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Greetings!
Time to Upgrade...
If you are on subscription, whether or not to upgrade is
not a question. You can schedule the best time to
move your department or yourself over to the latest
release. If you are not on subscription, the issues are
basic...can you afford it? will it hurt your productivity
not to upgrade?
2007 introduces yet another file format. This means
other software products may have difficulty reading
your 2007 files...you can save down to a lower rev, but
that requires some thought on your part.
This issue and future issues will be talking about some
of the new features in the products. You may decide
you can wait for the 2008 release or you may find the
new features just too tasty to pass up.
A lot will depend on what your current tools are, what
your work is, and how deep your pockets
are...Autodesk is hoping that you all will join the party
and upgrade to this release. Email me and tell me what
you decide...
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How Problematic is the New File Format? |
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Save a drawing in ADT 2007 to 2004 format and you
will see a dialog pop up warning you that earlier
versions will not be able to open the drawing as an ADT
instead your AEC objects will be converted to proxy
objects.
For those users who are all too familiar with the proxy
dialog and the object enabler woes, this may be
enough of a problem that they will hold off on
upgrading until a few releases have passed.
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Installing AutoCAD 2007 |
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You may find that AutoCAD 2007 installs great, but
won't launch properly unless you have the latest
version of .net Framework installed from Microsoft.
Luckily, the software is free and easy to download and
install. So, if you are having problems getting AutoCAD
2007 up and running, try the download link below.
Why do you need this software? Because Autodesk
and Microsoft are partners. Part of that deal means
that Autodesk has agreed to make their software
comply with Microsoft software requirements (this is
why your templates are now stored under Documents &
Settings instead of under the Program Files where they
belong).
As Autodesk moves forward with new software
releases, expect their software and Microsoft's OS,
etc. to become more intertwined.
Download the latest .net Framework from Microsoft free »
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Dorothy, We're Not in Kansas Anymore.... |
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When you first launch AutoCAD 2007, it defaults to the
new 3D Modeling mode. This probably is not the
workspace you want to be in. I understand Autodesk
wants to show off the new 3D capability in AutoCAD,
but the reality is that if you are doing serious 3D
design, you have already moved over to ADT, Revit,
SolidWorks, Inventor, or some other 3D app.
For those of you who want to return to Kansas - the
warm and fuzzy world of 2D AutoCAD, where all "real"
drafting is done, I have written a short tutorial, or
roadmap, to guide you back to your comfort zone.
You can download it below.
Download a free tutorial on how to set 2007 back to AutoCAD 2D mode »
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Getting Rid of Tabs |
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2007 introduces the idea of a tab-free existence. You
can hide your layout and model tabs. This will be
especially appealing to those drafters who only use the
Model tab and never venture into paper space.
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Insert Here |
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Insert has even more options than before in 2007.
External References are now called DWG References.
You can now insert DWFs and DGN files as well.
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New Volume Property Now Available for Mass Objects |
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Check out the changes in the Properties dialog in ADT
2007...among the goodies, the volume of the mass
object is available.
For AEC pros, who need to calculate material usage by
volume (for concrete structures, for example) this is a
big bonus. Keep in mind that anything available on the
Properties dialog can be leveraged in your schedule.
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More Shading Options Now Available |
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ADT users are going to be extremely happy with the
new shading toolbar available in 2007.
2007 replaces Flat Shaded and Gourand with Realistic
and Conceptual. You also have a Visual Style Manager
tool where you can define your own defaults of how
you want your model to appear.
Download the tutorial below to learn how to use this
new tool in 2007. This tutorial is an excerpt from
Architectural Desktop 2007 Fundamentals text available
from Schroff Development Corp.
Learn how to Create a Visual Style »
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Dynamic Zoom Goes Va-Va-Voom in 2007 |
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In 2007, the Dynamic Zoom right click short-cut gives
you more options than ever - including the ability to
change the shading of your model on the fly.
You can also enable/disable the UCS/Grid/Compass(a
new feature) on the flyout for Visual Aids.
The Preset Views options takes you to the standard
pre-set views: front/back/top/bottom, etc. but now
they are literally a mouse-click away.
Play around with the new shortcut menu and you will
quickly wonder how you lasted so long without it.
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