Layers and Objects

The Layers and Objects tab is the scene tree: every layer in the document, the objects on it, and the asset library beneath. It is where you select what to style, set draw order, and control visibility.

Reading the Tree

Layers come from the CAD drawing's layer table, plus any layer you add in Studio. Expanding a layer lists the objects on it. Two nestings go deeper than that:

• Merged paths show their component paths as children. Styling applies to the parent; components can still be selected individually.
• Stroke layers, the extra strokes stacked on one path, appear as reorderable children with their own editing panel.

An object carrying a style override is marked in the tree, so you can see at a glance which objects have stopped following their layer.

Per-Layer Icons

Icon	What it does
Eye	Shows or hides the layer. Hidden layers do not export.
Padlock	Locks the layer. Locked layers are dimmed and reject edits, moves and deletes, which is useful once a base layer is styled the way you want it.

Individual objects have their own visibility toggle as well.

The Toolbar

Button	What it does
+	Adds a new, empty layer for objects you draw in Studio.
Trash	Deletes the selection. Deleting a layer deletes the objects on it, and asks first.
↑ / ↓	Moves the selected item up or down in draw order.
Brush	Paint Style: copies a style onto other layers or objects. Esc exits.

Draw Order

The document arrives in AutoCAD's draw order, so hatches sit behind linework the way they do on the sheet. Change it by dragging items in the tree, with the up and down buttons, or with Send to Front and Send to Back on an object's right-click menu.

Paint Style

Paint Style is the fastest way to spread one finished style across a drawing:

1. Select the layer or object whose style you want to copy.
2. Click the brush button in the toolbar.
3. Click each layer or object that should take that style.
4. Press Esc when finished.

Right-Click a Layer

Item	What it does
Rename...	Renames the layer in the project. The CAD drawing is untouched.
Material	Tags every object on the layer with a material such as turf, concrete or water.
Render as Plain CAD	Opts the layer out of the document look: clean lines, no look shadows or depth shading, its own lettering. See Render Looks.
Clear All Overrides	Drops every object override on the layer so everything follows the layer style again.
Save as Preset...	Saves the layer's style to your global preset library.
Save as Project Preset...	Saves the preset inside this project, so it travels with the .asp.
Remember Style	Teaches the Layer Style Database how this layer name should look, for future imports.
Forget Remembered Style	Removes that memory. Shown only when the layer name is remembered.
Delete	Deletes the layer and everything on it, after confirming.

Right-Click an Object

Item	What it does
Edit Path	Enters path-edit mode on a path you drew.
Merge Paths	With several open paths selected, joins them into one compound path. They must share endpoints and form a connected chain.
Unmerge	Breaks a merged path back into its components.
Send to Front / Send to Back	Moves the object in draw order.
Material	Tags this object with a material.
Clear Overrides	Returns the object to its layer's style.
Save as Preset... / Save as Project Preset...	Saves this object's style as a reusable preset.
Duplicate	Copies the object in place.
Delete	Removes the object.

Selecting in the Tree

Clicking a tree item selects it on the canvas and vice versa. Ctrl+Click adds items to the selection and Shift+Click selects a range. A style change made with several items selected applies to all of them, so you can recolor a dozen layers at once.

The Library Panel

Below the tree, the Library expander holds two things, chosen with the category list:

• Style Presets holds your saved styles. Select a layer or object first, then click a preset to apply it.
• Asset categories cover Trees, Landscaping, Site, Utilities, Parking, Furniture, People, Vehicles and Symbols. Drag a tile onto the canvas to place it.

The + button imports your own SVG or raster asset into the library. Tiles show one entry per symbol, drawn in the current look's family. Switch the document look and the library previews change with it. See Symbols & Images.

Stacking Another Project

FILE ▸ Stack File imports a second .asp into the open one for a match line sheet, a detail block or an inset. The preview dialog offers an X and Y offset, a document size with an Auto-fit button, and a choice of whether imported layers merge into existing layers or come in with a prefix on their names. Prefixing keeps the two drawings' layers separate so they can be styled independently. The whole import is one undo step.