AU2015 Las Vegas: Day Two

Breakfast. Again. Same as yesterday.

GEN10227 - AutoCAD Secrets Exposed

Learning objectives: Learn tips and tricks from other AutoCAD users, Learn to use the newer tools for greater productivity, learn about hidden tips that might take you years to discover, Get exposed to tips that apply to many versions of AutoCAD ranging from 2012 to 2016.

The actual experience - Jeanne Aarhus is a wonderful presenter/instructor and this is the second class in AU that I attended with her. She makes the class quite enjoyable, and even manages to make revealing tips I knew sound most interesting.

What I got out of it - I was reminded of two tips I had forgotten: you can control the spacing between MTEXT columns by dragging the ruler double arrows on the far right, and when you need to select a 1/3 of the distance between two points this command line entry works best 'Cal;Dist(end.end)/3

GEN13037 - Peer into the Future of AutoCAD

Michael Mizuno - Senior Product Manager, Autodesk, Inc.

This class will give you an overview of the future of AutoCAD® . The AutoCAD team will present new technologies, features, workflows, and tools that are designed to improve product knowledge, productivity, and efficiency of AutoCAD users across all industries.

The actual experience - New features of a future AutoCAD version were revealed and they are amazing. Sadly I can't tell you as everyone in the class was required to sign an NDA agreement.

What I got out of it - well, I can't tell you, but it's amazing.

Expert Elite Recognition Lunch

This is an opportunity for Autodesk to thank Autodesk Expert Elite unpaid volunteers for their continuous and valued contributions at the Autodesk public Product Support Forums. Want to know more about the Expert elites Program? Read all about it HERE.

The actual experience - at our table the AutoCAD program director sat with five of us and was a very interesting man to talk with about the future, the past, and the current state of all the software under his umbrella.

What I got out of it - that fuzzy feeling you get when you hang out with peers that are just amazing and the great Autodesk staff that support the program.

GEN11412 - 60 AutoCAD Tips in 60 Minutes

Presented by Lynn Allen - Evangelist, Autodesk

Learning Objective: If you want a plethora of power-user tips, be sure join Cadalyst Columnist and Autodesk Technical Evangelist Lynn Allen as she takes you through a whirlwind of productivity techniques that are certain to improve your everyday drawing life. At a tip a minute, you’ll be sure to discover some top-secret AutoCAD software features that will remove tedium and boost your ability to meet project deadlines. She switches up the tips every year.

The actual experience - Lynn is simply the most amazing presenter Autodesk has, and simply turned this talk into a joyful show to watch and participate in.

What I got out of it - I learnt a tip I did not know: you can get a table to auto-populate and auto-number other cells easily by selecting two cells with numbers in sequence then selecting all the others below them.

IT11008 - Networking Autodesk Products Beyond Z

Learning objectives: Develop a sustainable licensing maintenance plan, Learn how to recognize early symptoms of problems and have action plans ready Learn how to manage license access and borrowing to realize maximum utilization efficiency Evaluate utilization reporting options

The actual experience - OMG, this was way over my head. Way over. What?

What I got out of it - (crickets noise)

IT10856 - AutoCAD Tool Palettes Master Class (Planning and Preparation, Not Perspiration)

Learning objectives: Learn how to create a completely fresh tool palette in a network location, Learn how to create, edit, and save tools onto your networked palettes, Learn how to boost productivity with scripts and macros hosted on your palettes, Learn how to hack your tool palettes without opening AutoCAD.

The actual experience - my fellow EE Paul Munford is an amazing presenter and showed us how he likes to manage, share and develop/innovate with Palettes to control office standards.

What I got out of it - I learnt about a tip: resorting the content of a palette by selecting all, CTRL+X to cut to the clipboard, then CTRL+V to paste.

11905: AUGI Annual Meeting
Objective (yes I am a memeber of AUGI, are you?): This session features the year in review and a look ahead for members of Autodesk User Group International (AUGI). Open to AUGI members and non-members alike, this session culminates in the presentation of the AUGI Wish List - the 10 top product improvement wishes for key Autodesk products. Attendees will hear about AUGI's accomplishments in 2015 and get a sneak peek of the organization's plans for the coming year. And there's a chance to win awesome prizes and Premier and Professional memberships. And of course, everybody leaves with an AUGI Beer mug for the annual AUGI Reception which follows immediately.

The actual experience - Continuing more modestly with the Star Wars theme, the AUGI president and other board members presented AUGI to those that don't know about this user organization, and with some fanfare presented Autodesk with the latest list of use wishlists for AutoCAD.

What I got out of it - a free beer glass.

12449 - AUGI Reception

Objective (yes, I am a member, are you?): Join thousands of members of AUGI (Autodesk User Group International)—the largest Autodesk community—whose motto is “Users Helping Users.” At this reception, you’ll enjoy making connections, comparing notes,  and checking out the latest technology exhibits and activities over a cold beer. Open to everyone, not just AUGI members.

Autodesk University 2015 Blogger Social Meetup Sign Up

Objective: The Autodesk University Blogger Social started ~12 years ago and morphed into a more formal AU Blogger and Social Media Meetup event is now in it’s 8th year will be held jointly with the Autodesk PR, Social Media Team, and Office of the CTO to show our appreciation for active bloggers and influential social media who cover Autodesk products and customers. In past years in addition to beverages and good conversation and networking we have had surprises such as having a Zero G 3D printer to be used in space from Made in Space and the Megabot team and I am working on some surprises this year as well. We might also get a few special VIP seats like we did last year to give away for the closing keynote.

     

The actual experience - a fun meet and greet experience were I got to meet some of the best bloggers out there.

FitBit Count for the day: 9,248 steps (4.22 miles).

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AU2015 Las Vegas: Day Two

AU2015 Las Vegas: Day One

Breakfast
So how do you feed +/-10,000 attendees? in a very big hall. From 6:30-8:00, I joined the others for what is a very basic hotel breakfast that is there to kick start your day.

GEN10224 - AutoCAD Jeopardy (my first class)

Learning objectives: Learn to capitalize on AutoCAD knowledge to help others learn in a whole new way, Extend the knowledge of AutoCAD software’s capabilities.

The actual experience - This was as much fun as I hoped it would be. Set up like the game show Jeopardy, a very long list of quick fire questions and answers were needed for a very comprehensive list of AutoCAD commands, features, variables and functions that the whole class participated in. And there were prizes for correct answers too.

What I got out of it - I actually learned two things that never occurred to me before: "nudge" command works with SNAP distances, plus a good example of when SPACESWITCH command might come in handy.

11906 - Autodesk University Opening General Session

Join Autodesk CEO Carl Bass and CTO Jeff Kowalski as we kick off Autodesk University 2015.

The actual experience - Wow! sensory overload.

What I got out of it - It was fun to attend.

11917 - AU Lunch and Volunteer Opportunity Tuesday

The actual experience - food stations located between exhibitors at the exhibit hall.

What I got out of it - lunch and staring at exhibits.

GEN9638 - Forensic Cadology: When Good DWG files Go Bad

Learning objectives: Learn how to diagnose the cause of a corrupt DWG file, repair a corrupt DWG file, how to find (use) the most current backup file and learn best practices to avoid file corruption

The actual experience - This was an excellent class that offered very detailed instructions and guidelines for file recover methods, ways to try and avoid file corruption, and so much more.

What I got out of it - The methods I already use are still valid, but I was exposed to a better systematic approach that I will use in teh future.

GEN11005-L - The Power of Fields and Attributes in AutoCAD

Learning objectives: Learn how to create attributes and redefine existing attributes, insert fields, insert field with text/mtext, or use with attributes, Learn to use fields for complex calculation using elements property combining with formulas, Learn how to extract attribute/fields from the design data and output as AutoCAD Table or export as Excel or database file.

The actual experience - With AutoCAD loaded on computers for all of us class attendees to use, the instructor's intent was to present a hands on experience in creating attributes, fields, and links to external Excel files and Tables inside AutoCAD. Sadly he was ill prepared, seemed challenged by his own material and overall did little to provide anything warranting an "intermediate-advanced" class.

What I got out of it - Not much. Can I get a refund?

GEN11607-L - Exploring the 2016 Dimension Tools (in AutoCAD)

Learning objectives: Discover core concepts for AutoCAD dimensioning, new dimension tools in AutoCAD 2016, use all options within the new dimension tools, and Learn how to identify the best ways to edit existing dimensions.

The actual experience - This happened to take place in the exact same room as the class I attended before, but with a much better experience. The instructor had three test DWG files ready on each computer, walk us through the new DIM command features in AutoCAD 2016, and was very engaging and was not afraid to answer difficult questions.

What I got out of it - While I did not discover any new features I did not know about, I did learn how to fix a glaring AutoCAD 2016 problem when using Annotative Dimensions and Baseline Dimensions. Now I can go back to drawing these again. What's that fix? I'll blog about it later this month.

12448 - AU Community Reception

Objectives: lasses end the party begins. Join everyone in the Exhibit Hall for the AU Community Reception as they close out day 1 of AU. Take in a bite, a sip, a boogie, and lots of networking with thousands of like-minded professionals from around the world. Chat with AU exhibitors and see the latest technologies at work in the world.

The actual experience - food, networking, hanging out with exhibitors, and overall just a great way to wind down after a long and busy day.

FitBit Count for the day: 14,249 steps (6.52 miles).

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AU2015 Las Vegas: Day One

AU2015, the day before: Freshman Orientation

I arrived today, the afternoon before AU2015, to complete my Registration, get my access badges, get into my hotel room, and as all new "university" attendees, show up for the Freshman Orientation class held this afternoon.

Airport
Las Vegas Airport is a little confusing, looks more like a casino than airport, and depending on where you land you may need to take a train to the main terminal. I just followed everyone off of my plane and was led to where I needed to be to leave the airport.

Ride to Hotel
Getting here you have to decide if you want convenience (Uber or Lyft cars are my first choice), or if like me you want to see a little bit of "the Strip" by taking an airport shuttle ($9 one way), or you want to take an old school taxi cab and pay way much more, or splurge and get a Limo to your hotel (starts at $45/person). I enjoyed the Shuttle ride.

Hotel
I opted to stay at one of the two recommended hotels, The Venetian (The Palazzo is next door and equally close to the action). You can stay anywhere you want, but you'll have to figure out transportation if you're not into walking over. The place was packed with many AU attendees checking in but this hotel had a great system that moved the process quickly. I got a nice non-smoking room on floor 14 overlooking the pool area.

AU Registration
First thing to do after you drop your baggage in the room is to hop down to AU Registration to get your access badge. Autodesk emailed me a QR Code a couple of days ago and this automated the process: I don't think it took more than 5-minutes to scan my code walk over to get the print-out and lanyard (they required a photo ID to prove I was me first), then walk over to the 'merch" desk and pick up the complimentary AU2015 backpack.

11904 - AU Freshman Orientation 2015
Lynn Allen and others point out events and gatherings that should not be missed, plus get a preview of what’s in store for AU 2015. Well, that's what the intro to the class noted. This is slated to be 90-minutes long with a social/networking gathering afterwards. Lynn Allen was amazing, explained how this huge place works, how to use the AU2015 app, how  to find every event and function scheduled, and generally made us Freshman most welcome. Best 25-minutes of my time here so far.

A guest speaker got up and started talking about VUCA and managed to take a hall full of 500+ attendees to play the Marshmallow Challenge for 20-minutes, their enthusiasm fanned by the allure of $100 gift card for use at the at the Autodesk store. What is VUCA? What is the Marshmallow Challenge? Sadly I tuned out and felt this was a total waste of my time, but the winning team of the Marshmallow Challenge did construct the most amazing 39" tall structure that remained upright for the 15-minutes that I observed it: 3-engineers and 1-construction specialist were part of the team. Bravo!

A heart-warming videotaped story about training prison inmates with Autodesk software for careers when they get out was a nice touching story that closed out the event.

Expert Elite (EE) Welcome Reception
I ducked out 10-minutes before the Freshman Orientation class ended to visit with and attend a gathering of my fellow EE contributors (many are teaching or are participating in events at AU2015) at the Autodesk Forums and our Autodesk Liaison staff. It was good to see some familiar faces and meet new ones. If you are here at AU2015, look for us EEs wherever you are, we all have Expert Elite tags attached to the bottom of our ID cards.
Thanks to the Autodesk team for arranging it all.


It's time to get ready for a long day tomorrow. If you are interested, my FitBit logged 8703 steps today from the moment I stepped off the plane here in Las Vegas.

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AU2015, the day before: Freshman Orientation

Autodesk University 2015 (AU2015): why am I going now?

Autodesk University (AU) is the premier learning destination for Autodesk customers worldwide. Learn more about us. Learn from experts and follow industry thought leaders.

That's the tag line you will see when you Google search Autodesk University (AU): clear, concise, and, well, self explanatory. This event used to be held only in Las Vegas but has fortunately been gaining world wide demand that this year AU was held in quite a few other cities around the globe ahead of the "big one" in Las Vegas. Read about it all HERE.
So what if you can't go to any of these events around the world, for whatever reason, what are your options for getting in on some of these premier teaching opportunities? You are in luck since Autodesk posts all the classes soon after the AU event online for you to access at your convenience, for free, anytime you want it. Just get started HERE.

So why am I going after all these years? First, I feel like I'm stuck in rut trying to cater to the new needs of my office users of AutoCAD/LT/Architecture 2016 for customizations and overall drafting production speeds, and partly because my curiosity about AU has reached a level that needs to be satisfied. I hope I get my money's worth out of it, it's not cheap attending AU2015.

AU2015 will run from December 1 through December 3 this year, and I signed up for many classes on each day. I plan on blogging (and Tweeting) on my daily classes, experiences, events plus my overall Freshman experience at AU.

If you are attending, please seek me out and introduce yourself: in between classes you will most likely find me at the Expert Elites (EE) area of the Autodesk Booth where I and my fellow EEs will be on hand to answer those nagging Autodesk software usage questions you may have or need resolved. ◦

Autodesk University 2015 (AU2015): why am I going now?

AutoCAD/LT 2016 for Mac (aka Mandalore) is here!

After a very long wait, Autodesk has finally released AutoCAD/LT for Mac version 2016 to the world. Autodesk continues to play catch-up with the Windows version when it comes to program features, and this 2016 version is no exception.

System Requirements

LT remains a resource hog on the Mac, and it's best run on the PRO series of hardware offered by Apple, if you own an iMac, MacBook, MacBook Air, Mac Mini or any Mac after the year 2010 (not 2009 in my opinion as they list) it might just work with the correct OS:

• Mac Pro
• MacBook Pro
• MacBook Pro with Retina Display

And with the following Apple Operating Systems:

• Mac OS X El Capitan v10.11 (or later)
• Mac OS X Yosemite v10.10 (or later)
• Mac OS X Mavericks v10.9 (or later)

New AutoCAD/LT 2016 for Mac Features

Core AutoCAD/LT for Windows tools added to the MAC versions

• CHSPACE - Change objects from model space to paper space or vice versa.

• PASTEORIG - Paste objects using original coordinates.

• PASTEBLOCK - Paste objects as block.

Xref Server Path Mapping

• References stored on Windows server can be found.

• XREFPATHMAPPING command has been added.

• Supports reference of DWG, PDF, Image, and datalink.

• Path mapping edit after creation.

• Supports all types of disk drives.

• For new reference, path saves in Windows path pattern if a path mapping is defined.

Properties Inspector Enhancement

• Add/Remove your favorite properties to "My Properties" tab basing on object type.

PDF Output Enhancement

• Output PDF size reduced.

• Truetype font text is recognizable in output PDF.

TrueType Font Performance Improvement In Canvas

• Zoom/Pan performance improved.

• Turn on/off this feature with "DTTEXT" system variable.

Revision Clouds

• More options: Rectangular, Polygonal, Freehand, Modify (similar to Windows versions).

• Better grip edit experience.

• System Variable "REVCLOUDGRIPS" and "REVCLOUDCREATEMODE".

Dimensioning

• Dim command now can add multiple types of dimensions conveniently. One command to do it all.

• Text wrap in dimensions.

• Preset the layer of new dimensions by system variable DIMLAYER.

Text

• New "match property" button on Text Editor visor.

• New toggle button on Text Editor visor to turn on/off the ruler.

• New property "Text frame" has been added to enable you to create a border around Mtext objects.

Geometric Center Object Snap

• Snap to Pline center.

• Settings available in Draft Settings dialog and OSNAP system variable.

Command Preview

• Preview the result during a command.

• Extended to the BLEND, ERASE, STRETCH, ROTATE, and SCALE commands.

Commandline Enhancement

• Mid-string command search.

• Autocorrect command input.

• Turn on/off this feature from commandline context menu.

Graphics Engine (and why non-Pro and older hardware will choke)

• OpenGL Core Profile is enhanced and now enabled by default on capable graphics card. Improves overall performance, especially in 3D.

Xref Enhancements

• Able to control the properties of objects in DWG underlay. XREFOVERRIDE system variable to turn it on/off.

• Xref layers show in grey in Layer palette.

Line Smoothing

• Anti-aliasing in 2D visual style.

• Turn on/off line smoothing with system variable LINESMOOTHING.

Selection and Pre-Selection Effect Enhancement

• More visible selection and pre-selection effect.

• SELECTIONEFFECT, PRESELECTIONEFFECT, SELECTIONEFFECTCOLOR system variables.

Notification Setting

• Turn on/off receiving AutoCAD messages(except Update notifications) in Notification Center.

Support File Path

• Clean up the list, some paths removed/hidden from the list.

Cloud Service

• Cloud Storage Usage is now showing in the Application Preferences dialog Online page.

Multiple Language UI

• No new Language versions added. Not sure why.
• Switch UI language(English and French) via Preference dialog.

Express Tools Added (not in LT)

• Convert Text to Mtext(TXT2MTXT)
• Break-line Symbol (BREAKLINE)
• Explode Attributes to Text(BURST)
• Move/Copy/Rotate (MOCORO)
• Replace Block…(BLOCKREPLACE)
• Super Hatch (SUPERHATCH)

Section Objects Added (not in LT)

• New "slice" option for sectionplane command.

Render Enhancements (not in LT)

• Provide Cloud Rendering options. RENDERONLINE command.

• Provide feedback channel for Rendering feature.

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AutoCAD/LT 2016 for Mac (aka Mandalore) is here!