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Paste as a Named Block
Tip# 3677 By Leonid Nemirovsky On 10-Jul-2011
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 Rated By 0 users
Categories : 2D Operations
Software type : AutoCAD 2012
Rename File To : No Files to download.
Select objects you want to copy, then paste them as a block.

Frequent tipster Leonid Nemirovsky sends us a keyboard shortcut to use in AutoCAD that lets users paste copied objects as a block.

"I use Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V very often in one drawing or between drawings, but I never noticed this trick before. If you use Ctrl+Shift+V instead of Ctrl+V, you can place the group of previously selected (Ctrl+C) objects as a block, with a name assigned to it by AutoCAD."
 
Notes from Cadalyst Tip Patrol: It's true — when AutoCAD moved to a Windows-only platform and many users (like myself) moved from DOS to Windows, the Copy/Paste functionality of the Windows Clipboard was a welcomed tool. It made getting objects from one file to another very easy and clean.

This method works by selecting the objects in your file that you want to copy. Don't start a command or type anything in; just select your objects. On the keyboard, press Ctrl+C. This will copy the objects to the Windows Clipboard. Go to the file where you want your copied objects to be placed (or even stay in the same file), and press Ctrl+V to paste them there. If you press Ctrl+Shift+V instead, AutoCAD will paste the objects as a block and assign it a random name made of characters and numbers. (Use the Rename command if you want to change the name to something more memorable.) When copying objects, you can also press Ctrl+Shift+C to be prompted for a base point to copy from. Then when you paste, that base point will be your insertion point.
 
 

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User comments
Comment by Kellogg,c. Frank
Posted on 2011-07-11 15:40:34
I too use this copy / paste feature frequently. When pasting a set of objects as a block, the lowest, left-est corner becomes the base point, but you can set the base point yourself. I have set up a couple of commands (in the acad.pgp file) to help with the process. "CB" starts the copy with base point "copybase" command, and I pick a relevant point in the objects, or just type "0,0,0". When I switch over to the target drawing, I type "vb", which executes the "pasteblock" command. AutoCAD gives the new block a "A$xxxx" name, which can be renamed, but the A$ helps identify those types of blocks when purging. If you wish you had some long-lost drawing objects, you can go back to an autosaved .bak file (change the ".bak" to ".dwg" so you can open it) and copy/paste things you wish you hadn't changed or erased several saves ago.
Comment by Cooper,Kent
Posted on 2011-10-19 10:27:08
For a routine to assign a logical name in place of the oddball name of a pasted block, WITHOUT needing to List it or look at its Properties to find and remember its current oddball name so you can find it in Rename, see Tip #3751, "Rename a Pasted Block."