Working with files
Musa CAD saves drawings as .musa files. It reads and writes DXF itself, and DWG with the help of a free converter. This chapter covers the everyday file work. The File formats section has the details of each format.
Open, save and close
Section titled “Open, save and close”| To | Press | Or type |
|---|---|---|
| Start a new drawing | Ctrl+N | NEW |
| Open a drawing | Ctrl+O | OPEN |
| Save | Ctrl+S | QSAVE |
| Save under a new name | Ctrl+Shift+S | SAVEAS |
| Close the drawing | Ctrl+W | CLOSE |
When you close a drawing or quit with changes not saved, Musa CAD asks whether to save them first.
Musa CAD 0.8.0 does not save automatically. Save often, and keep backups of drawings that matter.
| Command | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
NEW | NEW | Start a new drawing. |
OPEN | OPEN | Open a drawing. |
QSAVE | QSAVE | Save the drawing under its name (Save As the first time). |
SAVEAS | SAVE | Save the drawing under a name you choose. |
CLOSE | CLOSE | Close the drawing in front. |
CLOSEALL | CLOSEALL | Close every open drawing. |
QUIT | EXIT | Quit Musa CAD, asking to save what is not saved. |
DWGPROPS | DWGPROPS | The drawing's properties: title, subject, author, keywords, comments and custom fields, with its statistics. |
Several drawings at once
Section titled “Several drawings at once”Each drawing opens in its own tab. Opening or importing a file always makes a new tab, so the drawing you were working on is never replaced. Switch tabs with Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab.
Copy between drawings
Section titled “Copy between drawings”Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V copy objects from one drawing to another, or within one drawing. Pasting text copied from another program makes a multiline text, and pasting an image places it in the drawing.
To paste in exactly the same place, use PASTEORIG. To choose the point you paste by, copy with COPYBASE.
| Command | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
COPYCLIP | COPYCLIP | Copy the selected objects to the clipboard (Ctrl+C), for this drawing, another one, or another program as a picture. |
CUTCLIP | CUTCLIP | Cut the selected objects to the clipboard (Ctrl+X). |
PASTECLIP | PASTECLIP | Paste the clipboard (Ctrl+V): drawing objects, an image, or text as multiline text. |
COPYBASE | COPYBASE | Copy the selected objects to the clipboard with a base point to paste them by. |
PASTEORIG | PASTEORIG | Paste copied objects at the coordinates they had. |
PASTEBLOCK | PASTEBLOCK | Paste copied objects as one block at a point. |
Exchange with other CAD programs
Section titled “Exchange with other CAD programs”| Format | Open | Save |
|---|---|---|
| DXF | Import ▸ DXF… in the application menu, or IMPORT | Export ▸ DXF…, or EXPORT |
| DWG | Import ▸ DWG…, or DWGIN | Export ▸ DWG…, or DWGOUT |
| Not read | EXPORTPDF, or plot to PDF |
When Musa CAD imports a file, it tells you anything it could not bring across. Read that message: it is the list of what to check. Keep your working copy as .musa, because DXF and DWG cannot hold everything Musa CAD can.
DWG needs the free ODA File Converter, which Musa CAD downloads for you from DWG Setup… in the application menu. See DWG files.
| Command | Type | What it does |
|---|---|---|
IMPORT | IMP, DXFIN | Bring a DXF file into the drawing. |
EXPORT | EXP, DXFOUT | Write the drawing to a DXF file. |
DWGIN | DWGIN | Import geometry from a DWG file. |
DWGOUT | DWGOUT | Export the drawing to a DWG file. |
EXPORTPDF | EXPORTPDF | Save the layout in front, or the model, as a PDF file. |
WBLOCK | W | Write a block, or the whole drawing, to a .musa file. |
Files from newer versions
Section titled “Files from newer versions”Each Musa CAD release can open drawings from itself and from every older release. A drawing saved by a newer release needs that release or newer. To send a drawing to someone with an older version, export it as DXF. The .musa format lists which release writes which version.
- Moving a whole project from AutoCAD? See Moving projects from AutoCAD.
- Change how Musa CAD works in Settings and system variables.