Between the Lines

Autodesk University 2005 Registration Starts August 1st 2005

Thanks to my Swedish CAD friend and blogger Jimmy Bergmark for reminding me via his blogs RSS feed about the AU 2005 registrations starting this Monday. I had the date but forgot to announce them here. I have been looking forward to this AU since last December when I announced the location on this blog. This registration is only for AUGI or Autodesk Subscription customers. Public registration begins the following week.

AU 2005 Orlando
December 3rd 2004 Announcement of AU 2005 in Orlando Florida at the AU 2004 party

This is going to a be a blast and even top last years record attendance of 4500+ attendees at the worlds largest CAD event. I will be blogging from the the event like the past few years and also publish a new AU survival tips list. I am also planning to arrange for some fun after hours events for CAD geeks wanting to have some nigh time fun.

I will be holding a class this year after my 3 year hiatus of teaching at AU.
Between The Lines: Autodesk Beta, Feedback, AutoCAD, DWF…ETC 
GD22-2  Tue. 11/29

We will also be holding many special events for beta and feedback projects during AU and I will announce more as we get closer to the event.

So plan on attending the greatest CAD event and learning many new things about Autodesk products, the best technical training classes and presenters, and then also have some fun to rest your brain.

http://www.autodesk.com/au

Recommended AutoCAD Reading: AUGIWorld Aug/July 2005

I wanted to highlight the latest AUGIWorld Magazine that I just read and wanted to pass on the recommendation for others. It is free after a free registration and full of great information. The current Issue is the July/August 2005 issue. You should sign up and subscribe to the free AUGIWorld magazine. The only thing you have to lose is bad CAD habits and you learn new tips and tricks to make your job easier.

Link to AUGIWorld Magazine page (requires free registration)
http://www.augi.com/publications/default.asp?page=63

My highlight of articles:

The CAD Manager
By Autodesk University 2004 Top Gun and longtime AutoCAD guru David Harrington.
This is a good article sprinkled with reality checks and humor.

CAD Manager Career Road Map
"Real super users like to share their knowledge, not hoard it"
By AUGI Board of Director and CAD Management guru Mark Kiker.

The Secrets to Productivity Revealed
Manage your block libraries with Tool Palettes
By one of the best AutoCAD trainers out there Matt Murphy

Getting Started with the CUI
A closer look at the Custom User Interface (CUI) in AutoCAD 2006.
By AutoCAD Top Gun and Guru Lee Ambroisius

Sign up at http://www.augi.com

AutoCAD 2006 Offset Enhancement

You can now Offset to a current layer. In the OFFSET command prompt there is a nrew option to set the offset to be on the current layer rather than the same layer as the entity being offset.

An example of how this could be used is you have one layer for interior walls and one for exterior. When you wanted to offset the interior wall for the exterior, you could have the exterior wall layer current and the offset line would be on that layer instead of the same interior wall layer.

Command: OFFSET
Current settings: Erase source=No  Layer=Current  OFFSETGAPTYPE=0
Specify offset distance or [Through/Erase/Layer] <1.0000>:

ACADINFO... the hidden support and troubleshooting tool in AutoCAD

ACADINFO is a command utility for gathering information about your AutoCAD installation and current settings. You can find this utility in you AutoCAD 2006 Support directory.

To run the utility in AutoCAD 2006 just use the ACADINFO command. The routine will examine your system and write a text file called “acadinfo.txt” to your specified location on the hard drive.

The ACADINFO tool was originally developed as an AutoCAD Express Tool to aid support and troubleshooting. Since its early days it has been added to the Support path in core AutoCAD 2006.

Some highlights of the data that is exported:

General Information:
User Name
Computer Name
Platform

File loading information: An example is the currently loaded ARX applications. This information can help troubleshoot systems. Perhaps one system has a non base AutoCAD utility loaded and you can unload that ARX to help rule that out.

System Variable settings: This is great to compare the differences between systems. You can even use a file compare tool to highlight differences between the systems.

Cheers,
-Shaan

8 Million Downloads of Autodesk DWF Viewer!

It seems like only yesterday (June 2005) that we reached 7 Million downloads of the Autodesk DWF viewer. Now here it isn’t even August yet, and we have reached 8 million. The number of people downloading the free Autodesk DWF Viewer continues to grow due to the popularity and benefits of the DWF format over other electronic formats for CAD documents.

To put this in perspective, each of the following is roughly 8 million:

• The total population of Georgia, New Jersey, or North Carolina.
• The number of internet users in Germany.
• Measured in cubic meters, the supply of plywood in Japan.
• Number of copies sold of the HarryPotter and the Sorcerer's Stone video game.
• The distance between the planet Saturn and its moon Phoebe.
• More downloads than there are lines of code in AutoCAD!

Thank you to all of the DWF users out there!

MSN Virtual Earth

I mentioned the recent Google Earth which is very cool and free. Now there is another mapping tool this time from Microsoft named Virtual Earth. The Virtual Earth is still in beta and not all features are available. It is very interesting and the future feature road map and demos have some very advanced features. Right now you get a view looking down or a road map. In the future you will be able to orbit and change views including birds eye viewing of  virtual buildings for a selected region. Right now they have the an inter sting tool named the Microsoft Location Finder to locate where you are based on your IP or WiFi connection. Currently it thinks I am about 50 miles to the East but that may have to do with my LAN network currently. The satellite images from MSN Earth are far better quality than the ones I have seen in the Google Earth but Google has more features currently. Also the MSN Virtual Earth does not require installing an application on your machine as it runs in the web whereas Google Earth is a standalone application that connects to the web to get data.

It will be interesting as these two products that are free for the basic versions evolve but I really like seeing where I am going to visit beforehand from the satellite imagery.

http://virtualearth.msn.com/

MSN Virtual Earth Goes to Beta (Microsoft-Watch.com)

LINK MSN Earth location map for Autodesk Civic Center offices in San Rafael California. This is where most of the development of AutoCAD is done and my office is located.

New DWF Toolkit Compatible with Existing Autodesk DWF Viewers

The DWF 7.0 Toolkit allows a 3rd party developer to develop applications that read or write multi-sheet drawings in DWF (Design Web Format) format. The toolkit contains a C++ library that aids in the generation, reading, and parsing of DWF files. Experienced C++ programmers can use it to work with DWF files without having to understand their complete underlying data format. This toolkit contains support for the DWF file as defined with the release of AutoCAD 2006. The DWF Toolkit is not intended for Visual Basic programmers who wish to work with the API of the Autodesk DWF Viewer. These users should consult the Autodesk DWF Viewer API documentation.

The version of the DWF Toolkit is not to be confused with the version of a DWF file.

1. A DWF file has a file version. It appears at the beginning of every DWF file. It is visible by viewing any DWF file with any text editor such as NotePad. (Note: The rest of the DWF will not appear readable in the editor.)
2. The DWF Toolkit has a release version. The toolkit is incorporated into DWF-related applications. For example, the DWF Toolkit version is listed in the About box of Autodesk DWF Viewer and Autodesk DWF Composer.

The two versions are not the same. This is a common misconception. The DWF Toolkit is an API with version numbers that are independent of the DWF file version. Autodesk happened to release the DWF Toolkit 6.0 at the same time it released the DWF 6.0 (multi-sheet DWF) file format. This coincidence has confused many people.

The DWF Toolkit 7.0 is what Autodesk and Autodesk partners use to read and write DWF 6.0 files as well as DWF 6.1 files (3D DWF). Even though there is a DWF 7.0 Toolkit, DWF 7.0 files do not yet exist. Future versions of the toolkit will be DWF Toolkit 7.1, 7.2, 8.0, etc. The DWF file format version number will only change if we modify the DWF file format itself. For example, the DWF 5.5 format introduced Block Refs. The DWF 6.0 format contained multiple pages. The DWF 6.1 format introduced 3D. The DWF Toolkit version 7.0 is the successor to DWF Toolkit version 6.0. DWF Toolkit 7.0 is recommended for all DWF needs regardless of the file version. It reads and writes a DWF file of any DWF format version.

	DWF Format 5.5 single sheet 2D	DWF Format 6.0 multi-sheet 2D	DWF Format 6.1 single sheet 3D
DWF Toolkit 6.0	Read/ Write	Read/ Write
DWF Toolkit 7.0	Read/ Write	Read/ Write	Read/ Write
DWF Viewer 5.x	View/ Print	View/ Print
DWF Viewer 6.x	View/ Print	View/ Print	View/ Print
DWF Composer 1.x	View/ Print	View/ Print
DWF Composer 2.x	View/Print/ Markup/Measure	View/Print/ Markup/Measure	View/Print/ Markup/Measure

AutoCAD 2006 DXF file format documentation

The DXF file (drawing interchange file) format is documented by Autodesk so that other applications can read and write files to and from AutoCAD. You can download and review the AutoCAD 2006 DXF format or other prior versions from the following link.
http://www.autodesk.com/dxf

Google Moon proves the moon is made of cheese

Google has launched another online free map resource but this time not for Earth http://earth.google.com but instead the moon. The new site is http://moon.google.com/. What is funny is that I noticed if you zoom in really close to the lunar surface it reveals a cheese like surface validating the longtime theory the moon is indeed made of cheese. What next, Google Sea, Google Mars, Google Sun, or Google Galaxy?

Shaan

AutoCAD Release Timeline

I created a image of an AutoCAD major release timeline showing the past 20 releases of AutoCAD since 1982.

More at my unofficial AutoCAD history site.
Link

Cheers,
Shaan

Cadalyst Magazine has a DWF Gallery

You can find the gallery from the button on the http://www.cadalyst.com homepage, or through the link: http://www.cadalyst.com/cadalyst/static/staticHtml.jsp?id=155048

Submit some DWF files and you get the chance to win some cool flash drives.

You can also take the time to check out the new DWF Composer 2 review by Ron LaFon of Cadalyst.
http://management.cadalyst.com/cadman/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=170143

Cheers,
Shaan

New AutoCAD 2006 Courses Available for Subscription Customers

There are 8 new AutoCAD 2006 courses posted to the Subscription Center.

1. Creating Custom Tool Palettes
2. Managing and Sharing Tool Palettes
3. Creating Sheet Sets
4. Working with Sheet Sets
5. Setting Sheet Set Properties
6. Using Fields in Sheet Sets
7. Using Attributes in Sheet Sets
8. Publishing, Transmitting, and Archiving Sheet Sets

These courses are available exclusively to Autodesk Subscription customers. To access them, sign in to the Subscription Center: http://www.autodesk.com/subscriptionlogin

Submit Comments on Help Content in AutoCAD

So you have some comments or a problem with a specific topic in the online AutoCAD Help, where do you send the comments?

A perfect way to get these logged into the system is to select the "comments" link at the bottom of each Help page. These comments go directly to the technical publications team with all the needed info on the exact content you were on.

Cheers,
Shaan

Use AutoCAD 2006 to flatten ADT drawings

I thought I would quickly publish a little known trick. Since AutoCAD 2004 was released there is no longer the need to install a custom object enabler. Architectural Desktop objects will now display in AutoCAD.  However, if your requirements are just to have a flat 2D underlay, then there is a command (ExportToAutoCAD) built-in to the last version of AutoCAD 2006 that enables you to convert the custom objects to plain AutoCAD entities. The command ExportToAutoCAD even contains the Express Tools Flatten and Overkill to clean up the data.

You can use the CUI to add the Toolbar and ExportToAutoCAD command in your AutoCAD 2006.

Load the provided CUI located in C:\Documents and Settings\user\Application Data\Autodesk\AutoCAD 2006\R16.2\enu\Support\AecArchXOE.cui

The added toolbar with the second icon being the ExportToAutoCAD.

You can also use the command or script it from the command line.
Command: -ExportToAutoCAD
File format: 2004
Bind xrefs: Yes
Bind type: Insert
Filename prefix: ACAD-
Filename suffix:
Export options [Format/Bind/bind Type/Prefix/Suffix/?] <Enter for filename>:

You can easily script the command to batch convert DWG files.

Now I am headed back to Amsterdam to catch a flight back home after a few days here in nice and warm Europe. I had a great time and will publish more photos of my trip after I return home.

Cheers,
Shaan

Another AutoCAD 2006 Dynamic Block White Paper Available

There are now 2 white papers published on the new AutoCAD 2006 feature Dynamic Blocks. These documents explain the feature, best practices, and tips and tricks to help get you started in using the powerful new feature. The information is from those requiring basic as well as advanced information. There is a part 3 to be published later and I will announce that one when available.

Part 1: Dynamic Block Overview and Quick-Start Tutorial
 
Part 2: Inventory of Block Editor, Commands, Parameters, Actions, and Parameter Sets

Link to Dynamic Block white paper series

Cheers
Shaan

50 hours from San Francisco to my destination....

A quick list of events:

• Depart San Francisco at 10:45AM for Chicago
• Depart Chicago for Amsterdam Netherlands
• Almost 3 hours into the 7 hour flight we are diverted for a problem to New York City JFK airport.
• Sit on the plane for 4 hours until we are provided with hotel rooms in New York City.
• I arrive at my room at 3AM Sunday. The hotel is 3 blocks from Times Square. Hotel and food compliments of the airline.
• Cant sleep so at 7AM I realize and am shocked there are no Internet connections in the hotel.
• Decide to walk around Manhattan until my rescheduled flight time of 6PM Sunday. See Times Square, Grand Central Station, Empire State Building, and the World Trade Center site.
• At 4PM I arrive back at JFK airport in New York City. The airline was great about this and could not avoid the inconvenience of the passengers. The problem was of all things a gas tank leak and not something that would be worthwhile continuing over open ocean or a quick band aid solution in New York.
• Original 6PM departure is delayed until 7:30PM because of plane traffic at JFK. Also confirmed the plane was a new one.
• Finally arrive in Amsterdam Netherlands at 8:30AM Monday (today) with very little sleep and with hundreds of kilometers to drive today.
• Depart for Zwarsluis for lunch and a few hours of sailing on a historic boat from 1856
• Have dinner in Ommen and realize that I am badly sunburned.
• Finally arrive at my hotel in Enschede many hours late and needing sleep and some planning time for some visits and meetings in the morning.
  
  I return this Friday and am trying to now repair my already compressed schedule which just got more compressed because of the flight problems. More details and photos later after I get some work done and then some much needed sleep. When I do post some of the photos, they will be located in my Image Gallery Daily Grind II.
  
  Shaan

Traveling this weekend to Europe

I am headed to the Netherlands today. After arriving in Amsterdam I will then be driving to a city on the German border named Enschede. Stay off the roads Sunday in the Netherlands as I will be tired from the long flight, jet lagged, and driving. :-)

Cheers,
Shaan

Autodesk Batch DWG Converter Beta

There is now a pre-release beta for a new Autodesk Batch Drawing Converter. The only difference from the existing Batch DWG Converter at http://www.autodesk.com/migrationtools is this version does not require any AutoCAD to be on the machine it is installed on. So now you can install on a machine with no AutoCAD on it and convert DWG files back and forth between R14 and the current versions of DWG used by AutoCAD 2006 using a native Autodesk tool.

To get involved with shaping the future of AutoCAD as well as testing this Stand Alone Batch DWG Converter or a upcoming AutoCAD 2006 Service Pack sign up at http://myfeedback.autodesk.com/.

Cheers,
Shaan

Over 7 Million DWF Viewer Downloads

In June 2005 we reached 7+ Million downloads of the DWF viewer. The monthly download rates are increasing. The number of people downloading the free Autodesk DWF Viewer continues to grow due to the popularity and benefits of the DWF format.

To put this in perspective, each of the following is roughly 7 million:

* The total population of Virginia; Oklahoma and Oregon combined; or Switzerland.

* The entire population the Roman Empire in 47 AD.

* If you had a US $1 bill for each download, the currency would weigh 14,000 pounds and would require 450,100 cubic inches of storage space. (Yeah, I wish I had a $1 for each download.)

* The number of pounds of prepared and ground mustard imported into the United States each year.

* The number of years ago that an ape-like creature (named "Toomai," by scientists, with distinctly human features) walked upright on the face of the earth.

* The number in miles of paved roads in the United States.

Thank you to all of the DWF users out there!

Sad day in London

My sincere sympathy goes out to all those affected by the heinous acts in London today.
Shaan

Lynn Allen posts her AutoCAD 2006 Tips and Tricks Booklet

Fellow Autodesk'er Lynn Allen has posted her very popular AutoCAD 2006 Tips and Tricks Booklet on her blog. This booklet was in so much demand during the recent Realize Your Ideas tour that I could not even get a printed version at the event.

Now you can print your own booklets from the posted PDF file. The booklet is full of great tips on many of the new features in AutoCAD 2006 and even some tips that apply to prior releases of AutoCAD.

Link to Booklet post by Lynn

Cheers,
Shaan

Download AutoCAD 2006

For those located in the United States and Canada, you can now download the AutoCAD 2006 trial product. AutoCAD 2006 trial is a full version but is time limited to 30 days. This gives you plenty of time to test out the new AutoCAD 2006 features like Dynamic Blocks, enhanced Tables, and more. You will need a broadband Internet connection to download the 337Mb file. For those outside the United States or Canada you can obtain the trial version of AutoCAD 2006 from your local Autodesk reseller.

http://www.autodesk.com/autocad-trial

Cheers,
Shaan

Upcoming AUGI CAD Camps

AUGI is putting on more CAD Camp events in 2005.

www.cadcamp.com

Orange County, CA USA
August 16th

Salt Lake City, UT USA
August 23rd

Columbus, OH USA
August 25th

Toronto, ON Canada
August 30th

Paramus, NJ USA
September 13th

Cleveland, OH USA
September 15th

Kansas City, MO USA
<Updated September 22nd>

Jacksonville, FL USA
September 27th

Boston, MA USA
September 29th

Denver, CO USA
October 25th

Be careful with fireworks...

I may be slow in posts this week...Yesterday was the US holiday the Fourth of July. On the Fourth of July there are lots of fireworks watched and also many light their own fireworks to celebrate the holiday.

I had an accident with a firework yesterday that has essentially left me with a bandage on my right hand for the next week or two covering a burn and also a free & unplanned hair cut. I was quite lucky that it was not worse and I did not lose anything and it is only effecting my ability to type. I can tell you that it definitely left a lasting impression on my children on what not to do with fireworks. I will never forget my daughters face after the mushroom cloud of smoke had cleared and there was her daddy with a shocked look on his face and covered in singed hair like a mad scientist. I know it sounds funny and I can laugh about it now.

Be safe when working/playing with fireworks and take them very seriously as they are not to be played with.

Now I have to get back to the ridicule treatment by my coworkers.
Shaan

Countdown to 6 weeks off

My employer Autodesk is generous in providing employees the time to wind down and regenerate the creative energy. Every 4 years Autodesk employees earn a six week sabbatical (time off). I have had one sabbatical while at Autodesk and did some camping with the family as well as just some relaxing time around the house. I am now starting to count down until I am eligible for my next sabbatical which is January 19th, 2006. I will probably take the sabbatical the summer of 2006 but I am not sure what I will be doing during this time.

Time until I am eligible for my next sabbatical:
6 months, 16 days
or 200 days
or 17,280,000 seconds
or 288,000 minutes
or 4,800 hours
or 28 weeks (rounded)