Autodesk has released the AutoCAD WS application for Apple’s iOS platform (iPhone and iPad). The application enables you to view, edit and share DWG drawings uploaded to your free AutoCAD WS online workspace.
Using the touch gesture interface of your iPad or iPhone you can accurately view, annotate and revise drawings wherever you are in the field or remote offices. The application is designed to allow you to work on your favorite mobile devices while you are away from your primary workstation or computer.
AutoCAD WS supports all aspects of your DWG file, including external references, layers and image underlays. You use Multi-touch to zoom and pan and navigate what are otherwise very larger files for a small screened device.
01 - AutoCAD WS for Apple iOS (iPhone and iPad) is available from the App Store for free.
Editing capabilities include the ability to tap and select objects, move or rotate objects and scale them. You can draw new elements with accuracy using Snap and Ortho modes and you can add text and annotations and validate measurements.
Sharing – AutoCAD Files and Project Butterfly
A big feature with AutoCAD WS is its hosted and shared experience. This technology and platform is essentially the Autodesk Project Butterfly project which we did a feature on a few months ago. In order to use the iOS application you must have Web access (either wifi or cellular) and you must have uploaded a DWG file to an online account. Most of the details we covered in our Project Butterfly Product In-Depth feature article would apply here.
You do not need to use AutoCAD to use Autodesk AutoCAD WS software for the Web or for iOS. If you use AutoCAD there will be a plugin so you can send files directly from AutoCAD to your AutoCAD WS online account. When the final version of AutoCAD for the Mac comes out there will be no plugin required as support for AutoCAD WS will be built in. You can upload DWG files that are produced from other non-Autodesk software using AutoCAD WS.
Currently AutoCAD WS is free. System requirements include an Internet connection, Adobe Flash Player 9.124 or higher, Javascript cookies enabled and a major browser like Safari, IE, Firefox or Chrome. You can learn more about it here.