Dear all,

Happy Christmas and New Year to one and all!

I will not be posting to this blog in 2012 as I have now combined the blog with the website at www.cadfmconsult.co.uk.

To check out Not Just CAD! hop on over to the new page and click on the Not Just CAD! tab at the top of the webpage!!

Love and peace,

Shaun x

OK, I know we need to continue with the Measuring Spaces in AutoCAD series, right? :-)

However, I was working at an amazing event with Autodesk a week or so ago called WorldSkills 2011, which is basically the Olympics for vocational skills. I was one of the CAD Experts on the Autodesk booth and it was just so much fun to teach and advise kids from primary school age upwards about Autodesk and Autodesk products. I showed one seven year old how to draw toilets and another secondary school kid how to design a missile launch station in preparation for his video game authoring career! Trust me, the Autodesk Educational Community is alive and thriving!

I learnt loads of new things too! The guys from VEX with their tennis-ball-collecting robot (designed in Autodesk Inventor) led me to the Autodesk Digital STEAM syllabus for secondary education. Just superb and ideal for getting kids involved and engaged! Go, Linda!

The kids also loved the Xbox Kinect hooked up to Motion Builder (3DS Max) and making the elf warrior dance! Jamie, inspired choice and loved Mudbox also!

One question kept popping up though. When I booted up AutoCAD, every kid I showed it to asked, "What is that thing on the startup [splash] screen?"

Well, you all know my love of music and some of you know that I will wax lyrical about Bon Jovi, one of my all-time favourite rock bands. You can imagine the surprise on these kids faces when I tell them it is the Bon Jovi stage set from their last world tour (The Circle Tour). The "wow" factor!

As soon as I tell them this, a large number of them immediately "connected" and decided they wanted to design things like that when they were older! It was a great icebreaker and worked so well to get their interest. They engaged and it was a pleasure to watch.

So, I have decided to dig deeper and look in to this more. Shaan Hurley [Autodesk] mentioned to me a while back that Tait Towers, Inc were designing the Bon Jovi set using AutoCAD and 3DS Max and after WorldSkills, I wanted to know more!

Tait Towers, Inc, as they say in the Autodesk Success Story video, are in the "spectacular business". They are always designing the next best thing and the Jovi stage was no exception. I saw Bon Jovi at the O2 in London in June 2010 and the stage set was nothing short of amazing. The rear of the stage holds massive video screens controlled by large robotic arms which, at one point, fold down in to a staircase for Jon Bon Jovi to climb and wave at the audience. Just way cool and as a singer/songwriter myself, to have a set like that would be sublime!

So, I am not going to bore you to tears with Bon Jovi's discography or which chord is which in Wanted Dead Or Alive or You Give Love A Bad Name. Just check out the links below to find out more. I found the whole project fascinating. Not just on a musical level either. The way Tait Towers, Inc design is clever and also makes the construction of the set quick and easy....exactly what you need when you are Bon Jovi and trucking around 16 trucks that hold your stage from one stadium to another!

Autodesk and Bon Jovi, who'd have thought it, eh? Rockin'!

Autodesk Success Story - Tait Towers, Inc (Click on Tait Towers video)

Autodesk Success Story - Tait Towers, Inc (PDF)

Cadalyst article about Tait Towers, Inc (March 2011, by David Cohn)

WorldSkills 2011 - The Vocational Olympics (BBC News)

Happy CADD'ing!

Shaun

Some time ago, I mentioned AutoCAD for the Mac, which was pretty impressive back then.

But now, personally, I think Autodesk have excelled themselves!

Under the Design 8:16 initiative, we now not only have AutoCAD 2012 for Mac (with network licencing) but we now have AutoCAD LT2012 for Mac and a desktop version of AutoCAD WS for Mac as well.

Check out the "Year In The Making" video on YouTube!

Plus, the LT and WS versions are on the App Store! How cool is that?

I think it is great that Autodesk have expanded their OS platform. Firstly, it makes the software way more accessible regardless of which proprietary OS you are using and, secondly, it makes me want to buy a Mac! :-)

Now, let's look at a future for these products here.

Well, it is AutoCAD 2012 for Mac, that indicates that AutoCAD for Mac is now in the regular upgrade/new version stream at Autodesk and has a development path. I sure hope so! I sure hope that as time goes by we see more Autodesk products on the Mac too!

What about compatibility, I hear you say?

Well, right now all we are dealing with is the DWG file format which, from what I can gather, can still be picked up AutoCAD 2012 on a Windows OS. So, you can have multi-OS environments in an organisation. And, with network licencing now available for AutoCAD 2012 for Mac, you now have full controll over the software too. IT departments now have no excuse not to consider AutoCAD for Mac. Isn't that great?

So, what about AutoCAD LT2012 for the Mac? Check out the screenshots below. The user interface looks great!

This is great news as it gives the user the choice of either full 2D/3D design (AutoCAD 2012 for Mac) or with LT, the 2D general drafting option, which some of us do prefer. CAD managers can now look at a super-user/general (sometimes part-time) user model and combine full AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT accordingly. A VERY shrewd decision from Autodesk. From a price point, this is very savvy. It also indicates that Autodesk are listening to their users!

Now, I don't know if you saw the Facecast yesterday presented by the lovely Lynn Allen and the equally enthusiastic Amar Hanspal, but it really gave me an insight in to how Autodesk are making sure they listen to their users. Lynn's presentation was excellent (as usual) and she promoted the users and how they have asked for new features in AutoCAD and Amar presented the commercial/business case in his usual erudite fashion. But, it is official, Autodesk are really beginning to LISTEN!

“Since the release of AutoCAD for Mac last year, customer feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, further validating the need for professional design and engineering software on the Mac platform,” said Amar Hanspal, senior vice president, Autodesk Platform Solutions and Emerging Business. “Bringing AutoCAD LT and AutoCAD WS to the Mac shows our continued commitment to making design more accessible for an ever-greater number of people to shape the world around them.”

AutoCAD WS for Mac looks great as well! This is a desktop version like the Windows desktop version so, again, CAD managers can look at multi-OS environments or even specialise on the Apple platform for AutoCAD.

Check out the screenshots. It looks superb, doesn't it?

From an Apple desktop perspective, Autodesk now have AutoCAD covered; AutoCAD 2012 and LT 2012 for Mac for design and AutoCAD WS for collaboration.

How's about if you go mobile though?

Again, available in the App store for both iProducts (iPad, iPod Touch and iPhone) and Android products (too many to mention!), the mobile arena is pretty much covered. I would still like to see a BlackBerry version though!

Again, have a look at the screenshots. There is selection of iProduct shots and Android shots in here so flick through and check them out! I am sure you will work out which is which!

In conclusion, Autodesk have excelled themselves. This will make Apple product users very happy and also secure in the knowledge that Autodesk are taking the Apple platform and OS seriously. I have been a Windows OS user up till now and I am deeply considering a move to Apple in the not-too-distant future. I was in San Rafael on AUGI business a couple of weeks ago and saw one of my AUGI colleagues using a MacBook and asked the question, "Is it worth making the move?" Simple answer, yes. You can dual boot a Mac easily now, with Windows and the new Apple Lion OS, so everything is good.

Ten out of ten, Autodesk. Staying current and keeping the users happy. Savyy!

Happy CADD'ing!

SB

Level: REGULAR USER/INTERMEDIATE

OK, so here we are for Part 2 of Measuring Areas in AutoCAD 2012.

What I am going to show you is how to use the AREA command in AutoCAD and the good thing is that we already have polylines that have an area so there is no need to trace around the edges of rooms in the AREA command.

Always try and use polylines (POLYLINE) when drawing your floor and room areas. It is so much easier to work with and manipulate a polyline rather than a group of regular AutoCAD lines. Plus, you have the added advantage that polylines retain their area as xData, as mentioned in Part 1.

 

Section 1 – Calculating A Basic Floor Area

So, let’s do the easy one first. Our floor area. The drawing is very simple and we have one rectangular polyline (in green) representing our floor area.

Now here’s a neat trick. Do you know about the AutoCAD ISOLATE command? If you don’t, where have you been? A great tool for space management that allows you to isolate just the polyline you are working with at the time.

You can just see the green floor polyline on the drawing between the two red room polylines. Select it and then right click. You will see Isolate on the shortcut menu. Select it and then click on Isolate Objects as shown.

You will then see that the only object displayed is your green floor polyline. I must ask you at this time not to panic. All of your other AutoCAD objects are still there! All you have done is ISOLATE your floor polyline from them. A bit like a layer freeze, you might say, but without the hassle of knowing all the layer names. Cool, eh?

So, with your green floor polyline now isolated, you can use the AREA command to calculate its area. Now, at this point, your areas will display in metric millimetres as that is what I have used in this drawing, so the area numbers will look huge. Don’t worry. I am purely showing you how to calculate an area of a polyline right now. We will get to units and how to display them in a later part of this Quick Tip.

In AutoCAD 2012, you will see on the Home tab on the ribbon that there is a Utilities panel. Click on Measure as shown and select the Area command.

In this instance, our area is a one-off (i.e. only one object to measure the area of), so all we need to do is right-click and select the Object option.

Using the pickbox, select your green floor polyline. Lo and behold, the area (in square millimetres) will be displayed. You will also see that your polyline area has been highlighted in a paler green colour.

Notice the perimeter of the green floor polyline (in millimetres), plus the other MEASURE tools and an option to eXit (you can also type X and press Enter to exit).

You can now exit the AREA command. You will now be left with your green floor polyline. Select it and right-click.

Select the ISOLATE option on the shortcut menu again and select End Object Isolation.

You will now be returned back to normality with all your AutoCAD objects displayed.

 

Section 2 – Calculating The Room Area

OK, so a floor area was pretty easy to calculate, right (albeit in square millimetres at the moment)?.

So, the next step is to calculate the areas of each room and add them together. Now you are thinking easy. I just do what I did in Section 1 and multiply it by two as the rooms are the same size. Nice idea, but what happens if the rooms are irregular sizes and shapes?

This is where using polylines and using the AREA command come in to their own as you can ADD areas together. Nice.

Yes, they will still be in square millimetres right now, but we will deal with that later.

Go back to the Utilities panel on the Home tab on the ribbon and select Area again.

So, we are back in the AREA command again, then right-click. This time select the Add Area option.

Then, right-click again. Select the Object option (as per Section 1) as we will be selecting both our red room polylines this time.

Using the pickbox, click on both red room polylines.

You will notice that I did not use ISOLATE this time. It is because I really didn’t need to as there are plenty of points on the red room polylines to select when calculating their area. If the drawing was much busier, sure, use the ISOLATE command!

With both polylines selected, they will both be highlighted. You will notice the areas getting added on the command line.

Press Enter and you will see the last area selected and the total area displayed.

Press Enter again and you are back to the onscreen menu where you can eXit like you did in Section 1.

At any point, you can press F2 on your keyboard. This will display your AutoCAD Text Window where you can look at your history of area calculations, as shown below.

So, now you know how to utilise the Measure tools on AutoCAD 2012, especially the AREA command. As you can see, it is very easy to work with areas providing you have used closed polylines for your floor and room areas.

In Part 3, we will move towards highlighting and annotating our floor and room areas.

As I mentioned in Part 1, please email me at shaun.bryant@cadfmconsult.co.uk if you need the AutoCAD DWGs (in 2010 DWG format) to work through the Quick Tip.

In the meantime, happy CADD’ing!

SB

Level: REGULAR USER/INTERMEDIATE

I work in Facilities Management (FM) on a regular basis, often working with proprietary Computer Aided Facilities Management (CAFM) systems such as FM:Systems and ARCHIBUS. Now these systems are great and do many things to build a CAFM inventory linked to your CAD drawings.

However, what I want to do here is start with the basics rather than teach you a whole new system.

Let’s do this piece by piece so that the theory goes in to the grey cells, right? J

We will start with AutoCAD first.

I have created a very basic FM drawing showing two rectangular rooms linked by a stud wall with a couple of doors. It is very simple to make the teaching of these principles understandable.

 

Section 1 - Utilise External References (XREFs).

Working in FM, you normally work with two drawings per floor of a building; one drawing represents your Facility Plan which would be your structural details such as walls, stud partitioning and doors. Building objects that would essentially remain permanent and not change. The other drawing would be your FM drawing that relates to the floor number.

So I have created TWO drawings for us to use: -

Facility Plan (FP) drawing - AREAS-FP-Floor0-Gnd Floor.dwg

Facilities Management (FM) drawing - AREAS-FM-Floor0-Gnd Floor.dwg

You would then reference the FP drawing in to the FM drawing and this is what I am going to show you how to do.

1.       Open the FM drawing which will be blank right now.

2.       Then, in AutoCAD 2012, go to the Insert tab on the ribbon and select Attach on the Reference panel.

3.       After clicking on Attach, you will see the following: -

4.       Select your Facility Plan (FP) drawing and click on Open.

5.       You will then see the Attach Reference File dialog box.

6.      Make sure that you set the reference as an Attachment and that scale is set to 1 and your insertion point is X=0, Y=0 and Z=0. Ideally set its Path Type as Full. You can set it to Relative but make sure that the reference drawing is in the same folder as the current drawing otherwise AutoCAD will not find the reference drawing.

7.       Click on OK and you will see your reference drawing (XREF). It looks grey because AutoCAD 2012 has a default setting to fade XREF drawings. If you cannot see your XREF, do a Zoom Extents (double-click the wheel on your mouse should do it).

8.       Make sure you save your drawing at this point.

9.       We now need to rename the XREF for layering purposes. Open up your Layer Properties Manager from the Home tab on the ribbon in the Layers panel.

10.   You will see the following layers: -

11.   XREFS is the layer the external reference drawing is on in the current drawing. The two layers actually in the XREF are preceded with the XREF drawing name. 

12.   To shorten this, we will rename the XREF drawing to rationalise the layer name listing.

13.   Type RENAME and press Enter. Select Blocks as shown and you will see your XREF drawing in the list. Select your XREF drawing in the Items list.

14.   You will now see your original XREF drawing name as the Old Name. In the Rename To field, type in FP-. Click on the Rename To button. You will see the XREF block name change. Then click on OK.

NOTE: This does NOT change the actual XREF drawing name.

15.   Open up the Layer Properties Manager again (see Step 9) and you will see that the layer names have updated accordingly.

 

Section 2 – Polyline your Floor and Room Areas.

Regardless of whether you are using the slickest, most expensive CAFM system or not, you will still need to polyline your floor and room areas. You MUST NOT use regular AutoCAD lines. They have to be polylined outlines.

There is a reason for this. Polylines carry what is known as xData, in this case, the area of the enclosed polyline (and also the perimeter, but we don’t actually need that).

If you open the Layer Properties Manager, you will see we already have a layer called ROOMAREAS.

1.       Create a new layer called FLOORAREAS. Give it a green colour.

2.       We now have two FM layers we can use. Make FLOORAREAS your current layer.

3.       We can now cheat a little due to the simplicity of the exercise. Using the RECTANGLE command (which always creates a closed polyline), we can now trace the Floor Area using the inside wall edges. Just click on the diagonal corners shown using your Object Snaps.

4.       You will end up with the Floor Area shown (which I have highlighted using lineweight for clarity).

5.       Now, here’s the bit where you have to do some work! Repeat the polylining process from Step 1 but use ROOMAREAS as your current layer and polyline each Room Area as shown.

6.       Make sure you save your drawing! J

OK, that is enough for today! Come back for Measuring Areas (AutoCAD) – Part 2 next week where we will look at ways to measure our floor and room areas.

If you do want the initial drawings to work with, just pop me an email at shaun.bryant@cadfmconsult.co.uk (They will be in AutoCAD 2010 DWG format).

Happy CADD’ing!

SB

 

The world renowned AutoCAD Technical Marketing Manager, Heidi Hewett will be hosting a Facecast about Parametrics in AutoCAD.

It will be held on Facebook (where else can you do a Facecast, LOL) on Wednesday, July 6 - 10:00am - 11:00am PST

The Facecast Tab is here.... http://autode.sk/kX9khB

Heidi will be reviewing parametrics and will happily take questions from the fans who are viewing the Facecast!

Bear in mind, the Facecast is in USA Pacific Time which is 8 hours behind UK time, so If you can't make it, don't worrry, it will be recorded for future viewing.

Look forward to seeing you there!

Happy CADD'ing!!

SB

Based on the success of the AutoCAD for Mac Facecasts, I am very pleased to say that there will be an AutoCAD WS Facecast today!!!!

You will also be able to watch it from my blog page. How cool is that?

The Facecast will be at 9am US PST today which is 5pm UK time.

The Facecast will kick in at the prescribed time below in the viewing screen.

<div style="font-size: 11px;padding-top:10px;text-align:center;width:560px">Watch live streaming video from autocad at livestream.com</div>

I really do hope that you will enjoy learning all about AutoCAD WS, the AutoCAD mobile application for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch and now Android devices.

Happy viewing!!!

SB

(PS - apologies for some funny text appearing around the viewing screen. Posterous does that with HTML sometimes!!! Doh!)

 

 

 

 

 

OK, so I'm slow on the uptake and didn't realise there was a new version of AutoCAD out!

[Just kidding]

You couldn't miss the 2012 releases this year - Autodesk have done a pretty good job of getting them everywhere!

So, what is new in AutoCAD 2012? The ARRAY command is one of the new 2012 command enhancements.

The first thing you will notice when you use the ARRAY command is that it's position on the Modify panel on the ribbon has changed and it also now has a flyout menu offering three different array types: -

• Rectangular Array
• Path Array
• Polar Array

When you create an array in the 2012 version, it is an associative array and acts a bit like an associative hatch, but also a bit like a block reference as well. Which is great, but can be a bit confusing using it for the first time. I have used AutoCAD for 23 years now and it threw me! I thought, "Huh?" when I tried to create an array for the first time but soon thought, "A-ha!" upon closer invstigation.

Once you have selected your array type (let's say Rectangular - easy, right?), you do not need to input loads of row and column spacings, just select the objects to make up the array at the prompt and then confirm with Enter or right click.

Then, just drag on screen to define your rows and colums as there is a default spacing in place right now. It is VERY cool and just SO much easier! Once you have what you want, just click on the mouse for rows, press Enter to confirm, then the same for columns, or vice-versa. You can press Enter during this process to manually enter rows and columns etc too.

Once you have your rows and columns, you can resolve the spacings on the ribbon in the new Array tab. Just click on your new array (which is now one object acting like a block/hatch) and you will see the new ribbon tab appear.

You can edit 2D and 3D arrays this way (marked on the image for you - aren't I good to you?). As you can see, very hands-on and easy to understand.

There are some othe really nice touches too.

You can edit the source objects that you used for the original array without having to explode the array and edit one-by-one. Select your array, and right click. Then, select Array on the shortcut menu....(there is also an Edit Source icon on the Array ribbon tab).

Just edit your source objects - I am adding chamfer to the original rectangle in this case. You will be prompted that you are changing the source objects (as usual). You can turn this prompt off (as shown).

Edit the array source objects and confirm this by clicking on Save Changes on the Array ribbon tab. Job done! How cool is that? Quick, huh?

You can also replace individual array components with other AutoCAD objects.

Check the image below. I am going to replace the array component with the right hand (larger) polyline using only ribbon icons.

Select your array and the Array ribbon tab appears. Click on Replace Item on the Options panel.

Select your replacement item as prompted (the larger polyline on the right) and confirm. Then, using OTRACK, find the centriod of the replacement object (as shown below).

Select the array item to replace, confirm, and voila! Click on eXit on the onscreen menu and press escape to de-select your array. Wicked, eh?

So, there you go. The new super-duper (did I just say that?) ARRAY command from AutoCAD 2012. I have only touched the surface with ARRAY here. Get on your AutoCAD 2012 and check it out. I am sure you can do so much more!

Happy CADD'ing!

SB

(This content is courtesy of Shaan Hurley's blog, Between The Lines. I have changed some of the links to allow for UK use).

You can now download the AutoCAD 2012 and AutoCAD LT product full 30 day trial and kick the tires and have a look at the new features.http://usa.autodesk.com/autocad/features/

 

So, let’s ask that again…is the CAD classroom a thing of the past? I am an Autodesk Approved Instructor and AU Speaker so maybe I have a biased opinion here but no, I don’t think it is. The physical classroom still has its place but I think learning and training methodologies have adapted with the advance of technology. Let’s face it, we have gone mobile! The iPad, the iPod and the iPhone being prime examples. You can look at your drawings on the go, modify them in the cloud (AutoCAD WS, check it out!) and not even go to the office! Put that in to a training environment. Imagine using iPads instead of paper, hardcopy manuals with video learning…you see where I am going now right?

Training Content

Sure, the training content and datasets will remain the same but it is more of a media issue and how that content is represented. Imagine an uber-classroom, minimalistic with Herman Miller furniture and an iPad on a stand on each desk next to an iMac running AutoCAD for Mac for your training courses. Yes, it looks really cool and VERY current but the content would be the same and it is still a classroom. You still have to get to that classroom and commute to get there. How’s about if that content was completely mobile with short movies to show you how to do things and the iPad in question was sitting on your desk at work next to you at your slightly less sexy workstation? No commute needed, home comforts and the only overhead is the iPad. That is a one off cost. You can view as much as you like, when you like, when you can. You get the idea now, right? Your employer is going to be far more amenable to you setting aside time at work on your iPad rather than incur all those travelling expenses. Plus, you are at work to answer any difficult stuff your boss can’t handle and you can hit pause whenever you need to. The same content but based around you. Easy. (OK, you might have to purchase the iPad!)

What I am trying to get across here is that training course content is now not restricted to the classroom. There is so much technology out there now that you can view the content pretty much anywhere, even in Starbucks (other coffee outlets are available). Yes, classroom training is still required, but wouldn’t it be great for us instructors if everyone we trained in the classroom already had a grasp of the basics needed? I, personally, would love that. I could then get in to the really cool stuff in AutoCAD straight away. Dynamic blocks, sheet sets, tool palettes. All the stuff that provides REAL economic value when using a CAD system. The things that make you an efficient and rounded CAD user. If only everyone had access to the basic content to get up to speed….what am I talking about?!! That content is all out there already! You just need to look! Try this new thing on the Internet….think it was called Google or something?

Figure 1 – A Google search for AutoCAD training online

There you go, over 500 sites that provide online training just on AutoCAD (that is sometimes free too). Autodesk provide over 90 products and I have searched on just one. Yes, OK it is AutoCAD, but there are loads of online training resources out there where you can learn the basics of your chosen product.

Dynamic Bespoke “Me-Training”

If everyone knew the basics of their chosen Autodesk product; whether that be AutoCAD, ACA, Revit, Inventor, it would make classroom training so much easier. If I knew that ALL of my trainees in my class had a decent grasp of how to drive basic AutoCAD, for example, I could then structure the class around intermediate/advanced level techniques that would make them more efficient in their workplace. Learning to draw a line is cool for the first time, but using dynamic blocks is even cooler when you realize how much time, effort and energy they save you (as well as blood, sweat and tears!).
So, if the trainees are already up to speed with basic techniques, you can then consider dynamic bespoke training for them. What I call “me-training” or to put it simply, training for me. You see what I did there, right?

This would then not only focus the classroom training on intermediate/advanced level techniques I mentioned, it would also shorten the time required in the classroom. So, instead of three days out of the office, two days of which would be spent on basic skills, you would only be out of the office for one day, One day of techniques you can immediately put in to practice upon your return. Can you imagine how impressed your boss would be? Not only have you only been away for one day but you come back energized, more knowledgeable, but better still, a more profitable asset to the company or organization.

Technology

Technology is moving fast right now. Blink and you might miss it. We have AutoCAD in the cloud (AutoCAD WS). We have the Return of the Mac with AutoCAD (there’s a song in there somewhere). You can view your DWGs on the iPhone, iPod and iPad too. So, you can’t just sit there and watch it all go by. 

Figure 2 – AutoCAD on the Mac

There is technology to allow you to attend classes remotely. You must have a webcam, right? Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers such as Skype now provide the ability to see each others screens, plus talk and see each other on the webcam as well. So, not only do you get to see your class content but you can see your instructor as well. With today’s broadband internet bandwidths this is now possible. So, that webcam you bought to talk to your granny in New Zealand at Christmas also has a business value. Use it! Video calling is great. Just make sure your office at home is tidy if you are making a business call to your client or your boss!

Skype is free but if you need a more professional setup and you want to invest in this technology at a more serious level, you have the likes of GoToTraining and GoToWebinar, plus other products such as Webex that provide a tailored training  platform for a monthly fee. Online classrooms aren’t the done thing just yet, but they will happen. The technology is so close you can taste it.

Autodesk Subscription

Autodesk Subscription doesn’t just provide product upgrades if you are signed up. It provides a plethora of e-learning courses and videos where individual progress can be monitored by an administrator, for example, the company CAD manager.

Figure 3 – Autodesk Subscription

The e-learning courses tie in to the topics you would be taught in the classroom, plus there is a basic Learning Management System (LMS) in there where you get asked questions on what you have learnt. Plus, the added bonus is that if they follow the classroom courses, they also follow the Autodesk Certification syllabus. If you want either Associate or Professional Certification status on an Autodesk product, it is well worth checking out. The e-learning plus the required experience on your product might be all you need for Certification. The benefit here; no classroom required.

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Autodesk University

Autodesk University (or AU as it is known) is the biggest Autodesk learning event on the planet (as far as I am aware)! If you attend, you are treated to keynote speeches from senior Autodesk staff, high profile Autodesk customers such as Disney Pixar, plus you have hundreds of world-class AU Speakers waiting to teach you things you never even knew existing in your specific Autodesk product. Trust me, I know. I am one of them! I cannot stress the importance of AU enough. If you ever get the opportunity to go, you MUST go. It is incredible and I am not just saying that as a Speaker either. I also attend classes there. The classroom training at AU is second to none and you will not get better, insightful knowledge on Autodesk products (or their associated Autodesk Developer third party applications either). So, there is proof that classrooms do have their purpose. However, at AU, all classes are specific and targeted. They are not just your basic AutoCAD course for beginners. The classes are punchy and are for specific purpose and audience. This goes back to what I said about already knowing the basics. There is a training channel at AU that does do basic courses but they will all be on specific topics and will follow their specific industry track, such as Facilities Management (FM), for example.

If you can’t get to the bright lights of Las Vegas to attend the AU conference, you can always use the Internet. AU Virtual provides an adequate number of free classes to keep you busy. All classes are online. All you need is your login and password, which is easily set up on the AU webpage (au.autodesk.com). Put your headphones on and listen, watch and learn! I was an AU Virtual Speaker for AU 2010 and it is a superb “virtual” training system. So, on the opposing side of the coin, AU Virtual is a perfect example of an online classroom.

Figure 4 – The AU Virtual lobby

What about the classroom?

What I have tried to convey here (albeit briefly) is that the classroom still has a purpose, even in this massively mobile technological age in which we live. We actually never stop learning from the day we are born. Studies show that the brain is one of the last organs to actually die when we do pass off this mortal coil (morbid, but true).
So, we must use our classrooms to keep those brains working. We must use our Autodesk Approved Instructors and our AU Speakers. They are there to teach and assist you to learn. The more you learn, the better you will be at what you do. You will become more confident and more empowered in your role where you work.
Today’s technology gives you the opportunity to learn the basics from the comfort of your desk at work or your table at home. Use that to your advantage so that you can enroll in classes that will push the envelope and make you work smarter, not harder. The more you learn, the easier things will become, making your job less stressful and, if you are lucky, you can spend less hours generating your drawings using your Autodesk product. I heard a quote from Lynn Allen (Technical Evangelist – Autodesk) at an AUGI Design Academy here in London, UK. The quote went something like this, “Why go from A to B to C, when you can learn how to go from A straight to C instead.”

Lynn was quite right. Learn how to work smarter and quicker. The only way you will do that is in a classroom, learning from an instructor who has already learnt how to go from A to C. Quite often, you won’t know that you are even going from A to B to C. It will take the instructor in the classroom to demonstrate how easy it is to go from A to C instead!

Useful places to go

If you are to utilize the latest technology to learn the basics, I ought to give you some pointers that will make your life that little bit easier.
Here are some Autodesk links that are worth checking out:

Autodesk’s YouTube Channel:
www.youtube.com/autodesk

Autodesk Education – Videos:
www.augi.com/education/

AutoCAD Exchange:
http://autocad.autodesk.com

Autodesk University:
http://au.autodesk.com
(Las Vegas – Nov 29 to Dec 1, 2011)

Don’t forget! AUGI also offer a fantastic range of training services! And everything is free to AUGI members. There is the AUGI Training Program (ATP) where world-class instructors (some of which speak at AU) plus AUGI CAD Camps and AUGI CAD Matinees. As an AUGI member, you also get access to AU handouts from previous Autodesk Universities. There are also links on the AUGI Education page to find an Autodesk Authorised Training Center (ATC) near you so that you can book that focused, industry-related course to make you work smarter. All of that is free to you, the AUGI membership. If you’re not a member, where have you been? Get signed up and get over to the AUGI Education page (www.augi.com/education)!

Figure 5 – The AUGI Education webpage

Conclusions

The classroom is dead. Long live the classroom! Yes, it may be that the traditional classroom is dead, but long live the newer, leaner, more focused classrooms that help you and I learn how to work smarter, quicker and more efficiently.

Before you book that basic course and try and get your boss to pay for it, or maybe you pay for it, check out what is out there that you can use to teach yourself the basics first. That funding could perhaps be used to get you on a leaner, more targeted course that could be way more beneficial to you. Plus, if your boss is paying for it and you show willing to learn yourself using today’s technology, you might even get some kudos for the effort (or even a pay rise)!

Happy training & learning!

SB

NOTE - This article is also published in the January 2011 issue of AUGI HotNews. Get on over and become an AUGI member. It's FREE!

Links/URLs: www.augi.com and http://www.augi.com/library/is-the-cad-classroom-obsolete/