Building General Notes from the Bottom up
There’s many old rules in Drafting. Some rules have obsolesced since the popularization of CAD. Other rules are now less common, but still have value for those who employ them. One such rule states that notes and tables may be attached to the top or bottom of the drawing sheet. Numbered notes (such as General Notes) and tables that are attached to the top should be ordered from the top with ascending increments. Conversely, numbered notes and tables attached to the bottom should be ordered from the bottom with ascending increments.
For example, a BOM table attached to the top of a drawing would have the header and the lowest item number at the top of the table, and the highest item number at the bottom of the table.
Another example, a BOM table attached to the bottom of a drawing would have the header and the lowest item number at the bottom of the table, and the highest item number at the top of the table. SOLIDWORKS supported these two scenarios for tables since a long time ago. For more information, please see SOLDWORKS Help for tables.
SOLIDWORKS 2015 introduced the ability to support both scenarios for numbered notes, such as General Notes. This functionality is available via the Paragraph Properties dialog when you edit your annotation note.
To set your note numbering to ascend from the bottom, check the Numbering setting and choose the Start from bottom radio button. Make sure to also pick your numbering Type and Format.
Once you select OK, your notes will now be numbered from the bottom.
In SOLIDWORKS, notes are typically aligned to the Top, so that when you press <ENTER> you create a new line under your text cursor position. However, now that your notes are flowing upwards, this will have the strange behavior of adding new material below your note.
This is particularly an issue if you are dropping-in individual notes from your Design Library. We got you covered with a setting that’s been in SOLIDWORKS for a very long time. In the note’s PropertyManager, change your alignment from Top to Bottom.
When you add new notes, a line is created over your current text cursor position, instead of under. Bottom up General Notes can be built naturally, even when dropping them in from your Design Library.
Combining long-standing capabilities with newer functionality in SOLIDWORKS allows you to save time in your daily tasks when creating or revising drawings when applying these traditional drafting rules.
Matt Lorono
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