Four drafting teachers give their opinions on how to teach metric measurement and conversion and other matters. They are Jeffry T. Lufting, James E. Kelso, L. Dayle Yeager, and Michael B. Atkins. Computer graphics, modular structures, communicative drafting, and microfilm reproduction are also discussed. (MS)

Computer graphics systems typically produce a single, machine-like character font. At most, these systems enable the user to (1) alter the aspect ratio (height-to-width ratio) of the characters, (2) specify a transformation matrix to slant the characters, and (3) define a virtual pen table to change the lineweight of the plotted characters.…

Computer Aided Design and Drafting (CADD) programs are used to teach drafting at an Indiana high school. The school system's maintenance department shared use of the software and equipment to produce original drawings of school buildings. (MLF)

This article describes the AutoCAD Laboratory at Hawaii's Kamehameha Secondary Schools, offering the perspective of the AutoCAD instructor and Technology Department Head, looking at a day in the AutoCAD Laboratory, and explaining how teaching students about computer-assisted design and drafting can prepare them for college or careers. (SM)

Three-dimensional illustrations of an entire building -- or any portion of it -- can be produced instantly on a TV-like screen by a sophisticated computer at Syracuse University. (Author/MLF)

These eight units of instruction are the products of a project conducted at Burlington County College in Pemberton, New Jersey, to develop three-dimensional computer graphics units of instruction for use in courses designed to train students in the areas of architectural, civil, drafting and design, and electronics technology. Addressed in the…

This computer-aided drafting (CAD) curriculum was developed to provide drafting instructors in Illinois with a useful guide for relating an important new technological advance to the vocational classroom. The competency-based learning activity guides are written to be used with any CAD system being used at the secondary and postsecondary levels.…

Reports on research at Carnegie-Mellon University. (Author/MLF)

Many of the costs of design, construction, and building operation derive from the reliance on drawings as the description of record of the building. As a replacement, this paper outlines the design of a computer system useful for storing and manipulating design information at a detail allowing design, construction, and operational analysis. A…

Development of the Building Description System (BDS) was undertaken to explore use of the computer to construct models of complex physical systems. A fundamental goal of this work is a computer system capable of replacing drawings as the primary description for design and construction of buildings. This paper presents an overview of the database…