WA Sketch Pad

Use Sketch Pad to create and store sketches for the main area and for improvements. Sketch Pad is a draw-first application; that is, you do not have to define an area in which to draw. There is no point of beginning, because you start and finish a drawing wherever you like.

You can draw the walls of a structure at any time. Further, you can edit most elements of a drawing at any time.

Numerous features are available to create and modify Sketch Pad drawings. Use Sketch Pad in the Assessor Role.

Procedure

Open the Real or Mobile Home property for which you need to create a sketch.

1. Choose Commands > Sketch.

   

   Note Sketches created at the Property level are automatically associated with the property. To associate a sketch with an Improvement, see Opening Sketch Pad at the Improvement Level. 

Procedure

1. Open the property for which you need to create a sketch.
2. Open the property’s Improvements panel.

   

3. Open an improvement and click Details.
4. In the Improvement dialog box, click Sketches.

   

Result

The Sketch Pad window is displayed.

Procedure

Use the toolbar at the bottom of the grid to set the following measurement display options:

• Measurement – Specifies that measurements will be displayed and stored either as feet or metric measurements.

  

• Precision – Specifies the increment for lines to be drawn.

  

• Angle Snap – Indicates the number of degrees to be used for locking angles into place; you use this feature to specify the angles of walls.

  To toggle Angle Snap off or on as you draw, press and hold SHIFT as you draw.

  Note If you use the mouse much more often than the keyboard to draw, we recommend an Angle Snap setting of 5 or 15 to assist in drawing lines as well as 45 degree bay windows.

  

• Grid – Controls the display of grid lines in the Sketch Pad window.

  Note If your Measurement setting is metric, each square on the grid is one square meter. If your Measurement setting is standard, each square is one square foot.

Purpose

Use this procedure to set the fill color to be displayed in your sketches.

Procedure

1. In PACS.ADMIN, choose Tools > Code File Maintenance.
2. Open the Improvements node.
3. Double-click Detail – Improvement Type Code.
4. In the Detail – Improvement Type Code dialog box, select the improvement type code and click Edit.
5. In the Type column of the Area Color row, click the drop-down arrow to display the color palette.

   

6. Select a color. Then click Save.

Toolbar at Top of Sketch Pad Window

Save

Saves the sketch.

Save Image

Saves the sketch as an image and generates both a full-page image and a thumbnail view image. The thumbnail view is displayed on appraisal cards and reports.

Print

Prints the sketch.

Print Preview

Displays a preview of the page to be printed.

Note On complex sketches, the Area Calculation Breakdown can be extensive. To omit this data when using Print or Print Preview, deselect the Include Area Calculation Breakdown in the Sketch Print Options dialog box that displays prior to printing.

Cut

Removes the selected item from the sketch.

Copy

Copies the selected item to the sketch.

Tip The Copy tool in conjunction with the Paste tool is useful for creating sketches of upper floors; you can copy the main area bottom floor, paste it, and then modify it according to the upper floor dimensions. You can also copy a sketch from one improvement to another, including an improvement on another property.

Paste

Pastes a cut or copied item to the sketch.

Delete

Deletes a selected item from the Sketch Pad.

Undo

Deletes the last change.

Redo

Restores the last deleted change.

Do Not Associate

Does not associate the sketch with an improvement when selected prior to drawing a sketch. When this button is displayed as selected, it indicates that the sketch area you selected is not associated with an improvement detail.

Pointer

To select an area or multiple areas of a sketch, click this icon and drag the selection box over the required area. After an area is selected, a green circle is displayed above it:

To select an element of the sketch and begin editing it, click this tool.

Exterior Wall

Creates a line for an exterior wall. For information about using this tool, see Drawing Using Mouse or Drawing Using the Keyboard.

You can connect exterior walls end-to-end as required, and when you use them to create an enclosed shape, Sketch Pad automatically calculates the area and perimeter of the shape. Exterior walls display dimensions and are used to calculate perimeter and area. If your Measurement is not at the most precise setting and you would like to review the most precise setting as you draw, press and hold CTRL as you drag the line.

For information about creating an area with a shared wall with the Wall > Split Here right-click option available from an exterior wall, see Drawing Adjacent Areas.

Interior Wall

Interior walls are “free-form” lines that, unlike exterior walls, do not have dimensions, are not used to calculate perimeter and area, and cannot be used to close an area. Do one of the following:

• To create a line for an interior wall using the mouse, click this icon and drag the displayed line to the required length. Click again to set the end point of the line.
• To create a line for an interior wall using the keyboard, click once to set the starting point of the line. Type the length of the line, and then press ENTER to set the end of the line.

Note

Adds a note area in which you can type text for the sketch, which can be useful for recording details about termite damage, for example, or a slab crack.

Circle

Creates a circle or ellipse.

Rectangle

Creates a square or rectangle.

Shapes

Creates shapes with 5 or more sides. Click this icon to display the menu from which to choose the number of sides for the shape.

Ruler

Like a measuring tape. Do one of the following:

• To create a ruler line using the mouse, click and drag to display the length of a line or the distance between areas. To set the end of line, click again.
• To create a ruler line using the keyboard, click once to set the starting point of the line. Type the length of the line, and then press ENTER to set the end of the line.

Zoom

Select an area and then click Zoom to enable zooming in with left clicks, and zooming out with right clicks. To disable zooming, select the area again and click Zoom.

Alternatively, you can zoom with your scroll wheel at any time that an active line is not attached to your cursor.

Note In Sketch Pad there are no grid-scaling features. To make your drawing fit in the grid, you do not need to scale the grid; rather, you use zooming.

Center and Fit

Centers the sketch in the Sketch Pad window.

Area Breakdown

Displays the details of the calculation for each area in the sketch.

Enabled when an area of text and/or numbers is selected.

Use the font toolbar to adjust the font, color, size and appearance of the text and/or numbers.

Purpose

Use this procedure to draw a sketch using the mouse.

Procedure

1. If you do not need to associate the sketch with an improvement detail at this time, proceed to the next step. If you do need to associate the sketch with an improvement detail, select the required improvement detail from the sketch grid.
2. Click Exterior Wall.
3. Click the cursor (displayed as +) on the point at which you need to start the first line.

   Note A green circle is displayed after you click the starting point.

4. Drag the displayed line to the required length. Click again to set the end point of the wall.
5. Continue either by dragging to another end point for an adjacent wall, or click a third time to stop drawing.
6. Use other Sketch Pad tools as required. For information about the tools that are available, see Toolbar at Left of Sketch Pad Window and Toolbar at Top of Sketch Pad Window.

Purpose

Use this procedure to draw a sketch using the keyboard instead of the mouse.

Entering Feet and Inches

When your Measurement setting is Standard (Feet Inches), you can use the following keyboard options:

• Use the TAB key to specify inches after you enter feet. For example:

  6 TAB 8 = 6 ft. 8 inches.

• Use the TAB key along with the forward slash key (/) for fractions of an inch. For example:

  6 TAB 8 TAB 1 / 2 = 6 ft. 8 1/2 inches

• Use a decimal to indicate fractions. For example:

  6 TAB 8.5 = 6 ft. 8 1/2 inches

Note After entering measurements for a line, you must press ENTER to anchor the line and start another line.

Prerequisites

If you need to advance once grid square at a time as you draw, the grid option must be turned on in the Grid toolbar at the bottom of the Sketch Pad window.

Procedure

1. If you do not need to associate the sketch with an improvement detail at this time, proceed to the next step. If you do need to associate the sketch with an improvement detail, select the required improvement detail from the sketch grid.
2. Click Exterior Wall.
3. Click the cursor (displayed as +) on the point at which you need to start the first line.

   Note A green circle is displayed after you click the starting point.

4. Type the length, and then select an arrow key to specify the direction.

   The length of the wall is displayed.

5. Press ENTER once to anchor the wall.
6. If you need to enter an angle, enter the length of the wall, followed by R (right) or L (left), and the angle measurement. For example:

   8 R 45 ENTER = 8 ft. line to the right at 45 degrees

   You can also use the rise over run method. For example: 2 U 2 R = 3 ft. line to the right at 45 degrees, where U stands for “up.”

7. Repeat the steps as required to complete the structure.

   Note To advance one grid square at a time, press and hold the SHIFT key while pressing the appropriate arrow key repeatedly as required.

8. To draw the final wall, when the last point is red (indicating that the point is still activated), you can press A to automatically draw the wall and close the area.

   Note You can re-select the point if it is not activated by left-clicking it or pressing ENTER.

9. Use other Sketch Pad tools as required. For information about the tools that are available, see Toolbar at Left of Sketch Pad Window and Toolbar at Top of Sketch Pad Window.

Example: 30 x 10 foot rectangle

1. Click Exterior Wall.
2. Click the cursor (displayed as +) on the point at which you need to start the first line.
3. Type 30 and then select the right arrow. Press ENTER.
4. Type 10 and then select the down arrow. Press ENTER.
5. Type 30 and then select the left arrow. Press ENTER.
6. Type 10 and then select the up arrow. Press ENTER.

Purpose

Use this procedure to create a sketch of an area that shares a wall with another area, or to split an area of an existing sketch.

Procedure

1. Open the property for which you need to create a sketch.
2. Open the property’s Improvement panel.
3. Open the improvement and click Details.
4. In the Improvement dialog box, click Sketches.
5. In the Sketch Pad window, create sketch areas.
6. Use the Exterior Wall tool to create a line within an existing area. For example:

   

   Note If you want to create a point on an exterior wall at which the shared wall should start, right-click the exterior wall and choose Wall > Split Here.

Next Steps

Use the Associating a Sketch to an Improvement Detail procedure to associate the sketch of the area you just created with an improvement detail.

Result

Sketch Pad automatically completes the adjacent area, and displays its total square footage and perimeter.

Procedure

1. Open the property for which you need to create a sketch.
2. Open the property’s Improvement panel.
3. Open the improvement and click Details.
4. In the Improvement dialog box, click Sketches.
5. Draw a sketch.
6. Use one of the following methods:
   • When using the keyboard, before you click the end point of an exterior wall, use your scroll wheel to arc the line as required. After the arc is set, click the end point.
   • Use the Pointer to select the center point of a line. Either drag the center point, or type the height of the arc and press the required arrow key. See the example sketch below.
   • On an existing line, right click at the point to begin the arc and select Wall > Split Here. Then use the Pointer to select the center point of the new line segment and drag it as required. See the example sketch below.

     

7. Save the sketch.

Procedure

1. Click a line with the Pointer to select it.
2. Press CTRL + L.
3. In the Line Formatting dialog box, complete the color, width, dash, and label options as required.

   Note To change the color, click the Wall Color square to display a palette from which to choose a color.

4. If you need to set the line formatting as a default for future use, click Save as Area Default. You are prompted to specify whether the default should be applied to all lines in the area.
5. Click OK or Apply.

Purpose

Use this procedure to move sketch areas, points on a sketch, text labels, and/or measurement labels.

Procedure

1. Select Pointer.
2. Use one or more of the following options to select and move the area. After the area is selected, use either the arrow keys or click and hold with the mouse to move selected items to another location as required.
   • To move a single area, point or label, left-click and hold, dragging the selection box over the area that you would like to move.
   • To move multiple areas, points, and/or labels, do one of the following:
     • Left-click and hold, dragging the selection box over the areas, points, and/or labels you would like to move.
     • Press CTRL and select the items you need to move.
3. Use one or more of the following options as required:
   • To move dimensions from the outside of a drawing to the inside of a drawing, or vice versa, choose Area > Dimension Labels > Flip. You can also hide or show them as required.
   • To send an area or label to the front or back of a drawing, right-click the label and choose either Area or Label. Then choose either Bring to Front or Send to Back.

Procedure

1. Click an object with the Pointer.
2. Click and hold the green circle displayed above the object.

   The cursor is displayed with four arrows.

3. Move the cursor clockwise or counter-clockwise to rotate the object as required.

   Note If you have Angle Snap turned on, the object rotates by the increment selected for Angle Snap. You can toggle off Angle Snap by pressing and holding SHIFT when you click and hold the green circle.

Purpose

Use this procedure to insert images on drawings such as floor plans for tracing, photos, symbols, and disclaimers.

Procedure

1. Right-click an object and choose Photometrics > Add Image.
2. In the Open dialog box, browse for and select the image to be inserted on the drawing. Click Open.

Purpose

Use this procedure to attach miscellaneous information to the sketch, including:

• Case or file number
• Address
• Borrower or lender name
• Contact information for the sketch preparer

Procedure

1. Right-click the area and choose Sketch Information.
2. Complete or edit the fields as required.

When you create sketches, the total square footage is automatically calculated and displayed within the sketch. For example:

Further, you can use the Area Breakdown tool to review a detailed listing of square footage for each area on the sketch. For example:

Purpose

Use this procedure when you need to link an improvement detail area of the sketch to the improvement detail record in PACS, or to remove an existing link.

Prerequisite

When the non-associated improvement detail area of the sketch is selected, the Do Not Associate button is also selected. This indicates that the improvement detail did not exist in PACS at the time the sketch was created. For example:

Procedure

1. Open the property for which you need to create a sketch.
2. Open the property’s Improvement panel.
3. Open the improvement and click Details.
4. In the Improvement dialog box, click Sketches.
5. In the Sketch Pad window, click Pointer and select the required sketch area of the drawing.
6. Right-click and, in the menu, choose the name of the area. Then do one of the following:
   • Choose Associate and select the improvement detail that needs to be associated with the area. For example:

   

   • Choose Disassociate.

   

7. Save the sketch.

   Note You cannot use the Sketch Pad to create new improvement details in PACS. Existing improvement details that have been previously entered in PACS are displayed in the grid to the right of the drawing area.

Result

If you chose Associate, the sketch is linked to the improvement detail, indicated by a sketch icon displayed for the improvement detail.

The yellow triangle icon indicates that there is not a sketch associated with the detail.

If you chose Disassociate, the sketch is no longer associated with the Improvement.