Coordinates: absolute, relative and polar

Every point in a 2D drawing has an X value (horizontal, positive to the right) and a Y value (vertical, positive upwards), measured from the origin 0,0. Angles are measured counter-clockwise from East (0° = right, 90° = up, 180° = left, 270° = down).

Type the exact position measured from the origin: 20,10 means 20 along X, 10 up Y. Absolute coordinates are useful for the first point of a drawing or for site setting-out, but you rarely know every point's position from the origin.

The @ sign means from the last point. @30,0 goes 30 to the right; @0,-12 goes 12 down; @-5,5 goes 5 left and 5 up. Relative coordinates match how drawings are dimensioned: each point is known from the previous one.

@3600,2400 from one corner of a rectangle gives the opposite corner — that's how RECTANG is usually drawn.

For a line of known length at a known angle, type @20<60: 20 units long at 60°. @1500<270 draws 1500 straight down. Polar entry is ideal for angled walls, roof pitches and property boundaries.

With Dynamic Input on (F12, the default), the second and later points you type are treated as relative even without the @. So 3600,0 typed for the second point means 3600 to the right of the last point. To force an absolute point while Dynamic Input is on, prefix it with #: #0,0.

Dynamic Input also lets you type a length, press Tab, and type an angle. Many drafters simply point the cursor in the right direction with Ortho (F8) or Polar tracking (F10) on, and type the length — called direct distance entry.