Customize Workspaces (Concept)

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Customize Workspaces

Concept

Procedure

Quick Reference

You can customize workspaces to create a drawing environment that displays only those commands on the Quick Access toolbar, toolbars, menus, ribbon tabs, and palettes that you select.

Customization options for workspaces include creating a workspace using the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor, changing the properties of a workspace, and displaying a toolbar in all workspaces.

Create or Modify a Workspace Using the Customize User Interface Editor

The easiest way to create or modify a workspace is to set up the toolbars and palettes that best suit a drawing task, and then save that setup as a workspace in the program. That workspace can be accessed any time you need to draw within that workspace environment.

You can also set up a workspace using the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor. In the CUI Editor, you can create or modify workspaces with precise properties and elements (commands, toolbars, menus, ribbon tabs, and palettes) that you want to access for certain tasks.

Show Me: Create a Workspace

Click the Play arrow below the following image to start the animation.

The following animation shows how to create a workspace. The animation covers the creation of the workspace, and how to control the display of toolbars, menus and palettes.

Following is an example of the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor, Workspace Contents pane. You click Customize Workspaces to create or modify the selected workspace.

The following is an example of the Customizations In <file name> pane after you click Customize Workspaces in the Workspace Contents pane. Check boxes are displayed next to each element that you can add to a workspace. You click a check box to add the element to the workspace.

Change the Properties of a Workspace

In the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor, you can define workspace properties, such as the workspace name, description, whether it is displayed on the Model or layout tab, and so on. The following table shows the AutoCAD Classic workspace properties as they appear in the Properties pane.

Properties for the AutoCAD Classic Workspace
Properties Pane Item	Description	Example
Name	String displayed in the drop-down box on the Workspaces toolbar, at the command prompt for the WORKSPACE command, under the Workspaces menu item in the Tools menu, and in the CUI Editor.	AutoCAD Classic
Description	Text that describes the workspace; does not appear in the user interface.
Start On	Determines if the Model tab, last active layout tab, or the current active tab in the drawing is displayed when the workspace is restored or set current.	Model
Menu bars	Determines if the menu bar is displayed or not when the workspace is restored or set current.	Off
Status bars	Determines if the status bars for the drawing window or application are displayed or not when the workspace is restored or set current. The available options are All Off, Application Only, All On, or Drawing Status Bar Only.	Application only
Model/Layout tabs	Determines if the Model/layout tabs are visible or not in the drawing window when the workspace is restored or set current.	On
Screen menus	Determines if the Screen menu is visible or not when the workspace is restored or set current.	Off
Scroll bars	Determines if the scroll bars are visible or not when the workspace is restored or set current.	On

Display and Change the Display Properties of a Toolbar

You can control which toolbars are displayed and if they are set to be docked or floating in a workspace. You can define the size, location, or appearance of toolbars by changing their properties in the Workspace Contents pane of the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor.

Displaying Menus on the Menu Browser and Menu Bar

Menus and the order in which they are displayed are controlled through the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor; you can also toggle the display of the menu bar with workspaces.

Change the Properties of a Palette

Many windows, known as palettes, can be set to be docked, anchored, or floating. You can define the size, location, or appearance of these windows by changing their properties in the Workspace Contents pane of the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor. These windows include:

Advanced Render Settings
Command Line
dbConnect Manager
DesignCenter
External References
Layer Properties Manager
Lights in Model
Materials
Markup Set Manager
Properties
QuickCalc
Ribbon
SheetSet Manager
Sun Properties
Tool Palette
Visual Styles Manager

The following table shows the Tool Palettes properties as they appear in the Properties pane.

Properties for the Tool Palettes window
Properties pane item	Description	Example
Show	Visibility state of the palette. The available options are Yes, No, or Do Not Change. Do Not Change keeps the last used state of the palette when the workspace is restored or set current.	Yes
Orientation	The on screen docking or floating state of the palette. The available options are Floating, Left, Right, or Do Not Change. Do Not Change keeps the last used state of the palette when the workspace is restored or set current. Some palettes like the Command Line also support a dock location of Top and Bottom.	Floating
Allow Docking	Controls if the user can dock the palette by dragging it to one of the designated docking areas. The available options are Yes, No, or Do Not Change. Do Not Change maintains the last used setting for the palette when the workspace is restored or set current.	Yes
Auto Hide	Controls if the palette rolls up when not in use. The available options are On, Off, or Do Not Change. Do Not Change maintains the last used setting for the palette when the workspace is restored or set current.	Off
Use Transparency	Controls if the palette appears transparent. The available options are Yes, No, or Do Not Change. Do Not Change maintains the last used setting for the palette when the workspace is restored or set current.	No
Transparency Amount	Controls how opaque the palette is displayed. The valid range is 0 through 100.	0
Default Group	Controls which of the user defined palette groups should be displayed.	All Palettes
Height	Determines how tall the palette is when it is floating.	598
Width	Determines how wide the palette is when it is floating.	172

Display Ribbon Tabs

Ribbon tabs and the order in which they are displayed on the ribbon are controlled through the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor, in the Workspace Contents pane.

Import a Workspace to a Main CUI File

You can import a workspace to the main CUI file using the Transfer tab of the Customize User Interface (CUI) Editor.

Setting a Default Workspace

Workspaces in a CUI file can be marked as default. This identifies which workspace in the CUI file should be restored when the CUI file is loaded into the program the first time, or after the CUI file has been loaded with the CUILOAD command.