Autodesk’s BIM solutions are part of Autodesk 360 for BIM, a comprehensive set of on-premise and in the cloud solutions that enable more efficient and document and project management of AEC projects.  These solutions consist of:

• Autodesk AEC Vault —  This solution lets teams manage and track digital models without leaving their BIM design tools, including Revit Architecture, Revit MEP, Revit Structure, AutoCAD Civil 3D and Navisworks.
• Autodesk Buzzsaw – A cloud-based project collaboration solution that provides secure exchange of designs, documents and information with external partners.
• Autodesk AutoCAD WS – a web and mobile platform based solution for reviewing DWG documents with multiple particpants across a range of platforms, including Apple’s iOS devices like iPad
• Autodesk 360 Nexus — introduced this week at AU, and initially ready for the manufacturing industry, it is also planned to support AEC workflow and business process management needs.

To learn more about Autodesk’s new 360 BIM initiatives you can read the released information online here.

Architosh Analysis

We think Autodesk’s cloud-based solutions are aimed in the right direction but this announcement consists of existing solutions stitched together rather than a completely new and integrated new software offering. Make no mistake about it, these tools combined do amount to opportunities for AEC businesses to streamline complex scenarios and information. But the solution many may be dreaming of is centralized, efficient, simplified and truly platform open and neutral. Vault for instance only runs on MS Windows. Parts of the collection of tools work on certain platforms and not others.

As many regular Architosh readers may be aware now, Autodesk has emerged as a major provider of Mac software tools for architects, designers and visualization professionals. In a string of acquisitions going back several years and in brand new code bases targeting both Mac and iOS, Autodesk has fast become one of Apple’s key software providers for professional and technical creative markets.

In this special interview Autodesk’s chief executive officer talks about the changing role the Mac and Apple are playing in CAD and 3D industries–those same industries that his company is largely responsible for serving and shaping. He also talks about iOS,  the iPad in particular and the nature of cloud computing.

The Interview

AFR: (Anthony Frausto-Robledo): The Mac and Apple in general have been exploding in growth over the past few years. Can you talk about what you see in the market and how this is affecting Autodesk?

(CB): (Carl Bass): It is highly desirable by a number of our customers, particularly in some specific segments, to want to work on Macs. One is architects, two is industrial designers and the third are creative digital artists. In all three of those markets we’ve made most of our products available on the Mac–not all, but most. I’d like to get more products there [on the Mac platform]. It is really all driven by what our customers want and they have spoken pretty loudly. They want to work on the Mac.

AFR: So that explains the markets and the demands. Can you talk about synergies between Apple’s technologies and maybe Autodesk’s technologies…and what that can do for your products in terms of differentiating them in the market place?

CB: In terms of synergies between them and us, going forward, it is with some of the new applications we are building for the iOS devices.  So, when you look at the tablets and the phones, for example. And there are two aspects that are really appealing to our customers. One is the sense of being able to take their data anywhere…because it has always been an issue with architects, engineers and designers–how do I take my work out of the office? And the second thing is the ability to use their data and design work with newer interfaces like Multi-touch. And we’ve built a number of applications to respond to that.  One is SketchBook Pro and the other AutoCAD WS. One is a true CAD application and the other an inking illustration application.  And both are incredibly popular and one of the things that sets them apart is the Multi-touch and the unique UI they employ.

AFR: Right, so iOS and the Multi-touch in particular. Things that Apple might bring to the table you are keen to take advantage of.

next page: Bass discusses acquisitions and cloud computing

iPad Will Change Course of Computing

“We believe iPad is going to drive as much innovation in the CAD space as the original PC did back in the 1980’s,” stated Royal Farros, Chairman and CEO of IMSI/Design. “Because of the amazing portability, battery life, and Multi-touch display of iPad, an architect, designer or engineer can spend all day viewing even the largest 3D plans right on site…even view plans while walking around a building site. That simply can’t be done with existing PC technology.”

01 - IMSI TurboViewer is first 3D capable DWG and DXF file viewer on iPad.

Architosh has spent some time playing with TurboViewer recently and the application is quick, nimble and useful. “We built TurboViewer from the ground up for iPad… but what we’ve found is TurboViewer may be the fastest 2D and 3D drawing viewer on any platform,” added Farros.

TurboViewer Capabilities

• Fast native 2d and 3d .DWG (Autodesk AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT) and .DXF file viewing
• Unique time-savers: able to navigate full-screen preview during file load; Cancel errant file load
• Smooth Apple Multi-touch navigation while panning, zooming, and orbiting
• Restore saved AutoCAD views to quickly display the best vision of your design
• Supports AutoCAD linetypes to maintain visual fidelity as intended
• Autosense 2d and 3d drawings to automatically set appropriate gesture navigation of a drawing or model
• Doesn’t require internet connection for remote field work

TurboViewer is the first in a series of next-generation apps designed specifically for the AEC market, aimed at Apple iPad, says company. Pricing for this version is free and it can be obtained at the iTunes App Store.

To learn more visit: www.IMSIdesign.com/TurboViewer

Buzzsaw Mobile allows users to view DWF files, standard office documents and images files, as well as upload project photos to a designated Buzzsaw project site. When used in conjunction with the Autodesk WS mobile app, iPad and iPhone users can view and edit AutoCAD DWG and DXF files and save the changes to a Buzzsaw project site, directly from AutoCAD WS. Buzzsaw Mobile is a key component of the Autodesk BIM 360 (Building Information Modeling) strategy for collaboration and data management for the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC industries.

01 - Autodesk Buzzsaw Mobile runs on Apple's iOS iPad and iPhone.

“Buzzsaw Mobile helps deliver on our Autodesk BIM 360 vision for ‘anywhere access’ to project data,” said Rick Rundell, senior director, AEC strategic technology, Autodesk. “Together with Autodesk Vault Collaboration AEC software, AutoCAD WS mobile app and Autodesk Navisworks software products, Buzzsaw Mobile helps provide building, infrastructure and plant project teams with a complete and more accurate digital view of their project, with access to information across the project lifecycle from whever they need it–the office, the web, or the field.”

The Cloud and Apple iOS

Autodesk Buzzsaw software is a cloud-based project collaboration and document management system (PCDM). It is an industry dedicated system, more like Rform rather than CopperProject or Basecamp. It allows architects, engineers and contractors to focus more on project delivery and less on time costly traditional methods for collaboration and document sharing.

It is interesting to see Autodesk continue to round out its mobile strategy around Apple iOS. Although the company has started to produce some Android apps, the company now has over a half dozen critical Apple iOS apps and they broadly support the heartland of Autodesk’s software portfolio.

To learn more visit them here.

DraftSight is currently in a public late beta and Dassault is encouraging users to join the online DraftSight community while they learn about and use DraftSight. To learn more visit this web page.

This version of AutoCAD software is written natively to take full advantage of Apple’s Mac OS X platform. Autodesk is making a free 30-day trial of AutoCAD for Mac available for download and will offer free educational licenses to students and educators.

01 - Screen image of the new AutoCAD for Mac.

AutoCAD for Mac is also integrated with Autodesk’s new AutoCAD WS cloud-based CAD platform and enables Mac AutoCAD users to share their designs online and then access them through the web or via Apple’s iOS devices like the iPad using the free AutoCAD WS Mobile software application.

Students and educators should visit this link for more.

To learn more visit: http://bit.ly/AutoCADMACTrial

Now why would that be important?

The short answer is because back then it appeared to the CAD world that Autodesk would never fulfill so many Mac users’ dreams of being able to work with native DWG files on the Mac. The long answer, of course, delves into the nitty gritty details of how Autodesk competitors–on and off the Mac–affectively must deal with a de facto file format standard for computer-aided design information. In the CAD world five years ago, and still very much today, the DWG file format still rules the roost.

For the last 10+ years, since Architosh has been a publication, Mac users in the CAD and 3D markets have been clamoring for a return of AutoCAD to the Mac. When Apple announced in the late 1990’s that they were going to develop a UNIX-based operating system with the famed Mac user-interface on top many had assumed that even long-time Windows-centric developers, rich with deep pockets due to market dominance, would spend the effort and the money on creating new native applications for Apple’s shiny new OS. Well, that did–and did not–happen. For industry design software giant Autodesk, it didn’t.

While industry newcomers like @Last Software with its now famous SketchUp (later acquired by Google) made early decisions to embrace Apple’s award-winning Mac OS X operating system, and important veterans in 3D verticals like Alias embraced the Mac with Maya, Autodesk decided to stay on the sidelines.

As we will learn in this detailed feature interview–exclusive not because Autodesk only wanted to talk to us (though they spoke to us very early) but because of the rare information contained within–the design software giant didn’t ignore the Mac platform because they hated Apple or were a puppet giant of Microsoft but rather because too many of their customers simply didn’t care for Steve Jobs’ beloved Mac platform.

This is important because contrary to some CAD industry observers, pundits and even analysts today–who believe Autodesk is gambling or speculating on Apple–the CAD giant has made the decision to support the Mac with AutoCAD precisely because of market facts and forces.

Fact. Apple’s Mac platform has been growing at about 33 percent year over year, a faster rate than the rest of the PC industry for 18 straight quarters. Fact. The Mac installed base is now 50 million users. Fact. Autodesk’s own customers are both interested in, investing in and asking for Mac software. Fact. Apple is the undisputed leader in new mobile platforms with its iOS in the iPhone and iPad. Force. Apple has become a technology superpower able to punch hard in the highest weight classes across most any market it wishes to turn its attention to.

With these types of market realities at play it makes perfect sense why a company with pockets as deep as Autodesk would return to the Mac. What doesn’t make sense is why some of their key competitors haven’t also come to the same conclusions. What follows below is a detailed discussion by Rob Maguire, AutoCAD for Mac Product Manager, about how Autodesk made this fateful decision to return to the Mac.

01 - Screen image of the new AutoCAD for Mac. The program features a very clean, dark and adjustable attractive user-interface (UI) with native Aqua Mac OS X elements.

Interview

AFR: (Anthony Frausto-Robledo): You guys did a pretty good job keeping this secret for quite awhile. When and how did it start?

RM (Rob Maguire): We started a few years ago…slowly. We started with our existing customers.

AFR: How so?

RM: We began with a group of 60 customers who we knew were Mac people in nature.

AFR: Were these Autodesk customers or AutoCAD customers or both?

On the Mac

Ralph has never minced words about not liking Apple and its leader Steve Jobs. And for that he is like many. But Ralph as of late has been riding the Mac waves quite a bit and that alone suggests things are changing. Of course some of this is because Apple dominates the IT media so heavily now that you simply cannot exist as a technology writer and not mention them. And when others like you (and no, that would not be me…) typically also resist mentioning Apple but suddenly find themselves doing so with increased velocity you simply have no choice.

So at this point in time Ralph Grabowski simply has no choice on the Mac. The Mac matters now, period and his writings are reflecting that.

Mac Hype

Some of Ralph’s fans will want to argue my view and say, no they (Apple/Mac) don’t yet truly matter. It’s still all hype! But they do if you can’t escape arguing or talking about them! And, no, this is not celebrity hype, like talking about Paris Hilton. If it is hype it’s more like Windows Vista hype. The kind of hype that lands on the ground and shakes it a good bit, the kind that very few can truly avoid the impact of.

I have another proposal for Apple if we want to contend that the Mac in CAD, or in enterprise in general, is more hype than reality…and that is its comparison to the green movement and global warming. For some, with particular political leanings, global warming and the whole sustainability movement is more hype than reality…more fad than fact.

When numbers, especially when they are small, are correlated to a change event the decision to believe they are actually responsible or indicative of the reality of that event is often highly debated and politically charged.

Take the illegal alien issue in the US. Though their numbers are still relatively small (estimated at 7-20 million) some will argue that those 6 percent illegals represent a dramatic change, while others will acknowledge while there exist a problem it isn’t significant like the other group makes it out to be. So who is right? Does dramatic growth matter when we are still talking about single digital representation or not?

Common sense and a lot of chatter with others has taught me that the answer depends entirely on what people want for themselves and want to believe. For those in the CAD industry who see the Mac as some foreigner that doesn’t speak their language that single digit and growing market percentage isn’t representative of a notable change in the IT climate but rather a temporary fad or response to hype in the marketplace.

Yes, Autodesk has produced a native version of AutoCAD for the Mac, and yes there exist at least 5000 who say they want SolidWorks on the Mac, but to so many CAD veterans in this industry–like Grabowski–how you view Apple and the Mac’s growth is entirely similar to how you view similar trends based on growing but yet still modest or even nascent numbers. In other words, you pick what you want to believe based on how it suits you.

The Mac at Grabowski

Ralph doesn’t get was is so G-r-r-eat about Macs yet! But it doesn’t matter if he gets or doesn’t get it, if he likes and champions them, or if he criticizes them until the cows come home. Like it or not Macs are here! And more and more people are preferring them, especially younger generations. Additionally, as was so convincingly described in Clayton Christensen’s best-selling book The Innovator’s Dilemma, companies that solely look to just serving the needs of their current customers risk missing macro trends that will eventually leave them out in the cold.

Like others, Grabowski is talking about the Mac a lot lately, and with increasing velocity. Back in September he wrote a post questioning where the market is for AutoCAD on the Mac. At this point he must have already been writing a book on AutoCAD for the Mac (which is on sale already) but we’ll skip past that tidbit for now. His blog post on not getting what’s so great about Macs has gotten a lot of attention for sure, both in defense of Ralph and against his opinions.

A post about the 5000 petitions for SolidWorks on the Mac was also of interest last year. His post about options and helping people do CAD on the Mac this summer was also of note. This post was titled “Experiencing CAD on the Mac.”

The bottom line is Grabowski is writing a heck of a lot about the Mac lately, and with increasing frequency and intensity. All of which, of course, is good for the Mac. I say this because Ralph Grabowski has weight in this industry. People respect his views and read his blog and site regularly. If he is giving new attention to Apple and Jobs, it means things are changing, period. Where they are changing can be debated, but I am pretty sure the trending is good for the Mac in CAD, with or without Grabowski’s platform blessings!

AutoCAD for Mac

AutoCAD for Mac has an intuitive user-interface (UI) that will feel familiar to Mac users. The fully native OS X software takes advantage of Mac OS X’s core features and technology, including items like Cover Flow and the use of Apple’s innovative Multi-touch gesture interface technology for pan and zoom on Mac notebooks, Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad.

Styles & Wood, the United Kingdom’s leading provider of property services for retailers, banks and commercial organizations, is one of the more than 5,000 participants who took part in the AutoCAD for Mac beta program. “We’ve been waiting a long time for AutoCAD to come back to the Mac,” said Andrew Handley, CAD development manager. “Our experience has been that AutoCAD for the Mac is similar enough to the PC version that the transition is easy. We’ve found it to be a very powerful and reliable product that has all the functionality we need.”

AutoCAD for the Mac compliments Autodesk’s new AutoCAD WS for Apple’s iOS devices like iPhone and iPad. From within the new CAD app you can automatically send drawings up out to the host for viewing via Autodesk’s new AutoCAD WS mobile application or web version (formerly Project Butterfly).

To learn more about AutoCAD for Mac OS X go here to the official product page.

Editor’s note:

We have a couple of blog posts about this announcement that many will find intersting. The first one is here:

http://architosh.com/2010/10/notes-on-autocad-for-mac/

What’s Really Hot in SketchUp 8

For quite awhile now modeling pros have talked up SketchUp’s famed ease-of-use but often criticized its lack of being a true solids modeler. New in SketchUp 8 are Solid Tools, only available in the Pro version. We are not sure yet how the company added “true solids”….whether they wrote their own modeling kernel or have incorporated a third-party modeling engine.

The Solid Tools in SketchUp 8 Pro will allow faster and more capable modeling, featuring union intersects, deletes, adds, subtracts, splits and trims. There is a video of some of these tools in action here.

Also very powerful in the pro version are several features aimed at helping modeling be faster and more precise, integrating with other professional tools and working with angles. In Pro you now have precise move options in LayOut so you can create custom snap points. Pro also features the latest AutoCAD DWG/DXF 2010 formats for import/export. This extends to LayOut 3 where you can export your drawings from LayOut 3 into other programs like AutoCAD or DWG/DXF capable CAD systems.

There are several new features that all SketchUp users will find important right away. Back Edges turns obscured edges into dashed lines and forms an alternative to X-Ray view mode. SketchUp 8 now has Push/Pull pre-selected faces, which helps you confirm the face you are affecting. Entity Info now displays volume data and reports it in SketchUp Pro. And finally another Pro features is that  Dashed Lines are fully configurable in LayOut 3 in the Pro version.

Other Key Features

Maps have now been built right into SketchUp 8, making geo-location based information easy to incorporate. This will be immensely useful to urban designers and architects who want to work with accurate site and map data with their designs. And aerial imagery is now in color in included 3D terrain data.

Match Photo has had some minor improvements to make it easier to generate models from tracing photos imported into SketchUp.

SketchUp  8 has a new compliment in Google’s Building Maker tool. Building Maker is a tool for modeling buildings and adding them to Google Earth. You select a city in the world, build your model from photos Google provides, and then save your building for review for inclusion in Google Earth.

There are several new videos of the new Google SketchUp 8. Visit this page to find out more information.

Marking a 16 Year Absence

That the company would produce such a savvy TV style commercial is not surprising given the amount of engineering effort that was required to implement the new native Mac OS X software for the return to Apple’s famed platform. What is, perhaps, a bit surprising is just how well the CAD giant has captured the spirit of Apple’s own ads.

01 - Screen capture image of the TV ad's opening frames.

The ad features an all new iMac prominently front and center while office workers from what looks like a typical architectural firm, begin to mingle and stand around the iMac. Accompanied by a very catching soundtrack (at this time we have not determined who has produced this song and who the singer/artist is and whether or not it is original) the whole commercial seems to capture the heartfelt wait and return of AutoCAD to the Mac platform by imagining its absence by focusing in on an Apple devotee’s workstation. In the spot the workstation features an iMac launching the new AutoCAD software and a vintage 90’s Apple coffee mug. The mug signifies Apple’s Mac past while marking the presence of a stalwart devotee of the Mac platform.

02 - For a few seconds in the early section of the new ad and old Apple coffee mug--very popular in the 90's--is seen next to the telephone and computer. The clever device marks nostalgia and dovotee-ism all at the same time.

The slick video also does a remarkable good job of showcasing the product’s strengths as a 3D application with several neat looking angles on various content produced by AutoCAD 2011 for Mac. For example it shows that the product is capable of hosting several viewports of your design content simultaneously.

03 - sophisticated computer graphics, no doubt partly produced on Autodesk's treasure trove of media applications, draw the eye into AutoCAD 2011 for Mac's slick interface.

It is completely unclear as to whether or not this very well executed video is going to make it to the television screen or just live on the Web. We would imagine that the company would at least run a 30-second version of it on TV in the near future.

We also believe that this new set of applications (remember the company is not just returning AutoCAD to Mac OS X, but has delivered a version to the iOS platform) may show up soon for Apple’s planned September iOS announcement. We just cannot picture Steve Jobs talking about updated iOS devices (iPods and iPads for sure…) without showcasing Autodesk’s new wares.

To see the full video go here.

“The release of AutoCAD for the Mac marks the return of professional design and engineering software to the Mac platform and an important convergence of power and design,” said Amar Hanspal, senior vice president, Autodesk Platform Solutions and Emerging Business. “Over 5000 customers have helped develop this product through our beta program and they are delighted to have the choice of a native Mac version of AutoCAD.”

Code Name Sledgehammer

AutoCAD 2011 for Mac was code-named Sledgehammer. After a 16 year absence the company has come back to the Apple platform in the correct way, embracing Apple’s phenomenal Multi-touch gesture technology on Mac notebooks like the popular MacBook and MacBook Pro, in addition to the Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad just recently introduced.

01 - AutoCAD 2011 on the Mac. Autodesk makes huge announcement about this new software tile, marking a significant return back to Apple's platform.

Apple’s Coverflow is supported and the company has done an admirable job with its graphic user interface for the program, including the adjustability of its colors (two-toned approach). The UI is dark and gray like many leading rival 3D and CAD applications on both the Mac and other platforms. The dark interface makes the content window more clear while diminishing eye-strain due to screen brightness.

AutoCAD 2011 for Mac works across platform for DWG file sharing. Users can open up AutoCAD files that were created by Windows AutoCAD users and vice versa. Additionally, older version of AutoCAD files will also open in AutoCAD 2011 for Mac and the company has shared with Architosh that they have worked extensively on the API for customization and third-party integration. Several big third-party AutoCAD software vendors are preparing native versions of their software for AutoCAD 2011 Mac.

AutoCAD WS

Autodesk announced AutoCAD WS as well. This new mobile application is a new free app that will be available from Apple’s App Store for sharing and editing AutoCAD files on the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch for real-time collaboration on the go.

Both AutoCAD 2011 for Mac and AutoCAD WS will be available in North America and Europe sometime between this announcement and October. Users can pre-order the app starting Wednesday, September 1.

So we booked a Web meeting. And we met. And what was presented was very interesting, different…and future-oriented!

Background: An Israeli Story

Project Butterfly is led by Tal Weiss, who is its software development manager and director of Autodesk’s AutoCAD Israel R&D facility. Weiss–who led the Web meeting–explained that he was the former co-founder and CEO of a software company called VisualTao, based out of Tel-Aviv, Israel. Its main product, VisualTao (same name) featured an innovative web-based interface that enabled users of design software to work together over the Net.

From what we have learned Autodesk acquired PlanPlatform (whose previous name was VisualTao) last year, giving the CAD giant its first Web-enabled collaborative platform. And according to an article from Israel, the American CAD giant now looks to utilize Weiss’ unit as the beginnings of an Israeli research and development center.

Part of Autodesk’s discovery in Israel was that the high-tech country is a world-leader in “cloud-computing” and online applications and services. And according to this article on the Web Autodesk probably isn’t stopping at its acquisition of PlanPlatform.

VisualTao Becomes A Butterfly

Cloud-computing and software as a service (SaaS) is where the applications world is moving. Even in the intensely complex and file-heavy CAD world. This was a notable topic in the CAD industry even as far back as 2007 at COFES. With rivals publicly displaying the beginnings of their Web-enabled and cloud-computing technology it only makes sense that Autodesk would move in this direction. It has started by focusing on its flagship program–AutoCAD.

The VisualTao technology is today implemented in its most mature state as Autodesk Butterfly, a Web-application that enables users to view, edit and share their Autodesk AutoCAD drawings. Tal Weiss explained that Autodesk Butterfly works with any modern web browser on all the major computing platforms. This includes Google’s Chrome and the Linux platform in addition to Windows and the Mac. (see image 01)

01 - Autodesk Project Butterfly. Former VisualTao technology from Israeli company powers Autodesk's Web-application and works identically on Mac, Linux and Windows platforms.

As you can see from the image above Project Butterfly–which is an open beta totally free for people to use and try out–is an actual CAD application that will run on your Mac. The part that we need to emphasize at this moment however is that Butterfly doesn’t allow you to create files with it. So no, for the Mac user reading this don’t get too excited that Project Butterfly is a new substitute for a native Mac version of AutoCAD that isn’t yet available. It isn’t!

However, make no bones about it, everything you can do with Project Butterfly on Internet Explorer on Windows you can also do on the Mac (or Linux).

Three Principles About Butterfly

Tal Weiss said that basically Autodesk Project Butterfly is like Google Docs for CAD folks. There are three key principles behind the purpose of the technology and application.

The first principle is the ability to access your content from anywhere. Weiss explained that in today’s market with the advent of social media and cloud-computing people are growing to expect access to their content and applications from just about anywhere…on a multitude of devices. “People no longer want to be tied down to a specific location to get their work done,” he said.

02 - Butterfly has a file manager view that lists all your drawings, enables folder organization and indicates graphically if items are "shared."

The second principle is to use the Web as a collaborative medium. “It means being able to work together,” said Weiss, “because everything we do in design is usually in a collaboration with others.” What Project Butterfly does is provide a way for multiple users to literally collaborate in real-time on the same drawing file. (see image 02 and 04 below)

When collaborating with users in Butterfly one takes over control of an object when one clicks on it. The program negotiates and manages this process.

Lastly, the third principle behind Project Butterfly is the support for storing “timeline-based” discussions and previous saved states of a drawing. Butterfly saves meeting discussion transcripts as well as older version states of your drawings. You have the option for downloading this saved-state material to your desktop at anytime. And you can revert to older states of a drawing.

These three primary principles are driving the focus of the Web application. And so far the thousands of users who have taken part in the open beta are enjoying where the technology is going.

We’ve been getting tons of emails over the weekend about the new screenshots and video of AutoCAD Sledgehammer Beta for Mac. Earlier in the year we reported on other rumors of Autodesk planning to release its flagship program (AutoCAD) for the Mac. This time the evidence continues to pile up and aligns with multiple changes we continue to see in the market and even with items said and intimated by Carl Bass, Autodesk’s CEO. More on that in a minute.

Sledgehammer – What Is It?

Sledgehammer appears to be the code name for either the first native version of AutoCAD for Mac in more than 18 years or the specific beta phase name. We think possibly the former. The sighting was first tipped off to us by readers who pointed us to enthusiast site Italiamac.it. Within its forums was a post that said basically (translated from the Italian) “I managed to get a beta of Mac AutoCAD showing some first screen shots.”

01- Sledgehammer version of AutoCAD for Mac Beta. Autodesk appears to be serious about producing a native version of its flagship design CAD program for Apple's platform after being not available for over 18 years.

The images have since been removed from the site and replaced by images containing the following text in Italian: “Questa immagine e stata rimossa dallo staff a seguito di una richiesta non-ostile proveniente da una persona legata all’azienda produttrice. Ci scusiamo con i nostri utenti. Lo staff di Italiamac.” The Google translation is approximately:  This image has been removed from the team following a non-hostile request from a person connected to the company that produced them.”

Meanwhile, over at YouTube there is a video of the new Sledgehammer Beta. Very professionally produced, this video highlights Mac-specific features in AutoCAD Sledgehammer for dealing with Apple’s Magic Mouse and Multi-touch interface technology on trackpads.

What We Can Tell

We have no information from Autodesk on what Sledgehammer is. Since this emerged for us over the weekend we’ll have to wait until the upcoming week to try to contact the company for an explanation. Interestingly, Architosh just had a private WebEx meeting with Autodesk a week ago (on a related product) and there was no mention of a native way to produce a DWG file on a Mac from within an Autodesk software program. We note this because, as you will read shortly in our upcoming feature, this was a shortcoming of the product that was previewed for us.

The images of AutoCAD Sledgehammer for Mac beta have been taken down from the site from which they first appeared but they can be found on other sites and publications. The AppleLounge.com seems to have most of the images we have seen out in the wild. Macstories.net has some additional images, including one focused on the Apple Multi-touch technologies.

From what we have scanned and picked up off the Net, AutoCAD Sledgehammer is a true 64-bit, Cocoa-based application. Why do we think its Cocoa-based? Very simply, we don’t believe it is possible to produce a full fledged 64-bit Mac app that has standard Aqua interface and Cocoa UI without using Apple’s xCode development environment. Also, we have been told by those in the know that Autodesk would need to rewrite AutoCAD for the Mac from the ground-up–which is partly why the company has not produced it sooner.

This is not AutoCAD LT either. It appears to have full-fledged 2D and 3D features. In fact you can see the 3D functionality right away in the YouTube video mentioned above. It also has a Command Line option.

[Editor's note: some key comments on this story on below in the Comments area.]

Autodesk AutoCAD 2011 Mac Beta

Over at Outside the Box, a blog on AutoCAD and ObjectARX, Owen Wengerd has discussed the evidence of a native Mac port in the works by examining some of the latest ObjectARX 2011 SDK (software development kit) header files. This type of nosing around and discovering “code comments” to learn about what may be coming down the pike is what Apple fans often do to figure out the future of the Mac, iPhone or iPad OS.

Blurry screen image of possible Autodesk AutoCAD 2011 Mac Beta.

Evidence of a Mac port comes in the form both comments and changes made to the files so that they can work with the GCC compiler and the Mac OS X libraries. Some of the code looks as follows:

#if defined(_WINDEF_) || defined(_ADESK_MAC_)

/* AutoCAD graphics window handle */

HWND adsw_acadMainWnd();

#ifndef adsw_hwndAcad

#define adsw_hwndAcad adsw_acadMainWnd()

#endif

And in another file (acedinpt.h) there’s more telling evidence of the Mac:

#ifndef _ADESK_MAC_

#ifndef ACAD_PORT

#ifdef ACAD_API

#define ACAD_PORT _declspec(dllexport)

#else

#define ACAD_PORT

#endif

#endif

#else

// On OS X, we will export all symbols by default and will use GCC

// attributes to exclude symbols we don’t want to export.

// In this case, we do want to export the AcEdInputPoint symbol

#define ACAD_PORT

#endif // _ADESK_MAC_

Wengerd writes that it is clear that “Autodesk has successfully built a limited executable of AutoCAD for OS X” in both 32 and 64-bit forms. It is not clear to us how he can determine the bit-ness of these possible early builds unless he has a copy of the beta itself. He writes that changes do “break binary compatibility for ObjectARX applications” and thus “no full-blown Mac port” can be near.

There are several source of this information on the Net, including Wengerd’s blog here, a summary at Hardmac.com and the screen capture from this site, which published a “no” article to Autodesk developing a native Mac port.

Thanks to reader David Chaney for pointing this all out to us.

ARES CAD

ARES is the first CAD software to run natively across all three major operating systems: Windows, Mac and Linux. It is optimized for each respective platform and utilizes special features of each OS. According to the company ARES will be 3-5 times faster in operations such as open and save than other rival CAD packages. It will include its built-in VoiceNotes features for attaching notes to specific files, as well as 3D modeling features compliments of its ACIS geometry kernel and AutoCAD-compatible command line scripts.

ARES will include support for AutoCAD DWG 2009 and DWG 2010 native file formats, plus PDF, SVG, DXF, SAT, WMF, SLD, ESRI SHP and more file formats. It features over 400 commands and it extensible via Lisp, C, Delph, and C++.

ARES will ship in two versions. ARES for 495.USD and ARES Commander Edition for 995.USD. To learn more visit them on the web here.

Earlier in the year Autodesk announced official support for the Mac via Apple’s Boot Camp software. Back in July Apple was pleased to hear Autodesk announce official support for supporting Windows-only Autodesk software via Apple’s Boot Camp technology which enables Macs to run Windows operating systems in a dual-boot configuration. 

Support via Virtualization: Officially!

Now Autodesk officially extends Mac support beyond Boot Camp embracing the Mac with Parallels Desktop for Mac. The design software giant will officially support AutoCAD software, AutoCAD LT, Autodesk Inventor Professional, Autodesk 3ds Max and Autodesk Revit. 

According to information that Architosh has obtained, Autodesk Revit is the most popular Autodesk application running on Apple hardware. 

“Autodesk customers are increasingly working with both Mac and Windows, and have asked us to support Mac virtualization,” said Chris Bradshaw, Autodesk chief marketing officer. “Today we are pleased to welcome Parallels as a partner and Parallels Desktop as our preferred Mac virtualization software.” ”This is the latest step in Autodesk’s ongoing efforts to support our customers on the Mac, who will now be able to use some of our most popular 2D and 3D design, engineering and entertainment software alongside Mac OS X, in addition to the five native Mac applications we currently offer.”

Actually, the number of native Mac applications exceeds five. This new or updated web page on Autodesk’s site lists a total of nine native Mac applications spanning 3D and design, engineering, and film and media. They also include items like Autodesk Combustion and Autodesk Alias software, in addition to the five mentioned by Chris Bradshaw. 

Parallels Continues to Open Up the Mac World

As expected for quite some time, Parallels and its virtualization technology are key enablers for Windows developers to segue over to Mac support and eventually Mac development. That is a process that is underway not just at Autodesk but in many software companies. 

“Parallels Desktop for Mac enables over two million users to run Windows-based applications seamlessly and simply on their Mac,” said Serguei Beloussov, chief executive officer of Parallels. “Autodesk has a long history of creating innovative and industry-leading software for design, engineering and entertainment, and we’ve heard many requests from customers interested in using their Autodesk applications with Parallels. We are delighted to partner with Autodesk to help make this software more broadly available to the Mac community.”

The list of native Mac OS X products has grown rapidly recently as Autodesk customers have driven demand for Mac support. Autodesk Alias Design and Alias Surface are two such products where demand prompted the company to support Mac OS X natively. Other native products came to Autodesk through acquisitions, such as Autodesk ImageModeler, Autodesk Stitcher Unlimited and Autodesk Mudbox. 

Autodesk Supports Boot Camp

To expand its support of Mac users Autodesk has officially announced support for running its Windows applications under Windows with Apple’s Boot Camp dual-boot technology. Since modern Macs today run the same processors as Windows PCs all of Apple’s computers can be setup to run Windows either under virtualization (which is a software process) or directly on the hardware under a dual-boot configuration known as Boot Camp. 

With Boot Camp Autodesk is announcing support of AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor and Autodesk 3ds Max, three of its most popular products. Additionally, Autodesk Revit Architecture, Autodesk Revit Structure and Autodesk Revit MEP are also supported. 

To read the full announcement and listing of applications go here.

First, there are many applications that cannot benefit from 3D, for example, schematics. Secondly, there is a basic tradeoff to be made before jumping into 3D. What types of work does the user do? What are the benefits of 3D for that type of work? And what are the costs to get there and to perform the work in 3D? Let’s look at a few examples:

Store or distribution center layout comes to mind. The store is built and the walls are up. Now it is time for the merchandisers to decide where to put which department, where to locate the display devices, how traffic will flow and the like. This has always been done in 2D for good reason. It is quicker, easier, more suited to the type of people who do the work, and it works! While it might be interesting to be able to “walk through” a 3D model of the store, does that benefit outweigh the cost? Usually not. It is way more important to have a great, accurate library of symbols to be quickly grabbed and placed precisely on the 2D layout.

01 - Tom Lazear would argue that in many cases such as working drawing level documentation for landscape design, there is little value in 3D over 2D CAD.

How about sports complexes? Sagamore Publishers’ classic book, “Facilities Planning for Health, Fitness and Sports,” edited by Thomas Sawyer, is a good example. They include a copy of VersaCAD 2D with each book knowing that 2D is all that is required to layout a new badminton court. Mechanical part and assembly design was one of the earliest applications to go to 3D. And with software like Solid Edge or SolidWorks, 3D is good. However, there are still simpler applications where 2D can do the job just fine, such as parts that are manufactured by 2.5D including flat parts with holes, flat parts with cutouts and more.

Civil always works in what looks like 2D, but is actually backed by 3D models. Architecture has been a favorite target for 3D or BIM software. It just seems logical that a building which is naturally a 3D object should be designed in 3D. And, of course, all buildings are and always have been designed in 3D. The question is whether the design should continue to be in the mind of the architect or on the computer. The next question is how to display the design in a fashion that is easily understood, economically prepared and satisfactory for building from.

02 - A sample VersaCAD produced architectural elevation at working drawing level.

There is an argument that , for simpler buildings, experienced architects can move more quickly using their collection of information such as standard details, previous projects, catalogs and the like, than they can putting all of that information into a computer. Here again, there are complex, multi-designer projects where the overhead work of dealing with the computer can pay off large benefits when everyone works off a common 3D model. But that argument does not apply for a number of simpler, smaller architectural projects.  Certainly, if industry standards are enforced which requires all buildings must be done in 3D, then the architect has no choice but to adapt or run the risk of not being awarded projects.

So the bottom line is the user needs to make a business decision based on facts and not marketing hype. Here is a short outline on how that analysis might be performed:

Investment Necessary

Benefits to be Derived

• If GSA (or other dictated) – have to do it
• If multi-designer – better coordination
• If owner accepts idea – fewer change-orders
• Earlier – more accurate estimates
• If done right – maybe more satisfied customers

What is above is just an outline. Your own analysis will add detail and other bullet points. When you look closely at what is the true return-on-investment for moving from 2D CAD to 3D CAD/BIM you may be surprised. The point is, to do an honest analysis with no preconceived notions of where you want to arrive. If the rate of return is high, then by all means make the investment to move to a 3D BIM model. If on the other hand the return on investment is not there, then continue to stick with 2D CAD. The benefits of that strategy are typically–again an outline:

• Easier to find capable employees
• Less costly hardware necessary for 2D CAD
• Much less costly 2D CAD software
• Less costly employees
• Think about the project and less about the complex computer software

The bottom line is: there is a case for 2D CAD in a 3D BIM world. While the industry is currently in transition, this means that part of the world benefits more from 2D and part of it benefits more from 3D. You have to evaluate yourself and your business and learn what side best still serves you. 

If you do stick with 2D CAD, there are several excellent choices on the Mac (and Windows). If you do stick wtih 2D CAD, VersaCAD for Mac is an excellent choice!

About Viewpoint Articles: Viewpoint articles are features contributed by industry professionals across the entire range of disciplines covered by Architosh. They are aimed at being “instructional” or “position papers” directed at advantages of technologies, configurations, services, or solutions. They are authored by industry professionals who are directors, providers, experts, teachers and thought-leaders within their industry. To inquire about contributing a Viewpoint article please email us at: info@architosh.com

Readers have been informing us of a new survey from Autodesk that can be found for subscribers logging into Autodesk websites. As we mentioned back at January’s Macworld Conference and Expo in San Francisco, the company’s complexion towards the Mac has been changing dramatically of the course of the past year.

Next Generation Products for OS X

The new survey asks those interested to help Autodesk shape next generation Autodesk products for Apple’s OS X operating system. The survey is particularly aimed at gauging interest in a new version of AutoCAD. 

Readers have commented that they feel Autodesk should be asking about Revit instead, but after looking at the survey questions ourselves it is clear that Autodesk is gauging interest in AutoCAD on the Mac across a broad array of industries, not just Architecture. In particular we feel that the company is looking at the broad array of 2D CAD users out there who likely are not ready or just not candidates to move into the world of 3D CAD.