Between the Lines

Autodesk is Closed from July 1st to the 5th 2004.

Autodesk will be closed Thursday July 1st through Monday July 5th for the July 4th Holiday. I will be volunteering for my sons Boy Scout troop 39 selling taco salads at the Marin County Fair.

Cheers,
-Shaan

Welcome to Another CAD Related Blog - Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology

I was looking through all of the referring URLs to this blog, and noticed a new CAD related blog from Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology and School of Engineering. I hope the blog for CPIT takes off. The students will gain a great deal of exposure to how others use CAD around the world and some great tips and tricks.

Blogs are a great resource and can point many to other resources around the web with a more personal or customized way than a search engine.

Who said CAD was not fun? It certainly was not me, as it has been a blast for me the forever-recovering mechanical designer.

I am a huge supporter for students in engineering and CAD. I always welcome questions from students on CAD and engineering subjects as well as welcome their emailed feedback on CAD and what they think. I actually had some of the coolest ideas recently from a high school student who was competing with a student team in robot design and build competition. It is remarkable how the students have such fresh ideas and a unique perspective as they learn CAD. For example, a student called me on the phone to discuss his take on 3D assemblies. He suggested that currently you can now program constraints for movement within the 3D model assembly, but why not link or rig those constraints to electrical motors. The electrical system could control the movements based on the settings of specified hardware and take into account the wiring and much more. Imagine a fully automated (Inverse Kinematics) robot in Autodesk Inventor. Test a design more completely before committing the design to fabrication. Digital trial and error with movement as well as other functional constraints to simulate performance, mechanics, and even operating environments. This could sprout the mechanical equivalent of the architectural industry buzzword BIM (Building Information Modeling). Perhaps MAIM for Mechanical Assembly Information Modeling.

I also donate leftover products in my department to students at the end of the year.

Well here goes the CPIT traffic of web hits.
Check out the new CPIT Blog with Andrew Robertson and hopefully soon the faculty and students.
http://cadatcpit.blogspot.com
http://cadatcpit.blogspot.com/2004/06/blogs-from-within-autodesk.html

Is it just me, or are the New Zealanders one of the most active regions for pro-active CAD discussions? In any case, I do hope to attend one of the CAD conferences down there sometime. I almost attended last year at a CAD conference with Hugh Bathurst, but the notice for the event did not offer enough planning time for me.

Cheers,

-Shaan

"Go Postal" Contest First Entries Received

I have started receiving post cards from around the world from Between the Lines readers for the "Go Postal" Contest. The winner of the first entries actually came from Mike Burke in New Zealand. Mike sent three post cards shown at the left.

This is all for fun and I will throw out some free prizes at the end.
Spread the Word!

Send the post cards to:
Shaan Hurley "Go Postal"
c/o Autodesk Inc.
111 McInnis Parkway
San Rafael California 94903



Make sure to list your name, location, email, and about yourself on the post cards. Those vacationing can submit multiple cards from the various locations if you want.

Cheers,
-Shaan

Marin Autodesk Users Group July 8th, 2004 Meeting

Come one come all and get your Autodesk questions answered. In addition to meeting the fine members of MAUG, you will be witnessing my warped humor and relaxed geek presentation style. Please do not come expecting too much, and you will leave very satisfied .

When: July 8th 2004
Time: 6 to 8 pm 111 McInness Parkway, San Rafael California
Who: Shaan Hurley, Autodesk Beta Mgr & Tech. Marketing Mgr.
What: Shaan will discuss System Variables, Commands, and ways to provide direct feedback to Autodesk on the future of the products.
Bring your Autodesk and AutoCAD questions.

I am giving away a copy of the new DWF Composer.

I may also be appearing at a Napa CAD Users Group, which meets the first Tuesday of the Month. I wonder if they drink Napa wines at the meeting.

If you have an Autodesk or AutoCAD user’s group meeting, let me know. If I can get there, I would to love to attend a meeting. If you would like answer your questions and discuss the many ways Autodesk listens to its customers or perhaps I can arrange another Autodesk person to speak to a specific topic you have.

Cheers,
-Shaan

Nice Tutorial from Down Under on Architectural Desktop

There is a very nice tutorial on space sketches in Architectural Desktop on the blog RobiNZ by Robin Capper of New Zealand.

Check Out RobiNZ Space Sketches in Architectural Desktop Tutorial

Cheers,
-Shaan

Have I Snapped? Updated 6-22-04

I was inspired by a web page " LA to Oregon at Mach 9"which recorded a trip from Los Angeles to Oregon and then sped up the video.

Update 6/22/04: I again video taped my commute just yesterday the 21st of June 2004, and posted the resulting video after processing. It was a much lighter commute than normal for some odd reason.

The Windows Media video (.wmv) is 320 X 240 and is 7 minutes long. In 7 minutes, you travel from Petaluma California down highway 101 to my office (Autodesk Inc.) in San Rafael and then back for the home commute. The actual distance traveled was about 43 miles and took 40 minutes. The commute after my editing looks like it would if you had a jet engine strapped to the back of the vehicle. It took a fair but of video processing to achieve this but it was fun.

Steps in the process of making this little video, all for fun and diversion.:

Recorded the video from the top of my Nissan truck with a Sony DV camcorder. You get a fair amount of stares from people wondering what you are doing. Next time I will strap the camcorder to my bumper for a lower and more complete view of the road, cars, and scenery.

Transferred the digital video to my desktop computer at home. File size was 16gig.

Imported the video into a video editing application.

Removed the effect of the road making the video jump and shake at points. This in itself is an interesting editing process. Essentially the software tracks what are the stationary items in the view then compares the next few frames to line them up. It then computes the smallest frame size to eliminate the edges from the frame adjustments.

Reduced the video from full frame down to 320 X 240.

Increased the frame rate to little over 4 times the actual speed of the recovered video.

Exported an AVI file.

Imported the AVI file into another editing package to compress the video, and then export a .wmv file.

So enjoy the commute at hyper-speed!

Download The Commute Video - 11Mb

The Route

Cheers,
-Shaan

10 Electronic Technologies That Changed Construction

There is a nice article in the Engineering News-Record issue on June 12, 2004. It lists AutoCAD by Autodesk as number two in the list of the ten technologies to change the construction industry in the past 20 years.

10 Electronic Technologies That Changed Construction (source enr.construction.com)

Computer Aided Design - CAD Pioneers Gave Desktop PCs A Full Range of Electronic Drafting

"AutoCAD was created to bring CAD capabilities to the newly introduced desktop IBM PC and allow "serious computer-aided design" to be done on desktop machines, rather than very expensive, dedicated workstations."

For those into historical AutoCAD information, have a look at my AutoCAD History site.
Click Here

Cheers,
-Shaan

“Is DWF an ‘open’ file format?”

Yes, consider the following:

Published Spec

Published Toolkit source code

Sample code

Standards based

ZIP/ZLIB

XML

OpenHSF

JPG/PNG/bitonal-G4-TIFF

In addition:

Free Windows Printer driver "Autodesk DWFWriter" to produce DWF from any Windows application.

Free Windows Autodesk DWF Viewer.

For more information please see:
http://www.autodesk.com/dwf
http://www.autodesk.com/dwfit

DWF v6.0 Toolkit
The DWF™ 6.0 Toolkit allows you to develop applications that read or write multi-sheet drawings in DWF™ (Design Web Format™) format.
Autodesk DWF Viewer
With Autodesk DWF Viewer, a small, free, downloadable application, anyone on your team can view and print DWF files.
Autodesk DWF Composer
Autodesk DWF Composer supports complete digital round-tripping of markups, annotations, and other changes back into the AutoCAD® 2005 family of software products.

Cheers,
-Shaan

Who Uses or Abuses PowerPoint?

Need some great tips on presentations, organizational communications, and the proper use of PowerPoint?

The use of PowerPoint in presentations is not a natural or easy thing. It seems to me that you get 40% of presentations show to little, 40% show too much and end up reading the slides to you, and about 10% really do a great job of balancing the highlights and keeping the audiences attention and making the subject memorable. I have seen and done my share of abuse of PowerPoint. There is nothing like an animated arrow bullet with sound effect in a PowerPoint presentation to get the crowd running for the door. Then again, my son created a whole cartoon in PowerPoint and it was amazing.

More food for thought.
Know your subject and know it well. Understand who the intended audience is, and adjust accordingly.

I am definitely no master of the delicate balance or at presentations and usually fall in the over kill on slides. I keep working on my skills, and have a "PowerPoint Master" for a boss.

Check out the blog by Cliff Atkinson: "Beyond Bullets"
http://sociablemedia.typepad.com/beyond_bullets/

A few articles of interest:

The Future Story(board) of PowerPoint

Evocative Media

The Science of PowerPoint Overload

The author also has a web site full of articles http://www.sociablemedia.com/articles_list.htm

I love a quote from one of Cliff's articles on Bullet Points:
"Guns don't kill communication.
Bullet points kill communication.
And when you use bullet points in a PowerPoint, you're shooting yourself in the foot."

Cheers,
-Shaan

More Teaser Screen Captures of the Autodesk DWF Viewer 5 Beta and 3D DWF

During lunch I took a 3D part (.ipt) from Autodesk Inventor 9 and created a quick 2D drawing (.idw). I then created 2 DWF files, one is a 2D DWF and the other a 3D DWF. Both are viewed in the Autodesk DWF Viewer 5 beta.

This is a screen capture of the 2D .idw drawing in Autodesk Inventor 9 Beta.
Click the image to see a larger view.

This is a screen capture of the 3D .ipt part in Autodesk Inventor 9 Beta.
Click the image to see a larger view.

This is a screen capture of a 2D DWF created from Autodesk Inventor and viewed in the new beta of Autodesk DWF Viewer 5. The DWF file is only 119Kb and fast!
Click the image to see a larger view.

This is a screen capture of a 3D DWF created from Autodesk Inventor and viewed in the new beta of Autodesk DWF Viewer 5. The DWF file is only 49Kb and is fast!
Click the image to see a larger view.

Enroll for the Autodesk Inventor 9 as well as the Autodesk DWF Viewer 5 Beta at:
http://betaprograms.autodesk.com/betaweb.htm

Read more about Autodesk Inventor products from the Autodesk Inventor Team's blog:
http://autodesk.blogs.com/in_the_machine/

Cheers,
-Shaan

New Beta Opportunity & Sneak Peek at 3D DWF

3D & DWF!
You can enroll for the opportunity to beta test the new Autodesk DWF Viewer 5 Beta (free version) and preview 3D DWF!

This Beta release of Autodesk DWF Viewer includes:

3D DWF - View, navigate and print 3D DWF files. You can also pan, zoom, Orbit, show and hide components, select wireframe and shaded views, navigate to standard views, navigate assembly structure, isolate components, and view component and mass properties.

Markup Browser - View and navigate markups created with Autodesk DWF Composer, and see markup details including Author, Creation and Modification dates, Status, History and Notes.

Object Property Categories - View and sort object properties with categories.

Save As... - In embedded mode, right-click to save a DWF file on your local machine.

Performance Optimizations - Viewing and printing optimizations for raster and text-based DWFs.

API Enhancements - Easier APIs for controlling the visibility of layers in a DWF and camera APIs for controlling the 3D View

Enroll for the Beta Click Here

And how do you produce a 3D DWF? Well, you can participate in the Autodesk Inventor 9 beta programs. Other products will have the 3D DWF abilities later.

A Sneak Peek for you with more coming later:

Cheers,
-Shaan

AutoCAD White Papers Are a Great Resource

The AutoCAD White Papers web page link click here

AutoCAD 2005

Comparing AutoCAD 2005 with Previous Releases (pdf-75Kb)

Benefits of Network Licensing (pdf-85Kb)

Successful Network Installation of AutoCAD in a Large Design Firm (pdf-342Kb)

Planning a Successful Network Installation of AutoCAD 2005 or AutoCAD 2005-Based Products (pdf-319Kb)

Installing the Network License Manager for AutoCAD 2005 or AutoCAD 2005-Based Products (pdf-135Kb)

Creating Deployments for AutoCAD 2005 or AutoCAD 2005-Based Products (pdf-130Kb)

Working with AutoCAD 2005 and Section 508 (pdf-42 Kb)

AutoCAD 2004

Planning a Successful Network Installation of AutoCAD 2004 (pdf-365Kb)

Creating Deployments for AutoCAD 2004 (pdf-187Kb)

Successful Network Installation of AutoCAD in a Large Design Firm (pdf-342Kb)

AutoCAD 2004 Network Licensing: Questions & Answers (pdf-53Kb)

Installing the Autodesk Network License Manager for AutoCAD 2004 (pdf-179Kb)

AutoCAD Release History Document in Italian (La storia di AutoCAD in italiano da Emanuele Cinelli)

Emanuele Cinelli of Italy took a great deal of time and effort to write a document on the History of AutoCAD in Italian.

La storia di AutoCAD in italiano da Emanuele Cinelli

Download AutoCAD History Document

Cheers,
-Shaan

How to Save an R14 DWG from AutoCAD 2004 and 2005 Products

Since AutoCAD 2002 the AutoCAD R14 DWG has not been a built in option. You can still convert your drawings to the R14 format for free.

Can only be used with AutoCAD 2004-based products, AutoCAD 2005-based products, AutoCAD LT 2004, or AutoCAD LT 2005.

Converter converts any AutoCAD® drawing file to AutoCAD® Release 14, AutoCAD® 2000, AutoCAD® 2000i, AutoCAD® 2002, AutoCAD® 2004, and AutoCAD® 2005 file formats. Batch Drawing Converter allows conversion of pen widths to lineweights and the addition of page setups.

Supported Products
AutoCAD® 2004 and later
AutoCAD LT® 2004 and later
Autodesk Map™ 2004 and later
Autodesk® Mechanical Desktop® 2004 and later
Autodesk® Architectural Desktop 2004 and later
AutoCAD® Mechanical 2004 and later
Autodesk® Building Systems 2004 later
Autodesk® Land Desktop 2004 later

http://www.autodesk.com/migrationtools

More Great Feedback on this Blog

Shaan, I just wanted to give thanks to you for the excellent job that you've been doing on the B.T.L. Blog. I check it everyday, I can honestly say that it's the best place for quick info on AutoCAD. The content that you give is excellent, easy to read, and very timely.

I know there are lots of places to get info on AutoCAD but the B.T.L. Blog is among the best.

Keep up the great work!

Bill Goetz
Peter Basso Associates, Inc

Thank you Bill.

Sincerlely,
Shaan Hurley

The Great Post Card Hunt Project "Go Postal"

I want to start a fun project which will when completed result in prizes and a web page showing the submissions in a image gallery as well as possibly at Autodesk University 2004. So all you need to do is send a post card from where you are. There will be judging based on first received, most sent, most unique, most remote, most exotic location, funniest, and so on. I will also be placing all the post cards on my office walls.
The contest will end on November 1st 2004.

Sound fun?

Let the project begin and spread the word far and wide!

Send the post cards to:

Shaan Hurley "Go Postal"
c/o Autodesk Inc.
111 McInnis Parkway
San Rafael California 94903

Make sure to list your name, location, email, and about yourself on the post cards. Those vacationing can submit multiple cards from the various locations if you want.

Cheers,
-Shaan

The New AutoCAD & LT 2005 Bible Coming in July from Ellen Finkelstein

AutoCAD 2005 and AutoCAD LT 2005 Bible
Ellen Finkelstein
ISBN: 0-7645-6989-9

What can I say about Ellen. She has been a great person the years that I have known her and she takes a real nice approach to teaching a product and features in her books and her website http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/AutoCAD_tips.html. Ellen also started the tradition of people sending me cookies and others have followed such as Darren Young who sent me about 40 pounds of cookies.

Wiley::AutoCAD 2005 and AutoCAD LT 2005 Bible

Now revised and updated for the latest program versions, this bestseller is a comprehensive reference and tutorial for architects, engineers, drafters, and others using the leading computer-assisted design software, AutoCAD, or its "lite" version, AutoCAD LT

• Begins with AutoCAD basics, including the AutoCAD interface and commands, and progresses to complex topics such as programming and customization
• No AutoCAD experience is required to use this book, and a Quick Start guide shows beginning AutoCAD users how to create a technical drawing their very first day
• More than 150 tutorials use drawings collected from AutoCAD pros, giving readers valuable, real-world experience
  Includes coverage of AutoCAD LT, the world’s most popular inexpensive 2D technical drawing program
• The CD-ROM contains before and after real-world drawings, bonus appendices, freeware and shareware programs, the book in searchable PDF format, and a 30-day trial version of AutoCAD software

Pre order the book at the publishers web site: http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0764569899.html

New AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT 2005 Books Released

Mastering™ AutoCAD® 2005 and AutoCAD LT® 2005
By George Omura
Released June 2004
ISBN: 0-7821-4340-7 | EAN: 9 780782 143409 | UPC: 0252-11-443408

From the publishers website:

The Definitive CAD Resource Updated for 2005 Mastering AutoCAD 2005 and AutoCAD LT 2005 is a fully updated edition of Omura's enduring masterpiece. Once again, he delivers the most comprehensive and comprehensible coverage for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT users including information on the Sheet Set Manager, field command, table tool and the software's other productivity enhancers. If you've never used AutoCAD, the tutorial approach and step-by-step instruction will help you get started right away. If you're an AutoCAD veteran, in-depth explanations of AutoCAD's newest and most advanced features will help you become an AutoCAD expert. Whatever your experience, however you use AutoCAD, you’ll refer to this indispensable resource again and again.

Coverage includes:

Finding your way around the AutoCAD interface

Creating and developing an AutoCAD drawing

Keeping track of your projects with the new sheet set manager

Importing spreadsheets and editing tables with the new Table tool

Updating text automatically with the new field command

Controlling your drawings' printed output

Discovering hidden features

Mastering the 3D modeling and rendering process

Customizing AutoCAD

Linking drawings to databases and spreadsheets

Managing custom symbols

Securing and authenticating your files

Aligning and coordinating Layout views

Using Publish to share files with non-AutoCAD users

You can pre-order the book now at many online bookstores like Amazon.com Click Here

Another book was released in May

AutoCAD® 2005 and AutoCAD LT® 2005: No Experience Required®
By David Frey
Released May 2004
ISBN: 0-7821-4341-5 | EAN: 9 780782 143416 | UPC: 0252-11-443415

From the publishers website:

The First Choice for AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Novices – from the Leading AutoCAD Publisher!

AutoCAD 2005 and AutoCAD LT 2005: No Experience Required is your step-by-step introduction to the latest versions of AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT, the world's leading customizable CAD software. Inside this perfectly paced guide are the clear-cut explanations and practical tutorials that you need to complete even the most elaborate AutoCAD projects.

Discover AutoCAD 2005's newest features as you plan and develop a complete project. Follow the tutorials sequentially or begin at any chapter by downloading the drawing files from the Sybex website. Either way, you’ll develop a solid grounding in the essentials and learn how to use AutoCAD's productivity tools to get your work done efficiently.

Gain the Imperative AutoCAD Skills

Find your way around AutoCAD and LT

Understand the basic commands and how to set up a drawing

Apply AutoCAD's coordinate systems

Master drawing strategies

Employ Polar and Object Snap Tracking

Set up and manage layers, colors, and linetypes

Use blocks and Wblocks

Drag AutoCAD objects from one drawing to another

Generate elevations and orthographic views

Work with hatches and fills

Control text in a drawing

Manage external references

Set up layouts and print an AutoCAD drawing

Use AutoCAD's enhanced tool palettes

Create and render a 3D model

Autodesk Subscription Customer Quick Reference

I am providing a download of a nice quick reference document for Autodesk Subscription customers. I believe all subscription customers will be receiving one of these as well as other stuff by mail in the near future.

Autodesk Subscription is the easiest way to keep your design tools and learning up-to-date. For an annual fee you get the latest versions of your licensed Autodesk software, web support direct from Autodesk, self-paced training options, and a broad range of other technology and business benefits. For more information, contact your local resellers or visit www.autodesk.com/subscription.

Download AutodeskSubCustomerQuickReference.pdf

Some of my blog posts on subscription benefits:

Registration and Activation (Authorization) Codes: How does it work for Subscription?

Combining Autodesk Network Licenses

Did You Know, You Can Continue to Use Your Upgraded Products as a Subscription Customer?

Autodesk Subscription e-Learning Tutorials Posted for AutoCAD 2005

Autodesk Subscription Customers Get Support

Cheers,
-Shaan

Congratulations to the Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning NHL hockey team just won the Stanley Cup! What a series.

Tampa Bay Lightning: 2
Calgary Flames: 1

-Shaan

Attn: AutoCAD Users in Chicago, London & Tokyo

The AutoCAD team is interested in improving the 3D and presentation graphics/rendering part of the product. Would you be interested in a personal visit with members of the AutoCAD team and discussing your use of 3D (whether in AutoCAD or any other CAD or design product?)

Email Eric Stover by June 14th 2004 at eric.stover@autodesk.com.

Cheers,
-Shaan

SnagIt 7.1 is Released!

I simply could not work as productively without SnagIt from techsmith.com. I use SnagIt daily for various tasks and image captures for various outputs like tutorials, articles, documentation and much much more.

I can even perform quick image editing tricks using just their built in Image Edit instead of firing up Fireworks or Photoshop.

 

 

And it is all for under $40 US. They are also a great bunch of people.

From their press release this morning:

"What's New? Increase your productivity with SnagIt 7.1! With the newest version of SnagIt, you can send your screen captures to more places, embellish your images with better effects, and greatly improve your work flow with SnagIt's many enhancements. Work quicker, work smarter - with SnagIt's essential new features. To list just a few . . .

Instant Messenger Output: Now, send your screen captures to all your Windows and MSN Messenger buddies in one simple step!

Program Output: Send screen captures to your favorite application - SnagIt automatically opens and places your screen capture in the program of your choice. This way, you can enhance graphics in your favorite editing software, or quickly send your capture to its final destination.

More Profile Capabilities: Import and export capture profiles! Easily load all your favorite profiles on any computer you work on, without having to go through and reset them . . . so you can do your work even faster. Plus, share your favorite profiles with colleagues and even download new profiles from TechSmith.

Enhanced Web Capture: Our technology makes it possible to capture all the graphics you want from today's most advanced Web pages at once. Save time from repetitive steps while researching online. SnagIt makes saving images from the web a one-step process.

Part of Microsoft Office: You'll find SnagIt's most popular capture options now available in your Microsoft Office applications. Quickly capture and embed screenshots using the SnagIt toolbar in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Internet Explorer, and now Outlook.

Improved Automatic File Naming: From a list, select components you want to use to customize the file name - like the sequence number, computer name, user name, date/time and more. Take as many quick shots as you want, while remaining confident your files will be easy to identify.

Drag and Drop: You can now simply drag and drop image files into the Catalog Browser, Editor and SnagIt Studio for quick display and manipulation.

Edge Effects: More creative options for framing your image! Try: Fine Torn, Saw, Sharktooth and Beveled. Also, now apply Edge Effects to only a portion of the screen capture.

Automatic Updates: It's easy to stay up to date, since SnagIt now automatically checks for product updates. "

Thank you Techsmith for keeping on producing and innovating SnagIt and Camtasia!

Cheers,
-Shaan

The New AutoCAD 2005 Layer Manager and Filters

Lee Ambrosius of hyperpics.com and his blog "Beyond the UI" posted a good aticle on using the new AutoCAD 2005 layer dialog.

Link to Layer Manager Article

Cheers,
-Shaan

Great CAD Resource "RobiNZ Blog"

Robin Capper has a great blog going on CAD, Design, and other great stuff. Robin is located in New Zealand and is a CAD Manager for a retail company.

RobiNZ Blog: http://rcd.typepad.com

Example Articles:

ADT Workflow - Modelling Benefits

Site Mass Studies in Autodesk Architectural Desktop

Cheers,
-Shaan

Why I No Longer Enable Commenting...

I had to discontinue the article commenting due to spam commenting. Although I recieved some really great comments and feedback from visitors here, some web based advertisers have started to exploit blog commenting as another spam method.

I will check into what can be done to allow commenting while keeping those low life web spammers out.

Sincerely,
Shaan Hurley