RobiNZ CAD Blog

Attach DWF's and PDF's in AutoCAD 2007?

Mark Douglas has a nice post on the the new DWF attach feature in AutoCAD 2007. It allows 2D DWF's to be attached, like xrefs, for use as a background. He also details a clever workaround to use this feature to attach PDF files if that is all you can obtain.

I tested the accuracy of DWF attach by inserting DWF’s back into their source file and was impressed. Of course, it will depend on the precision used when the DWF is generated. See below for links to earlier posts on how to control, & the impact of increasing, DWF precision.

In the Dynamic Interface: AutoCAD 2007 -DWF Attach....Ohh YEAH!!

• Earlier posts on DWF Precision:
• Why high DPI settings will not greatly impact file size.
• AutoCAD DPI to DWF precision in Metric and Imperial
• This post where I tested DPI settings with a production file may also be of interest: "Real World" DWF Resolution Findings

AutoCAD 2007 in action

Shaan Hurley has posted a couple of videos, recorded by Eric Stover, of AutoCAD 2007 in action.

AutoCAD 2007 Video "Kitchen Interior"  – Quick Interior study showing materials & lighting + the new Mental Ray Renderer in action

AutoCAD 2007 Video "Austin Towers" – Site study showing massing (solids), sunlight study, video walk-through and import of the concept to Autodesk Revit.

AutoCAD Certified Hardware

In the It's a visual world... post I mentioned that the new graphics in AutoCAD 2007 will place greater demands on PC graphics. You can tune the machine by selectively removing some of the more demanding settings, shadows especially, but a better card means a better experience. Besides once you try the new display features you won’t want to loose them!

To help with the “which card” dilemma Autodesk are testing & certifying card/driver combinations for use with 2007. This database will available to view on-line or for download after release.

It's a visual world... - AutoCAD and Architectural Desktop 2007

They say it's a visual world and that is the theme of the 2007 releases. Creating, editing, navigating around and rendering AutoCAD 3D has been made significantly easier, heck it’s just plain fun! 

To achieve this the AutoCAD has had a significant overhaul and this core benefits all the “Desktop” vertical products. This post covers a few of the new visual features you’ll experience while working in the AutoCAD environment.

2007 already? - Get ready for AutoCAD and Architectural Desktop 2007

Just getting used to the fact that it’s already March, where did the first two months of 2006 go?, then you find out it’s 2007 already!

Not quite, but the new ‘07 AutoCAD based products are on the way. Check out Chris and Shaan’s posts with links to many blogs already talking about 2007 while I’m still thinking about what to write!

I’ll have something here soon, but it’s 21:56 and need to have dinner first…

 Architectural Desktop 2007 - It's Here! - Autodesk Between The Walls ADT Blog

 AutoCAD 2007 is Coming - Autodesk Between The Lines AutoCAD Blog

Update: Scott “DWF” Sheppard writes about one feature that many have requested:

AutoCAD 2007 DWF Attach - Autodesk Beyond the Paper DWF Blog

The Lazy Drafter AutoCAD Blog

Full of techniques to be lazy, this blog will save you the time spent reading it and more!

"If you have a difficult task, give it to a lazy person - they will find an easier way to do it." – Hlade's Law

The Lazy Drafter
How to grow technically and professionally for the lazy drafter. The lazy drafter does not waste time over drafting a piece of dwg art…

New AutoCAD Tips Blog from Ellen Finkelstein

Ellen Finkelstein has a new AutoCAD Tips Blog. It's the same content as her site but, instead of being organised by topic, has the latest tips on a single page for easy reference.

It's at: http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/autocad_tips_blog.html

Instant AutoCAD Support...

My ADT deployment omits the “add a plotter” shortcut as everyone except one remote user accesses the same network plotter pc3’s.

I went to set up plotters for the remote user, off-site, but there is no “add a plotter” shortcut…

After a fairly long search, looking for the file that kicks off the add a plotter wizard, I rang our dealer ready to ask my “Stupid question of the day”.

The instant Julia answered the call I found addplwiz.exe, problem solved. How’s that for rapid support response!

* “Stupid question of the day” calls are not usually daily but are often stupid

AutoCAD DWG into Google Earth

Beau Turner shows how to transform 3D DWG files into Google Earth using ExtractKML, a tool from the Avatech Solutions DEV team. Awesome!

Will render for food...: DWG and Google Earth.

Digging deep into content may solve line scale problems

Ever encounter weird line scale problems inside a drawing? It can happen when you use content from external sources that may import line types not present in your default templates.

In the metric world AutoCAD uses line types from the ACADISO.lin. They are scaled versions of the imperial ACAD.lin line types which allow for the typical difference in the AutoCAD Unit/Drawing Unit/Real World scale relationship.

Sometimes you get problems where one, or more, line types is out of scale regardless of how you set the various variables that control line scale. This can be caused by an ACAD.lin derived style being mixed with ACADISO.lin styles in the same file.

It’s easy to fix by reloading all the line types but I wondered how this can happen. The answer is the ACAD.lin line type may be part of external content, blocks or object styles.

When you add the content; the non-ISO line style is imported and used for all subsequent lines of that type. Re-importing the line styles overwrites the definition and corrects the scale. So if it happens regularly, check your source content!

Via; Thanks to Jon for a handy tip – discovered on the Autodesk Discussion Groups.

Georeference Images (including TUMONZ maps) in Autodesk Architectural Desktop and AutoCAD

Some map image sources provide georeferenced raster files. They are simply an image created with a corresponding reference file which stores the proper position (coordinates) and scale of the image. If you have AutoCAD Map you can scale images based on this information but a free AAC Solutions utility also makes this possible in AutoCAD/ADT.

Georeferenced images in AutoCAD - www.cadforum.cz
With the AAC Solutions' utility - GeoRefImg - you can automatically place georeferenced raster files (pictures) also in AutoCAD or Architectural Desktop (this functionality is by default available only in Map). Any selected raster image (TIF, JPG, PNG, BMP, CIT format) with a World file is automatically repositioned to its proper position (coordinates) and scale.

If you are in New Zealand you can export georeferenced images, anywhere, any scale, from the consumer mapping product: TUMONZ – The Ultimate Map Of New Zealand,

• In TUMONZ, zoom to the area you want
• Right click Tools>Copy/Save/Email Map
• Tick the “Save Image World File” option to create the georeference file
• Choose the Copy Size, more pixels = bigger but more accurate image, then Save as Image:

• The result is a “TumonzMap.bmp” image and “TumonzMap.bpw” reference file. Always keep these in the same folder. You can export several images at different scales/resolutions, maybe to show area overview and lot detail.
• In AutoCAD/ADT;
• Insert the image(s) into a drawing;
• Command: GEOREFIMG then select image(s) to position.
• They will be positioned & scaled exactly (default for TUMONZ is 1 unit = 1m)
• Command: Image C:\TumonzMap.bmp (3083 x  1946) repositioned to [2655498.1,6475454.8] and scaled 0.0773273x using the world file C:\TumonzMap.bpw

This is great for location maps as you can quickly get an accurate scale map of anywhere in the country.

NOTE: TUMONZ map information comes from the LINZ (Land Information New Zealand) 1:50,000 topographical vector data set. The only requirement for re-using TUMONZ data is to acknowledge that the image / screen-shot / photograph was supplied / taken / produced by TUMONZ

Combine DWF + Mind Maps with MindManager for AEC

In September 2004 I blogged about a free MindManager for AEC Add-In. This allowed Autodesk Design Web Format (DWF) files to be integrated into MindManager Maps. It was a technology demonstration from Mindjet rather than a release candidate product but showed the potential of combining CAD and Map information to manage a project.

The MindManager for AEC Add-In has been updated for MindManager 6 Pro and is now available from Mindjet Labs. Mindjet Labs showcase examples and prototypes Mindjet have developed internally for extending MindManager. Again it’s a technology demonstration rather than fully fledged application but well worth a download if you use DWF and MindManager.

So what’s new?

MindManager 6 introduced a new object in the form of a Business Topic. These allow “containers” of information from external sources to be integrated into the map retaining a link to the source. The DWF Topic converts a standard MindManager Topic, with hyperlink to a DWF file, into a Smart Map Part.

From the DWF Topic you can open the DWF, change sheets, copy and print using a small integrated DWF Viewer component. It uses the DWF viewer installed on your system and offers all the controls seen in the full application in a compact interface. It’s ideal for quickly opening a DWF, to print or a quick image copy/paste. For more involved viewing you can still launch the full viewer from the topic hyperlink icon or right click>Full view in the viewer component.

The image below shows a simple project using the DWF Topic combined with other smart topics. As I work on multiple projects gathering key information like this in a simple accessible format makes finding “the right stuff” easy and fast. I tend to only add info that’s “vital” and let the structure grow as the project demands rather than having any template or rigid structure.

The Project topic has a link to the project folder on the server. The appointment & contact are smart part links from Outlook, the Budget is a spreadsheet topic and the DWF File shows the drawing(s). You can rapidly access any of them with a simple click. This is a nice way to collect information related to a project and it’s easy to share with other MindManager users with the application/viewer or anyone via export to Web/Office formats.

Creating a DWF Topic is simple:

• Drag a DWF into the map to create a standard MindManager topic with hyperlink (as any file-type does) or add a DWF file hyperlink to a topic.
• Select the topic, Right Click & choose Make DWF Topic

(Click these images for full size view)

• You are presented with the “Select a View” window. By default the first sheet is used as the topic image. In multi-sheet DWF’s you can select the sheet you wish to see.
  • This screen-shot also shows the DWF viewer interface when the business topic is opened.

• Finished topic shows selected sheet image and a few controls

• You can collapse/expand the topic to hide/show DWF Image

Using the DWF Topic:

• The Topic Menu (Left) has refresh options.
• Click on the image to launch the topic viewer with the same controls/options as your DWF Viewer.
• Clicking on the hyperlink icon (Right) opens the DWF with the full DWF Viewer application. It also displays a tool-tip with file details.

Installation:

Download Free MindManager for AEC Add-In ~ Mindjet Labs (Installation Requirements in extended post)

NOTE: This is a technology demonstration from Mindjet Labs. The current build may not handle 3D DWF’s or have some problems depending on your combination of graphics drivers/hardware. Read the notes on the download page. If you have any comments after trying the add-in use the Give us feedback link on the download page to report back to Mindjet Labs.

New Autodesk DWF Viewer & Writer - Slice/dice, de-construct and create DWF's

There are new versions of the freebie DWF Viewer and DWF Writer applications. 

Many of the new viewer features are aimed at exploring 3D DWF models although improvements to operation, integration, and 2D DWF viewing haven’t been forgotten. I’ll start with the Viewer and it’s new  3D features as they are powerful and the most fun!

Slice and Dice!

With a 3D DWF you can slice a section though the model for a better look inside. The screen-shot (click for full-size) shows a section through an ADT house model. The section is live and you can drag the “section plane” around with the “triad” axis object. You can add up to six sections at any time. Right click on the Section name in the views pane to access display/control options for each section view.

Raise the Roof!

If a section is not enough just pull the model apart for a better look. Click the move button then select & drag model elements out of the way. In the screen-shot (click for full-size) the blue roof slab has been lifted to look into the interior. You can reset the model to make good all your demolition by selecting elements/groups in the Content Browser Model tree then Right-click>Reset.

Not everything new is 3D focused. Many existing functions and interface features have been refined:

• Best news is the return of these guys! . Yes, the page change buttons which went missing in 6.0 are back!
• The layer dialog has been integrated into the Content Browser pane instead of floating.
• Email and Print from direct from Windows Explorer DWF icons.
• Email a DWF from File>Send menu in the viewer.
• Drag n drop DWFs into Microsoft Word & PowerPoint documents. This embeds the DWF into the document. Sadly, if you want to have “live” DWF’s in your PowerPoint presentation, with the viewer operating in the slide, you still need to add the DWF Control via Insert object.

Not everything I wished for is there, I’m still hanging out for better navigation of Architectural DWF’s but there is more than enough in here to make the DWF Viewer worth a download.

There is also an update to the companion free DWF writer. It allows applications without built in DWF publishing to print a DWF via File>Print then selecting DWF Writer as your printer. It also adds one click “Publish to DWF” tool-bars to I.E. and Microsoft Office applications. With OpenGL enabled applications (mainly CAD) you can even “DWF Write” a 3d model DWF.

To update existing DWF Viewer installations just launch the viewer & you should be prompted to update. If not force an update from the menu Help>Check for updates.

• Download the viewer from: www.autodesk.com/dwfviewer
• Download the Writer from: www.autodesk.com/dwf-publishing

Learn more about DWF, inc sample files, from: www.autodesk.com/dwf

More details on Shaan’s AutoCAD blog: Between the Lines: New Autodesk DWF Viewer 6.5

Publish and be... sure

Publish and be damned! no more!

Mark, In the Dynamic Interface CAD Blog, has a nice tip to preview AutoCAD Publish to DWF results before you do.

In the Dynamic Interface: No need to cross your fingers before publish

Autodesk DWG TrueView™ - view DWG files for free

Autodesk have released a free viewer for AutoCAD DWG format files. Yes, you can finally the use the words “Autodesk”, “DWG”, “Viewer” and “Free” all in one sentence without the word “wish”  

Shaan, Between The Lines ~ AutoCAD Blog, has a post with all the details but the summary is:

• It’s built on the AutoCAD RealDWG™ engine
• Offers AutoCAD style viewing, zoom, layer dialog etc
• It has the ADT object enabler built-in (Yeah from an ADT user!) and is compatible with other AutoCAD enablers.
• It opens, prints (plotters/Printers) and publishes (to DWF) like AutoCAD 2006
• It supports AutoCAD style support pathing, plotters, plotstyles etc
• It’s free

The downside is it’s about 100mb to download but hey, that’s what broadband is for!

Between the Lines: New and Free DWG TrueView™ - view DWG files
DWG TrueView™ is now available for free from Autodesk.
http://www.autodesk.com/dwgtrueview

A common question is now Autodesk offers a free DWG Viewer why bother with DWF?

In another post at BTL Mr DWF Evangelist*, Scott Sheppard, details the role DWF plays and the advantages of sharing DWF files instead of AutoCAD drawings.

Between the Lines: The advantages of sharing DWF files instead of native AutoCAD drawings
“Comparisons between DWG and DWF aside, with DWF, users can do more than just view the design data….”

There is a need for DWG Viewing and a role for DWF as a compact, secure view/mark-up net friendly format. It’s nice that both are now supported and both are free.

* Scott’s Official Title is “Autodesk DWF Technical Evangelist”

Update 30 October, 2005:

I originally referred to Scott as “Mr DWF”. In a discussion group post Scott states that the real Mr DWF is Brian Mathews: “Brian invented the DWF format and designed/built our original WHIP! Netscape
Navigator plug-in.”

So Scott is now Mr DWF Evangelist  

AutoCAD Fields as ActiveWords

An awesome use for ActiveWords is creating AutoCAD Fields within text objects. AutoCAD Fields are "live text" which show properties like date, filename etc but are actually entered as text strings.

E.G.: If you want AutoCAD to show the filename for the current file. You launch the text command then:

• Use the Insert menu or right click to choose Insert>Field
• Browse through a dialog to select the Field variable you want to insert and configure it (usually a few clicks)
• When you OK the dialog generates a Field Expression text string and enters it in the text editor. The result is a “live” display of the filename the text object is in.

(Click on the thumbnails for full view of the dialogs.)

The AutoCAD Field dialog shows the Field Expression text string and allows you to copy/paste it. The filename string is %<\AcVar Filename \f "%tc3%fn2">% so I created an ActiveWord using a Substitute Text action entering the Field Expression as the Action text.

Now to have AutoCAD to show the filename for the current file I just start the text command then;

• Enter "affn" (my short code for AutoCAD Field FileName) and press space twice.This prompts ActiveWords to substitute the Field Expression... Done
• No right-click, no menu, no dialog, no browse and pick, no OK….

Creating custom combinations of text and fields is very easy. I use this multi-line “stamp” for consultant files which come in with no title block. Just enter afpsm in the text command and it’s done, ready to plot. Better than a plot stamp as you can choose where it’s located and have several formats. (The fields are grey in the screen-shot below).

I also have single and two line versions each with its own ActiveWord. You can create any combination of text and fields you like, assign an ActiveWord, and it’s only a few key strokes away.

The ActiveWords codes mentioned are shown in the extended post. Easy to include because ActiveWords works everywhere. It’s just as happy entering them into BlogJet, my blog post editor, as the AutoCAD text editor. Of course BlogJet and TypePad don’t know what the AutoCAD codes are so just show text!  

Free Autodesk DWG File Viewer

A free Autodesk DWG Viewer, so you can see & print AutoCAD “.dwg” based files for free.

Not quite here yet but it will be soon. See the details at: Between the Lines: Free Autodesk DWG File Viewer

BazzaCAD CLog

Welcome to another AutoCAD blog – in fact it’s a CLog – Barry Ralph’s BazzaCAD!

10/10 for the innovative use of a very familiar interface.

BazzaCAD CLog 
What's a CLog? It's a Cad Log

via In the Dynamic Interface

Seeing the plot with AutoCAD 2006

It won’t help you figure out “who done it” in the thriller you’re reading but I found an AutoCAD variable that will let you see the plot.

If you have a plotter with a small on-board display, like our HP 800, AutoCAD’s recently acquired habit of sending the full path of the plot file to the printer can be rather frustrating. You see an endless list of truncated paths but can’t see the filename.

AutoCAD 2006 “fullplotpath” variable toggles between sending the full path or just the filename. This makes reprints from the plotter and cancelling other peoples plots, so yours come out faster, much easier.

Command: fullplotpath
Enter new value for FULLPLOTPATH <1>: 0

0 Sends the drawing file name only, 1 Sends the full path of the drawing file

New Raster Design Blog

Jane Smith has just launched a new blog about….

Using Raster Design with AutoCAD

“This is an effort to help anyone new to Autodesk Raster Design. When I started using this program, it was called CAD Overlay. At the time, it was an almost unheard of program in this area & finding help or information was not easy. I hope I can make learning this program easier for others”

Autodesk User Group International AutoCAD Wish List Ballot

Autodesk User Group International (AUGI) have posted the AutoCAD Wish-list candidates. The wish-list is presented to Autodesk during the AUGI AGM held at Autodesk University.

It’s your chance to vote and make your wishes known!

AutoCAD Wish List Ballot - Autodesk User Group International
(Requires free AUGI registration)

UPDATE: Shaan has a great post on the new AUGI wishlist format.

Autodesk adds Product Knowledge Base RSS feeds

Autodesk have made Knowledge Base articles available via RSS Feed . Now you can subscribe to product specific feeds and get notification when articles are posted.

Add these to existing RSS Feeds for product related Autodesk Discussion Groups and Autodesk Blogs and you have a huge information resource that’s working for you.

The image shows my current Autodesk related RSS feed list. Imagine visiting each of these sites to see what content is new. It would take ages.

With RSS you subscribe to the feed. Periodically your reader scans the feeds to see what content on each site has changed since your last visit. You can then easily scan or search the results. It means you know what is there but read only what you really want to see.

Don’t waste time finding information, let it find you!

For more information about finding and using the feeds see: Between the Lines: Autodesk adds RSS feeds for product knowledge base

AutoCAD 2006 White Papers

Shaan has posted links to White Papers for AutoCAD 2006 or AutoCAD 2006-Based Products.

Between the Lines: AutoCAD 2006 White Papers - Networking, Migration, and Dynamic Blocks

• Planning a Successful Network Installation
• Installing the Network License Manager
• Creating Network Deployments
• Network Licensing Questions and Answers
• Customising the AutoCAD 2006 Interface (CUI)
• Dynamic Blocks Overview and Quick Start Tutorial.

"Real World" DWF Resolution Findings

Prompted by Shaan's post on DWF precision I’ve been testing to see what impact increasing the DPI has in “real world” conditions. So far I’ve found ramping the DPI up to fairly huge values does increase the DWF file size, but not as much as I expected, and seems to have only a slight impact on plot file sizes.

We draw on A1 sheet at 1mm = 1 AutoCAD unit typically with a 1:200 viewport. For a real world comparison I created a DWF from a store layout at various resolutions then measured a known length in Autodesk Composer aiming for better than 1mm precision. The file has a lot of AEC Mv Blocks (shop fittings) and AEC Spaces (departments) with solid hatch fills. The table below shows the results using the DWF6 ePlot.pc3.

DPI	DPI Factor	File size KB	File Size	Length (mm) in AutoCAD	Length reported in Composer	Accuracy	Plot File to Hp800 Plotter MB
400	1	84	1.00	25446	25000	98.25%	1.56
101600	254	102	1.21	25446	25400	99.82%	1.61
1016000	2540	158	1.88	25446	25446	100.00%	1.69

It was a bit of a concern that the file size nearly doubled but it seems this is because the initial  file was so small. Publishing a 20 sheet drawing set for our office (Site, Building, Fit-out Plans and Elevations) with lots of hatch fills resulted in the file growing from 2.5 MB @ 400 DPI to 3.0 MB @1,016,000 DPI. Multi-sheet Store Layout sets, about 1 MB @ 400 DPI, grew by 10–20%.

While this increase is noticeable its not a bad trade off for better than 1mm precision over large distances.

PS: Wow, the table pasted from Excel into BlogJet worked fine!

AutoCAD to adopt XML Format as it's default file format

Goodbye to the current .dwg, and hello to new .dwgx based on XML and ZIP.

Sorry, made that all up*. I got carried away after writing this post….

* It is true for DWF which is an open format that uses XML and ZIP as seen here

AutoCAD DPI to DWF precision in Metric

Shaan has posted a useful conversion chart (see right) showing which settings to use to get a given precision in a DWF. DWF is capable of impressive precision but the default settings are rather low approximating the resolution a paper plot would give. This chart shows how to get the DPI (dots per inch) setting to use in metric drawings.

Between the Lines: AutoCAD DPI to DWF precision in Metric

As an example, if you have a drawing where 1 centimeter equals 10 meters and want to use DWF Composer to measure to the nearest millimeter, you would generate the DWF file using a DPI value of 50800

Dilbert’s Ultimate House Plans in DWF!

Back in January I posted about Dilbert's Ultimate House which was a collaborative design project to find the perfect home for the comic strip geek legend created by Scott Adams. The readers contributed ideas, both serious and not so serious, which they thought would suit the cubicle dwellers home life.

Raj Raheja, of Heartwood Studios, did the "Virtual construction" using AutoCAD & 3D Studio Max 5.1 & 6 which he said "Was a lot of fun!".

The plans for are now available in DWF (Design Web Format) from Shaan’s Between the Lines blog. If you don’t have the free DWF Viewer Shaan’s post has a link to download it.

The DWF drawing set has 2d plans, elevations and a couple of renderings. If you’re planning a house have a look at Dilbert’s, you may see something worth considering. It would be neat to see some 3d DWF’s of this project!

Between the Lines: DUH.... Dilbert Does DWF

AutoCAT

The house elevation I used in the Resene Colour Books for Architectural Desktop & AutoCAD 2006 post wasn’t very impressive but it was a very difficult drawing to create.

Not a problem with the software but because tonight I’m babysitting my Aunties kitten . He’s very interested in AutoCAD, especially the 2006 smooth zoom transitions chasing the view as it zoomed, but its tricky working with a cat chasing your mouse! 

Resene Colour Books for Architectural Desktop & AutoCAD 2006

Resene Paints NZ Ltd have Colour Books for Autodesk AutoCAD and AutoCAD based products like Architectural Desktop. These are compatible with AutoCAD 2004, 2005 and the latest AutoCAD 2006.

They allow you to specify Resene colours anywhere AutoCAD allows colour selection (Layers, Objects, Hatches etc) without having to enter RGB values. The full colour name and code are displayed and also can be used for annotation.

If you insert an object field in annotation (Insert a Field > Object Field > Select the Object > Colour) when you alter the object colour the annotation updates automatically. No more typing in colours and codes or printing then realising you’ve not updated a colour swatch name! The example shows leader text and colour swatch text labels referencing hatch objects.

Colour books are available for individual Resene colour ranges or a complete alphabetical list with thousands of Resene colours!

Click here for Resene Paints Total Colour Solutions AutoCAD Colour Books

AutoCAD 2006 CUI Editor Tutorial Videos

The AutoCAD 2006 Customise User Interface feature and its associated CUI file has provoked much discussion since the 2006 release. Shaan Hurley has posted video (wmv) tutorials made by Shawn Gilmour which introduce the CUI and how/what/why it replaces MNS and MNU files.

Between the Lines: AutoCAD 2006 CUI Tutorial Videos

Topics covered include:

• Introduction to the AutoCAD 2006 CUI Editor
• Introduction to the AutoCAD 2006 Workspaces
• Creating a Tool-bar with the AutoCAD 2006 CUI Editor
• Creating a Fly-out Tool-bar with the AutoCAD 2006 CUI Editor
• Introduction to the AutoCAD 2006 Enterprise CUI files

 

 

Working with Autodesk Discussion Groups RSS feeds

As a part of a update last month the Autodesk Discussion (news)Groups now have RSS feeds. I’ve been using them for a while to monitor a few key groups which I used to visit in Outlook Express. I use RSS Bandit as my feed reader so what follows applies to it, other readers may handle or display the feed differently.

You subscribe to the feed by right clicking on the tiny (really tiny) RSS icon on the web page view of each Discussion Group. If you have an RSS Reader you should see an option to “Subscribe in default Aggregator” or similar.

Once subscribed the feed delivers headers for each message with a short extract. Clicking on the header opens the web-page view of that message thread. RSS Bandit does this using tabbed views so its a nice way to compare several threads even if from different discussion groups.

Each time you update the feeds you see new content highlighted and history of read messages. The length of the message history is controlled by a “retain messages” setting in RSS Bandit. I keep 3 weeks but at any time you can alter that to go back further and feed history can be set (in days) globally or per feed. I tend to use the search function on the web-page for material older than this.

RSS Bandit has a “Newspaper View” which I use to scan messages across multiple groups in one view. Clicking on the Autodesk Newsgroups category folder in my feedlist shows all new messages in all the feeds it contains.  This makes it really quick to scan multiple groups, open those that interest you or mark them as read.

I upload/download my RSS Bandit state (RSS Feedlist and read/non-read status) to a USB Drive. You can also do this via web upload/download if preferred but our corporate firewall doesn’t allow it. It means I can read threads at home and carry the feed list and “read state” to synchronise my work desktop. That is a major productivity boost as I don’t see the same post twice!

After a few weeks working with the RSS Feeds & RSS Bandit I’ve not missed my old Outlook Express News-reader.

Autodesk Discussion Group Index ~ http://discussion.autodesk.com

 RSS Bandit Home page ~ http://www.rssbandit.org/

Autodesk NZ Design Master Quiz a great success

I just got home from the Autodesk 2006 Launch & Design Master Quiz. This was the official launch for all the “2006 Release Autodesk Products”. On arrival you could join informal industry focused demonstrations from the Industry Solution Dealers. These were held in separate rooms but were open so you could wander around sampling all the products/demo’s if desired. Then everyone then headed downstairs to register then into main auditorium for the “Design Master Quiz”.

Due to a large turnout about 40 tables filled the room with a team of six or seven at each. Each table had a laptop and box of Lego sitting on it. Both would get much use, maybe too much in the case of the Lego, throughout the evening.

Hosted by TV’s Ric Salizzo, “Sports Cafe” creator/presenter, the quiz format was a short presentation followed by questions based on what you’d just seen with a few general, and not so general, knowledge questions thrown in.

AutoCAD 2006, Composer, Revit, Inventor, Vault, Civil 3d, Map were demonstrated then questions were answered online using the laptops which totalled the scores as each question was answered.

Ric gave one table grief for making paper darts and probably regretted offering a prize for the dart closest to a target on the stage. After much folding a paper air force was unleashed, glad I didn’t have to clean up!

While all this was going on we were also challenged to come up with an original Lego creation which would also be judged. We built a model of the Auckland Sky Tower, complete with bungy jumper, lit with the illuminated pens provided by Autodesk. The winning Lego team built a SUV truck. Good to see Auckland AutoCAD User Group members on this team!

All the Lego was collected and will be donated to the Starship Auckland Children's Hospital – nice one Autodesk!

Prizes on the night included iPod, Xbox, Lego and Autodesk Products. The team I was with came 3rd which meant we each came home with a Lego Ferrari F1. I already have one* so will add mine to the Children’s Hospital donation.

It was a great nights entertainment and painless way to learn about the 2006 products. Thanks to the event organisers: Shane Beaman and Carolyn Judd of of Ingram Micro New Zealand, the Autodesk Dealers & Autodesk Australia/NZ/Asia Pacific.

* As both a Ferrari and Lego fan I just had to get a Lego Ferrari Formula One when they were released. 

 

 

 

Autodesk DWF Viewer updated

A new version of the free Autodesk DWF Viewer is available. The main enhancements in Autodesk DWF Viewer 6.0 are Print Preview, revised Navigator palettes, menus, and tool-bars and an option to hide/show Composer Mark-up status colour coding.

I like the new “always available” layer palette for layer enabled DWF’s (used to be a pop-up dialog) but I’m not a fan of the combined view/shading fly-out with 3d DWF’s. However Print Preview is a great addition and worth the update alone.

If you already have a DWF Viewer installed just open it and use the menu Help>Check for updates feature which will download, un-install the old, and install the new version in one operation (assuming you have install permissions).

You can also download the install file from http://www.autodesk.com/dwfviewer

Autodesk New Zealand Design Masters Quiz

The registration page for the Autodesk New Zealand Design Masters Quiz came online while I was away. Register now, if you haven’t already, as its essential if you want to attend!

Autodesk New Zealand Design Masters Quiz Registration

Learn how to design what you want, the way you want it, and let our software do the rest.
Don't miss this years opportunity!

Come along and compete in our team based quiz which will be hosted by a well known television sports presenter. Every person that attends the Design Masters Quiz will receive a gift, plus be in with a chance to win more Quiz Night prizes.

When:  Tuesday 3rd May, 2005.  (Registration, drinks and food begin at 4.30pm with the main presentation starting at 5.30pm sharp)
Where:  Lower NZI Room, The Edge (Aotea Centre), Auckland

AutoCAD Blog listing

Cadopolis have established a list of AutoCAD and related CAD Blogs. It will also have a short features on the Blogs over the coming months.

The first up is Lee’s HyperPics: Beyond the UI Blog which has lots of information on using and customising AutoCAD. It’s on my feed subscription list (and this Blogs IT/CAD Links sidebar) and I read every post!

A dynamic new AutoCAD Blog - In the Dynamic Interface

Mark Douglas, of MKM & Associates, has just launched an AutoCAD Blog focusing on new AutoCAD features (2006 currently), Dynamic blocks, DWF Composer and some custom Lisp.

The initial posts have a wealth of information on Dynamic blocks. These are a new, in AutoCAD 2006, and powerful set of tools. If you are considering creating or updating AutoCAD block libraries you should check out Dynamic blocks and Marks Blog before you do anything. Both could save you a lot of work.

In the Dynamic Interface
Focusing on new technology for AutoCAD, DWF, Lisp & anything cool.
Via Between the Lines

DWF Frequently Asked Questions

Link to: DWF Frequently Asked Questions
Scott Sheppard - Autodesk
This paper addresses several frequently asked questions concerning Autodesk’s Design Web Format. It was compiled from various sources including internal Autodesk servers, emails, and previously published content. Autodesk discussion group participants will recognise most of the questions as well as their answers. Much of this same information is available in various places on the Autodesk web site.

Scott Sheppard of Autodesk has posted a link to his "Everything you ever wanted to know about DWF but were afraid to ask" document on the DWF newsgroup. If you have a question about DWF its a great place to start as you’ll probably find the answer there!

NOTE: Its an “IE Web Archive .mht” format file hosted on his public Buzzsaw site so may take a while to load the first time you access it.

Autodesk Design Masters Quiz - coming soon

Today I got preliminary details of the New Zealand Autodesk “2006” product release in May. The Auckland event will be a “quiz format” similar to last years with a few changes reflecting suggestions received.

A couple of years ago Autodesk changed the format of their release event to a “game-show format” with short presentations of new features/products followed by quiz questions on what was just presented and also some general knowledge questions (plus a few “not so general knowledge” questions). A bunch of prizes were handed out during the event, some to section and overall quiz winners and others just randomly allocated but by the end of the evening nobody left empty handed!

The whole thing was done as a light hearted parody of a the typical TV game show complete with host and canned music. It was a brave move but I think successful; just as informative and far more engaging than the traditional “Death by PowerPoint & Demo” software launch. Last year the format was refined and it sounds like it will be further improved this year.

They will be mailing invitations to the client database and the website for registration, which is required, will be live next month. I’ll link to it when available. For now keep Tuesday 3rd of May free, watch the mail or keep an eye on www.autodesk.co.nz for registration details when they are posted!

Autodesk Design Masters Quiz - coming soon

It’s time to “Realise Your Ideas” at our annual Autodesk Design Masters Quiz, where you will see first hand at the official New Zealand launch of the new AutoCAD 2006 family of products. Plus you can enjoy some food and a few drinks on Autodesk, network with your peers and Autodesk staff.

Come along, and be in to win HEAPS of prizes! PLUS everyone who attends will receive a free Autodesk gift*!

We plan to make this year's Quiz even more fun, and will be hosted by a very well known TV personality. Parking** will once again be free so all you need to do is turn up and have some fun.

MARK YOUR DIARIES NOW!
When:    Tuesday 3rd of May
Time:     Registration, drinks and food begin at 4.30pm with the main presentation starting at 5.30pm sharp
Where:   Lower NZI Room, The Edge (Aotea Centre), Auckland

Looking forward to seeing you on the 3rd of May.
The Autodesk Team at Ingram Micro NZ

* In order to receive your free gift you must attend and stay until the end of the main presentation.
** A parking voucher will be issued at the end of the main presentation

AutoCAD Packaging Line

Shaan has posted a neat video of AutoCAD LT being packaged for delivery. 

You tend not to consider the logistics of actually getting a product to market. Creating it may be mission but once that design/code/product is finished a huge team have to make it a reality. With everything these days being high tech its easy to forget that behind every product is just a bunch of people, doing their best, trying to make a living.

Between the Lines: AutoCAD LT 2006 Packaging Behind the Scenes

New Ads for Autodesk

Ralph has a link to the new Autodesk Print Ads, love the command line one “Crazy Eyes”

WorldCAD Access: New Ads for Autodesk

Created by WONGDOODY: Read their Press Release

New Autodesk AutoCAD and ADT 2006 newsgroups

These new “2006 newsgroups have appeared today:

• Autodesk Architectural Desktop 2006 (Web Browser)
• Autodesk Architectural Desktop 2006 (News Reader)
  
• AutoCAD 2006 (Web Browser)
• AutoCAD 2006 (News Reader)
  
• AutoCAD LT 2006 (Web Browser)
• AutoCAD LT 2006 (News Reader)

ABS 2006 stuff is appearing in

• Autodesk Building Systems (Web Browser)
• Autodesk Building Systems (News reader)

No RSS Feeds yet but will add them when they appear