3.2. Drawings

IQcad supports multiple drawings open simultaneously, each in its own tab.

3.2.1. New Drawing

Use File › New Drawing or press Ctrl+N. A new tab opens with an empty canvas ready for drawing.

3.2.2. Open a Drawing

Use File › Open… or press Ctrl+O. IQcad supports two native formats:

  • .iqz — compressed format (gzip-compressed IQML). This is the default format for new drawings.

  • .iqml — uncompressed XML-based format.

IQcad auto-detects both formats on open (gzip magic bytes are checked first). After loading, the view zooms to fit all objects.

Note

IQcad can also open DXF and DWG files (File › Open… — select the appropriate file-type filter) and import LandXML files (File › Import LandXML…).

3.2.3. Saving

Command

Description

File › Save (Ctrl+S)

Saves to the current file name in IQZ format (compressed) by default. The tab title loses the * modified indicator.

File › Save As… (Ctrl+Shift+S)

Prompts for a new file name and saves. The file-type filter lets you choose between .iqz (compressed) and .iqml (uncompressed). Also available from the Save As button on the Quick Access Toolbar.

The tab title shows an asterisk (Drawing1*) when the drawing has unsaved changes.

3.2.4. Drawing Properties

File › Drawing Utilities › Properties… opens a read-only summary of the current drawing as a collapsible tree:

  • Entities — a count of every entity type in model space.

  • Layers — each layer’s entity count and its on/off, frozen and locked state, colour and linetype.

  • Blocks — every block definition, its nested entity count and how many times it is inserted.

  • Styles & tables — text, dimension, multiline and point styles, and linetypes.

  • Civil / 3D — surfaces (with TIN point and triangle counts), DEM surfaces, alignments (length and element count), corridors, gradings and culverts.

  • Model summary — total entity count, drawing extents, units and file information.

Use Copy to place the report on the clipboard, or Save… to write it to a text file. The same report can be printed to the command line with the DWGPROPS command.

3.2.5. Multiple Drawings

  • Each drawing occupies a tab above the canvas.

  • Click a tab to switch to that drawing. The Object Inspector, Layer Manager, and Civil Toolspace all update to reflect the newly active drawing.

  • Close the active drawing with Window › Close Drawing (Ctrl+W) or by clicking the × button on the tab.

  • If you close the last open tab, IQcad automatically opens a fresh empty drawing so there is always at least one drawing available.

  • If a drawing has unsaved changes, a Save / Discard / Cancel prompt appears before the tab closes.

3.2.5.1. Drawing Tabs

[ Drawing1  × ]  [ Tunnel_A.iqml  × ]  [ Untitled*  × ]  [ + ]

The + button at the right end of the tab bar creates a new drawing (same as Ctrl+N).