but not reloaded).
Added support for Underline and Overline properties on Attribute Text entities. The Underline and Overline are variable length, and match the length of the value text entered. DataCAD has the ability to object snap to the underline and overline as well.
Ability to mask by Hatch Pattern when selecting entities to modify.
Support for using "2 Points" in the Geometry/Tangents menu while in a parallel 3D view.
Ability to define a specific color for the pocket of smart pocket doors. In the Door Type Manager, load a pocket door and then go to the "Swing" tab.
Added "Dist / 2" and "Dist * 2" options to Geometry/Offset.
Added a "Z Offset" option to the Geometry/Offset menu.
New option labeled "Edit Contents" added to the [Ctrl]+[right-click] context menu for single-line text, MText, and PText.
Added a "Purge Unused" button to the "Edit Materials" dialog. This button will purge the definitions of materials assigned to the following: Empty layers, Colors
Ability to remove individual material definitions while simultaneously removing the assignment of the selected material from any entities, layers, or colors to which it was previously assigned.
"Reload" button to the "Edit Materials" dialog. Clicking this button reloads the currently selected material definition from the hard drive.
New sub-menu labeled "Clean/Cap" to the Architect/Edit Walls menu (with Auto3D on). It provides the ability to change the status of Clean, Cap and Trim In/Out for smart wall nodes using Entity, Group, Area, Fence, Selection Set or Select All.
Added "Factor" to the Change/Text menu. This option enables you to change the line spacing factor (the vertical space between individual lines of text) inside of PText and MText entities.
New button labeled "Reassociate" to the "Architect" menu (when "Auto 3D" is enabled).
Added a "Color=" readout to the "Attention" toolbar while in the Dimension/Linear/Arrow Style menu that shows the current value of the dimension arrow/tick mark color setting.
The "Entity Properties Editor" for symbols and XREFs, accessed via the [Ctrl]+[right-click] context menu, now displays the "Line Spacing Factor."
When "Keep Layer Manager Open" is checked on the Layer Manager, it will now remain on-screen throughout an editing session, even if all drawings are closed.
When using "Dynamic" in the Geometry/Offset menu to offset a line, DataCAD now displays a rubber-band line to indicate the direction of the offset.
When "Draw Text Insertion Point=TRUE" in the [Debug] section of dcadwin.ini, DataCAD will display the text insertion point on the screen, but will not print it.
Previously, if a drawing contained more than 10 GoTo Views, and you accessed the second page of the list, chose Move View, picked a view to move, and then picked the view to move it in front of, DataCAD would revert to the first page of views when finished. Now, DataCAD remains on the page you were on when you began the process of moving the view.
Two new keys in the configuration settings file that can automatically alphabetize the "Recent Folders" and "Favorite Folders" lists in the Folder drop-down menu on the Symbol Browser.
There is a new key in the [General] section of dcadwin.ini: Close Symbol Editor Windows First=FALSE
Support for the "Lock Size" property on nested-level symbols, independent of the status of this setting on the top-level symbol in which the nested symbols are inserted.
New key to the [XREFs] section of dcadwin.ini: [XREFs]
Always Update GTV Links=FALSE
New key to the [General] section of dcadwin.ini: [General]
No Text Scale=FALSE
New key to the [General] section of dcadwin.ini: [General]
GTV Remembers Tangents=TRUE
New extended character codes (V= in toolbar button, A= 10XX# in toolbar sequence, or 10XX# in keyboard macro):
1096 - PText/MText Boundary On
1097 - PText/MText Boundary Off
1098 - Purge Unused Symbols
1099 - Reload All Symbols
The Sun Shader has a new "Sun's eye view" command in the "View" pull-down menu and on the View toolbar. Clicking this option orients the model to view it from the position of the Sun.

New in DataCAD 15.00.00 (Dec 3, 2012)

News:
Added "Smart Arrows" to the list of entities supported by selection mask. *Note: this new feature is available in both the Subscription Edition and the standard Professional Edition.
Added the following extended character codes:
1079# : Hatch On
1080# : Hatch Off
1081# : Fill On
1082# : Fill Off
1083# : Bitmaps On
1084# : Bitmaps Off
3015# : Launch Sun Shader
Added an option to flatten all entities to Z-Base/Z-Height=0 while exporting to DXF or DWG format
Added support for retaining GoTo Views and the GTV Link when redefining an XREF
Added "Relocate" to the [Ctrl]+[right-click] context menu for associative dimensions. Selecting this option puts DataCAD into dimension placement mode, so that you may reposition the dimension line using the existing dimension points.
To maintain consistency with previous versions, the default status of the "Ignores Clip Cube" setting when inserting XREFs has been changed to off (unchecked). If the XREF does not have an XClip, it will obey the drawing-level Clip Cube by default.
Added a key to dcadwin.ini to facilitate turning off the temporary boundary box that appears around MText and PText when placing or resizing the entity.
Added a key to dcadwin.ini which disables the Lock Size feature on text and dimensions. *Note: this new feature is available in both the Subscription Edition and the standard Professional Edition.
Walls that are drawn on different layers now support the ability to have their intersections cleaned using the "T Intersect," "L Intersect," and "X Intersect" commands in the Cleanup menu. Layer Search must be toggled on for these to work.
The option to ignore the drawing-level Clip Cube has been added to the [Ctrl]+[Right-click] context menu for XREF entities. It is remembered on a per-XREF basis, and is on by default. If you un-check this option, the XREF will obey the drawing-level Clip Cube; when the Clip Cube is enabled, any portion of the XREF which is outside the boundary will be suppressed from the view.
If the "GTV Link" in the Reference File Manager is set to "On," the status of the "Ignore Clip Cube" setting is remembered with the host-level GoTo Views in the drawing.
The GTV Link feature now supports per-XREF highlighting in addition to the per-XREF-layer highlighting that was previously supported.
Area, Perimeter and Volume have been added to the list of information returned on the Coordinates/Hints toolbar when you "Identify" a bitmap.
When you pick "Import" (and then either Replace or Merge) in the "Layers" menu to import a layer, the "Load from which file" dialog appears. The default name in the "File name" field is the same name as the layer which is currently active in the drawing, and was previously limited to eight characters. This limitation has been lifted, and the function now supports long layer names.
When an XREF is inserted with an enlargement factor, that same enlargement factor is now applied to the overshoot value for any objects in the XREF that have overshoot assigned by entity.
The [Ctrl]+[Right-click] context menu has been enhanced to display new options when executed while the cursor is positioned over a blank space in the drawing area.
Fixes:
Corrected an issue that could cause an incorrect drawing extents if XREFs with XClips were present in the drawing.
Using the scroll wheel on the mouse or the [PgUp]/[PgDn] keys on the keyboard to zoom in or our while in PText entry mode would cause the "Boundary" toggle on the menu bar to become switched on. This would only occur if Show PText/MText Boundary On Entry/Resize= was set to TRUE in the [General] section of dcadwin.ini. This has been fixed.
Fixed a problem exporting a file to DWG if the drawing contained hatching with Lock Size enabled. Hatching now exports at the correct scale. If Lock Size is enabled, the scale of the hatch is relative to the plot scale at the time of the export.
Toggling "Multiple" on while in Save Symbol mode, and then selecting the same entity twice with Shift For Implied Deselect=TRUE in the [General] section of dcadwin.ini, would result in an error stating "Unable to load symbol into drawing database." This has been corrected.
If No LockSize=TRUE in the [General] section of dcadwin.ini, creating a Smart arrow with Text Scale on and a custom symbol for the arrow head would result in DataCAD failing to apply the enlargement factor to draw the arrow head at the correct size for the current plot scale. This has been fixed.
Corrected an erroneous perpendicular object snap on curves.
Corrected an access violation error that could occur when printing some Smart doors that contain 2D symbols.
If you created a drawing and set your M/PText angle to 90 degrees, and then closed the file and started a new one without exiting the application, DataCAD would use the previously defined 90 degree angle instead of the default oof zero. This has been fixed.
When using the Symbol Browser to browse symbols in the drawing, DataCAD now stores the values of the settings for divisions in the drawing. This prevents it from reverting to the default 3x15 after selecting a symbol to insert.
You are no longer permitted to set the value zero for "No.Divisions" in the "Object Snap" menu.
You are no longer permitted to set the value zero for "KnockOut X Enlargement" and "KnockOut Y Enlargement" in the Entity Properties Editor of entities that support KnockOuts.

New in DataCAD 14.01.01 (Feb 11, 2012)

New in DataCAD 14.01.00 (Feb 11, 2012)

The length of witness lines, and related position of dimension lines, for associative dimensions that have "Lock Size" enabled display has been updated for improved display when you change the current plot scale. NOTE: This correction applies to new dimensions only. Dimensions in existing drawing files will need to be erased and redrawn in order to take advantage of this change.
Corrected an inability to object snap to 2D lines inside of multiple instances of the same symbol that had been inserted and then rotated such that the lines intersected.
Repaired a crash that would occur if you closed the Layer Manager while the layer name field was active, and then reopened the Layer Manager.
When "RoundIt" is on in the DimStyle menu, and you change the current Scale Type, the rounded values of associative dimensions are more accurate.
Manually placed associative dimension text that has Lock Size enabled now scales properly when you change the current plot scale.
Fixed a crash that would occur when pressing [Ctrl]+[z] after opening the Layer Manager with "Keep Layer Manager open" checked.
Pull-down and context menus which had sub-menus containing "Yes/No" or "On/Off" options have been removed. In their place, the setting name will have a check mark next to it for "Yes" or "On," and no check mark next to it for "No" or "Off."
An issue that would inadvertently change the size of the boundary when converting an AutoCAD "Wipeout" to a DataCAD "KnockOut" while importing a DWG file has been corrected.
MText and PText entities that have both Lock Size" and "KnockOut" enabled are now scaled correctly when exported to DXF or DWG format.
Increased the amount of space available on the Coordinates/Hints toolbar to display information when using the Identify command. Previously, the information could get cut off.
If "Text Scale" was on in the Text menu, and you changed the current plot scale while placing a detail on a multi-layout sheet, when you returned to the text menu the value for "Size" had changed. This affected the Text Style and Dim Style settings for associative dimensions as well. This has been corrected.
Fixed an error changing the size of PText and MText entities that have Lock Size enabled.
Using File/Save As in the Symbol Editor would prevent you from closing the Symbol Editor and choosing "Yes" to save the changes to the new symbol in the current drawing. This has been corrected.
Exploding a symbol which had "Lock Text Angle" on would place text that was inside the symbol in the wrong location. This has been fixed.
Corrected issues related to object snapping to entities within XREFs.
Setting "Increment" to zero when drawing stringline associative dimensions would prevent the "Overall" option from appearing on the menu. This has been corrected.
Exporting a file that contains associative dimensions with Lock Size enabled to DXF/DWG format now correctly scales the dimension text size and offset, tick marks/arrows, offset, overlap and overrun.
Saving a file that contains associative dimensions with Lock Size enabled to DataCAD X3, DataCAD 12 or DataCAD 11 format now correctly scales the dimension text size and offset, tick marks/arrows, offset, overlap and overrun.
If Lock Size was on in the Dimension/Linear/Text Style menu, and you used Identify/SetAll on an associative dimension that had Lock Size turned off, DataCAD failed to turn Lock Size off. This has been corrected.
If a Smart Door with Unit Type "Garage" used a symbol for the 3D representation, the center point drawn in 2D plan view was incorrectly offset by 1 inch. This has been corrected.
Repaired the ability to use [Ctrl]+[a] on the input line for Select All. This issue only affected Windows XP workstations. 22) Inserting a symbol that contains hatching with Lock Size enabled would result in the wrong scale for the hatching. This has been corrected.

New in DataCAD 14.00.07 (Feb 11, 2012)

New in DataCAD 14.00.06 (Feb 11, 2012)

New in DataCAD 14.00.05 (Feb 11, 2012)

New in DataCAD 12.00.00 (Jun 22, 2007)

Smart" Entities: DataCAD 12 provides new "smart" wall, door, and window entities that contain routines and parameters that define their behaviour and interaction with other smart entities. When you draw two walls in a prior version of DataCAD, they don't know anything about each other until you explicitly tell the program to clean them together. In DataCAD 12, walls of the same type automatically clean to each other without you having to perform additional cleanup routines.
The same automation applies to doors and windows as well. When you add a door or window to a wall, the wall automatically cuts itself to accommodate the opening. Further, when you move, copy, or delete a door or window, the wall automatically heals itself. These "smarts" eliminate most of the cleanup steps you had to perform in prior versions.
A smart entity also knows what it is supposed to look like when viewed in plan or perspective. In plan, a door looks just like the 2D doors you are familiar with. However, when you switch to a 3D view, the door is automatically modeled complete with a jamb, casing, and trim. When you display your model in the object viewer, it is complete with rendered materials.
SketchUp File Import: DataCAD 12 adds direct support for SketchUp files. Now you can easily add models you've created in SketchUp to your DataCAD projects. You can open, insert, or externally reference SketchUp files. DataCAD 12 will automatically extract materials and bitmap textures from the SketchUp file and embed them into your DataCAD drawing. You can also convert SketchUp files to o2c format for raytraced visualization.
Excel Spreadsheet Import: You can insert Excel spreadsheets into your drawings.
Object Snapping Enhancements: DataCAD 12's object snapping mechanism has been completely re-written to provide faster response times in larger drawings and to eliminate previous limitations. It is now possible to snap between and within symbols and XREFs (including nests). You can also snap to polyline bulge centers and XClip boundaries. A new dynamic snap indicator displays available object snap locations in real-time.
3D Boolean Operations: Add, Subtract, and Union operations.
3D Edit Planes: Recall construction planes on a per-entity basis.
Double-precision Display List: DataCAD 12 includes a new option to enable a double-precision display when you need to work on projects that cover a large real-world area. This setting is applied on a per-drawing basis.
Multi-line Text (a.k.a. MText): A new multi-line text (with support for TTF and SHX fonts) entity provides wrap-around text boundaries and the ability to uniquely format text within the same paragraph such as font, size, bold, italic, underline, overline, color, alignment, and line feed factor. Multi-line text is based on RTF (Rich Text Formatting) and is round-trip compatible with AutoCAD's MText.
SHX Font Support: DataCAD 12 provides native support for AutoCAD SHX fonts.
Font Dialog Enhancements: An enhanced Font Dialog allows you to save and load text styles. You can also access options such as All Caps, Plot Scale, and Line Factor options that were previously available in the main Text menu only.
Entity Properties Editor: It is now possible to access the properties of any entity simply by [Ctrl] Right-clicking on the object. From here you can change settings and apply them immediately. A real-time 3D preview window allows you to see changes to three-dimensional entities.
o2c Rendering Enhancements: In addition to rendering by color or by layer, you can also assign material definitions on a per entity basis. Material definitions are now embedded in your drawing in a central location. So you can easily assign the same Brick material to multiple entities.
New Symbol Tools: A new addition to the context-sensitive Symbol Tools menu allow you to edit unexploded symbols on the fly. The changes you make can be saved to the current drawing only and/or to the hard disk, or to a new symbol definition. Symbols can now be clipped using rectangular or irregular shaped polyline boundaries.
Ready2Render Symbols: New 3D symbols added to DataCAD 12 include pre-assigned materials and textures so they are ready to render as soon as you add them to your model. In addition, we've updated many of the existing 3D symbols so they are "ready-to-render" as well.
New Seamless Textures and Backgrounds: DataCAD 12 includes more than 200 new seamless textures and dozens of background photos to add realism to your renderings.
New Hatch Patterns: More than 50 new hatch patterns have been added for interior and exterior materials.
Dimension Enhancements: You can now assign a unique scale type to any dimension allowing you to maintain multiple dimensioning formats within the same drawing.
Fence Clip: XREFs and Symbols can now be clipped using irregular shaped polyline boundaries.
Pen Styles / Pen Widths: Based on the Windows line type format, you can now apply scale-independent patterns to your DataCAD line types. These patterns are compatible with the Windows Metafile format and convert directly to Adobe PDF format. Now you can apply property lines to curves.
New Toolbars: Notate Toolbar, Types Toolbar
Plotting Enhancements: Your current plotter and Quick Layout settings can now be saved to a file and loaded into other drawings. You can also assign unique pen tables to specific scales. So large-scale drawings and details can have thicker pens and small-scale drawings can have thinner pens. Unique pen tables can also be assigned to specific multi-scale plotting details.
Multi-scale Plotting Enhancements: You can now save your multi-scale plotting layouts to DWG format so your consultants can access them directly using AutoCAD.
A new context menu provides quick access to MSP Detail operations.
MSP Details can be selected directly from the layout window versus only from the menu.
MSP Detail extents are highlighted when you hover your cursor over them. A tooltip displays the detail name.
MSP Detail Make Current now sets the current Plot Scale to what the detail was saved at.
MSP Detail names may now contain up to 80 characters.
Multiple Private Clipbooks w/ Preview: DataCAD 12 stores up to 10 private Clipbooks that contain the most recent data you copied from your drawing to the Windows Clipboard. Whenever you Paste, you can re-select any of your Clipbooks. A preview of each Clipbook's contents are shown when you highlight the item in the menu.
Reference File Manager Enhancements: XREF Highlight settings can now be assigned on a per-XREF and/or XREF Layer basis. The Reference File Manager dialog has been updated to allow drag-n-drop between the Loaded, Refresh, Reload, Bind, and Delete lists. You can also assign custom names to XREFs. The Inherit Current Highlight Setting option for Nested XREFs is now remembered on a per drawing versus global basis.
Display Symbol Contents While Dragging: The contents of symbols can now be displayed dynamically during placement and rotation.
AEC File Import: Select Layers, GoTo Views, MSP Sheets, Multi-view Windows; Layer Import: New, Append, Overwrite; Drawing Settings: Update
Long GoTo View Names: GoTo View names may now contain up to 80 characters.
Long MSP Detail Names: Multi-scale Plotting Detail names may now contain up to 80 characters.
Access / Update GoTo Views via Layer Manager: A GoTo View list pull-down menu has been added to the Layer Manager for quick access to layer on/off settings.
Access Material Definitions via Layer Manager: Materials can now be set on a per layer basis via the Layer Manager.
XREF Highlighting Per Layer: XREF Highlighting can now be set per XREF Layer basis.
XREF Manager Drag-n-drop: Items from the Reference Files list can be moved to either the Refresh, Reload, Bind, or Delete lists using a drag-n-drop method.
Hyperlink Hints/Tooltips: Hyperlink paths are now displayed when you hover the cursor over an entity that contains a hyperlink.
Search Associative Hatch: The Search Hatch setting in the Object Snap menu now applies to Associative Hatch.
Implied Unselect: Consistent with Windows standards, clicking on an entity after it has been selected will remove it from the current selection set.
Trap Door to Dimension Change: A trap door to Dimension, Change has been added to the Change menu.
Smooth Curve Dragging: Curves now display smoothly rather than segmented when you create them.
Multiple Associative Dimension Scale Types: Independent from the global Scale Type setting, individual associative dimensions can display a unique unit type.
Polyline Bulge Centers: The radius point for polyline bulges is now displayed when Display, Curve Centers is enabled.
Symbol Scale: just like Text Scale for notes and dimensions, you can now define symbols at their plotted size and enlarge them accordingly for a given drawing scale.
Rotate Menu Enhancements
Quick Rotate: Rotate entities about the point you click as you select them without having to define a center of rotation each time.
Absolute Rotate: Rotate entities to an absolute angle about their center as you select them.
Rotate by Center: Rotate entities about their centers as you select them (Also works with Dynamic Rotation).
Insert Symbol Current View (Dynamic): Insert symbols based on their world orientation relative to the current view.
Angle Snap Divisions Increased To 720: The Angle Snap setting may now be set as small as 30 minutes, or 720 divisions of a circle. Previously, the smallest angle allowed was 10 degrees, or 36 divisions of a circle.
MSP Detail Make Current Also Sets Plot Scale: MSP Detail Make Current now sets the current Plot Scale to what the detail was saved at.
Inherit Nested XREF Highlight On A Per Drawing Basis: The Inherit Current Highlight Setting option for Nested XREFs is now remembered on a per drawing versus global basis.
Select by Fill: It is now possible to select filled entities from within their closed boundary in addition to their edges.
24x24 Interface Icons: DataCAD 12 includes a set of 24x24 pixel interface icons for use on high-resolution displays.
New Toolbars: The Notate toolbar has been re-introduced to DataCAD 12 and takes advantage of new symbol options.
Change Text: Added Angle and Alignment to the Change, Text, menu.
Paste Enhancements: The Paste menu has been expanded to include Dynamic Rotate, Line Factor, Bind Materials, Symbol Scale, Max Lines, and Clipbooks.
MSP Detail Highlighting and Context Menu: MSP Details are now highlighted when you hover your cursor over them.