Eric Chappell - AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 Essentials: Autodesk Official Press

AUTOCAD CIVIL 3D 2014

Essentials

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Copyright 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

ISBN: 978-1-118-57502-4

ISBN: 978-1-118-74879-4 (ebk.)

ISBN: 978-1-118-75752-9 (ebk.)

ISBN: 978-1-118-74872-5 (ebk.)

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Dear Reader,

Thank you for choosing AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 Essentials. This book is part of a family of premium-quality Sybex books, all of which are written by outstanding authors who combine practical experience with a gift for teaching.

Sybex was founded in 1976. More than 30 years later, were still committed to producing consistently exceptional books. With each of our titles, were working hard to set a new standard for the industry. From the paper we print on, to the authors we work with, our goal is to bring you the best books available.

I hope you see all that reflected in these pages. Id be very interested to hear your comments and get your feedback on how were doing. Feel free to let me know what you think about this or any other Sybex book by sending me an email at nedde@wiley.com . If you think youve found a technical error in this book, please visit http://sybex.custhelp.com . Customer feedback is critical to our efforts at Sybex.

Best regards,

Neil Edde

Vice President and Publisher

Sybex, an Imprint of Wiley

To my brothers: Charlie, Mike, and Chris

Another year! Year three of AutoCAD Civil 3D Essentials , and Im so glad that this project is alive, well, and growing. Of course, Im just a small part of that success, and it would be a terrible disservice not to mention Wiley/Sybex, for giving me this opportunity yet again, and its great people for helping make the book a success. To Willem Knibbe, once again you were a great coordinator, coach, friend, and fellow Steelers fan throughout this process. To Gary Schwartz and Rebecca Anderson, thanks for putting up with me and making the book better than I could have ever made it myself. To Joshua Modglin, thanks once again for giving me the peace of mind of knowing that you had my back on the technical aspects.

Writing this book was hardfor my wife. While I worked on this project, she saw me much less, had less help with the kids, and had to pick up the slack in a number of ways. When she did see me, I was often distracted, exhausted, or stressed out. I want to acknowledge that we wrote this together. Maybe she didnt type any of the words, but without her help I could never have done it and balanced the other things in my life. Thank you, Dixie, for your help, patience, and understanding. I love you.

Eric Chappell has been working, teaching, writing, and consulting in the world of civil engineering software for over 20 years, and he is a recognized expert in the world of Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D software. Over the past 12 years, he has written training materials and performed training for end users, trainers, and Autodesk employees around the globe. For several years, he has worked with Autodesk in authoring and developing two different Autodesk certification programs. He is also the design systems manager for Timmons Group, a civil engineering and surveying firm based in Richmond, Virginia, where he manages software, standards, and training for over 200 users. Eric is also a highly rated instructor at Autodesk University, where he has taught for the past nine years.

Prior to writing and consulting, Eric spent nearly 10 years in the civil engineering and surveying fields while working for the H.F. Lenz Company in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. During his time at H.F. Lenz, he gained considerable practical experience as a survey crewman, designer, engineer, and CAD supervisor. Eric also holds a BS degree in Civil Engineering Technology from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown and is certified in Pennsylvania as an EIT.